The neon signs buzzed and a taxi cab slid through the streets, searching for carrion. The driver was young, mid-twenties. A plate behind his seat read 'Travis Bickle'.
Travis was flagged down and he pulled over. A businessman and a woman got into the back.
"Just drive around," said the man.
The man and the woman cuddled in the back. He began fondling her breasts and pulling up her skirt. The panties were slid down her legs. She put his cock in. Eventually, he grunted and zipped up his trousers. He took out his wallet and grabbed 5000 yen.
"10000," said the woman.
"You said 5000!"
"No, 10000."
They yelled at each other until he took out a knife and cut her throat. Blood spurted onto the seats and windows, and a small amount hit the back of Travis's head.
Travis drove to a back alley, where he and the man put the body in a dumpster. He drove to an apartment block, where the man got out and went inside. Travis drove to the taxi hub, where he cleaned the blood and the cum out of the cab.
He took his pay and got on the subway.
A woman was standing next to him and he saw a hand reaching down to feel her. Travis grabbed the man by his collar and said, "Watch it, creep."
"Hey, I weren't doin' nothin'! I weren't doin' nothin'!" said the man as he put up his hands. Travis noticed that the other passengers, including the woman, were staring at him. He let the man go and said, "Just forget about it."
The man and the woman pushed through the other passengers to get away from him. A few minutes later, Travis saw the woman wince, her face contorted in discomfort. The same man from before was standing behind her.
In his diary that night, Travis wrote,
The city stinks. I can smell the sleaze and scum at every corner. I hate being surrounded by Japs. I can tell when they look at me that they're thinking I don't belong here. It's not like the American tourists are any better. They think I'm like them and expect me to help with whatever disgusting acts they have planned. If there was one good person, it would redeem everything. But there isn't, and I know there never will be.
The next day, Travis was flagged down by a group of three: a young girl and two older boys. They got in and one of the boys said, "Take us to the Palace Hotel."
The girl soon fell asleep and one of the boys caressed her hair. The two boys discussed their day. The girl stirred a few times on the trip, but didn't wake up.
When they got to the Palace Hotel, one of the boys paid the fare and gathered the girl into his arms. Still sleeping, she curled up a little and grabbed his shirt sleeve. They walked into the building.
Travis was about to drive away when he was flagged down by a pair of young men. One held a briefcase. They told him to go to the subway and talked to each other about how the nerve gas bomb would bring great honour on them and their leader.
The next day, Travis saw the girl again. She was sitting on a crate, her hands on her face, crying. Travis pulled over. He said to her, "What's wrong, little girl?"
She choked on a sob, then said, "I was walking with Yukito-san and my onii-chan and I stopped to look at something in a window and when I looked around they were gone!" She sobbed again.
"Hey, don't cry," said Travis. "I'll help you find them."
The girl pushed her tears away and took a deep breath. "You're right," she said. "I shouldn't cry." She smiled. It was a beautiful smile. She smiled as if all the hardship in the world had been washed away with a wave of her hand. Her face was still flushed from the tears, but she shone like the last sunrise before you enter a combat zone. Travis wanted her to keep that smile, to never lose it, no matter what horrors she might see.
"It's a big city," said Travis. "They could be anywhere. I should take you back to your hotel."
Her face fell. "But… I don't remember where it is..."
"Don't worry. I took you there last night. I remember how to get there."
She smiled again. "Oh! I thought you looked familiar."
Travis led her to the front passenger seat. He took off his jacket and placed it across the seat.
"Why'd you do that?" she asked.
"Many things happen in this cab," he said. "I don't want you to be part of it."
They got in and drove off.
"My name is Travis. Travis Bickle," he said. "What's your name?"
"Pleased to meet you, Bicker-san. I'm Kinomoto Sakura."
"Sakura. That's a very pretty name."
When they got to the hotel, Travis said, "Your friends are out there looking for you. It will take a while for them to come back. I could wait with you until then."
"Oh, no! It's really no trouble!" said Sakura.
"But, won't you get lonely, waiting by yourself?"
"No, I really won't! It's not a bother!"
"Are you sure? If you want, we could get some lunch. Have you eaten much today?"
"If you really don't mind... I am a little hungry."
They got out and Travis locked the cab. In the hotel, Travis ordered a sandwich and Sakura ordered a beef curry and a crème brûlée.
"So," said Travis. "Are you from around here, Sakura?"
Sakura blushed and said, "N-no, Bicker-san. I live in Tomoeda. It's in the suburbs. We're just here for a few days."
"Huh. Do you like the city?"
Sakura smiled. "I love it! There's so many interesting shops, the lights are so pretty and it's just so busy and exciting! It is a little scary though..."
"Hm. I've been here for a year now. It stinks to high hell. There's liars, hookers and thieves on every corner. Some days I wish something would come and just wipe these streets clean. Start over with some good people. Not like we have now. Real quality people."
Sakura frowned. "Uh… Everyone I've met is really nice, except my onii-chan. But he says that uptown is a lot better than the downtown here, so we haven't gone there much."
"Well… It's the same everywhere I've been. The men just want the women and the women just want the money. You're different. You're pure and innocent. You're beautiful in a way no-one is, on the inside as well as outside."
"I'm really not that beautiful!" Sakura was blushing, but also smiling.
