Page 2 of 11

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Fri May 30, 2014 8:34 pm
by Serviam
Prequels do help in fleshing out the characters.

A resort suite... I know of some hotels in the metro. Resorts World Manila is just across the third airport terminal (the Manila airport has four), there's Shangri-La hotel near one of the business districts, but those are just my suggestions, and there are more I can't seem to pull up immediately. :?

EDIT: Adjusting for the time period (which I presume is 2024)...I'm sure the list will change, but the hotels I mentioned would probably still stand ten years from now.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Fri May 30, 2014 8:59 pm
by Hoitash
Serviam wrote: EDIT: Adjusting for the time period (which I presume is 2024)...I'm sure the list will change, but the hotels I mentioned would probably still stand ten years from now.
Probably, but I'm used to dealing with Wyndham Resorts, so that's what I rolled with. They don't have one there now, but it could happen; Manila's big enough for another resort, I imagine.

Although that begs the question why the Nakai's have a timeshare in the Philippines in the first place....

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Fri May 30, 2014 9:12 pm
by Serviam
Hoitash wrote:
Serviam wrote: EDIT: Adjusting for the time period (which I presume is 2024)...I'm sure the list will change, but the hotels I mentioned would probably still stand ten years from now.
Probably, but I'm used to dealing with Wyndham Resorts, so that's what I rolled with. They don't have one there now, but it could happen; Manila's big enough for another resort, I imagine.

Although that begs the question why the Nakai's have a timeshare in the Philippines in the first place....
I was thinking "cooperation with one of the schools," like a visiting instructor, or even a business deal. Hell, in Cebu province, there be gunsmiths even--hey, maybe Kenji might have struck a deal with one of those smiths?

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Fri May 30, 2014 11:52 pm
by griffon8
It's summer enough for a new story. Good to see Soon-hee again.
Hoitash wrote:Although that begs the question why the Nakai's have a timeshare in the Philippines in the first place....
No, that raises the question. Begging the question is a logical fallacy, where the conclusion of an argument is also a premise of the argument.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Sat May 31, 2014 12:05 am
by Hoitash
griffon8 wrote:
Hoitash wrote:Although that begs the question why the Nakai's have a timeshare in the Philippines in the first place....
No, that raises the question. Begging the question is a logical fallacy, where the conclusion of an argument is also a premise of the argument.
And people wonder why I need an editor... wait, no they don't.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 7:38 am
by poopooface
Great story as always, Hoitash. :D

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 7:44 am
by poopooface
Btw was that just part 1?

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:34 am
by Hoitash
poopooface wrote:Great story as always, Hoitash. :D
Thanks, I try (occasionally I succeed)
poopooface wrote:Btw was that just part 1?
Indeed, Chapter Two should be posted on Thursday, as shall every chapter (hopefully) barring August 20 (if this is still running) because I'll be at Gen Con.

Fear not, folks, I have an army of highly trained orangu-men and techpriests hard at work providing me with an army to conquer Yukon. I mean readying the next chapter.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 3:11 pm
by androios
I had recently started writing a story (completely unrelated to KS) and getting frustrated by the lack of feedback, and then I thought I should do unto others as I would have them do unto me. Not that I have anything interesting to say here - I just want you to know that you're my favourite writer here, I've read all your stories and I hope there'll be many more of them to read!

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 4:31 pm
by Hoitash
androios wrote:I had recently started writing a story (completely unrelated to KS) and getting frustrated by the lack of feedback, and then I thought I should do unto others as I would have them do unto me. Not that I have anything interesting to say here - I just want you to know that you're my favourite writer here, I've read all your stories and I hope there'll be many more of them to read!
Writing without feedback can get disheartening, although it can be hard to give it sometimes. That is one of the struggles of a writer. That and paying for food.

Anywho, thanks for the sentiment, and glad you've enjoyed my writings :).

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series (Updated 6/5)

Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:16 pm
by Hoitash
“Beyond that, we knew… precious little about the man, the real man.” –Hisao Nakai, Hisao and Kenji: Master Detectives!

