-
Chapter 24
I entered the crowded stadium with a mix of apprehension and awe. The place was packed. I had come and gone from a relatively small school, where the graduating class was under fifteen hundred. But there were over six thousand on the stage that night, with tens of thousands more in the stands. I began to wonder what the hell I managed to get myself into.
A helpful man at the gate had directed me towards a group of reserved seats for dignitaries and their guests. MP Ishigaki had secured the privilege for me and I gladly accepted. However,
at that point, I was utterly lost, somewhere in primary section something sub section whatever.
I turned around a couple of times, trying to gain my bearings. I peered at the signs, trying to make some order out of them before wandering in some random direction.
"Kaitou-san?"
I turned, surprised at hearing my name, "Hai?"
A short man, even by Japanese standards, bowed graciously to me, "I have been ordered to help you find your seat."
I smiled in thanks, "Arrigato, but you see, I am meeting friends-"
The man looked up at me with a curious smile, "Ishigaki-san insists."
I chuckled, "Of course. Please lead the way."
We woved our way through the crowds, doubling back against my original path to a flowery box filled with diplomats, businessmen, and politicians of all sorts.
Ishigaki-san, against all Japanese tradition, waved at me. I smiled at him and thanked the man who had guided me to the restricted area.
The Japanese leader stood up and bowed to me. I shifted around the flowers I carried in my hands and bowed in return.
"So I was sitting here, watching you muddle through the crowd with the same look you had coming into the final exam of my Advanced Macroeconomics class. Your characteristic look of complete bewilderment."
I smirked, "I still maintain that you made that test too hard simply so that you would not be stuck with me as a thesis advisor in economics."
"Only partially true. You had gotten A's on every test in my class by the seat of your pants. I felt it my duty to disabuse you of the notion that you can get by in life by cramming the night before."
"And giving me a C plus on my permanent record." I wrinkled my nose, "Thanks for the lesson."
The Parliament member turned his attention to the beginning ceremony, "You learned from it, did you not? You are prosperous, successful and still talking to me. I consider that a victory in itself. I'll admit, at the time I didn't think I would get even that satisfaction. My ears still ring from the conversation we had, the day grades came out."
I chuckled, "I have apologized for that conversation a dozen times. It was a rude shock on my none too impressive report card."
"You have learned much since I met you first. You have much to be proud of." He raised an eyebrow, "Although you seem to have forgotten some lessons about unnecessary outbursts since Stanford."
"You heard about Fukui-san?"
He inclined his head, "Indeed, I have. You were always a hot headed man, Ryan."
"I don't take suggestions like what he was proposing, lightly."
"I understand. You are lucky that some of that samurai bushido spirit still remains in the Japanese business world. Many view what you did as quite honorable, for a gaijin."
Seeing my look of relief, he continued, "Still...I would suggest restraint next time. You are still a relative newcomer, however culturally acclimated you may be. Be wary, my friend."
I nodded at the sage advice and changed the topic, "So where is Mariko-sama? I thought she might be here with you?"
He smiled at the thought of his wife, "She could not make it. Currently, she is Nagano taking care of her sick mother. I do miss her. And from your tone, I suspect that you do to."
I adopted a mirthless smile, "Best tonkatsu I've ever had. Man oh man, what I would give for that again."
"You, young men, always thinking with your stomachs."
He wrinkled his nose, "Luckily, I have a dinner meeting tonight, otherwise I might be stuck with cold soba again."
I chuckled, "Food is indeed the most important of things."
He gestured for me to sit and took on a slightly evil look in his eyes, much like the predatory glares he favored for his classes, "For old men certainly. But young men are supposed to pursue love. And from the look of the bouquet in your arms, it looks like you may be going courting tonight
I crimsoned, "They are for a friend."
"Ah."
With a single pregnant word, he said more than he had that entire night. It was silent for a moment, then he smiled faintly, "Too bad, I think I might have liked to have you in my family."
I shook my head and replied in English, "You, sir, are a randy old bugger." Ishigaki smiled enigmatically, "I have been called far worse."
Usagi looked nervous and Rei flashed her a thumbs up. She almost grinned as she took her seat on the stage.