"You are. Your smile is honest. Most girls smile when they want something. But when you smile, I can feel the joy and the innocence from you. If everyone was like you, the world wouldn't be such a scumhole."
Sakura looked at Travis. "Bicker-san, if you don't like the city so much, why don't you just leave?"
Travis looked at her. "I can't."
"Why not?"
"I work here. I live here. And where else would I go?"
"Well… You could come back to Tomoeda with me."
Travis looked away. "Nah. I couldn't."
"I'm sure my dad wouldn't mind! You could stay with us for a few days until you find a job."
"No. I really couldn't."
"It's really nice in Tomoeda. Everyone is really nice and friendly."
"No. I don't want to be any trouble."
Sakura lost her smile. "Well, if you're sure..."
"Sorry, Sakura."
Travis saw through the window that the two boys Sakura had been with the other night had entered the hotel.
"Sakura," said Travis. "You shouldn't hang around with older boys like that."
"Huh? Why not?"
"All men are scum. There's only one thing older guys like that want from a girl like you. And once they get it, they don't care. They'll leave you for dead."
"Ha ha..." said Sakura. "I don't think Yukito-san and onii-chan would do that!"
"That's just what they want you to think. But they're all thinking it."
The two boys entered the restaurant.
"Sakura! Where have you been?" The boy then noticed Travis. "And who's this guy?"
Sakura got up. "Onii-chan! This is Travis Bicker-san. He was the taxi driver last night and he found me when I got lost and brought me back here."
Sakura said to Travis, "Bicker-san, this is my onii-chan, (gesturing to the brown-haired boy) and this is Yukito-san (gesturing to the silver-haired boy)."
Yukito-san smiled. "Hello, Bicker-san! Pleasure to meet you!"
Travis saw the way the brown-haired boy was glaring at him and formed an instant hatred. He imagined giving him a quick jab to the solar plexus to disable him, then grabbing his hair and smashing his face into the ground, knocking out his teeth, breaking his nose and busting his eyes.
Travis stuck out his hand to the brown-haired boy. "Pleasure to meet you, Ohneechan."
Sakura blushed and Yukito-san laughed a little.
"My name," said the boy. "Is Kinomoto Toya. That's Kinomoto-san to you."
There was a stifling silence as Toya and Travis stared each other down.
Then, Travis said, "Whatever. We're all friends here. A friend of Sakura's is a friend of mine. Don't worry about it." Then, "See you, Sakura." Travis started to leave.
Toya noticed that Sakura hadn't eaten her crème brûlée and asked about it.
"I'm saving it for later!" said Sakura.
"What for?"
"Uh… No reason! Ha ha ha!"
Toya smirked and ate the dessert in one bite.
"Onii-chan! You stole my sweets!"
Travis ran back into the restaurant. He elbowed Toya in the solar plexus, disabling him, and grabbed him by the hair. "Watch it, creep!"
"Bicker-san! Stop! Let my onii-chan go!"
Travis deliberated, then noticed that everyone, including Sakura and Yukito-san, were staring at him. The manager came out, standing at a safe distance, and said, "Sir, I must ask you to leave."
Travis released Toya and said, "Just forget about it." He ran to his cab and drove away. A man with a needle in his arm ran onto the road, trying to flag him down, but Travis just ran him over.
At home, Travis swallowed five pills. He looked in the mirror. He said, "You motherfucker. You think you're good? You think you're big-time? Let me tell you. You ain't worth shit." He punched the mirror. It broke. The shards cut his hand. It bled. He tore a strip off his shirt. He wrapped it around his hand. He sat on his bed. He got up. He went for a walk. He came back.
In the morning, he got a call. His boss told him to go to the Palace Hotel. He drove there.
When he got there, he saw Sakura standing alone by the kerb, her hands behind her back. He nearly didn't, but he pulled up by her and rolled down the window.
"Sakura, I'm really sorry about yesterday. I just..."
"My onii-chan is mean, but he's really not a bad person."
It felt as if someone had grabbed Travis's heart and clenched their hands around, trying to stop it from beating.
"What you did to him was really mean, and really scary!"
"I… I just..."
"But even though you did such a mean thing, I know you're not a bad person, Bicker-san." She took her hands from behind her back to reveal a bouquet of cherry blossoms. She gave it to Travis. "I have to go back home today, but if I ever come back, I promise I'll call you up. And you should go to Tomoeda someday! You can meet all my friends, like Tomoyo-chan and Li-kun! And you can see my dad, who is the most wonderful person ever! Promise you'll come see us sometime?"
Travis glanced at Sakura, then stared at the bouquet. "Well, if I ever get vacation time, I'll try to go there."
Sakura smiled. Then she said, "You're a good person, Bicker-san, but it's sad to see you so sad. You should be cheerful, like me!"
"I wish I could," said Travis. But, in spite of himself, his mouth curled into a smile.
"See? You have a nice smile too. You should smile more!"
"Yeah. Heh," said Travis. "Bye, Sakura." Travis started the cab and drove away. Sakura waved to him until he turned a corner and vanished from her sight.
When he got home, Travis put the bouquet in a vase.
Within a week, it was dead.
The neon signs buzzed and a taxi cab slid through the streets, searching for carrion. The driver was young, mid-twenties. A plate behind his seat read 'Travis Bickle'.