Not Unlike You

Chapter 14

Every one of the girls knew enough about Adam by this point to know what to avoid when having an outing, but Smith still felt the need to go over some basic points to help with date ideas.

No large crowds for prolonged periods of time, nowhere that could draw attention to himself or whoever he was with, and if music was involved, avoid anything with obnoxious levels of bass.

To say the girls were stumped would only be right for one of them. Miia was having difficulty figuring out any ideas, while Tio and Centorea hashed out some plans between themselves, both agreeing that Suu would probably have to join one of them since she was still a bit of a ditz.

Meanwhile, a plane of no more importance than any other had landed at Tokyo Haneda Airport, carrying two specific individuals who were definitely of more importance, at least to some.

A man in a wheelchair, and a woman pushing him along. The man was gaunt in the face, had long black hair reaching halfway down his back, with a patch of white on the left side of his head, a faint scar on his left cheek, and his attire nothing but Grey. Grey jeans, shoes, shirt, and long coat. The only outlier was a mismatched pair of socks: his left was Red, and the right was Blue.

The woman pushing him along was another story. Long Golden-Blonde hair pulled into a tight ponytail, White pants and jacket with a black dress shirt, intimidating Emerald eyes that promised pain to anyone who looked at her funny, and Black Stiletto shoes that gave off an air of danger.

One looked almost dead, and the other was a bombshell of a woman that looked like she could kick your ass. This garnered some attention from passersby, but nobody approached out of curiosity. These two were on a mission, and both were thankful for the lack of nosy busybodies. Time was of the essence.

After retrieving their luggage, the two were escorted to a limousine waiting outside. After giving their driver an address, they were off. Looking out the window, the man smiled. "How much you wanna bet he's the first one to cry when we see him?"

The woman took on a look of contemplation. "It has been four years, give or take a few weeks. I can only imagine he's bottled up a lot since we were all together. Also, that's a suckers bet because you're obviously going to be the one who cracks first."

"Meh. You're probably right, but time changes people. He could be totally different from how we remember him." Brian folded his hands in his lap and tapped his thumbs together nervously. "A part of me really hopes he hasn't changed too much. Y'know?"

Rachel moved closer to her beloved, looping her arm around his shoulders. "Me too, honey. But he better not have slacked off while we weren't around."

At that very moment, Adam shivered from his toes to the top of his head. Unsure as to why, he ignored the prior sensation and continued using Gregory as a barbell.

The morning after Smith's meeting of the minds with the girls, everyone had a plan but Miia. She sulked on the couch, watching whatever she could find on TV. Though to be honest, she wasn't really paying much attention while channel hopping.

A knocking at the door broke her trance. Groaning in annoyance, Miia got up and reluctantly slithered her way to the front door. There were quite a few people she expected to see when opening the door, but a mermaid in Gothic Lolita clothes sitting in a wheelchair was not on her mental list. Behind said mermaid were three of Smith's men in suits. Too bummed to give it much thought, she invited them in and sat in the living room, hoping someone would show up and explain who the heck this girl was.

Next came Adam and Gregory; their exercise interrupted by the knocking, and curiosity rearing its head. Upon seeing her newest acquaintance, Mero smiled and waved. "A wonderful morning to you, good sir. I had planned to call ahead of my arrival, but Ms. Smith mentioned you and yours were going through some troubles, and I thought I might lend my aid. Pray tell, how might I be of assistance?"

Not sugarcoating the topic, Adam told Mero exactly what was going on. "My housemates have stirred something in me, and I don't know how to process any of it, so my sister and Smith told the girls to take me out on personalized dates to help me figure things out."

Mero just smiled and listened, a blush staining her cheeks at the end. "Oh my! Well, if anyone needs help with possible date locations, I might have a suggestion." At this point, Miia's ears were at attention.

Hearing no objections, Mero continued. "The nearest aquarium hosts a number of specimen donations from my mother and I, so I've been given an All Access Pass for myself and any guests I might want to bring. Does this not seem serendipitous?"

Miia was about to sit up and say something, but Yukino poked her head in and ruined the moment. "I'd let Miia take that offer. Everyone else made plans last night, but she got left in the dust."

Hiding her face in embarrassment, Miia just grumbled into a couch pillow. "Why am I getting picked on?"

Not understanding that she wasn't addressing anyone in particular, Adam decided to answer her rhetorical question. "Probably because you make an adorable face when embarrassed."

This answer just caused her to try and shove her face behind more pillows, but no amount of comfort squares could hide her bashfulness. It was an effort in futility.

