It's no Holiday
Chapter one: Kayaks don't have motors?
The cloth passed over the black tabletop, pushing the crumbs off onto the floor. A sparkle of sunlight danced upon her skin as she straightened her back. The restaurant opened up a five and it was now one, she already knew it would be a long day. Brushing the wrinkles out of her navy skirt, she couldn't help but groan when she saw a stain on her white blouse. Ignoring it, she picked up some dishes and balanced them over her head.
The place was loaded with the coffee addicts and college student. She could see herself one day sitting on a chair with a friend drink her fifth cup of coffee as she looked over some notes for a test that was soon to come. Cramming her brain with useless information, swearing each time she couldn't remember some question. Occasionally getting a cup of coffee spilt over her work… Somehow, that sounded appealing to her.
For a while she had been saving up to have such opportunity, even if that meant she was going to be me screamed by customers all day long and get coffee burns, she would still do.
Slowly rolling her head to the side as she dumped the dished into a sink as she handed another order to the chef. Walking back to the empty table, she couldn't help but notice a 1973 powder blue Hornet parked by the curb. Two girl where coming out of it, bickering at each other.
"Oh great… not now." Kagome said in a dull voice. Throwing her rag onto the counter she walked out the front door in rush.
Outside all you could hear was Ayame yelling in a singing voice as she clutched her ears and Sango's screaming. "… I'm telling you Ayame that was so not him, I swear! How could you mistake some stranger for that stupid actor? He doesn't even look like him! The guy had fucking pink hair! PINK!"
Sango was dressed in a pair of jeans that where cut just above her knees and a black tank top. She lots of bangles on both of her wrist. Ayame was wearing a dark blue polka dot skirt, some slip on checkered shoes and a white t-shirt with two stick figures on it. Black and white arm warmers covered her arm.
Rolling her eyes to the sky, Kagome let out a sigh. "Guys I told you can't visit me during work."
Sango quickly stopped her yelling. Taking a breath of air she flicked Ayame's ear, shutting her up.
"We have something…" She started. "…that you wouldn't want to miss."
Ayame barged in. "Kaggie, pack you're bag we are going to the beach!" She screamed out as she threw her sunglasses off.
"No." Kagome said simply.
Ayame slapped her forehead in annoyance. "But Kagome, you have been at that dinner twenty four seven! You. Need. A. Break!"
"I already told I can't go. I'm sorry but these days I have been busier than ever."
Grabbing hold of Kagome shoulder she shook her. "Earth to Kagome! It's vacation time! It's officially summer I heard it on the radio. When you where still in high school you would of came no matter what."
"That was high school. I'm now an adult I don't have time for this kind of stuff."
"Adult my ass, you're seventeen, twenty one is when you're officially an adult."
"What is that, like the unwritten law?"
"Yes."
"I still can't go." Kagome said shaking of her friend. Opening the opening the door, she was about to step inside when she heard Ayame's voice.
"I didn't want to do this…" She said slowly.
"What?" Kagome asked in a pissed of mood.
"But I guess Rex will have to get involved…"
"No, you wouldn't."
"Try me…"
"Argg! Fuck. He did nothing to you."
"Tenth grade. I jus bought that new CD I was obsessing over. And-"
Kagome waved her hands signaling her to stop. "Ok, so you have a grudge against him. But still, I- like he's. You're so evil." She finally said.
"So, you give up?"
"…yes."
"Ohhh, I wine!" Ayame started to do her victory dance.
"What the heck am I supposed to say to my boss?"
"Tell her you somehow got abducted by aliens." Sango suggested.
"No, she's not that stupid."
"Then tell her that your aunt has just died or something like that." Ayame added.
"Are you sure she'll believe me?"
0000
She sat on a chair in the backroom, letting out sobs that where muffled by her hand. Tears and makeup ran down her red face. The cashier lady stood before her, her eyes full of pity as she handed out a tissue to the broken Kagome.
