Dead-End Plan

Kyoko's phone was buzzing as she climbed out of the shower, ruffling her hair dry with the soft hotel towels. She picked it up and then fumbled it in her eagerness seeing his name - no, his assumed name - on the caller ID.

"Kuon?" she whispered into the phone breathlessly.

He greeted her with a laugh. "You don't have to whisper it. I won't answer on speaker phone."

Kyoko giggled, spinning in place then stopping as her towel slipped. She grabbed it up, trying to tuck the end in without putting down the phone or letting the rest slip.

"Ride home with me."

She blushed, stopping her towel-tucking efforts. "I told Shoko I'd meet her-"

Kuon interrupted her. "So you're going to ditch your oldest friend for some terd's manager?"

Kyoko gasped. "Hey! Not fair!" He laughed and she huffed at him. "I'll tell her something."

"Meet me at the picnic parking lot in an hour," he said, adding a quick final jab before hanging up the phone. "I love you."

Kyoko gasped, covering her mouth. She looked at the phone to make sure. The call was ended. He'd said he loved her - Kuon had - himself! And then just hung up! She looked around the room for confirmation from someone. Finding nothing, not even a friendly sprite, she settled on her own reflection. She stared open-mouthed at herself, then just beamed. Her fairy prince. Her oldest friend. He was back. And he was already hers! She squealed and burst out of the bathroom to get changed.

He was sitting on a picnic table, his long legs swinging and kicking up bits of mulch as he waited for her. She tried to sneak up on him, but he caught her and leapt off the table in one lithe movement to walk briskly to her side. He smiled at her and she felt herself getting woozy. So much blonde and life and brightness. "Fairy," she said aloud. He burst into laughter, hugging her then ruffling her hair like Cain.

"Just don't call me that in America," he said. "It has a different meaning."

"America?" she asked, cocking her head at him in question.

"Ah," he paused, reaching down to take her hand. "That's… where my parents live. I'd like to introduce you to them."

"I knew it! I knew you had weird foreign gestures- wait-" Kyoko froze as the totality of his offer sank in. "Parents?" she squeaked.

He rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand, giving her a space of silence before speaking.

"Only when you're ready," he said quietly. "But when you are, I'm ready to visit home with you." Kyoko looked up at him, her eyes searching the depths of his. She could feel the weight of his promise sink into her and let the full force of his revelations about the deep pain and sadness he'd left back in America wash over her. She wanted to treat his offer with the respect it deserved.

"Kuon," she said, gripping his hand in both of hers. "Don't force yourself. I know what… family… can be like."

He smiled at her, pulling her in for a hug with his free hand.

"You know part of my family already anyways," he said mysteriously. "I want to do this with you. I need to do this with you."

"Then let's do it now," she said, her voice muffled by his shirt as she nuzzled into him.

"Mmmm?" he said, rubbing her back.

"Let's do this now," she repeated. He looked down at her, his face openly curious.

"Fly? Now?"

"No," she said, laughing. "Call your mom and dad."

Kuon blinked at her.

"Now?"

"You're repeating yourself," she said. She pulled her phone from her purse and held it out to him. He didn't move. She shook it at him, but he just looked at it.

"Service is probably bad here," he said.

"Kuon, one thing I have learned is that once you come to a decision, you need to make yourself a dead-end road. No return. Especially if it's a decision you don't truly want to make, but need to. When I went to meet my mom…" she paused, not wanting to make this about her. "I knew what I should do, and I made it so I had to." She stepped forward to hug him, feeling his heart beat against her cheek. "If you know that we need to do this, then… let's make it so we have to. Otherwise we will spend the next six years just daydreaming about it."

Kuon sat still, then let out a long, slow breath that ruffled the hair on top of her head. He bent and kissed her hair, pulling the phone out of her hand and typing in a foreign number. As the phone line connected and began ringing, he bent low and whispered in her ear, "I love you. Thank you."

He switched the phone to speaker as a woman's voice came across the line.

"Hello?"

Kyoko didn't speak, waiting for Kuon to take the initiative. He didn't say anything, just stared at the phone with wide, green eyes.

"Hello?" the woman tried again, in English this time.

They could hear a man in the background suggesting it was telemarketers. "Computers always pause before they connect you to the sales pitch," the voice said. Kyoko's ears perked up, certain she recognized it.

