14"Where is he?"
Twenty-One-Year-Old Maria Cruz pulled out her phone, swiping up on the screen to check the time. It was already 10:10 AM. With a sigh, she slid her phone back into her purse, searching the crowded airport for the slightest glimpse of her cousin.
It wasn't like him to be late. Though, she supposed there were plenty of logical reasons. For all she knew, he could be stuck in traffic or stuck fighting through the crowd in this very airport. It was quite crowded there. She could barely move a step without bumping into someone. It was a bit unnerving to her, keeping a firm grip on her belongings. Perhaps it was just the nerves that came with travelling to a new place, but she felt oddly on edge.
It was her first time to Japan, and from what she had seen so far, it was very different. The most obvious difference was that there were a lot more people in Japan than in England. People here looked and acted differently than what she was used to, speaking a language that she barely knew. Luckily most of the airport staff knew just enough English to be able to communicate with her.
In order to distract herself as she waited, she thought of Soma and how good it would be to see him again. They hadn't actually seen each other face to face since they were children, not since Soma's dad had been transferred to Tokyo. Of course, they stayed in touch via Skype, calling each other at least once a month, but they always complained that it wasn't the same.
It had taken years of saving up her money from babysitting and her part-time job as a waitress, but in the end she was finally able to afford to make the trip to visit him.
"Maria!"
The sound of her name being called snapped her from her train of thought. There was only one person who that voice could belong to.
A hand shot out above the crowd, waving to her. Soon after, the all too familiar figure of her cousin emerged, his snow white hair setting him apart from all the rest.
All previous concerns vanished as she rushed to close the distance between them, throwing herself at him in an embrace.
"Soma! It's so good to see you!" Maria exclaimed.
"It's good to see you too," Soma said, wrapping his arms around her waist to return the hug. "Sorry that I'm late. I missed the train and had to get a friend to drive me."
"It's fine. The important thing is that you're here and that we're together again at last."
After a few moments, they broke apart, and after retrieving her luggage, the two started through the crowd and out the door. Finally away from all the people, Maria took a deep, calming breath, taking in the fresh air that her lungs had been missing during the twelve-hour-long flight. She didn't particularly like the smell of sweat mixed with greasy airline food.
"Look at you, Soma. Your hair has gotten so long," she noted, raking her fingers through his fluffy locks. "Is it fashionable to grow your hair out like that here in Japan?"
Soma shook his head. "Not really, it's just a style I've developed on my own."
"Oh? And it has absolutely nothing to do with impressing this Mina girl you've been telling me about?" she jabbed him slightly in the ribs with her elbow.
"I-It's not like that at all!" he stuttered, a hint of red tinting his cheeks.
Maria giggled. Her cousin was so blatantly obvious about his feelings for the girl. During their many Skype calls, the girl had been known to be a recurring topic as he went on and on about how kindhearted and wonderful she was. There was no doubt about it; Soma Cruz was in love.
"Do I at least get to meet her?" she asked. "Since I've flown all the way out here just to see you, I figure it's only right that I get to meet all your friends."
"Of course you can meet them. In fact, you'll get to meet one of them in just a few minutes. The one who drove me is waiting for us out by his truck."
Making their way through the parking lot, Soma led her towards a rusted green pickup truck. Seated in the driver's seat was a bald man dressed in a green army shirt and cargo pants. He climbed out almost as soon as he saw the two approaching.
"You've been holding out on me, kid," said the bald man. "You never told me your cousin was so beautiful!"
Maria raised a brow, glancing over at Soma. Was this guy trying to hit on her or something?
"I'm sorry about him. He's like this with all women, especially blondes," Soma explained. "Maria, this is my friend, Hammer. Hammer, this is my cousin, Maria."
So this was Hammer. Soma had mentioned him a couple of times, mostly just that he had abandoned his station in the army and opened a shop of his own, selling supplies and relics.
"Nice to finally meet ya," Hammer said, reaching out to shake her hand. "If you ever get tired of staying with Soma, you're more than welcome to come crash with me."
"Uh, thanks… I'll keep that mind." She tried to be polite, but in reality she had absolutely no intentions of doing so.
"Anyway, we should get going," Soma cut in, pulling Maria away from Hammer and around the other side of the truck. "I'm sure Maria is jet lagged from her flight."
Nodding in reply, Hammer hopped back into the driver's seat. After helping Maria load her luggage into the back of the truck, Soma climbed in, sliding into the middle of the bench seat to serve as a barrier between his cousin and his flirty friend.
Maria rolled her eyes as she climbed in next to Soma. She had almost forgotten how protective he was of her. In a way it was endearing but in a way it was irritating. For now, she chose to think of it as the former.
They were soon on the road, leaving the airport behind them.
Just as Soma had warned, traffic was terrible and seemed to drag on forever, but it allowed Maria the chance to take in all the sights.
Much like back at the airport, the city sidewalks were crowded with people. Everyone was rushing about with either a briefcase or cellphone in hand. Bright lights shone in her eyes from the neon signs and billboards they passed, causing her to squint. She wasn't used to so much fluorescent lighting. It was everywhere. She wondered how Soma managed not to go blind from it.
"So, are you planning to introduce her to the rest of the gang?" Hammer asked, taking his eyes off the road only briefly to look at his passengers. "I know Yoko's dying to have another girl around to talk to."
"Yeah, I was thinking of organizing a bit of a get together tomorrow night. Providing they can tear themselves away from work for the occasion."