It took some painful minutes to make Kagome look as if she burst into tears, her head wouldn't fit under the sink so they started to splash water on her face which mostly got onto her shirt. They eventually found eye drops. Ayame insisted that's he should put on more eyeliner so it would leek even more down her face. And that meant she would be poked in the eye a couple of times. In the end her eyes looked bloodshot red and her face was covered with water.
"I'm sorry but I can only give you two days off, if it was your grandmother I would have given you a week or two." She said squeezing Kagome's hand.
'Shit' Kagome chanted in her head. "But I was… I was so, so close to her. Like- like a sister I never had." She sobbed.
"Oh, this is so sad. But I can't" She said biting her lower lip.
"But, the funeral is really far, far away."
"That happened to me once; the funeral was about a day away. I think it was in Wakitaki."
"Uhm... it's a place no one knows about… it's called… Blaboon." She blurted out.
"Oh, well, maybe, juts maybe we could just say it was your grandmother who die- I mean passed away. " She said soothingly.
"Thank you, thank you so much." Kagome said slowly getting up while dabbing at her eyes.
"I just hope you get better soon." The lady said slowly steering Kagome out back into the restaurant. Kagome faked a couple of sobs before she walked out the door.
She couldn't help but gag at how people went all mushy on you when something like that happened. Couldn't they just leave her alone? Opening the back door to the hornet she sat down onto the seat. "We must now go to the Bat Cave, please step on it. I need to go to the little lady's room." Kagome said taking off her black loafers.
"I didn't need to hear the last part." Ayame said changing the gear shift.
0000
Stepping inside the kitchen Kagome called out a second time. "MOM! SOTA! GRANDPA! BUYO?"
No answer. She slowly opened another door that led into the living to find her brother sitting on the floor playing a video game.
"Sota, couldn't you hear me scream your name?"
"Yah." He said his eyes glued to the screen.
"Next time can you at least make a sound so I know you are here?"
"Yah."
"So I'm going to be going to the beach for a couple of days with Sango and Ayame."
"Yah."
"And where is mom?"
"Yah."
"Is she still with gramps at that little forest walk thing."
"Yah."
"Ok then, well I'll just pack and leave. You can call Ayame's cell if you have any problem. I think it's on the fridge."
"Yah."
"Ok then, bye." Kagome said stepping out the door.
"Wait! Kagome, mom said you have to take care of aunty today. She came back from the hospital." Sota said looking back at his sister.
"Oh great."
"She's in the guestroom."
"Do you like to watch me suffer?"
"Yah."
Slamming the door shut she stopped up the stairs to see Ayame dragging a duffle bag that was overflowing. Sango was behind her, earphones covered her ears. She had a Discman in her hand.
"We are officially ready to leave!" Sango screamed over the music that poured into her ears.
"Not really. I kind of got stuck with the care of my aunt."
"You're joking right? Are you talking about the one who never seems to breathe?"
"Yah, that's the one."
"Who are you talking about?" Ayame asked.
"Come I'll show you." Kagome said bring her friends into the guestroom. An old woman lay on a bed, covers pulled up to her chine.
"She kind of looks half dead." Sango said in a whisper as she examined the body. "She isn't breathing, but her blood is still pumping."
"Arg, it's hideous." Ayame said shielding her eyes in a joking way.
"Ayame, that's my aunt and it's not a thing, it's human…. I think." Kagome said keeping a good distance away from her aunt.
"Don't worry, taking care of old people is like taking care of a plant." Sango started. "All you do is feed it water and sunlight." There was along pause after that. Everyone was unsure what to say.
"I'll just make Sota take care of it."
"Yah that a good idea."
0000
The wind blew through her hair as Ayame made a fast turn off the highway. A figurine was bouncing off the asphalt, a sting was tied around its middle and then to revere mirror. She watched as it got tangled on a stop sign, breaking the string into two. One man down.