The woman spoke over him. "It's from Japan, dear, it could be him. I'm not hanging up unless they do. Kuon? Kuon, darling, it's mom. Hello?"

She felt him shudder against her and squeezed him tightly, moving to take the phone from his hand. She'd pushed him too hard. The dead end road was a difficult one to walk; maybe he wasn't ready. The phone's movement beneath his fingers seemed to awaken him suddenly.

"Mom," he gasped.

The woman screamed, her cry suddenly far away as a thunk resounded through the speaker. "Kuon!" her voice was loud again. "Honey, I dropped the phone- Kuon! Dear, it's Kuon-"

"Mom," Kuon said again, his voice choked.

"Oh, my baby," she cooed, her voice muffled now. A man's voice shouted in the background.

"Kuon? Kuon! It's dad- where are you? Are you alright? How are you eating? Do you need something? I can send money-"

"Dad," Kuon said, his voice cracking with a short laugh. Kyoko buried her face in his chest, trying not to cry.

"Yes, love, we can come- what do you need? Oh, dear, it's Kuon-" his mom's sentence was cut short as she started crying harshly, and Kuon's dad took the phone.

"Julie, dear, sit. No, no, I'll keep him on speaker. Yes, I'll stay here. Sit, love." Kyoko looked up at Kuon with a flash as she finally placed the voice.

"Hizuri-san!" she said in shock. Kuon bit his lip as he tried to smile at her, but she could see the tears threatening at the corners of his eyes. She reached up and smoothed them away, her hand resting on his face in gentle reassurance.

"Kuon?" Hizuri Kuu's voice called over the speaker. "Who is that with you?"

"It's Kyoko, dad," Kuon managed.

"Kyok- son! I mean, my other son! Wait- you called-" Kuu paused. Kyoko could almost hear the gears of his mind turning. "Together."

"Yes, dad," Kuon said. "Together."

Kuu whooped, a series of bangs erupting on the other end of the phone. "Dear! Our sons!" Julie was cry-laughing now, the sound a garbled mix of choked-off joy.

"I want to come home," Kuon said into the chaos. "With her."

A sudden hush fell across the line as neither of his parents responded immediately.

"Home…" Julie whispered, breaking the silence.

"Kuon," Kuu interrupted, his voice firm. "Are you certain?"

Kuon nodded, then added a brief murmur of assent as he hugged Kyoko tightly. His free hand rose to press her smaller hand tightly against his face, resting his cheek in her palm.

"As yourself?" Julie's voice was meek, the hope tingeing it almost painful to hear.

"For you, and for Kyoko," Kuon said. "But… I can't stay."

A longer pause ensued. Kyoko could feel Kuon's tension rising as his back slowly straightened, releasing her hand from his caresses. She ran her hands slowly up and down his back, trying to ease him silently.

"On your own power," his dad's voice filled the clearing. "That's the promise you gave us." Julie started to say something, but Kuu gently shushed her. "I want you to come home as you. For you. For good."

"Kuu-" Julie interjected again, but this time Kuon interrupted.

"I want her to meet you both," he said firmly, his hands tense around Kyoko's shoulders. "But my career-I'm not ready for-"

"England," his mother said, her voice bright with inspiration. "Midway! Oh, dear, let's do England!"

Kuu's reply was too hushed for them to discern, but Julie's built on it. "He's not ready for that yet, but we can- oh stop. If you're going to make this too difficult for him, then just stay here!" Her voice became louder as she apparently cradled the phone to her face, monopolizing the conversation. "Kuon, love, I have an idea. Let's meet in England. It's neutral ground- you won't risk any unpleasant meetings- you won't be breaking any of your commitments to yourself," she said something muffled to Kuu, her voice slightly angry, before continuing. "And I can finally meet the girl who stole the hearts of both my favorite men!" Her voice rose in a joyful trill at the end, making Kyoko blush furiously. She reburied her face in Kuon's chest.

"England," Kuon said thoughtfully, his finger pressing on Kyoko's chin to gently force her to look up at him, his eyebrows raised in question.

"England," she repeated with a smile, nodding at him.

"Oooh, England!" Julie crowed triumphantly.

"Crumpets!" Hizuri Kuu hollered from the background.