Previous Chapter

Chapter Two: The Founder’s Tale


I didn’t train on weekends, but I did swim –though not as many laps as I normally would- so it was a bit weird getting up, eating, and heading to the airport without having gotten in some laps. It wasn’t helping my anxiety, either, as my mind had far more energy to wander than I preferred. At least we had gotten up when I normally would, not that that helped one way or the other. Fortunately I had plenty to focus my mind on as we made our way to the airport, as Miya and Kenji went over the itinerary and Hisato chirped on about how much fun the trip would be.

Kenji spent most of the trip going over the paper version of the itinerary, when he wasn’t exchanging brief phone calls with Mr. Nakai or speaking with Miya. Mostly it sounded like dealing with the travel arrangements, which was being handled via third party, or something. Other than the fact we weren’t going on a normal flight, I didn’t know much.

We reached the airport without incident, and after parking the car I took as many of the bags as I could while Kenji took the rest and Miya led us to meet the Nakai’s.

“We’ll be meeting them near the hangar,” Miya told me, “Since we managed to get a private flight for the trip.”

“Private flight?” I asked.

“Friend of the family,” Kenji replied, “He owed me and my partner a favor, and Hanako doesn’t like big planes and it cuts the flight time in about half, so when he offered us a lift, we went for it.”

I nodded and shifted the weight on my shoulders slightly. I had weighed myself down a bit with the bags, but it was the closest thing I was going to get to a workout, and I wanted to make sure I helped as much as possible.

The airport terminal was mostly comprised of two stories of white concrete and metal with tinted glass, with a slanting metal roof, though a portion was a multi-story gray concrete block. Overall the airport seemed small to me, but I had looked it up and since it was only a regional airport, the size made sense.

Despite the small size, the airport was relatively busy. Cars were loading and unloading people bogged down with bags and suitcases, while herds of people filed off or onto buses, and taxi’s wormed their way through it all to get to their riders.

It was also really noisy, and the hairs on my neck stood up as some of the random clanks and clunks threatened to trigger emotions I’d really rather not experience. I gritted my teeth and focused on my breathing to block out the sounds, which kept me from seeing Things.

Instead of walking into the terminal itself, Kenji and Miya led us to a smaller attached building to the right of the main building, which looked identical to the larger concrete one on the other end of the structure. Instead of wide open glass doors, the entrance was a simple double-door made of metal and marked as for authorized personnel only.

Instead of herds of people, men and women in jumpsuits and flight attendants moved in and out alone or in small clutches, occasionally escorting a small group of passengers into or out of the airport. Besides the random taxi meandering its way over, there was almost no vehicle traffic there, either. Most of the departing passengers who left that way headed to the buses near the main terminal or the passenger parking lot.

“You see her?” Kenji asked Miya.

Miya nodded and called out in English, “Hey, Malik!

A young woman in a black and gold pilot uniform waved, but didn’t call back. She was standing off to the side of the smaller gate, out of the way of the small trickle of foot traffic.

“That’s our pilot,” Kenji stated, “Faridah Malik,” looking down at Hisato as he clung to his arm, he smirked and added, “You probably don’t remember her.”

Hisato shook his head as he watched the woman.

“You’ve flown with her before?” I asked.

Kenji nodded, “Four times so far. Last time was a little over a year ago. Miya got a commission in the States and the friend owed us back then, too –different favor.”

I nodded and watched as Miya picked up her pace to reach the pilot. As we got closer I noticed she had dark brown hair –almost black, really- that was a bit longer than mine. She had a small beauty mark above her upper lip on the right side of her face. The jacket of her uniform had the patch of a company logo I didn’t recognize, along with several identification and clearance tags clipped onto various pockets. The pilot waited until we had all approached before speaking.

Hey,” she said in English,“Been a while, hasn’t it?”

Kenji grinned and nodded, “You might not remember our son, Hisato.”

Hisato bowed to the pilot and introduced himself in Japanese, which Kenji translated.

