The International Summer Schools

When the alarm went off, Naota awoke.

He brushed his teeth and washed his face -- everyday routine for the past twelve years.

But it wasn't an ordinary day for him.

Life had stopped being ordinary the moment Haruhara Haruko crashed into it one week ago.

Naota glared at his reflection. "How am I supposed to hide this?" He cautiously touched the new growths on his head.

Unlike the first horn, this one was sticking out in two places, one smaller horn-like bump on his forehead and a bigger hook-like protrusion from the back of his head.

"People will think I'm some clumsy kid if I show up with two bandages on my head."

"Whatcha doin'?"

He glared at her -- this woman who claimed she was from outer space; this woman who looked and acted like she was from outer space.

"I'm trying to figure out how to hide these." He muttered through gritted teeth.

She didn't seem bothered by his angry tone. Haruko continued to roll around his bed -- exposing her nakedness now and then.

"Stop doing that. You act like a kid. Why don't you act your age?"

Haruko sat up on Naota's bed. Her head grazed the bunk above her. "What about you?"

"Shut up. Leave me alone. None of this would be happening if you were paying more attention to the road. Damned irresponsible adult."

He didn't feel his usual apathy that day.

Somehow, everything seemed to irritate and aggravate him.

He thought about Mamimi. "Some protector I turned out to be."

He thought about Haruko -- the childish woman who was staying in his room. He could see her amber eyes in his mind -- those cynical, I've-seen-it-all eyes that always looked at him in bittersweet amusement. "What is she hiding from me? What does she want from me?"

Naota heard the Medical Mechanica factory expel smoke and knew it was time to go to school.

It was like clockwork and he was a puppet that went through the automatic motions of daily living.

But life was no longer ordinary for Nandaba Naota.

* * *

Part Two:

Ninamori Eri paced the length of her house -- the sound of her footsteps the only sign of life in her home.

How hard would it have been to ask to come along?

Fool. Coward.

The phone rang.

She was torn between throwing her slipper at the phone on her mother's expensive Italian side table or simply yanking the cord out of the wall.

She knew she would be able hit the phone and knock the receiver off the cradle -- the many nights of practice had ensured that.

The phone continued to ring.

With a groan she walked over to it.

"Hello. This is the Ninamori residence."

"Ninamori? It's me."

She nearly dropped the telephone when she identified the voice.

"Naota? Is that you? Where are you?"

Naota looked around him. "I'm not really sure where I am. I know I'm about a few hours away from you."

He had never learned his geography -- it was never taught to them. It wasn't necessary knowledge, since no one was expected to leave their town.

"Have you found her?"

She heard him sigh. Her own heart seemed to beat wildly in anticipation of his answer.

"No. Not yet. I was close, though."

Eri exhaled -- only then did she realize that she had been holding her breath since she asked him the question.

"What do you mean?" She struggled to keep her voice even and filtered out all the elation and relief she felt inside.

"It seems that she passed through this town just before I did. She even stopped by the same convenience store and bought the same brand of instant noodles as I did."

Is that tenderness I hear in his voice? "That's too bad."

"I'll keep looking for her."

"Why? Don't you think this is some sort of sign? Why don't you just come home?"

She couldn't believe she'd said that. "What I mean is--"

"I appreciate the concern but I have to do this. I'll be fine."

"But why do you have to do this?"

"You wouldn't understand. Maybe in a few years you will. When you're older. When you finally find someone who makes you feel... " He was quiet for a second. "You wouldn't understand."

She wanted to laugh -- wanted to tell him that she did understand, perhaps more so than he did. She wanted to tell him that she had found someone who made her feel.

Instead, she said nothing.

"I have to go. My three minutes are almost up. I'll call again soon."

"Okay." Eri heard the distinctive click that signaled the end of the conversation -- and the beginning of her endless wait for his next call.

She replaced the receiver in the cradle and started to wipe away the smudge marks she had inadvertently left on her mother's expensive Italian side table -- knowing that, when her mother returns -- if her mother returns, she would meticulously inspect the table for such marks.

I am so pathetic.

* * *

Perhaps it was the air -- the absence of the ever-present fumes that seeped from Medical Mechanica.

Perhaps it was the way the stars twinkled, unhampered by the thick white smoke that was the breath of the structure that loomed over his town.

Perhaps it was just him.

Naota stared up at the night sky. He shifted uncomfortably on the park bench where he lay.

He wanted to go home.

In the shadows of night, with everything covered in darkness, Naota felt the cold different-ness of where he was. He realized then why no one ever left their town. He closed his eyes, hoping to block out the world, hoping that, when he opened his eyes, he would find himself back home -- home where it was safe and familiar.

Where are you, Mamimi?

Naota knew he had to find her and bring her home with him. He never even considered the reasons or the logic of his actions -- he just wanted her with him.

This must be how Haruko felt when she lost him. He excavated memories of his time with Haruko. He opened his eyes and smiled.

I wonder if she's found him by now.

Him. Atomsk -- the Pirate Lord, the alien being whom Haruko loved and pursued across galaxies and time.

He raised his right arm above his head and looked at the metal cuff on his wrist. It was a legacy from his encounter with Haruko and her extraterrestrial world.

There were nights after that final incident when he would stay up late at night and wait for the cuff to vibrate -- the same way Haruko's cuff became agitated whenever a robot was ready to appear: infinite nights of disappointment and frustration -- of Naota waiting for a sign from Haruko.

It was another one of those nights. Naota lay there on the park bench, staring up at the sky and waiting for a sign.

I never got one in the past six months. Why should I get one now?

Naota clasped his hands behind his head. He tried to make out the constellations above him.

My life has no such maps.

He sighed and closed his eyes once again. This time to sleep.