Chapter Thirty-Six

I don't really know why I agreed to run away with the young woman. Even if it was only for a month, that was a lot of time to spend with someone especially when we weren't supposed to be serious about much of anything. Maybe it was just a naïve thought on my part, but I was starting to wonder just what was on her mind. After all, this vacation she insisted on wasn't cheap, and I should know.

Hawaii was my home turf.

I didn't necessary want to be there, of course, not like this at least. If it was up to me, I probably would've liked to have gone to Rio or the Caribbean. Still, it was her money, so I figured it wasn't right for me to complain about it. There'd be other vacations... even if none of them were with her.

"What's wrong with you, handsome?" I hadn't even realized she'd slipped into the room, but she seemed happy enough, giving me a kiss as soon as I turned to welcome her back. "You look like you're not enjoying yourself at all."

"Sorry, resorts aren't usually my thing," I explained with a reassuring smile. It was more or less the truth since tourists and everything that came with them were something I hated dealing with. The hotel chains, the expensive restaurants, the beachfront condos... All of it, really. The whole set-up was more than enough to make my skin crawl, and that was saying a lot for a man like me. One who wasn't really bothered by much of anything. "Where'd you run off to anyway?"

"Oh, you know... I was around." I just grinned.

"Find anyone?" Popuri only smiled before glancing away, but I knew she was just teasing. I couldn't really say the same for the night before, though, when she'd disappeared for a few hours. I didn't really care all that much, but it wasn't like I didn't know what she was up to. After all, she was a good looking girl, and with her wearing that white bikini of hers, well... I was sure I wasn't the only one who noticed, either.

"Let's go out tonight, Kai~ We've been here for three days, and all you've done is come out here and have one drink."

"Well, I'm not really one for alcohol."

"No one said you have to be," she teased with a laugh. "Anyway, that's all the more reason for you and me to go out and have some fun. I'm sick of this hotel room."

I only held back a sigh. While I had to admit that was just as tired of simply staring out onto our oceanside view, I really couldn't bring myself to join in on any of the activities that the islands had to offer a couple like ourselves. Given how late in the day it was, our only real option was to go to a luau, and that was just about the last thing I wanted to do. Hula skirts and fire eaters just weren't my thing, I guess. "You used to live here, didn't you?"

"On the Big Island," I agreed as I leaned on the balcony railing. "I never really liked living there all that much, though."

"Really? I think it'd be great to grow up in such a beautiful place..."

"It is... if you can have it to yourself." I sighed. "Most of the beaches are for quests or residents only, and by 'residents,' I mean people who own beachfront property." There were public beaches, of course, but even those were so clogged with people that I didn't bother. All I wanted was a quiet stretch of sand, and what I found was usually a sea of bodies washed up on shore. Spring, summer, fall, or winter, they seemed to come in waves upon waves without ever seeming to end. Most of the younger people didn't seem to care, but it had always made me rather irritable.

"Do you still know anyone over there?" she asked, apparently trying to fill the silence that had fallen between us. I only shrugged. "Oh, come on. You can't tell me you haven't thought about going to see them while we're here."

"There's always Ronald. He's an older guy, though... older than me and you anyway." Popuri made a face to hear that, but I had already figured she wouldn't be too impressed with that offer. It was a shame, too, since I knew the man would've enjoyed our company. "Well, the only other person I can think of is Joanna... but she has a little girl at home."

"I don't mind," she assured me with a smile. "Little girls are a lot better than old men."

Popuri didn't seem to feel that when we actually got there, though. Not that I could blame her since the two didn't exactly live in the best part of town. It was tucked between a laundromat and an auto repair shop, and in true Joanna fashion, the lawn was uncut which left the weeds to stake their claim on the walkway and the toys that had been left forgotten in the yard. Still, at the very least I was able to assure the young woman that the inside would be in better shape... even if I had to lie to do it.

"Barley! Are you home?" My companion winced when I called out for the man, but I knew there wasn't any other way to get anyone's attention in that house. After all, even if the old man was more or less deaf, he was the only one that would actually bother to answer the door.