"I take it you mean Arikado?" Hammer chuckled. "It might be just as well if he doesn't show up."
This piqued Maria's curiosity. "Why don't you want him to show up? Isn't he a friend of yours?"
Neither of the men replied at first, exchanging a glance as if having a silent conversation with one another. After a few moments, Soma turned back to her.
"He is our friend, kinda, but he's not always the friendliest. He's kinda bossy and can come off as rude."
She knew all too well that her cousin had a bit of a temper on him, and wasn't too fond of being told what to do. This Arikado sounded like the type of person who might clash easily with Soma.
"You shouldn't just assume that he's rude," she scolded. "You don't know what he's been through. There's usually a reason for that kind of behaviour."
Soma sighed. "Whatever you say, Maria."
The rest of the ride went by in silence. Before long, they arrived in front of an apartment complex. Hammer parked his pickup truck right in front, letting his passengers out before getting out as well to help unload the luggage. Once the last suitcase was out and standing on the sidewalk, Hammer turned to the two.
"I better get going. The shop ain't gonna run itself," he joked. "If any of the others stop by, I'll let them know about the get together. Where are we meeting?"
"Umm… How about the pizza place a couple streets over?"
"Will do."
Hammer nodded and climbed back into his truck, pulling away from the apartment complex and back into the city.
Each grabbing a suitcase, Soma led her up the stairs to the second story and down the hall, stopping in front of room #32. He reached into his pocket and dug his key out, fitting it into the door before pushing it open.
Stepping inside, Maria wasn't too surprised by what she saw. She had seen it in the background of their many Skype calls over the last several years. The apartment consisted of three rooms squished into one, with a couch, T.V. and computer desk at one end, and a bed and miniature kitchen at the other end. There was a door next to the bed, separating the bathroom from the rest of the apartment. That much was a relief to Maria.
"It might seem a bit cramped, but we'll make it work," Soma noted, taking off his shoes. "You can take the bed. I'll take the couch while you're here."
"You don't have to do that, Soma. I don't mind sleeping on the couch."
He just shook his head and set her suitcase down on the floor next to the bed, ignoring her protests completely.
Usually she would have tried to fight him more on the issue, but Soma's previous claim was true, even if he had used it as an excuse to get Hammer to stop hitting on her. She was a bit jet lagged.
"Well then, would you mind if I took a bit of a nap?" she asked, taking off her shoes and going over to sit on the bed.
"Not at all. I've got to add some finishing touches to an assignment for class and I'm gonna text the gang and see if I can arrange that meeting for tomorrow."
Maria smiled, watching him for a moment as he headed over to his desk and flipped open his laptop. It was amazing to see how he had changed in the last few years, and it was all thanks to this group of friends he had made.
It wasn't that he had been shy or anything, people just tended to stay away from him for some reason, as if they found him intimidating or something. Because of that, he never had many friends, even as a child. That was why the two of them were as close as they were. For many years, Maria was the only one who wasn't scared of him. In her mind, she never found a reason to be scared. Her cousin was nothing but an adorable little nerd.
As her head became too heavy to hold up any longer, she finally laid down, letting out a sigh of contentment as she curled up into a ball. The sound of fingers tapping away at a keyboard echoing through the room seemed to lull her to sleep.
Soma let out a yawn as he saved his work and clicked off, leaning back in his chair. His assignment was done, leaving him with nothing but free time to spend with his cousin for the rest of the week.
Spinning the chair around, he glanced over at said cousin. She was fast asleep on the bed, the only sound coming from her was the sound of her slow, even breathing. Soma smiled. She always had been a quiet sleeper. That was one of the reasons he had offered to let her stay with him. Of course, he wasn't about to make her stay at a hotel, or heaven forbid, at Hammer's place, even if it meant giving up his bed. It was worth it to be able to spend time with his favorite cousin.
With nothing else to do, Soma moved onto his next task; texting the gang to arrange the gathering. Quick as a wink he grabbed his cell phone, flicking through it to start a private group chat.
Count-Cruz: Hey guys, are any of you free tomorrow night?
Bring-the-Hammer: Yep! I'm free as a bird!
Soma rolled his eyes. He was pretty sure that Hammer would come regardless of whether he was busy or not, just to get close to Maria.
Lady-Witch: I think so, why do you ask?
Count-Cruz: My cousin just arrived and wants to meet everyone. I was hoping we could all meet up at that Pizza place close to my apartment.
Lady-Witch: Oh! Your cousin finally made it? You can count me in. I can't wait to meet her!
Shrine-Maiden: Count me in too!
Soma grinned like an idiot. If Mina was coming then it was sure to be a good evening.
Old-Man: I should be able to make it. What time?
Count-Cruz: Say 7:00?
Old-Man: Works for me.
Lady-Witch: Same!
Shrine-Maiden: Sounds good.
Lady-Witch: What about you, Arikado? Don't bother hiding! I can see that you're online!
Arikado: Very well. I might be a bit late, but I will try to make it.
Soma groaned. Leave it to Arikado to make it sound like a death sentence. Couldn't the guy lighten up for once?
Count-Cruz: Great. See you all there.
One by one, they all left the group chat, returning to whatever it was he had interrupted them from. Only Soma and Mina remained at the end, texting back and forth between each other for a bit longer before Mina had to get back to her duties as well.
Soma set the phone down on his desk, leaning back again as he ran a hand through his hair. For Maria's sake, he would try not to let Arikado get to him. The last thing he wanted was to cause a scene and ruin her first real outing.
