Chapter Five: A New Home
I set foot off the plane onto the concrete, a small suitcase trailing behind me. I turned around to see both Matt and dad trailing small suitcases behind them too. The airport didn't really look any different from any other airport I had been to, so I didn't know why I was expecting something different. Nearly everyone around me was speaking in English, I could understand a lot more of it compared to what my knowledge of it had been a few weeks earlier. I wonder how long it took Mimi to get used to speaking and understanding the language...
We entered the building that consisted mainly business man lazing in the uncomfortable chairs or speaking on their cell phones. Like the other waiting passengers we took a seat in the uncomfortable chairs and awaited for our guide. Dad yawned tiredly and stretched to the heavens.
"I just hope most of our stuff will be at the apartment when we get there." He said slumming down into the chair.
"Well you sent it over here weeks ago." Matt replied eyes dropping just a bit from jet lag.
"True." Dad replied to the eldest son. "Now where is our guide?"
"She'll be here soon... As long as there's not a mall around." I responded.
"Konnici wa!" A female voice rang from behind us.
The three of us turned around to find a girl no more than a year younger than Matt. She had a black and blue plaid skirt that ended a little above her knees and a long white cuff sleeved blouse on. White knee socks came up from deep blue platform shoes. Her honey brown hair wavered just a bit giving it volume and met just below her shoulders and her rusty brown eyes twinkled in delight.
"Tachikawa-san, it's nice to see you." My father said to the girl with a smile and she bowed to us politely.
"O-genki desu ka (How are you)?" She asked us all as a male her age came running up behind her.
"Arigato gozaimasu, genki desu (Fine, thank you)." Dad replied.
"Mimi!! Why did you go running off like that!?" The blonde wavy haired boy asked exasperated, yet out of breath. Mimi turned around in surprise.
"Michael! You scared me!" She shouted out in English. He stood up having now caught his breath and pushed some wavy strands of hair behind his ear.
"My apologies." He replied before looking at us with a smile and bowed. "Konnici wa."
"Ishida-san, Yamato-san, this is Michael. Michael, Ishida-san and Yamato-san. I'm assuming you remember Takeru-kun." Mimi introduced us cheerily.
"Hai, I remember Takeru-san. Hajime mashite (How do you do)?" Michael replied in Japanese. For an American he spoke the language very well. Mimi also told me he was fluent in Spanish too from living in the suburbs in New York for a time.
"Good, but tired." My dad replied with a smile that turned into a yawn.
"Same." My brother replied. "So, where is our apartment located anyway?"
"Down the street from me." Mimi replied. "Come on, your chariot awaits." With that Mimi turned around and headed to the exit.
Sluggishly we followed the energetic girl's wake to a black van. We piled our suitcases in the trunk and exchanged pleasantries with Michael's mother before pilling into the car and heading to our new home. A half hour later of sleeping we arrived at a large apartment complex. It had five flights of stairs to each building that connected like an incomplete square, leaving an open gap between them for a parking lot.
"Which level are we on dad?" I asked yawning as the car came to a halt in the parking lot.
"The third one I believe." He replied while double checking the paper he had stored in his wallet. Matt and I groaned too tired to even get out of the car. "Come on guys, we have to move up there at some point."
"If you need help settling in don't hesitate to call us." Michael's mom winked in the rearview mirror at us. "Are you starting work tomorrow Mr. Ishida?"
"Not yet." Dad replied dragging the suitcases out of the trunk of the van. "Their waiting until the boy's start up at school and we're some what settled in. I'd say a week or so."
"I see." The wavy haired woman replied before eyeing the digital clock on the radio. "I hate to leave you in such a state, but I'm already late picking up my sister's kids at the daycare center."
"It's fine. Thank you for the ride." Dad replied and bowed.
"Thanks."
"Thank you!" Matt and I bowed.
"Mimi, are you going with us?" Michael asked as he got in the passenger's seat of his van.
"I guess I have to, I told mom I'd help her with planning dad's dinner party tonight." She sighed before turning her attention to us. "I'll come over tomorrow to help you settle in if you want."
"That would be great." I replied with a smile.
"If you're not busy be our guest." My father replied before picking up his suitcase and heading for the stairs. "Until then, sayonara."
"I'm so glad you guys are here!" Mimi exclaimed happily. She wrapped Matt and I in a hug before jogging over to the van and hopping in. "Sayonara!"
"Bye!" Matt and I chorused. The two of us looked at each other for a moment and shook are heads before following dad's lead.
~*~
12:00 p.m. It was 12:00 p.m.
Oh wait, it was /12:01 p.m/.
I stared at the digital clock with half closed eyes. How long had I been sleeping? More importantly, where was I? The room around me was littered in boxes, some open and contents exploited, others closed, the words 'fragile' written all over them. The room's repulsive olive colored paint peeled, obviously old. Mere inches below me was a thin tanned carpet. The stench of something sour reached my nostrils.
"Afternoon sleepy head." I heard my brother say. I turned around on the mattress to look up at my wide awake brother.
"Matt?"
"You've been sleeping for hours T.K.. Don't you think it's time you get up?"