The pilot smiled down at Hisato, “Hello, Mr. Setou. Nice to see you again; you’re a lot bigger than the last time I saw you.”

Hisato beamed when that was translated.

Kenji glanced behind him at me and opened his mouth, but before he could speak Miya stepped aside so the pilot could see me better and said, “This is our Little Lamb, Kim Soon-hee.”

I bowed to the pilot, “Hello, it’s nice to meet you.”

The pilot seemed surprised I knew English, but returned the bow and replied, “Nice to meet you, too. As you’ve no doubt figured out, I’m Faridah Malik, your pilot for the flight to Manila. You can call me Malik though –everybody does.”

Hisao and the gang are already here, right?” Kenji asked.

Malik nodded, “They got here a few minutes ago; they came early so Hanako could make sure they loaded her baby properly.

Kenji chuckled, “Wonder which one she brought this time.

Some custom job she’s been tinkering with,” Miya replied, “We went on a test spin last week. But we should probably head through, right?

Malik nodded, “We’re scheduled to leave soon, so I’ll take you through and to the plane,” perhaps worried I was overloaded, she added, “I can also grab any bags if you need me too.

I’m fine,” I stated, “but thank you for offering.

Malik smiled and nodded before gesturing to the double-doors, “This way, please.

Malik led us through the smaller gate and into the building. The inside looked like a smaller version of what my research indicated an airport terminal would look like, only much more utilitarian and drab. After going through a quick but thorough check-in and scan, we continued outside onto the tarmac. Before we got there I made sure to focus on the sound of Kenji’s footsteps, hoping it would help block out the other noise.

The noise on the other side of the terminal was incessant, everywhere, and loud. Really loud; planes taking off, taxiing, or landing, their engines rumbling and whining the entire time. Trucks, cars, and carts roaming around, their engines adding to the din while employees barked and shouted to be heard. It seemed to echo everywhere and reverberate in my skull, and it hurt. I kept my composure and focused on the footsteps, which helped dull the other noises a bit.

The bigger planes had hangars on the right side of the airport, while on the left there were much smaller hangars and a couple of helicopter pads. We were walking toward the nearest hangar, which looked to have some activity as people in jumpsuits bustled in and out. As we got closer I was eventually able to see the plane; a relatively small, sleek jet painted black and gold with big, blocky gold letters along the side that read SARIF INDUSTRIES.

“Sarif Industries?” I read aloud, “The augmetics company?”

“That’s right,” Kenji replied.

I thought about asking how someone from Sarif knew Kenji and Mr. Nakai, but I decided it wasn’t my place. When we got into the hangar the outside noise dimmed down quite a bit, and I sighed in relief.

Hey Hisao!” Malik called, “They’re here!”

Something was happening on the other side of the plane, as a group of airport ground crewmen were using a forklift to try and fit a very large wooden crate into the plane’s cargo compartment. From behind them came a group of people; Mrs. Nakai was the first and only one I recognized, her long sleek hair done up in a ponytail. She seemed completely focused on the operation going on near the plane, and once she was fully in view she stopped walking towards us and turned toward the loading of the crate.

Accompanying the Director was a man that looked about her age with brown hair. Based on what pictures I had seen at the Setou’s, I figured he was Mr. Nakai. A pace behind him was a young man who looked like a younger version of him, and trotting along with him were two young girls, one with hair the same color as Mrs. Nakai’s, the other with brown hair like her father. Mr. Nakai turned and said something to his wife, who said something back, and he continued walking over to us.

“Hey, man!” Mr. Nakai said to Kenji, “Hey, Malik.”

Hey,” Malik said, “They still haven’t loaded it yet?

Mr. Nakai sighed and shook his head, “Smaller plane, tighter fit.

They better hurry,” Malik said, “We’re scheduled to leave in twenty. Hey, careful with that!

Malik bolted over to the crew as they struggled to work the crate, while the Director started barking at them, clearly irritated about something. I had no idea she could get so riled up, but then again I had only met her twice; once at the hospital and again during a campus tour.