Rei giggled softly and then sat back for the long ceremony. It would begin early in the day and end around four o'clock. Her name was somewhere in the middle and again at the end, having managed to exit college with a high enough GPA for honors. There would be a convenient break in the middle for lunch and then a rapid continuation of awards and the rest of the graduates.
She wondered if Kaitou-san was out in the crowd. Of course, she had invited him, but he had been somewhat noncommittal about it. He hadn't known his schedule at the time and she hadn't wanted to press him on the issue.
Somehow, though, she knew that he was out there. Smiling and probably talking to his neighbor. Trying to find her in the crowd. Rei smiled aimlessly, entertaining her quiet fantasies until she was jerked out of her seat by the annunciation of her name. 'Has it been three hours already'
She spared a glance at her watch as she walked up to the stage and shook the hands of the Dean of her department and other important figures. As she passed by, Minako, in the front row, whistled loudly, eliciting a round of applause. Her gaze traveled up the aisles in the stadium, eventually reaching a much decorated spectator's box.
And for a single tantalizing moment she caught a glimpse of Ryan Kaitou, flashing her a heart meltingly charming smile. Rei drank in the praise as she descended the steps, feeling a new energy coursing through her veins.
The rest of the ceremony was quite boring, in my humble opinion. Of course, I had gone through not one, but two of them before, so I was somewhat justified in passing judgement.
She saw me, waving and smiling at her. For a moment, I relived my own graduation, that night filled with such hope and promise. I knew how it felt to realize that the whole of life was within my grasp if only I should seize it. I could feel the heady atmosphere and reveled in it. And in that single perilous moment when her eyes met mine, I felt a connection. She smiled for me and me alone. 'Why are you doing this to me, Rei'
Ishigaki was blessedly quiet as he rose with great dignity and left in silence.
I flipped open my cellphone and dialed Rei's number. She answered gaily, "Kaitou-san! I saw you in the dignitary box!"
"I was invited to spectate. Where can I meet you? The crowds are already swarming."
Rei shouted at someone apart from our conversation and then turned her attention to me again, "How about the Botanical Gardens? By the rose beds? Let me just see my grandfather first."
"I will see you there."
I flipped the phone closed and I glanced over a map of the campus. Walking quickly, I managed to just miss the rush of people out into the quads to meet and congratulate loved ones. Skirting around the edges, I walked past a couple of student dorms and to the University Gardens. Famous for its Environmental Science programs, the University of Tokyo boasted some of the greatest flowers in the world. I should know. I had specifically visited the gardens to purchase some of their famous Casablanca lilies for Rei. And for a personal touch, I had imported a Hawaiian lei made of rare orchids, which had arrived not a couple of hours before.
I spotted her perfect figure, standing alone, facing the rows of roses. Silently, I crept up behind her.
As I approached, she seemed very deep in thought. Her gaze was vacant, though I knew that hid a surprisingly active and flexible mind.
When I was a mere foot away, I whispered into her ear. "Boo." Rei jumped six inches into the air and broke out into a wide smile, "Kaitou-san!" She hugged me and I was careful to extract myself before the flowers in my arms were crumpled.
She backed off for, still smiling, and I presented her with the bouquet, "These are for you. I hope you like them."
"Lilies! Oh, I do like them! Thank you so much, Ryan!"
I held up one finger to silence her, "I am not finished yet." I lifted the lei off my shoulders and carefully placed them around her shoulders. "This is a California tradition. We always give our graduates Hawaiian orchids."
Rei lifted the chain to her nose and breathed in deeply the sweet scent, "They're lovely. Where did you get them?"
I shrugged, "I have my ways. But I am glad that you like them." "Kaitou-san." her voice dropped off slightly, "You are too good to me."
I knelt over to kiss one of her hands, "I am merely doing what any other friend would do."
"Not just any friend." She pulled me closer and rested her head against my shoulder, "I am very glad that you came. I know you're busy."
I smiled and patted the top of her head, "Don't worry about it. I would not have missed it for the world."
"Hey, Rei!"
He suddenly jerked away, depriving her of the comforting warmth which she had already become accustomed to. She blinked a couple of times and then refocused to see her friends.