Sango had a large map spread on the dash board, a pen in her mouth. "I tell you Ayame, we are not going the right way." Sango complained once again.
Ayame let out a frustrate sigh. "I know where I'm going; I went to the beach last year."
"Must I remind you have a bad memory?" Sango said folding her map.
"I have the memory of an elephant."
"What did you have for breakfast?"
"I don't know."
"I have proven my point."
Laying her head down on the seat Kagome looked through the window. All she could see was the top of trees. They weren't close to civilization, more like in the middle of the country. They had been driving for more than three hours, and Kagome had a hunch that the beach wasn't this far away.
Sango took out a tape from her bag and pushed it into the player. The song Just Like You came on. Rolling to her side she let her eyes drift close but she was brutally awoken when the car stopped in a jerking movement. Slowly lifting her head, she looked out the window to see trees.
"Where are we Sango?" She asked.
"Why don't you ask the driver, I'm as clueless as you are…" She said peering out her window.
"Well, if the sign is right, we can do Kayaking on a very nice lake." Ayame said smiling as she got of the car.
"I guess we aren't going to beach." Kagome said stepping out of the car.
"I think she got a little frustrated." Sango said opening her door.
"Frustrated? More like pissed of to the max." Kagome said slamming the door shut.
"I think she's more going crazy than anything else." Both girl watched Ayame twirl around in circles with her arm spread out.
"Yah, crazy."
The car was parked on a dirt road, trees surrounding the sides like a shield. As they continued to walk down the path they soon found it was leading to a lake with a sandy bottom, a dock was outstretched in the water. Ayame was handing out some money to an old man; he was sitting against the wall of a boat house chewing on a cinnamon stick.
"Hey Ayame, what are you doing?" Sango asked following her towards the shore.
Taking her shoes off, Ayame looked up from her feet. "I've just rented some Kayaks for us, actually only two of them are not leaking so we only have two, but that's not the point. We are going on an adventure." She said over her shoulder a she took a kayak down from the rack.
"Ayame, have you drank any water for the passed hour, do you see a pink elephant or something like that, any signs of craziness." Sango questioned.
"Yes, no, and no." Ayame said pulling the kayak across the sand.
"Have you ever been kayaking?" Kagome asked taking her shoes off.
"I can learn." She said pushing half of it onto the water. "Now, where's the motor."
"You're joking right?" Sango said slowly walking into the ice water.
"Oh, so there's no motor." Ayame said smiling. "So how the hell does this thing fucking move!"
"You paddle." Sango said, as she did the motion with her hands.
"Fuck." Ayame said pushing some strand out of her face. "Sango you're paddling and I'm sitting in the back." She said heaving herself into the kayak.
"That's the old Ayame we all know and love." Sango said jokingly as she took out some paddles from a barrel.
"Yah whatever." She said putting her head between her legs.
Pulling her own kayak into the water, Kagome put her paddle across the middle for support the stepped inside. Pushing herself away from the shore she followed Sango into the middle of the lake.
"Sango, don't kayaks go much faster than this." Ayame asked dragging her finger in the dark water.
"No."
"But I saw something about kayaks on the Discovery channel a while ago and they where so going way faster than us."
"They where probably going down rapids."
"Can we go done rapids."
"There are no rapids on this lake."
"How do you know?"
"Never mind." Sango said closing her eyes.
"Sangoooo."
"What!"
"I think Aunt Flow is here."
"What the hell do you mean?"
"I. Think. I. Have. My. Peri-"
"Why didn't you say so before?"
"I did!"
"Well I guess we're going to head back. Kagome?"
Looking away from the water she gave Sango a small smile. "I'll catch up with you guys later." She said paddling herself forwards.
"But what if you somehow get stranded on an island?" Ayame asked, peering over Sango's shoulder.
"As if that's going to happen, but don't worry I know my stuff."
"Ok then, see you later." Sango said steering the kayak around back to the shore.