Kenji chuckled at the scene, “Emperor help them if something happens to her baby.”

Mr. Nakai nodded and glanced behind him, “If they don’t get it in on time Hana’s gonna flip.”

Miya leaned sideways and tilted her head slightly, “I think they got it.”

“I hope so. Anyway,” he turned to me and stuck out his left hand for me, “Hisao Nakai, Hanako’s husband and Kenji’s partner. You must be Miss Kim Soon-hee.”

I lowered one of the bags I was holding so I could shake Mr. Nakai’s hand, “Pleasure to meet you, Sir. Um, you can just call me Soon-hee.”

Mr. Nakai smiled and nodded. Gesturing at the three children, he added, “These are our kids, obviously. My son, Akio.”

Mr. Nakai’s son jumped and coughed into his hand before bowing lightly, “Nice to meet you, Miss Kim.”

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series (Updated 6/5)

Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:16 pm
by Hoitash
Part II:

The Setou’s had told me a bit about the Nakai’s, including some helpful information about the children. That information had included their ages; Akio was almost twelve, Satomi was ten, and Refia had recently turned five. So despite the age difference, I was entirely unsurprised that Akio and Satomi were already as tall as me, though Refia was of course considerably shorter. At the time, at least.

I lowered the other bag I was carrying so I could return the bow properly, “Nice to meet you, too. You can just call me Soon-hee.”

Akio gulped and nodded, “A-alright.”

Mr. Nakai smirked and continued, “And my daughters, Satomi and Refia,” he pointed to each as he introduced them.

“Hi!” Satomi said, giving an energetic wave with her left hand, as she was using her right to hold on to Refia, “Nice to meetcha!”

I smirked and replied, “You, too.”

Satomi looked down to the younger girl whose hand she was holding. Her little sister was staring at something on the ceiling, or maybe just the ceiling; Kenji had mentioned she had ADD. Satomi sighed and shook Refia’s arm.

Refia looked down from the ceiling and bowed, “Hello, Kim Soon-hee-ssi. It’s nice to meet you.”

No one had told me Refia knew Korean, although considering her accent, she had probably just started learning –not that I was much better. Still, I bowed and returned the greeting, adding in Japanese, “You can just call me Soon-hee.”

Refia tilted her head, “Can I call you Heesan?”

“Hee-chan, please,” formality with people close to my own age felt unnecessarily stiff to me.

Refia grinned and nodded.

“Well,” Mr. Nakai said as he looked down at his youngest child, “that explains all those calls to Emi and Kwan.”

Refia nodded, looking up at the ceiling rather than her father as she stated, “When I found out Hee-chan was coming with us, I asked Skittles to teach me Korean.”

Apparently tired of being ignored, Hisato interjected and chirped, “Hi, Uncle Hisao!”

Mr. Nakai grinned and stooped down, “Hey, Kiddo!”

Mr. Nakai opened his arms and Hisato bounded forward, grabbing him around the neck. When Hisao had returned the hug, Hisato looked up and asked, “Up?”

“Sure,” Mr. Nakai said, hefting up the young boy with a grunt.

“Huh,” Miya interjected, “Looks like they managed to load the crate.”

I looked over to the rear of the plane, which was now devoid of the forklift or crate. Mrs. Nakai was walking toward us, her expression clearly relieved. She had a black leather jacket folded over one arm and a purple motorcycle helmet under the other.

“Sorry that took so long,” She said to the group. Smiling and looking at me, she greeted, “Hello, Soon-hee.”

I bowed, “Director.”

Mrs. Nakai chuckled, “As I said, the position is honorary. Please just call me Mrs. Nakai.”

I nodded once, “Sorry.”

Mr. Nakai glanced down at his watch, “We should get on the plane; we’ll be leaving soon.”

“They forgot our bags,” Miya stated.

Hanako grimaced and looked at our luggage, “There, er, wasn’t room after they finally got my crate in. Malik said there’s extra storage in the plane with the carry-ons. S-sorry about that.”