Ryan waved to them, obviously trying to ignore what had just transpired between them. She sighed. She probably should ignore it too. 'Even if I were attracted to him, we could not be together. We work together. Decorum forbids such relationships'
Her thoughts were further scrambled when she gaved up into his fiery blue eyes, hawklike and perceptive. "Minna-san! Congratulations to all for graduation."
Usagi smiled at him, "Kaitou-san! You managed to make it! Rei said you might be busy."
He grinned and winked, "Nothing is more important than a graduation. I remember my own graduation clearly."
"Your parents must have been very proud."
He seemed stunned for a moment, then inclined his head a little sadly, "My parents died before I graduated from college. But I would like to think that they still watched me," He looked a little down for a moment, before grinning, "Where are my manners? I loved your speech. It touched me deeply."
"Why thank you."
Rei turned to hug her best friend and wave to other senshi who were drawn to the group of friends.
Mamoru grabbed me by the arm and spoke low into my ear, "You are a most convincing liar."
I grinned, "Whatever could you mean by that?"
"They died before you graduated?"
"Technically, not a lie. They did, a millenia or two before."
"Businessmen." I shook his hand off, "What are you up to, this fine night?"
"Party, of course. You didn't know about it?"
I shrugged, "I assumed I wasn't invited."
"Don't worry, we wouldn't dream of having it without you." He tone held no irony and he smiled charmingly.
Before I could answer, Rei latched onto my arm again, "Hey, are you coming to the party?"
"Mamoru just invited me. I am coming, whether you like it or not."
Rei glared at me, "Normally, I would cripple someone for a comment like that. But I like you, so I'll maim you instead."
I offered Rei my arm with a debonair wink, "You know, you sound more and more like Dana each day."
She threaded her arm through mine, "What can I say? I feed off the good influences around me. Not that you've been helping."
"Ah, so my degenerate nature hasn;t been rubbing off on you? I'm going to have to try harder to make you crack."
She rolled her eyes, "I'm already about to crack myself. Let's get going already."
Chapter 24
I entered the crowded stadium with a mix of apprehension and awe. The place was packed. I had come and gone from a relatively small school, where the graduating class was under fifteen hundred. But there were over six thousand on the stage that night, with tens of thousands more in the stands. I began to wonder what the hell I managed to get myself into.
A helpful man at the gate had directed me towards a group of reserved seats for dignitaries and their guests. MP Ishigaki had secured the privilege for me and I gladly accepted. However,
at that point, I was utterly lost, somewhere in primary section something sub section whatever.
I turned around a couple of times, trying to gain my bearings. I peered at the signs, trying to make some order out of them before wandering in some random direction.
"Kaitou-san?"
I turned, surprised at hearing my name, "Hai?"
A short man, even by Japanese standards, bowed graciously to me, "I have been ordered to help you find your seat."
I smiled in thanks, "Arrigato, but you see, I am meeting friends-"
The man looked up at me with a curious smile, "Ishigaki-san insists."
I chuckled, "Of course. Please lead the way."
We woved our way through the crowds, doubling back against my original path to a flowery box filled with diplomats, businessmen, and politicians of all sorts.
Ishigaki-san, against all Japanese tradition, waved at me. I smiled at him and thanked the man who had guided me to the restricted area.
The Japanese leader stood up and bowed to me. I shifted around the flowers I carried in my hands and bowed in return.
"So I was sitting here, watching you muddle through the crowd with the same look you had coming into the final exam of my Advanced Macroeconomics class. Your characteristic look of complete bewilderment."
I smirked, "I still maintain that you made that test too hard simply so that you would not be stuck with me as a thesis advisor in economics."
"Only partially true. You had gotten A's on every test in my class by the seat of your pants. I felt it my duty to disabuse you of the notion that you can get by in life by cramming the night before."
"And giving me a C plus on my permanent record." I wrinkled my nose, "Thanks for the lesson."
The Parliament member turned his attention to the beginning ceremony, "You learned from it, did you not? You are prosperous, successful and still talking to me. I consider that a victory in itself. I'll admit, at the time I didn't think I would get even that satisfaction. My ears still ring from the conversation we had, the day grades came out."