Before anyone could say anything else, another knocking came. This time, in three sets of three. Something shifted in Adam's expression. Surprise, trepidation, or recognition perhaps? He slowly got up to answer the door like Miia did before. Everyone else just carried on like no one was there.

Approaching the front door, the knocking came again, but this time, a voice came with it. Every three knock, someone said his name, clear as crystal, though muffled by the door in the way. Knock. Knock, knock "Adam". Knock. Knock, knock "Adam". Knock. Knock, knock "Adam".

Familiarity. He knew this. He knew what show it originated from. His hand shook slightly as he grasped the doorknob and pulled.

Eyes wide in surprise, Adam couldn't say anything. What could he say? In front of him were his best friends, Brian and Rachel. One standing tall, and the other bound to a wheelchair, but both smiling like nothing has changed.

Before Adam could say anything, Brian beat him to the punch. "Whoa. I've been hibernating for longer than I thought. You got tall!" No response. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Adam just let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, before he started chuckling, tears rolling down his cheeks as he rushed in to wrap his friends in a warm hug.

The hug came with a lot of talking over each other and blubbering, but all three of them calmed down eventually, so the catching up began.

"Rachel gave me the details while I was going through physical therapy. You've been through a lot since I bumped my noggin. But to think, you signed up for the culture exchange thing, huh? Look at my little buddy. Breaking out of his shell and making more friends. Though, with you being so tall now, I can hardly call you little anymore. No, I'll have to come up with something new. Hmm."

Whilst Brian pondered new nicknames, Rachel took over. "First, I'd like to apologize for not keeping in contact more often since the crash. When ones world turns in the wrong direction, you know more than enough about how it affects people." Rather than any words, Adam just gave her a smile and a thumbs-up.

Glad to see his minimal style of back-and-forth hadn't changed much, Rachel continued. "Judging by your posture, you've been keeping up your training. Good. I'd hate to hear you were bested by some lowlife on a random street. Universe knows Zack would probably destroy the world if something happened to you. But that's neither here nor there. Tell me about your new friends. I hear someone has become quite the Casanova, eh?"

Rachel had seen many sides of Adam, but "embarrassment" was something she hadn't seen since The Locker Room Incident back in high school. His cheeks grew pink while tilting his head down. Yukino decided to step in and provide some context. "Not his fault. These girls just recognized how awesome he is, and now they live here, with Tio being a special case. Oh, and Mero is staying in a hotel."

Did someone say context? More like an abridged version of events that would make Team Four Star jealous.

"Indeed, I do." Mero interjected. "My Mother made sure to spare no expense while I stayed for the exchange program. She wanted to make sure I was comfortable while I expanded my knowledge of Japan and its cultural history."

Again, Yukino cut in with some proper context. "Suu just showed up under our back porch, Centorea almost ran him over and conscripted my brother into chasing a purse thief, Tio was hired to look after him because of the recent increase in chaos, and Miia just showed up like a normal exchange student. Huh. Well congratulations Miia, out of everyone here, you're the most normal."

Said Lamia just looked perplexed. "I'm not sure if I should be happy about that or not."

Chuckling at the look on her face, Brian couldn't help but speak up. "Depends on your definition of normal. But at least you haven't almost killed him on accident, right? Not everyone here can say that." On that note, he tilted his head to Rachel. "Remember that one Christmas, with the reindeer, two blenders, fruit cart, and the busted sleigh?"

Everyone in the room who knew the context behind everything just groaned. Adam groaned the quietest. "I thought we all agreed to never bring that up again in mixed company. It just raises too many questions for those who weren't there."

The meme machine that was named Brian just laughed. "Ha ha ha! Zero context given!"

Rachel decided to intervene before more chaos was to be had. "While reminiscing about times gone by is all well and good, we're also here on business as a secondary task, and while I'd love to ask if we could lodge with you all, it doesn't seem possible if my count of the rooms available is correct."

Mero perked up at this. "If accommodation is what you need, I may be of some help. Mother couldn't send her retainers with me after a last minute political matter came up, and the room next to mine was never refunded, just in case I needed protective escorts nearby. If you would like, you two may have the room, as long as you would be willing to sign a few papers beforehand."

It may have been too good to be true, but Rachel never looked a gift horse in the mouth before, and she wasn't going to start now. "I'll have to give these papers of yours a once-over first, but I don't see any harm in it. Come along dear, we should get going before rush hour starts."

As Brian was being wheeled out, he yelled back to Adam. "We'll be in town for a few weeks, so give us a call if you want to hang out! Peace!"

Watching his friends leave after such a short visit, Adam didn't despair. For you see, he remembered the words of the greatest and wisest Okama in all of history.

"It is not the quantity of time that matters, but the quality that counts."