“It’s fine,” Miya and Kenji said at the same time.

“Need a hand with those bags?” Akio asked me.

“I’m fine,” I replied, even though my arms felt a bit sore as I grabbed the bags I had let go of to greet everyone, “Thanks, though.”

We all moved around the nose to the left side of the jet, where a portable stairway had been set up near an opened hatch. The Nakai’s and Hisato were first up, followed by Kenji, Miya, and then myself. The stair led to a small open space behind the cockpit area, which was closed off by a wall and door, and heading further into the plane led to the passenger cabin, which looked more like a high-class lounge than anything else. Large, comfortable looking chairs covered in black and gold-striped vinyl or leather were formed in a semi-circle along the back wall, which had a large television mounted between two metal doors. Another line of chairs and a sofa ran along the right side of the cabin, their backs to the curving wall that was the jet’s hull. Along the left side were several short rows of two or three seats along the small rounded windows. Storage compartments were lined up above the right set of seats.

Since the Nakai’s weren’t carrying any bags, I figured they had already loaded their carry-ons while the crew figured out the crate problem. Miya pointed out the compartments for Kenji, who headed over to them to load the bags he was holding. I followed him to do the same. It wasn’t until I was standing in front of them that I realized how high up they were. Normally my height isn’t an issue, but when you’re short even by Asian standards, staring up at something designed for people that are statistically several centimeters taller than that, it can be rather annoying.

I looked up at the compartment latch and sighed, “My kingdom for another three centimeters.”

“Wanna just hand ‘em to me?” Kenji asked, “Or do you think you got it?”

I turned to Kenji, glanced at the compartment, then back to Kenji to reply, “If I tried I’d probably pull something or drop a bag. Thanks.”

I passed the bags to Kenji to load up, and once they were all packed he closed the latch and pat my head, which always made me smile.

“Thanks,” I said again.

Kenji grinned and adjusted his glasses, “You’re welcome. Doin’ okay so far?”

I nodded, “So far.”

“Good,” he said. He looked like he was about to say something else, but instead perked his ear and looked behind me.

I turned around to follow his gaze and noticed everyone else standing at the front of the cabin, now joined by a middle-aged man with olive skin and graying hair. He was wearing black slacks and a vest over a white shirt, and was shaking hands with Mr. Nakai. The hatch out to the hangar was closed, so he must have either been outside or in the cockpit.

“Wondered where you were,” Mr. Nakai said as he shook the man’s hand.

“Had to make a call,” the man said, “Everything alright? Heard there was some trouble loading Hanako’s bike.”

“Everything’s fine,” Mr. Nakai said, “They managed to load it in time.”

“Sorry about that,” the man said, “This was the only jet I could get for this trip, and obviously cargo space wasn’t an issue on the way here.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Mrs. Nakai interjected, “You’ve done enough just giving us a lift and saving me the hassle of shipping my baby.”

The man grinned, “Glad to be of service. Kenji, is that you back there?”

“Yeah!” Kenji called, “Thanks for the ride, man.”

“No problem. That your friend there?”

Kenji nodded, “Yeah, it’s her,” turning to my general direction, he added, “Soon-hee, this is David Sarif, CEO of Sarif Industries.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” the man said, walking over and extending his hand.

I raised an eyebrow at the proffered hand. Instead of flesh and bone, the forearm and hand were black metal with a matte finish. I had read a bit about augments while researching physical therapy as a future career path, but had only ever seen them in person once before. Even though I’d seen pictures online or in my textbooks, I had still imagined something bulkier and more primitive looking. What I saw seemed less like a prosthetic and more an extension of the man himself. Even Mrs. Kotobuki’s legs weren’t as sleek and advanced looking.

Perhaps that was why Sarif Industries was the leading augmetics company; where other corporations replicated the human limb, Sarif had truly mastered the art of replacing them, turning the juggling act that was durability, reliability, and melding inorganic with organic into an art.