I chuckled, "I have apologized for that conversation a dozen times. It was a rude shock on my none too impressive report card."
"You have learned much since I met you first. You have much to be proud of." He raised an eyebrow, "Although you seem to have forgotten some lessons about unnecessary outbursts since Stanford."
"You heard about Fukui-san?"
He inclined his head, "Indeed, I have. You were always a hot headed man, Ryan."
"I don't take suggestions like what he was proposing, lightly."
"I understand. You are lucky that some of that samurai bushido spirit still remains in the Japanese business world. Many view what you did as quite honorable, for a gaijin."
Seeing my look of relief, he continued, "Still...I would suggest restraint next time. You are still a relative newcomer, however culturally acclimated you may be. Be wary, my friend."
I nodded at the sage advice and changed the topic, "So where is Mariko-sama? I thought she might be here with you?"
He smiled at the thought of his wife, "She could not make it. Currently, she is Nagano taking care of her sick mother. I do miss her. And from your tone, I suspect that you do to."
I adopted a mirthless smile, "Best tonkatsu I've ever had. Man oh man, what I would give for that again."
"You, young men, always thinking with your stomachs."
He wrinkled his nose, "Luckily, I have a dinner meeting tonight, otherwise I might be stuck with cold soba again."
I chuckled, "Food is indeed the most important of things."
He gestured for me to sit and took on a slightly evil look in his eyes, much like the predatory glares he favored for his classes, "For old men certainly. But young men are supposed to pursue love. And from the look of the bouquet in your arms, it looks like you may be going courting tonight
I crimsoned, "They are for a friend."
"Ah."
With a single pregnant word, he said more than he had that entire night. It was silent for a moment, then he smiled faintly, "Too bad, I think I might have liked to have you in my family."
I shook my head and replied in English, "You, sir, are a randy old bugger." Ishigaki smiled enigmatically, "I have been called far worse."
Usagi looked nervous and Rei flashed her a thumbs up. She almost grinned as she took her seat on the stage.
Rei giggled softly and then sat back for the long ceremony. It would begin early in the day and end around four o'clock. Her name was somewhere in the middle and again at the end, having managed to exit college with a high enough GPA for honors. There would be a convenient break in the middle for lunch and then a rapid continuation of awards and the rest of the graduates.
She wondered if Kaitou-san was out in the crowd. Of course, she had invited him, but he had been somewhat noncommittal about it. He hadn't known his schedule at the time and she hadn't wanted to press him on the issue.
Somehow, though, she knew that he was out there. Smiling and probably talking to his neighbor. Trying to find her in the crowd. Rei smiled aimlessly, entertaining her quiet fantasies until she was jerked out of her seat by the annunciation of her name. 'Has it been three hours already'
She spared a glance at her watch as she walked up to the stage and shook the hands of the Dean of her department and other important figures. As she passed by, Minako, in the front row, whistled loudly, eliciting a round of applause. Her gaze traveled up the aisles in the stadium, eventually reaching a much decorated spectator's box.
And for a single tantalizing moment she caught a glimpse of Ryan Kaitou, flashing her a heart meltingly charming smile. Rei drank in the praise as she descended the steps, feeling a new energy coursing through her veins.
The rest of the ceremony was quite boring, in my humble opinion. Of course, I had gone through not one, but two of them before, so I was somewhat justified in passing judgement.
She saw me, waving and smiling at her. For a moment, I relived my own graduation, that night filled with such hope and promise. I knew how it felt to realize that the whole of life was within my grasp if only I should seize it. I could feel the heady atmosphere and reveled in it. And in that single perilous moment when her eyes met mine, I felt a connection. She smiled for me and me alone. 'Why are you doing this to me, Rei'
Ishigaki was blessedly quiet as he rose with great dignity and left in silence.
I flipped open my cellphone and dialed Rei's number. She answered gaily, "Kaitou-san! I saw you in the dignitary box!"
"I was invited to spectate. Where can I meet you? The crowds are already swarming."
