"You've got to be kidding me."
It was midnight, Mai had just shut the cafe down when he appeared.
"I'm sorry, you're too late," she said as the shutters descended.
"I don't want tea," Oliver replied, as he removed his sunglasses and pocketed them.
"Then why are you here? Surely you know by now how to get through this airport?" she raised an eyebrow at him.
"You're a lot less cheerful off the clock, hmm?"
Mai deflated.
"Sorry, long day with at least three tantrum customers and two babies being sick all over everything. And of course, I have to say it's fine to the mothers, even if it's disgusting."
"They did not clear it up?"
"Oh no, of course not," Mai muttered darkly. She locked the shutter down and pocketed the keys. "So what do you want?"
"To see you."
Mai's cheeks flushed scarlet.
"Me?"
"My brother has been telling me I ought to try and make more friends," Oliver stated.
"Friends?"
Mai tried not to look too disappointed.
"I think friends is a good place to start, don't you?"
Mai nodded earnestly, forcing a smile.
"Yes. But why me?"
Oliver looked away.
"Well, you don't know who I am."
Mai frowned.
"I don't understand?"
"Work takes up the majority of my life, and everyone in my sector knows exactly who I am. But you don't. It means I can be myself, rather than my job," Oliver answered in a measured tone.
"So you decided to find me at midnight?"
"Well, my flight just got in. I don't have to be anywhere until at least nine AM tomorrow…"
"Okay then," Mai pulled on her jacket. "What do you suggest then? Because most places are kind of shut now…"
His eyes widened a little.
"I honestly didn't expect to get this far," he muttered. "You're not creeped out?"
Mai laughed.
"Honestly? No?" she replied. "And if you do murder me, there are enough cameras here to show who I was last with. I'm sure my friends will avenge me."
Oliver smiled.
"Well that's just scuppered my murder plans," he said.
Mai rolled her eyes.
"Okay well I'm starving," she said. "The only place that'll be open is McDonald's I imagine, that okay with you?"
Oliver's smile dropped as he considered this.
"I don't have any transport," he said.
"Lucky for you, I do," Mai said. "They'll probably have shut down the restaurant bit, but the drive-thru will be open."
"Okay."
"Come on then."
Mai led Oliver to her car, via the staff shuttle.
"Apologies for the mess," she said. "My vacuum cleaner broke and I haven't gotten around to getting a new one. It's been on my to-do list for a while..."
Oliver climbed into the passenger seat. His head touched the ceiling of the car.
"Oh, um, you can probably adjust the seat somehow. All my friends are short," Mai said. "Well, Yasuhara isn't, but he doesn't like being a passenger so…"
Oliver adjusted the seat so that he was leant back a little more. Once his head wasn't touching the ceiling, he belted up and Mai drove away.
"Where do I need to drop you off after?"
"My brother and I have rooms at the Sophisticelle."
Mai's mouth fell open, but she quickly shut it again.
"I don't know why I'm surprised, you can obviously afford the luxury hotels. Though I'm not sure they'll let me drop you off in this old banger," she said.
"They wouldn't say anything," Oliver said quietly. "But I can have my assistant pick me up if it is an issue."
"That tall guy?"
"Yes."
"I got the impression he was more of a bodyguard than anything else…"
"I guess he is in a way. I certainly wouldn't want to pick a fight with him."
Mai drove into the drive-thru and winded her window down.
"Hi, what can I get you?" the voice came through the speaker grill.
"Hi, can I get a double cheeseburger and chips with a chocolate milkshake please?"
"Anything else?"
Mai looked to Oliver, who shook his head.
"No, that'll be all."
"Great, drive around to the next window."
Mai did as instructed, paid, and then drove to the collection window. Oliver remained strangely quiet as she did this. And only as she parked up to eat did she realised he'd been staring out of the other window.
"I would have bought you something if—"
"No, I ate on the plane," Oliver said quickly. "I'm not hungry."
"Well feel free to steal a chip if you want."
"Thanks."
Mai opened up her cheeseburger, removed the gherkin, and then bit into it.
"I know I shouldn't eat these, but damn do they taste good after a long day," she mumbled. "So, you want to be my friend because I don't know about your work, so tell me about your hobbies."
Oliver, apparently grateful for her opening the conversation, jumped on the topic.
"I like reading," he said. "Primarily non-fiction at the moment. I'm also…" He paused for a moment. "I'm also doing a part-time distance learning Master's degree in Mathematics."
"Oh wow, that's cool! What made you decide to do that?"
"I enjoy Maths, I've also done a few Science modules as part of it. It's interesting. It makes a change from the mind-numbing nature of my work."
Mai laughed.
"Yeah, I feel you on that one."
"What about you?"
"I… Well, when I'm not at work, I'm either with my friends or writing. I write stories."
Oliver raised an eyebrow.
"What sort of stories?"
"Well, it started off as fanfiction but I've started to write some original stuff," Mai admitted. "I currently have like four or five people that read my stuff so it's not a big deal."
"Are they any good?"
"My friends think so, but they're also my friends so… They might just be being nice to me."
