After leaving the movie theatre, they walked around the downtown streets for a while, enjoying the warm early autumn evening.
"What would you like to do now?" Johnny asked.
"Why don't we just go to your apartment and talk? You've been to my house many times, but I've never been to your apartment."
"You want to come to my apartment?" He was nonplussed by her comment.
"Sure. Why not?"
They chatted about nothing of consequence on the drive to Johnny's apartment, which was good, because Johnny was finding it difficult to think just then.
"Um, nice apartment," Midori commented as she walked around the living room, looking at the sparsely furnished apartment.
"You want something to drink?" Johnny shifted nervously.
"Sake?" she teased.
He grinned. "Darn. Fresh out."
"Asahi?" she continued to tease.
"All I have is juice and water."
"Water is fine."
Johnny returned from the kitchen to find Midori sitting in the center of the sofa. He put the glasses down on the coffee table and sat down next to her, putting one arm across the back of the sofa. Midori moved closer, slipping in under his arm, resting her head on his shoulder. "No television?"
"No. I had one, but it broke and I never got around to replacing it. There's never much on, anyway." Was she doing what he thought she was doing?
"Mm."
He smelled the perfume gently rising from her hair; the scent of her skin drifted warmly upwards. He felt the heat from the nearness of her. His skin began to tingle. She shifted her body to face him and said his name. Her eyes darkened and her lips parted slightly. Johnny leaned closer and their breath mingled. Desire for this woman smoldered in him. As his eyes searched her face, the spark first ignited in his eyes, then flashed through the rest of his body, pulse and breath quickening. This fire was one he had not expected to feel again. His lips sought hers and she melted her body into his, arms tightening around his neck. Tasting her, he deepened the kiss, twining his fingers in her hair, feeling, no longer thinking, as the flames consumed them.
The light from the other room shed a diffuse glow upon the two glistening bodies. They lay together in the bed, limbs intertwined, listening to each other's breathing. Midori's head rested on his chest, her hair making a silken fan upon his skin. He gently threaded his fingers through the black strands. This woman awed him. He was amazed by his feelings for her.
"Mm, that was nice," she murmured.
"Yes. You're beautiful."
"And so are you."
"Not the same as you."
"I should hope not!" she said, laughing. "Ah, so many scars." Her fingers began tracing the path of one scar along his abdomen.
Johnny's hand gently captured hers, stopping the movement. "They're healing."
"Shiatsu can help them heal."
He smiled. "Are you going to demonstrate, sensei?"
Her laugh was low and throaty. "Oh, yes."
He kissed the top of her head as he held her. "So, is your father going to kill me for defiling his daughter?" The question was half-serious.
"No. He really likes you. He says you have…" she searched for the English equivalent of the Japanese phrase. "…Beginner's mind."
"Beginner's mind? What's that?"
"It's an attitude. Your heart, your mind, your spirit. You are humble. You want to learn."
"Mm," he said, shifting in the bed, his mind on something else.
"Mm, what are you doing?"
"Showing you what I just learned."
"It feels good. Don't stop."
He left the store with a sack tucked under his arm. After returning home, he changed clothes, opened the box, and put his new running shoes on. They felt pretty good on his feet. He bounced on his toes a couple of times then leaned against the wall, stretching out his calves, then turned around and bent over at the waist, letting the weight of his body stretch his hamstrings. Leaving the apartment, he ran down the stairs, and out into the hazy sunshine of a California late summer's day. His feet hit the pavement with a familiar tempo, and soon his breath and pulse joined the old, never-forgotten rhythm.
Johnny held open the car door for Midori, and she took his arm as they strolled up the front walk. The sounds of music and voices, as well as the scent of barbecue, drifted around from the back of the house. "Let's just go around," Johnny suggested.
The men of Station 51 and their families or dates filled Cap's back yard, gathered for an end-of-summer celebration. Cap himself stood at the grill, doing the honors, while the others milled about, beer in hand, talking and occasionally wandering over to give him barbecuing advice.
Johnny introduced Midori to Mrs. Stanley first, and then to the others. Midway through the introductions, a small figure launched herself at him with a delighted cry, "Uncle Johnny!"
"Hi, sweetheart!" He scooped Susan up and gave her a hug. "Susan, this is Midori. Midori, this is Susan. She's my partner Roy's daughter."
"Pleased to meet you, Susan," Midori said with a smile and a little bow.
"You like Uncle Johnny?" asked Susan.
"Yes, very much."
Roy and Joanne joined them, and Johnny introduced Midori to them. "So, you're the teacher at the karate school?" asked Roy.
"One of them, yes."
They continued making small talk while Johnny went to get something for Midori to drink. Chet nabbed him on the way back. "Well, I can see why you've been walking into walls lately. Don't know what she sees in you, though."
Johnny smiled as he walked past, saying, "Be nice to her, Chester B."
Marco heard the exchange as he came up to get a drink for his date. "Chet, that's the karate teacher. Remember what Johnny was telling us before? She can use you to mop up the floor if you piss her off."
Chet looked again at Midori. "Well, I'll be…"