Rei shouted at someone apart from our conversation and then turned her attention to me again, "How about the Botanical Gardens? By the rose beds? Let me just see my grandfather first."
"I will see you there."
I flipped the phone closed and I glanced over a map of the campus. Walking quickly, I managed to just miss the rush of people out into the quads to meet and congratulate loved ones. Skirting around the edges, I walked past a couple of student dorms and to the University Gardens. Famous for its Environmental Science programs, the University of Tokyo boasted some of the greatest flowers in the world. I should know. I had specifically visited the gardens to purchase some of their famous Casablanca lilies for Rei. And for a personal touch, I had imported a Hawaiian lei made of rare orchids, which had arrived not a couple of hours before.
I spotted her perfect figure, standing alone, facing the rows of roses. Silently, I crept up behind her.
As I approached, she seemed very deep in thought. Her gaze was vacant, though I knew that hid a surprisingly active and flexible mind.
When I was a mere foot away, I whispered into her ear. "Boo." Rei jumped six inches into the air and broke out into a wide smile, "Kaitou-san!" She hugged me and I was careful to extract myself before the flowers in my arms were crumpled.
She backed off for, still smiling, and I presented her with the bouquet, "These are for you. I hope you like them."
"Lilies! Oh, I do like them! Thank you so much, Ryan!"
I held up one finger to silence her, "I am not finished yet." I lifted the lei off my shoulders and carefully placed them around her shoulders. "This is a California tradition. We always give our graduates Hawaiian orchids."
Rei lifted the chain to her nose and breathed in deeply the sweet scent, "They're lovely. Where did you get them?"
I shrugged, "I have my ways. But I am glad that you like them." "Kaitou-san." her voice dropped off slightly, "You are too good to me."
I knelt over to kiss one of her hands, "I am merely doing what any other friend would do."
"Not just any friend." She pulled me closer and rested her head against my shoulder, "I am very glad that you came. I know you're busy."
I smiled and patted the top of her head, "Don't worry about it. I would not have missed it for the world."
"Hey, Rei!"
He suddenly jerked away, depriving her of the comforting warmth which she had already become accustomed to. She blinked a couple of times and then refocused to see her friends.
Ryan waved to them, obviously trying to ignore what had just transpired between them. She sighed. She probably should ignore it too. 'Even if I were attracted to him, we could not be together. We work together. Decorum forbids such relationships'
Her thoughts were further scrambled when she gaved up into his fiery blue eyes, hawklike and perceptive. "Minna-san! Congratulations to all for graduation."
Usagi smiled at him, "Kaitou-san! You managed to make it! Rei said you might be busy."
He grinned and winked, "Nothing is more important than a graduation. I remember my own graduation clearly."
"Your parents must have been very proud."
He seemed stunned for a moment, then inclined his head a little sadly, "My parents died before I graduated from college. But I would like to think that they still watched me," He looked a little down for a moment, before grinning, "Where are my manners? I loved your speech. It touched me deeply."
"Why thank you."
Rei turned to hug her best friend and wave to other senshi who were drawn to the group of friends.
Mamoru grabbed me by the arm and spoke low into my ear, "You are a most convincing liar."
I grinned, "Whatever could you mean by that?"
"They died before you graduated?"
"Technically, not a lie. They did, a millenia or two before."
"Businessmen." I shook his hand off, "What are you up to, this fine night?"
"Party, of course. You didn't know about it?"
I shrugged, "I assumed I wasn't invited."
"Don't worry, we wouldn't dream of having it without you." He tone held no irony and he smiled charmingly.
Before I could answer, Rei latched onto my arm again, "Hey, are you coming to the party?"
"Mamoru just invited me. I am coming, whether you like it or not."
Rei glared at me, "Normally, I would cripple someone for a comment like that. But I like you, so I'll maim you instead."
I offered Rei my arm with a debonair wink, "You know, you sound more and more like Dana each day."
She threaded her arm through mine, "What can I say? I feed off the good influences around me. Not that you've been helping."
"Ah, so my degenerate nature hasn;t been rubbing off on you? I'm going to have to try harder to make you crack."
She rolled her eyes, "I'm already about to crack myself. Let's get going already."