A/N: Computer issues necessitate a repost of this piece. It is unchanged from before. My apologies for being techno-challenged.
Autumn Suite: A Story in Five Movements
First Movement
Prelude ~ A preface to another work; it may stand on its own merit.
A steady October rain falls, its patter mixing with the hard rock that blasts through Café Omoro. They've been at it non-stop for weeks, getting the place back into shape with paint and new décor. Saya's small circle of friends and Kai's street buddies make for a motley crew that somehow mixes well, laughter and snide remarks blending to create a strange medley. Tonight Kai prepares dinner and everyone compliments the new owner-chef.
Saya collects utensils, glasses and plates onto the basket tray and carries them behind the counter. Kai is at the sink, a model of efficiency as he cleans up. His shock of brown hair has gotten longer, but he carries the mussed style well. He's singing to himself as the radio on the shelf pumps a heavy backbeat. He matches his movements to the rhythm. She smiles to herself, but he sees her.
"What?" he demands in mock annoyance.
"Not a thing," she demurs, setting the basket on the counter.
"Help me finish up, then." He snaps a drying towel in her direction.
She throws him a sidelong glance. "Don't I always?"
After the last person waves good night, she secures the cleaning supplies in the closet. She looks at herself in the full-length mirror mounted there. Faded jeans are still a staple but she pairs it with a white tee and scarf. The outfit makes her look older, but she wonders if she'll actually attend college. Red Shield has offered to cover her tuition, but it's a gesture.
Her Sleep is imminent.
Saya sets a table for two at the rear of the café and takes a seat, journal in hand. She writes every day, committing to paper everything she knows about her life. Sometimes it's about the past, sometimes the present, but never the future. She can't bring herself to imagine a life without the people she's come to love not being around her.
The back door slams and the tap runs followed by the sounds of tea being prepared. It's their ritual. She logs another entry. Kai promises he'll keep her jottings safe. When she next awakens, she will read in her own words about who she is and the people who mean the most. She doesn't want anyone else's version of things, especially her memories of Haji. She clings to the slim hope that he somehow escaped, but she dare not call for him and face the reality of his demise. Instead, she focuses on recording her memories, but living Life to the fullest as Dad would have wanted them to do. She's in school, Kai runs Omoro. Diva's twins are with them and growing at an accelerated pace. No one knows what the future holds for them.
No one but Kai. His turnabout from a sweet bad boy to responsible caregiver has been nothing short of amazing. At 21, he's ready to run Omoro and with Lulu's enthusiastic help, is caring for the girls. He's stepped into a consultation role with Red Shield as they negotiate with the U.S. government to fund humanitarian research into Chiropterans and Chiro-human hybrids – or so they claim. Diva may be dead, but both creatures are still in the world, wild cards in the poker game of politics.
She scans her last entry - the one about first meeting Haji at The Zoo. As often as she tries not to think of him, she's drawn to his memory and his parting words. He was her oldest friend and her protector. His formality had always been a little much for her liking, but she accepted it as his way. After speaking with young Joel and reading The Diary, she realized that Haji's consideration of her was more than platonic. He became different in her eyes then, and her familial feelings began to fade as others took hold. She wonders how much of Joel Sr.'s plans Haji knew. She will never know now.
They'd spent over a century committed to tracking and destroying Diva, unaware that at the moment they completed their mission, they'd be parted. His confession of love remains branded into her heart, the one that has only just come to understand how much she cared for him. She lives in a tragic fairy tale without a happy ending.
"Earth to Saya. Where are you?" Kai's voice intrudes on her thoughts and she appreciates the interruption. She blinks a few times before closing the journal and looking up. Kai sets down a bamboo tray laden with tea and a plate of sweet rice cakes. He removes his apron, folding it over the back of a chair before sitting down. Saya pours for them both.
"You okay?" Kai asks.
Saya gives him a small smile. "I'm fine. These look great."
"Have at it, girl. I made them just for you."
"Only if you have one, too."
"Ahhh, you talked me into it," he jibes before lifting a cake to his mouth with his fingers and finishing it in two bites.
She shakes her head at him. "Kai, don't be rude. Use a fork or a spoon or something."
"Fingers are something," he responds while dropping several sugar bears into his cup. "So, what's up today?"
Saya's grateful for the opportunity to discuss mundane things. Ordinary is her haven in an extra-ordinary life. She sips her tea and savors the flavor, lemony tang merging with brown sugar sweetness.
"Not much. I have tickets for Culture Day. They gave us three each. That's not going to be enough."
"Don't worry. I'll make sure everybody gets to go."
"It's not that simple, Kai. You can't just crash."
"I have connections." He gives her a wink.
She chuckles. "And just how are your connections doing?"
"She's fine." They're talking about Mao, of course. Mao, with her crazy gangster relatives that she wants no part of until she needs a favor or money or both. Mao, who plays both ends against the middle, or more like Okamura against Kai. Mao, an acquaintance who became a friend.
Kai stretches out his arms and rolls his neck, eliciting audible cracks. He lets out a breath of air through pursed lips. "Man, I'm beat."
Saya considers her sibling. "We could put off the re-opening, you know. Give ourselves some extra time, take a day off?"
"Our-selves?"
"Fine. You could give yourself a day off."
"What for?" Kai argues.
"I don't know. Shopping, a baseball game, a barbecue? You could take Mao on a real date."
His expression shifts into sudden seriousness. "You know how I feel, Saya."
"Kai, it's time you made up your mind about her."
"Fish or cut bait, right? I know, I know." Kai runs a hand through his hair. He's about to say something, then pauses.
Saya fills in the awkward silence. "She'll be off to college in the U.S. soon enough…" Saya's voice trails off.
Kai grumbles, "Don't remind me."
"You were the one who told her she should apply there. A few schools at home accepted her, too. Maybe she'll change her plans. You know Mao."
"Yeah. She follows her own lead. Always has."
"So do you. That's why you get along."
"We don't get along."
"Didn't look that way to me the other day."
"Yeah," he admits. "It's…complicated." She waits and he capitulates. "Besides, college might be out of the picture."
"What do you mean?"
He averts his face as Saya props an elbow on the table and leans her chin into it staring at her brother's profile. He's gotten older, his boyish face showing adult worry.
"It's fine. I have others things to take care of, anyway."
"Such as?" The edge in her tone forces him to look at her.
Staring into her eyes, his brows arch and he leans forward. Saya looks away. Kai's feelings towards her have always been complex. Her brother in every way but biological, she's aware that his fraternal feelings are genuine, but also that he harbors a deeper sentiment for her. And no one knows how much longer she can sustain alertness. The ambulance has been to her school more than once after she's collapsed. Still, she's determined to stay awake for as long as possible. She has other things to consider, too.
His discomfiture with the discussion is evident as he stands. "I'm going for a walk," he says gruffly before standing. Saya brushes a stray lock of hair away from her face and stares into her half-full teacup.
"Hey," Kai calls to her, his attitude and voice softened. Saya looks up to see him at the entrance to the café, door ajar. "Nankurunaisa, huh?" They hold one another's gaze, bonded by sorrow and hope.
"Yeah," she replies in a soft voice. "Nankurunaisa."
End First Movement ~ Autumn Suite ~ Prelude