"That's one of the reasons I like Maths," Oliver said. "The answer is either right or wrong. It's harder to quantify the enjoyment of fiction. Can I read any of your work?"
"Maybe once we know each other a little better, I'll consider."
She finished off the cheeseburger and started on the chips.
"I suppose a cafe is a good place to people watch," Oliver said.
"The best place, especially at an airport," Mai said. "So many people from all over the world."
"So you make your clients into characters?"
"Well not directly," Mai said. "But, I take inspiration."
"Am I in any of these stories?"
"You wish." Mai laughed and drank a little of her milkshake. "You might end up in one eventually. What would you like to be?"
"What genre do you write in?"
"Varies, at the moment, I've been on a bit of a regency kick."
"Like Pride and Prejudice?"
"Yeah, my friends bought me this new one that came out a few months ago and I just fell back in love with the genre. Disgrace and Deception, that's what it was called. There were rumours of it being made into a film."
Oliver coughed.
"Is it worth reading?" he asked.
"Oh definitely, I mean, if you like that sort of stuff."
"Maybe I'll take a look at it then," Oliver said. "What do your friends do?"
Mai smiled.
"Keiko works in advertising, like the internet pay per click stuff. Michiru is a dance teacher, she was a ballerina for a while but she got injured, so she teaches now."
"And you see them often?"
"I try to, it was so easy to see them at university, it's a lot harder now. What about you?"
"I don't see anyone from university, in truth, I did that distance learning too."
"Really? How come? So you could work alongside it?"
"Something like that. My father got my brother and me into the business, he was not that bothered about education as we were both capable."
"Is it a family business?"
"No, not strictly, we just happen to work together. It makes sense in the case of me and my brother."
"How so?"
"We're an excellent team."
"You're close in age?" Mai asked.
"We're twins."
"Oh, right, that's cool." Mai picked at the chips. "I… I don't have any siblings. I don't have any family really. My parents both died so…"
"I'm sorry."
Mai shrugged.
"It was my Mum that encouraged me to write," she went on. "When I was a teenager, my friends and I used to tell ghost stories and stuff at sleepovers. And then I'd tell my Mum all about them the next day. She told me that I had such a good imagination that I should write them down." She laughed bitterly. "I thought she was so daft for suggesting that. Who was I to write a real story, hmm? And then she got cancer and she died. And I was so angry and depressed and… Well, I was a mess. I used to read a lot and I didn't like how this one story ended, someone in it died. So I rewrote the book and posted it online. And people liked it. So I wrote more… I could fix all the problems of the people in the stories… And then one day it stopped being therapy and started being fun." Mai ate another chip. "Sorry, that was a bit much. I barely know you."
"Sometimes it is easier to talk to relative strangers."
"Especially in the dead of night in a McDonald's car park," Mai said with a laugh.
"I can even it up for you, if you want?"
"Go on then."
"My mother drank herself to death," Oliver stated. "My brother and I came home from school one day and found her leant over the dining room table, not breathing."
"Damn."
"When our father came home, he took one look at her and just left. He didn't return for a week. He only did that because some of his drinking buddies reminded him he had two eight-year-old boys."
"Woah…"
"He was not a very attentive father. Then when we were fifteen or so, he got a letter from a lawyer. His brother had died without any children or a spouse. We travelled to New York, my father received the inheritance and… That's when he got his current job. We sold the house in Salem."
"You don't have much of an accent for an American."
Oliver chuckled.
"I'm not one anymore."
"What do you mean?"
"We moved to London for work, and my brother and I chose to become UK citizens. Once we'd done that, we renounced our US citizenship."
"Why?"
"Tax. US citizens pay tax on their worldwide income. So despite only visiting the US for work for a few weekends a year, we were having to pay tax as if we lived there."
Mai frowned.
"So you're avoiding tax? Isn't that a bit…"
"I am not avoiding tax. I pay my fair share here. But here, I see the results of it. I see people getting free healthcare and benefits and paved roads. In the US, the people I knew didn't see anything of taxpayers money. Our neighbour when I was a kid died and… Well I don't think that would have happened here."
"You talk about the UK as if it's some sort of paradise," Mai muttered. "It's still plenty shitty for a lot of people."
"I know that," Oliver said. "The entire country is run by idiots and a lot of people are still starving or dying without medical treatments, but at least people are trying." He sighed. "In America… My father is an example of it really. There are people who don't want conditions to improve for the poor because that would mean making things worse for the rich and they genuinely believe that one day, they could be rich. So they want it to be good for them when they are."
"That's ridiculous."
"Yes, I guess it worked out for my father, but it doesn't for everyone. He'd accuse me of being a communist if I said it out loud, but surely it's better if everyone is healthy and not quite as rich…"
"That's easy for you to say," Mai said. "You are rich. You can tip fifty quid and not worry. I bet you don't have to worry about whether or not you can pay your car insurance next month."
"No, I don't. And in truth, I don't remember what it was like well enough when we were poor. I remember being hungry. But I don't remember the stress of not having money. But that's why I tip fifty quid. Because I know that can make a difference."