"Would asking for five more minutes be futile?" I asked as I sleepily sat up.
"You should get dressed, Mimi's coming over remember." Matt told me before making his way out of the room. I sighed and pushed the my blankets off of me before stumbling over to my suitcase.
Finding something suitable I dressed and looked about me. Walking out of the door less doorway, I took a right and proceeded into the kitchen where I found dad sitting at the kitchen table daydreaming. Matt was leaning against the kitchen counter dressed all in black with the exception of his white socks.
"So you're up Takeru." Dad spoke noticing me enter. "It seems we all got up a bit late today."
"So... What are we doing today?" I asked.
"Well, I'd say unpack-" Dad began, but was interrupted by a knocking at the door.
"I'll get it." I replied, being closest to the door. A short walk down the small hallway I came to the apartment door.
"Afternoon Takeru!" Mimi smiled brightly when I opened the door. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she was clad in navy blue flares, a pink t-shirt that stated 'Roxy', and a pair of sandals. She frowned suddenly, "Did you just wake up?"
I smiled sheepishly, "Yeah." I allowed her entrance and I took her to the kitchen.
"Ah, Tachikawa-san. It's nice to see you again." My dad smiled politely at Mimi.
"Afternoon Ishida-san." She replied to my father before saying hello to Matt. She looked around at our new home with a mild look of horror. "Y-your not planning on keeping these... decorations are you?" She asked us.
I looked at Matt who shrugged and the both of us looked at our dad. Dad looked back at us with a look of mixed embarrassment and confusion. "Well... We were thinking about unpacking today..." Dad replied to the appalled girl.
"Uh uh." She replied shaking and index finger at us slowly. "This olive green has got to go!" I privately agreed. "May I see the other rooms?" She asked. "I need to make observations on the colors to help you guys out."
"Um... Sure." My dad replied. "Matt, Takeru, show her around."
"Um, down here are the bedrooms..." I gestured down the hallway towards the apartment door.
~*~
A few hours later I found myself adding the second coat of pale blue to my and Matt's bedroom walls. Matt, dad, and Mimi were finishing up in the Kitchen (being painted white and a slate blue). Tired once again and covered in paint, I finished the last wall of painting. Deciding to go see how the others were fending I made my way into the kitchen.
"You guys finished yet?" I asked.
"Just about." Matt replied adding a coat of slate blue paint onto one of the bottom cupboards just as Mimi put her paint brush in the paint can.
"I'd say the painting is through." She smiled triumphantly. "Now all we need is to let it dry... Let's go take a walk, I can show you around."
"That sounds like a good idea." I replied happy to get away from the gaging smell of paint. Dad's cell phone rang on the pathetic excuse for a kitchen table and he crossed the room to answer.
"Hello?" He answered in English. "Ah, Mr. Kenjai..." He talked for a few minutes before folding the bottom lip of the phone up and placing it in his shirt's pocket. "That was Mr. Kenjai, one of the guys who work at the t.v. station."
"What did he want?" Matt asked washing the paint off his hands at the kitchen sink.
"He wants to show me company and to see how we were fairing." Dad replied.
"I thought you weren't going to work until you enrolled T.K. and Matt in school." Mimi voiced with confusion briefly crossing her features.
"I have to see the working facility before I actually work there." Dad explained. "Also, Mr. Kenjai is going to show me around the city. I was planning on enrolling the two today."
"You were going to have us go to school tomorrow?!" Matt asked stunned.
"Well... No, but at least your enrollment would be out of the way." Dad responded.
"Okay..." Matt replied.
"Relax, school doesn't start up again till next week." Mimi smiled. "We're on vacation!"
"Vacation?" Matt and I asked surprised.
"Yeah, the school system here doesn't start until September and ends in June. We have mini breaks in between." Mimi explained to us. "I thought you guys new that..." Matt shrugged while I stood there blinking.
"Mr. Kenjai is on his way to pick me up. I should be home around eight if not earlier." Dad told the three of us. "If you go anywhere --which you should while the paint dries-- lock the door and take the key." Dad handed Matt a key from his pocket. "I'll have copies of them made soon, but until then we'll have to share this one."
A car beeped outside our apartment and dad went to the window. "That would be Mr. Kenjai." He said more so to himself. "What are you guys going to do for the night?"
"I'd like to show them around, if that's okay." Mimi replied.
"That would be great." Dad smiled. "I have my cell if anything important comes up..." He told us as he headed for the door. "Don't forget to lock up when you go." We heard the door open and close noting dad's departure.
"So, where to now?" I asked.
To Be Continued....
~*~
Author's Note: Hey guys, I'd like to apologize for this chapter coming out so late!! Also for the lack of quality it might have compared to the others ___. Reason for both of these is that I've been extremely busy lately to really sit down and work on it due to play practice. After April 12th though things should be back on track for this fic ^_~.
Also, I'd like to thank SSJ (a.k.a. Relaxing Pikachu, she replies on the ML), Silver Angel, Music Chick, Sapphire Spades, Telemoo37, and Flipstahhz! Your reviews keep me going!!
Next up we'll get to the school part ^_~. Stay tuned...