Kagome watched them slowly become a black dote. A small breeze brushed over her skin as she paddle further into the lake. It was dead quite, giving it a chilling feeling, her surroundings seemed to darken by the second as she the sun was setting.
A round dot from before was now a small island, trees surrounding the side like a raincoat. She could feel herself slowly being pulled towards it by the currant. Letting herself go she looked up to the sky which was now freckled with stars. It reminded her of home, over her bed when she was young, glow in the dark stars where stuck to the sealing letting out a luminosity at night like a night light.
Awakening from her thoughts she suddenly felt herself pushed against something then twirled backwards. The current was stronger than ever, pulling her with it, she was close to island meaning that the ground was higher, and that meant a lot of rocks. Grabbing her paddle she pushed herself away from the obstacle only to be pushed back, wedge on top of a rock that was hidden by the water.
"Oh shit." Kagome said to herself as she tried to push herself off with her paddle. Nothing seemed to work. She was like a turtle on its back.
The stars became even brighter with the contrast from the dark blue sky. But the clouds hovered in front of the moon making the surroundings even darker. A she squinted through the darkness, she was suddenly struck with panic; the only idea that ran through her head was to rock it side to side until it slipped off the rock.
"Ok Kagome, just keep calm." She said to herself as she slowly rocked her body back and forth to the sides. She could feel it slowly slide off, but suddenly it tipped over bring her under.
Eyes wide open, she screamed out only to be muffled by the water. She could see the air bubbles slowly rise to the top. Thrashing and screaming she finally freed herself from underneath the kayak. Swimming to the top she gasped for a breath of air. Her hands seek out for something to grab on.
Finally grasping a rock that slightly stood out of the water, she took a breath of air as she took a glace around. The kayak sunk, only the paddle seemed to be left as it floated away. Her grip tightened as she felt the current change, the water was ice cold against the warmth of her skin.
Her hair plastered against her white face, she slowly looked back to the island, it was just a couple of feet away. Letting go of the rock she dragged herself towards the shore. Slowly climbing out of the water, her skin prickled under the light breeze, making it seem even colder then the water.
Getting up from her hands and knees, she took baby steps through the rows of trees. Her hands snaking around her shoulders as she felt a sudden gust of wind, her teeth chattered in process.
"Shit." She whispered under her breathe. "Help! Anyone! Help!" She screamed out, cupping her hands around her mouth like a megaphone.
"Someone please! I'm scared." She said murmured. Slowly lifting her head, a glimpse of light caught her eye. Fire!
Quickening her pace she pushed her way through bushes until she found it. It was there with all it's glory, logs surrounded making benches, a couple of jumbo marshmallows bags where lying around in a pile. The prefect campfire. The only thing it missed was people. The place was deserted. Taking a few steps forward she looked over her shoulder to only see utter darkness.
Gulping she stepped up to the closes log and took a seat. The only sound on the whole island was the crackles that came from the fire. Putting her hands out to fire, she slowly looked over her shoulder.
Something was watching her. And it wasn't human. She could feel it breath down her back each time she looked away. The sound of a twig snapping made her back stiffen, they came to kill her. She knew it! Slowly crumpling into a ball her breath drew sharp.
'Shit, shit, shit. What is my mom going to say when the policemen bring me back dead? She's probably going to say something like. 'Is she wearing clean underwear?' oh shit…oh shit… I'm going to die!' She screamed in her head.
That's when it happened; the yells and war screams pierced the silent like a knife. Falling to her knees she saw them jump out, red paint plastered on their faces in different patterns and they seemed to be missing clothing.
They all came charging towards her, the next thing she knew a net was over her head. 'What the hell is this… a butterfly net?' She then suddenly was whacked across the head, plunged into complete darkness.
The island then became dead silent, so silent they could hear each other breathing. One of the attackers finally spoke up. "I really don't think that's Miroku."
I need sleep, or coffee… that's all I have to say…