"So you're trying to put trickle-down economics into play?" Mai asked.
"I guess so. I hadn't thought of it like that."
"It doesn't work though," Mai pointed out. "If you feed a horse enough oats, in theory, it will poo some straight out for the birds. But in reality, you just get a really fat horse."
"Sparrow. I think the original theory used sparrows as the bird."
Mai looked surprised, and Oliver explained.
"I took an economics module."
"Right."
"So what do you suggest? Tax the rich more?"
"Pretty much."
"So what stops them moving to a country that isn't going to tax them so highly?"
Mai sucked on her straw, draining the last dregs of her milkshake.
"I take over the world and in my new world, every country taxes people the same amount. And then we have the benefits of bulk ordering stuff and—"
"You want to be a dictator?" Oliver could not keep the amusement from his voice.
"Why do you find that funny? I think I'd do a great job."
"I'm sure that's what they all think."
Mai sighed and gave up.
"I don't know what the real answer is," she said finally. "There's a reason I work in a cafe and not in politics."
"You're too nice for politics."
"Thanks, I think?"
Oliver glanced down at the car's clock.
"It's late," he muttered. "Gene'll be happy."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been out long enough that he'll accept I've actually been sociable."
"You think he would not believe you otherwise?" Mai asked.
"Perhaps not. I might have pretended previously to go out with 'friends' and then actually go to the library and read…"
Mai laughed.
"We could take a picture if you want, to prove it," she suggested.
"You'd be okay with that?"
"Sure, I don't see why not," Mai said.
Oliver pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the camera app. Mai flicked on the interior light of her car and moved over so that they would both be in the shot.
Oliver took the photo, then opened up the image.
"Wow, you're really photogenic," Mai muttered. "That's totally unfair. I had a friend at school called Rhona, and no matter how hard we tried, we never managed to take a bad photo of her."
Oliver pocketed his phone. Mai yawned and turned the interior light off.
"We should get back," he said. "I can have my assistant pick me up if you—"
"Nah, it's fine. If he's got any sense, he'll be asleep right now."
"He won't be, but I'm sure he'll appreciate not having to collect me."
"I'm just gonna go and chuck my rubbish in the bin."
Mai jumped out of the car, threw her rubbish away and raced back.
"It is freezing out there."
She started the engine and drove away. As they neared the hotel, Oliver began giving directions as to the best way to get there.
"Are you sure?" Mai asked. "This looks like—"
"The back entrance, usually for goods."
"So you are embarrassed to be seen in my car," Mai teased.
"Believe it or not, I have been the target of blackmail before. Being seen with a young, attractive unwed woman in the dead of night might not do me any favours."
"Surely that's better than a married woman, that would be more scandalous."
Oliver smirked.
"Perhaps so. Either way, this is safer. I know the staff here, they will be discrete. Follow the road around and you'll be back on the main road again." He paused, then pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. "This is my private number, let me know you got home safe."
Mai took the paper and smiled.
"Goodnight, Oliver."
"Goodnight, Mai."
Oliver climbed out, waved Mai off, and entered through the back door.
"You're out late," a voice commented. "Usually, it's your brother."
"First time for everything, Miss Matsuzaki. I would have thought you'd have gone to bed by now."
"Your brother told me you'd be out late tonight. It's my duty to ensure my customers are happy. I stayed up in case you needed management."
Oliver nodded.
"I see."
"You can use the staff lift if you want."
"They're still here?"
"The paps never sleep."
"I will take the staff lift then."
Once safely ensconced in the penthouse apartment suite, Oliver pulled out his phone and checked it. No messages yet.
"Have fun?"
Oliver looked up to see his twin standing in the doorway to his bedroom, dressed in nothing but his boxers.
"Yes, I suppose so," Oliver replied.
"Did you actually go and see her? Or did you just pretend to?"
Oliver rolled his eyes and showed Gene the picture he had taken with Mai.
"She wanted something to eat, and drove us to McDonald's."
"Classy."
"I didn't eat. But we chatted in her car for a bit."
"You sound like lovesick teenagers."
"Don't be ridiculous. She's just a friend."
Gene smiled.
"I'm glad, Noll."
"I'm going to bed," Oliver said. "Monk is expecting us at nine, right?"
Gene nodded.
"Don't stay up too late."
"I'm going to bed," Oliver repeated. "I—"
"You're waiting for her to message you, aren't you?" Gene asked with a knowing smile. "It's okay. I'm happy for you."
Oliver scowled. Gene laughed and retreated into his bedroom. Oliver entered his own bedroom and stripped down to his boxers. He sauntered into the ensuite and began brushing his teeth.
As he climbed into bed, his personal phone vibrated.
From Unknown: Home safe! It was fun chatting :) Mai :)
He saved the number.
To Mai: I'm glad, see you soon.
Author's note: Sorry this is a few days late! I'm in Vienna playing with two beagle puppies and they distracted me... I've also been planning my first DND campaign (as a DM hopefully!) so we'll see how that goes... Please review :)
