World Class: A New Beginning, Part 7


    Keiko stood a few yards behind Sean as he unlocked the door to his own home.  She saw how contented he was, and knew that inside there, somewhere, was his wife Lisa.  And Keiko also felt that she was now an invader, someone who didn’t really belong there.  She would have to be on her best behavior...and that was a real stretch, considering her former career, and that she wasn’t really sure what that was, herself.

    It was cold in Garden City.  Keiko still had not gotten used to it.  She stood there with her hands in her leather jacket pockets, her shoulders raised, and shifting from leg to leg, trying to keep warm.

    The door opened, and Sean hugged Lisa.  The two held each other for what seemed like a silent eternity; and that’s when Keiko realized that Sean must have been texting her with updates on what was going on.  The woman was desperately happy to see him safe and alive.

    Finally, Lisa looked past Sean, at Keiko.  She saw a disheveled, tired, small Asian girl holding two duffel bags.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Come on in,”  Lisa urged her.  “Let me take those bags.  I’ll bring you to the guest room.”

    Keiko nodded.  She didn’t really want to impose, but she was jet-lagged enough to miss her cue, and now it was too late to argue.  By the time she thought to speak up, she had already given both of her bags to Lisa, and was following her down the basement steps.

    Though it was underground, the guest room looked like a regular room in a house.  Partially underground, actually, because one wall had an almost normal sized window made of glass blocks, which let a lot of light in.  It had darkening curtains around it, currently open.  The walls had simple artwork, and the queen sized bed look comfortable.  And it also had its own bathroom and shower.  Almost.

    Lisa entered the small bathroom, and shut the door connecting it to the basement hallway that led upstairs.  She locked it from the inside.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“There,”  she said.  “I just made your bathroom private.  I hear you were on a plane, let me get some towels so you can shower.”

    Keiko smiled at that slightly.  She did feel like she needed a shower.  Airplanes tended to have that effect.

    When Lisa returned with towels, Keiko finally spoke up.  She said, “Thank you.”  And out of habit since childhood, she bowed slightly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You’re welcome,”  she said.  “Come on upstairs after you’re done, I’ll make you and Sean a late lunch.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Okay.”  Keiko agreed.  

    Once Lisa went back upstairs, Keiko dug through the duffel bags left next to the door to find something to wear after showering, and then she grabbed one of the towels from where Lisa left them, on the chest next to the bathroom.

    The shower felt unbelievably refreshing after running the entire day.  It was the first leisure time she actually had to herself in a long time.  But even that was cut short, because she knew Sean and Lisa were waiting for her to join them, and because she didn’t want to be rude and use up all the hot water.

    Hair still damp after some attempted drying with a towel - she had been using hotel hairdryers since going on the run, and didn’t think to get one of her own - she quietly went upstairs in sock covered feet.  She hoped they wouldn’t mind, as she felt she needed to let her feet breathe after wearing the same boots for several days.

    Keiko appeared at the top of the steps, and followed voices into the kitchen.  Sean and Lisa were sitting across from each other at the round table, chatting.  And between them, Keiko spied more warmth - there was a steaming pot of tomato soup, and an empty bowl waiting for her.

    She entered the kitchen, and quietly sat down equal distance from Sean and Lisa.  She waited for Lisa to fill the bowl, and she tasted a couple of delicious spoonfuls.

    But then she noticed that the two of them had been silent since she came into the room.  She looked up at the two of them, and put down her spoon.  “I’m sorry I have been so silent.  I am grateful to be here, and...I find myself without words.”

    Lisa smiled, and then glanced at Sean.  “It’s okay.  Sean told me most of what was going on while he was on his way here, and he filled in the rest while you were showering.”

    Keiko nodded.  “So um...do you have questions for me?”

    The blonde bit her lip and took a deep breath.  “I...I guess I can’t really wrap my head around the thought that you’re deadly.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Lisa!”  Sean protested.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No, it’s okay,”  Keiko whispered with a slight amused smile.  “That’s the point, Lisa.  If I looked deadly I never would have gotten away.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“She has a point,”  Sean added.  “If I encountered her even right outside a murder scene, I might ask if she saw something, but I wouldn’t immediately suspect her.”

    Keiko paused to eat more soup, and then she nodded.  “There were others like me who tried to make themselves look more intimidating...really short hair, very muscular, tattoos.  That did not seem smart to me.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Would have been a shame if you did,”  Lisa pointed out, “You have beautiful long hair.”

    The Asian didn’t expect that compliment.  She looked momentarily confused, and then she finally smiled.  “Thank you.  I believed it better to be as boring as possible.  To not stand out, to slip into a crowd unnoticed.”

    After that, there was another long silence, and Keiko used that time to finish her soup.  She then looked up, and noticed that the couple was watching her again.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I’m not being rude, am I?”  she asked.  “I’m sorry, I just feel a little out of place.”

    Lisa replied, “It’s okay.  You look tired anyway, you probably should just rest.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I have to call the office and tell them the story about the car,”  Sean added.  He then noticed Lisa was staring at him angrily.  “I’m not going in, I promise.  Not until tomorrow morning.  I’m just calling.”

    Keiko stood slowly, and realized that, compared to her own normal, she was still a little tired and out of sorts.  “Then I will rest.  I have some planning to do, anyhow.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Planning?”  Lisa asked.

    The Asian nodded.  “To rid all of us of my pursuers.  To establish my new life here.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“How are we going to do that, anyhow?”  Sean asked.  “Aside from getting fake I.D.’s, you’re going to need photo I.D. for much of anything.”