"Is that you, big brother?" I flinched a little to hear the familiar nickname, but the little girl didn't even seem to notice as she swung open the screen door and threw her arms around my waist, almost knocking the wind clear out of me.

"Good to see you, too, May," I chuckled as I patted her head. There wasn't a lot that had changed about her, aside from being a little taller and her two front teeth having finally grown in. She still wore her dark hair in tight braids, and I smiled to see she was wearing the same red smock she used to sleep in all those years ago. Of course, it didn't fit quite right now that she was older, but she was still as cute as ever.

"Well... if it isn't Kai." I glanced up from the girl to find her grandfather had finally managed to shuffle out from his bedroom. He, too, was more or less the same as I remembered him although he was noticeably shorter and missing a few more teeth than before. Even so, he still managed to smile for his unexpected guests.

"Is Joanna home by any chance?" I asked, my grin wide and hopeful. However, my expression drastically changed when the old man only sighed, stroking his long white beard in thought, but he said nothing as he gazed off into the street behind me with his eyes becoming dull and gray.

"It's just like you said back then..." he mused with a slow nod. "When you told me that she'd leave one day, I convinced myself that it would never happen, but..." He sighed. "I suppose these things do happen from time to time."

"That doesn't mean they should," I replied, trying to sound as sincere as I could manage.

He only smiled before giving a nod towards the small kitchen table. "You two just come and sit," he insisted before turning his back and shuffling over towards the small table that sat in the middle of the kitchen. Popuri hesitated at first, glancing in my direction, but I didn't even have to think twice before sitting down. May trailed along behind me, her bare feet sticking to the yellowed tile floor, and as soon as I found myself a chair, she was scrambling into my lap. "May, how about you get out the rest of that pineapple? It's your brother's favorite, you know."

"She's alright, Barley," I assured him as I pulled her into my lap. After all, she hadn't seen me in quite sometime, so it was only to be expected that she'd cling to me in such a way... Not to mention the poor girl spent most of her time alone. "We won't be staying for too long."

"Heading out again?" he chuckled with a knowing look in his eye. "You never were one for staying put."

"Please don't go, big brother," the young girl pleaded with me, her brown eyes wide with hope. "You never come to see me anymore..."

"Don't worry..." I assured her with a smile. "I'll stick around for a bit." May beamed to hear that, but when I lifted her up again and put her back on the floor, she started to pout. I didn't really have the heart to tell her the matter wasn't really up to me. Still... after sneaking a glance towards my companion, I could tell she wasn't about to leave the girl, either. Even if she did look more than a little uncomfortable. "Do you still have those sparklers I gave you for your birthday?"

"Uh-huh. Mama told me I should save 'em till you cam back to see us." I only smiled as she ran off for her room to fetch them, her braids trailing along behind her, but once she disappeared around the corner, I turned back to her grandfather. "Any idea where Joanna ran off to?"

"I really can't say..." he admitted with a heavy sigh. "She calls every now and then... but she never tells me much." Then, shaking his head, he continued to explain, "To be honest, I still don't know why she left in the first place." Although I didn't say as much, I thought I had an answer for that.

The young woman had just gotten restless, much like my own mother, and when it came down to it, it was either them or their children. It wasn't hard to see which choice won out in the end... Sad as it was, that was just the way things happened to work for some people.

"I found them, big brother!"

I smiled as May came running back into the kitchen, the box held tightly in her hands. When she held it up for me to take, I was surprised by just how much it'd been through since I'd sent it to her. The label itself was faded to the point where I couldn't make it out, and while it hadn't been opened, the corners were worn and frayed.

Even though the sun had set long before, the air was still warm as we stepped outside. Somewhere, a dog barked at a passerby and every so often I could hear a man's laugh, but I couldn't help feeling as though it was the most tranquil place left on the island. After all, the crowds rarely ever ventured here, and so the peace seemed genuine and not just something carved out in the hopes of earning a few more dollars.

"Big brother?" I blinked before I glanced back down at the little girl who stood at my side, but while she sounded confused at first, she still managed to smile up at me. "Can I see them now?"