After spending a second too long gawking at the limb, I extended my own to shake the man’s hand. The augment felt surprisingly warm –like a hand should.

Pleasure to meet you, Sir,” I stated, using Mr. Sarif’s first language out of politeness, “My name’s Kim Soon-hee. I hope I wasn’t too impolite in looking over your augment.”

Mr. Sarif chuckled, “It’s fine, that’s what it’s for. Your English is pretty good, by the way.”

“Thank you, Sir. Um, may I… uh, take a closer look? At the augment, I mean.”

Mr. Sarif grinned and nodded. I let go of the arm and started tracing the fingers with my left hand, absently poking the joints along the way as I did so. The augment reacted to my touches just like a normal hand or arm would.

“Never seen an augment before, I take it?”

“Just once,” I replied.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series (Updated 6/5)

Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:17 pm
by Hoitash
Part III:

Mundane prosthetics were expensive enough, so not every Yamaku student missing a limb had one –or even needed one. Besides, the body rejected the neural implants required for augments to work if the brain wasn’t fully developed.

Still tracing and fingering the augment intently, I absently muttered, “How long were you in physical therapy?”

“Not long at all,” Mr. Sarif replied, “Well, for this version. Some of the earlier prototypes took some getting used to, and the first ones left some nasty burns that had to heal while we worked out the kinks. All part of the process, though –no offense meant, of course.”

“None taken,” Mrs. Nakai declared.

Having given the augment a thorough examination, I let go of Mr. Sarif’s hand and bowed, “Thank you for letting me look, and sorry for… Sorry.”

Mr. Sarif grinned and waved the augment, “It’s fine, Kid. Kenji told me you were thinking of becoming a physical therapist, and my work links up with that pretty heavily. Speaking of, have you put any thought into studying overseas?”

“David,” Miya called, “Don’t try and hire her until she’s graduated high school.”

Mr. Sarif chuckled and winked at me, “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“I have,” I replied to the earlier question, “including at University of Michigan’s medical school.”

Mr. Sarif raised an eyebrow, “Well, good to hear. If you need any info or a tour arranged later on, let me know. Oh, that reminds me,” he turned around to face Mr. Nakai, “Hisao, I have that info you wanted. We can discuss it on the way.”

“Thanks,” Mr. Nakai said.

Attention passengers,” Malik’s voice rang out from the overhead speakers, “We’ll be taking off soon, so if everyone could please take their seats and fasten their seatbelts. Thank you.”

Her voice cut out and some rock music with English lyrics started playing

Miya sighed, “Every time.”

“Nothing wrong with the classics,” Kenji remarked.

The engine hummed to life, and everyone scattered around the various lounge-like seats, with the kids grouping around the TV, while Miya and Kenji sat under the luggage storage. I took a rear seat that allowed me to look out the window, while Mr. Nakai and Mr. Sarif sat closer to the cockpit. Mrs. Nakai took a seat next to me, which made me a bit nervous, as I still wasn’t sure how to act around her.

Mrs. Nakai sighed and pulled the bungie she was using to hold up her hair. Shaking it a bit to loosen it out, she turned to me and smiled, “So, how was your first trimester?”

“Um, good.”

“I heard you’re Vice Captain of the Judo club.”

I nodded, “Mostly by default, but the Captain says I do a good job. It’s mostly paperwork.”

The jet started taxiing out onto the runway, and I reflexively grabbed the armrests.

Mrs. Nakai put her hand on mine, “You’re nervous about the flight.”

I nodded, even though it wasn’t a question, “Nervous about everything, really.”

“I was nervous my first flight, too. I was on a plane like this, on my way to Scotland to meet the family of my closest friend. It’s okay once you get past the earpop.”

“Thanks, Dir…. Mrs. Nakai.”

Mrs. Nakai smiled, “I make you nervous too, don’t I?”

I glanced out the window as the plane angled itself on the runway. We weren’t quite picking up speed yet, but we would be soon.

I nodded, “A little.”