    Keiko reached down into one of her boots, and pulled out a small sealed plastic packet.  She opened it, and inside were two pieces of paper - a birth certificate in Japanese, and an American pilot’s license.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Since I knew I was escaping, I stashed these.  These were the only documents not given to me by the agency, and can’t be traced by them.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That’ll get you a driver’s license, at least,”  Sean noted.  “We can do that this afternoon.  Then I’ll show you the apartment.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Let’s do that tomorrow,”  Keiko suggested.  “After I get a license I’d like to get a car, so you don’t have to drive me around.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You have the money to buy a car just like that?”  Lisa asked.  Then she quickly looked embarrassed, and changed her mind.  “Never mind.  I’m sorry, that’s not really my business.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“It’s okay,”  Keiko replied.  “I’m sorry to take Sean away from you again so soon.  It feels like I have been dependent on him so long, I feel like I can pay both of you back best if I can become independent.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Go for it, Keiko.  Make yourself feel at home.”  Lisa smiled.


---


    The process of getting a new driver’s license proved to be obnoxious, but not terribly time consuming, considering that Keiko arrived at the DMV in the middle of the afternoon - not exactly peak time.  In just an hour or so, she managed to obtain that one key to getting just about everything else she needed to become established in Garden City.

    Next was a stop at a car dealer.  She ended up purchasing a small and powerful two-door sporty all wheel drive car.  Sean told her that it snowed in Garden City, and Keiko thought the extra power might come in handy at some point.  It also had built in GPS, because she didn’t know the city well.  Sean was amazed that she managed to purchase the car for a bit less than sticker price because she was using cash.

    She still didn’t trust the GPS yet, because she was unfamiliar with it, so she followed him closely all the way home.  It was getting dark by then, and also getting very cold out.
    
    She was a little surprised when she arrived at the house, and the garage door was opening.  Lisa was standing there in the light of the garage, beckoning Keiko to park there.  She did so, very carefully, to avoid damaging her new car.

    Once she turned off the car and got out, the garage door was already closing, keeping the icy wind outside.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I think that snow I was talking about is on the way tonight,”  Sean noted.

    Keiko sighed, and looked at her car sadly.  She didn’t want to get it dirty already.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I’m thinking like you now,”  Lisa told her.  “I thought in case one of your enemies somehow knows you bought this car, now they won’t find it.”

    The Asian was amused by that.  “Yes.  I suppose you are right.”

    Sean walked between the two of them, talking on his cell phone, headed into the house.  He was explaining to his boss what happened to the car loaned to him by the police department.

    As soon as Keiko entered the house Lisa stepped in front of the shorter Asian and stared at her.  “You still look so tense and nervous, Keiko.  You should be happy, you’re free and you have a new car.  And a cop to look after you.  And I know how to use a gun, too.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I know,”  she admitted.  “I’ve...never been able to really relax.  Not since I came to this country.  Assassins are a violent and high strung sort.  I constantly felt threatened.  I’m not sure I even know how to relax anymore.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I was like that when I was a teenager,”  Lisa told her quietly.  “I had problems in school, I had problems at home.  Even when I tried to relax I was always anxious, and angry.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“How did you solve it?”  Keiko asked.

    Lisa smiled.  “I learned to meditate.  To shut out the world, and listen to my own breathing.  I’d do that for...sometimes an hour or so.  I started to feel like everything that bothered me before was small, and not worth getting upset about.”

    Keiko nodded.  “I meditate to try and calm myself, but not as often as I’d like.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“If you’re still so uneasy you’re not doing it right,”  the blonde replied.  “You need something to focus on.  Something calming, or happy--”  

    Then she suddenly realized the problem.  “Oh, I see.  You didn’t have anything calming or happy.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Escape,”  Keiko responded.  “That was the dream that focused me.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“And even that is fraught with anxiety.”

    The Asian nodded sadly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You’ll find a better moment to meditate to eventually but for now?  How about the first moment you started to feel free?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“When I was taking a shower, here,”  she replied.  “But I don’t want to use up all of your hot water.”

    Lisa laughed at that.  “You don’t have to be in the shower, just remember what it felt like.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That’s a good idea,”  she agreed.  But then when she didn’t have anything left to say, she was hit with the realization that a lot of her responses to Lisa were to satisfy her enough to stop asking questions.  And now she felt bad for that.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Lisa?”  Keiko called after the blonde as she turned to leave.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yes?”  Lisa turned to look at her.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I...don’t remember what having friends is like,”  the Asian admitted.  “Please excuse me if I have trouble trying not to be...distant.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I know how to fix that.”  Lisa replied with a smile.  “I have tons of movies, a big TV, and a fireplace.  With snow coming in, it’s a perfect night for bonding.”

    Keiko relished that idea, though her understated reaction didn’t show it.  It was something right out of her childhood, back when she used to be innocent, and not have to fear the evils of the world.

    So she followed Lisa, leaving her boots behind next to the living room stairs, and following instructions of where to find blankets while Lisa prepared and lit the fireplace, and Sean started a movie.

    Several hours later Keiko awoke on the carpet in front of a waning fireplace, wrapped in a blanket, with a pillow under her head.  Once again, when she became comfortable, she dozed off.  She wondered when she started to fall asleep while comfortable and content, but she couldn’t remember.

    There was no one else in the living room.  Lisa or Sean must have decided not to disturb her, put the pillow under her head, and gone to bed.  So Keiko rose slowly and half stumbled downstairs to the guest room, still wearing the blanket.  And then she crawled into bed.  


TO BE CONTINUED?
    


-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2013 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- World Class and all characters therein are property of 
--    Strike Two and Jason Froikin.