"Of course," I chuckled as I popped the box open and dug out my lighter from my back pocket. She watched in wonder as the flame danced just under the small stick, and I just had to grin to see her jump back once it was finally lit. I chuckled as I handed it to her, "Be careful with it now."

She nodded early as she held it tightly in her hand, but as soon as she had a good hold of it, she went running out into the street. The sparks flew out behind her, and I watched while she spun around, making smoke patterns in the air. It was funny, really... how happy she could be with such a simple thing. Even when it went out, her smile never faded. She just bounced back to me for another.

By that time, though, she wasn't the only one. All of the neighborhood kids had apparently caught sight of her dancing in the street with her newfound toy, and before I knew it, the box was empty. May didn't seem to mind since she had all but forget about the sparklers and myself, choosing to run off to play with the other children instead. I could only look on while they disappeared from sight, having turned into someone's backyard, but I smiled all the same.

Even bittersweet as it was.

--

"Kai?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you mind if I ask you something?" I glanced up at the woman as she began undressing herself. We had only just come back to our hotel when she'd started to slip out of her dress, but even I could tell it was anything but suggestive. Neither one of us were in the mood for that... not after a night like that.

"Go ahead."

"That little girl..." She paused for a moment as she tossed back her hair and began fiddling with her earrings, but once she turned back to me, she began again. "Why did she say you were her big brother?"

"Because her mother told her to," I replied, slipping out of my jeans for the night. I sat there for a moment, trying to gather my thoughts, and after a while, I began again. "Sorry that she wasn't home... I didn't think she'd be gone just yet."

"I don't mind," Popuri assured me as she sat down on the bed next to me. She was quiet at first, but being as she was so much like myself, it wasn't long before she broke the silence. "You really are good with kids... Not just her, but my brother's kids, too."

"Not always," I replied with a chuckle. After all, one of her nieces was still convinced that I was the one to blame for their mother not being home like she was supposed to be. Not that I could blame her for feeling that way, of course. "I just know what they're going through is all."

"Them not having someone to rely on, you mean?"

"Something like that," I agreed with a shrug. "They still have somebody, though... even if it's not the people that should be there." My companion nodded, a faint smile lingering on her sweet lips, and I found I had to smile as well. "Besides, her mom with show up eventually."

"How do you know that?" she asked while she continued to hold my gaze. I didn't give her an answer, only offering her a smile of my own. I might have decided to keep it to myself, but I still knew all too well that Joanna wasn't the kind of woman who could leave home for very long without getting herself in some sort of trouble. When she did, I knew she'd go running back.

"Now it's your turn."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I want you to tell me why you wanted me to come here with you," I explained with a knowing grin. Popuri blushed then as she glanced away, but we both knew she'd been caught. "You could've just asked me about it, you know."

"That wouldn't be as much fun as bringing you here," she insisted as she turned to offer me another smile, her hand resting on mine. "I just thought you might want to come home for a little while... that's all."

"I don't want to see her," I sighed, shaking my head and taking my hand back from her. I was a bastard child, the unfortunate result of a one night stand, and she had made it clear to me from the beginning that if she had the money, I would never have existed. And that was why... "If you want to know the truth, it's probably better if I don't see her."

Popuri leaned into me then, breaking my train of thought as soon as I felt the warmth of her breasts against my arm and her breath across the back of my neck. "Then why don't we just forget about it for now... hmm?"

"Forget what?" I teased back with a wide grin. She only rolled her eyes at my joke, but I could tell she was trying not to laugh. It wasn't like I really could forget it all, of course, not after having her drag it all up again. I had to admit, though, that the whole day slipped into the back of my mind as soon as I felt her lips press against my own. When she finally pulled away, I only chuckled and ran my fingers through her hair. "Let's run away from this place, love... I hear Rio's nice this time of year..."

"Alright," she agreed with a pleasant sigh as she slipped herself into my lap and straddled me. Then, whispering in my ear, she eased me back and said, "But... for now... let's just enjoy tonight."