“Don’t think of me as affiliated with school… I know, why don’t you just call me Aunt Hana?”

I looked up at Mrs. Nakai and blinked while the jet slowly picked up speed, “…Are you sure?”

Mrs. Nakai nodded, “You’re Miya’s Little Lamb and Kenji treats you like a daughter, so you may as well. Our family’s full of extended non-blood relations, and if it helps you relax around me, all the better.”

I was too stunned to say anything, but I wouldn’t have had a chance to anyway, because the jet picked up speed then, hurtling us forward and upward. The engine’s dull whine picked up and I was pushed back in my seat. Then the pain in my ears began. It made me groan aloud and cover my ears, clamping my eyes shut as the pain bubbled into my brain. It felt like the pain was trying to rip through my skull out of my eardrums. After a little while the engine noise smoothed out and we slowly leveled off. After a few more moments the pain finally went away, leaving me feeling slightly lightheaded and nauseous.

I groaned and slumped into my seat, sighing in relief that it was over. I felt Mrs. Nakai’s hand on mine again and tensed up reflexively.

“You okay?” she asked.

I nodded and opened my eyes, looking blearily up at her, “Yeah. Hurt more than I thought it would.”

“It gets better the more you travel,” Mrs. Nakai said, “although I still prefer trains.”

I smirked weakly and Mrs. Nakai pat my hand.

“Is it alright if I stay here?” she asked.

I knew what she was really asking, but I appreciated the way she phrased it. One of the many, many things I appreciated about the Setou’s –and Kenji in particular- was they always seemed to know the right amount of support to lend. Mrs. Nakai was the same way, it seemed. For obvious reasons, as the pulled back hair attested to.

I looked up at Mrs. Nakai, swallowed, and nodded, “I’d like that.”

Mrs. Nakai smiled and relaxed into her seat. After giving me a quick glance she looked over at the children, who were off in their own world, with Refia staring off somewhere while Satomi and Akio fiddled with the TV and a pair of headphones. Hisato was in Miya’s lap while she pulled out a tablet to flip through; likely to look at her photography portfolio. Kenji sat next to her, leaning over so he could see the tablet screen. Mr. Nakai and Mr. Sarif were busy discussing something, the occasional tap of a screen or rustle of paper occasionally coming through their hushed conversation.

With the ordeal of takeoff over, I leaned back into my seat more comfortably and started a breathing exercise to help me relax. After a few minutes I felt Mrs. Nakai’s gaze on me, so I turned to see her.

“Feel better?” she asked.

I nodded, “Kinda hungry, though.”

Mrs. Nakai chuckled, “I hear that’s somewhat common for you. Lunch’ll be in a few hours, but I’ll go ask Kenji if he has anything. Just make sure you can handle the flight before you eat too much, okay?”

I nodded, and Mrs. Nakai unbuckled herself and walked over to Kenji.

I smiled and closed my eyes. It was nice to have so many people around me who cared –really cared, and weren’t overprotective or overbearing about it. Which, if the day so far was any indication, was good, because I’d need all the help I could get.

+++
Next Chapter

Yay Michigan references.

I’m rather proud of my crime-infested desolate wasteland of a state. Despite the weather making my morning runs really uncomfortable sometimes.

Is it weird that I quoted myself for the teaser of this chapter? I wanna say yes. I also wanna say I don’t care.

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series (Updated 6/5)

Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:48 pm
by bhtooefr
Hoitash wrote:Mr. Sairf chuckled, “It’s fine, that’s what it’s for. You’re English is pretty good, by the way.”
Image

Re: The Manila Tales –A Summer-ish Series (Updated 6/5)

Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:55 pm
by Hoitash
bhtooefr wrote:
Hoitash wrote:Mr. Sairf chuckled, “It’s fine, that’s what it’s for. You’re English is pretty good, by the way.”
I have no idea to what you are referring. Those errors were clearly a plant by Nurglite scum to undermine my glorious plans for Yukon bear hunting!


(Also, thanks and fixed :wink:)