Page 10 of Summer Haze & Tokyo Craze

“How do you know Japanese?” Adam asks, surprised, once the driver starts the car and pulls out into traffic.

“I lived in Tokyo for a year after high school,” I tell him and put away my phone, hiding a yawn behind my hand as I try to get more comfortable in my seat. “It’s been a few years, but I’ve come here every few years, and luckily, some basics of the language have stuck.”

“That sounded like way more than just the basics,” Adam says with a raised eyebrow, but I shrug and shake my head.

“Trust me, it probably sounded better to you than it was,” I tell him amusedly, remembering how in our very first Japanese lesson, Yamamoto-san, our teacher, taught us how to ask for the way to the next station and how to get a taxi so we wouldn’t get lost. “I don’t get to speak it often, so I lost a lot of it, but I can still get my point acrosssomehow.”

As I see the flickering lights of Tokyo skyline in the distance, despite the annoyance, despite all the chaos of this journey, warmth settles in my gut. The good kind that even manages to put a happy smile on my face.

It’s so good to be back.

I hide another yawn behind my hand. It feels so surreal, like I’m just dreaming about being here. Hell, maybe I fell asleep on the plane after all and the whole suitcase chaos is just a literal nightmare.

Or maybe it will start to feel more real tomorrow.

But goddamn, I’ve been looking forward to this forever. I’m not going to let a stupid airline ruin this for me.

Adam

My phone dings with a new message from my brothers as I step into the hotel room. I stop for a moment, freezing with my hand already lifted to unbutton my shirt and get ready for a shower. It’s not only hot in Tokyo, it’s also very humid and my hair is sticking to my neck.

When did their message alarm start filling me with dread?

Gulping, I lay my head back and sigh before I shake the anxiety off, throw my bag onto the bed, roll my suitcase into the room and close the door before I unlock my phone to see what they want.

Tanner: You up for a stream? Or dead asleep?

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I take a deep breath, knowing that they’re going to give me shit about never seeing meif I say no. Never mind the fact that I’ve just gotten off a flight that lasted longer than half a day.

Adam: Give me 10 minutes for a shower, and I'm all yours.

Rolling my eyes, I ignore the barrage of suggestive gifs the guys are spamming me with and plug my phone into the charger before undressing and checking out the shower.

I’m just glad I got a somewhat spacious room and that the air-conditioning works. It’s on the fancy side, with marbled tiles in the bathroom, golden faucet and an abundance of towels.

It’s also spacious as fuck. Behind the entrance lies a room with a couch and armchairs, a big shelf housing the TV separating the sitting area from the bedroom behind it. While I’m not a fan of the open concept, I’ve definitely slept in worse hotel rooms.

Speaking of sleep. I really shouldn't have slept on the plane. It seemed like a good idea in the moment, but I hadn’t considered the time difference. Now it's almost midnight, and I'm not tired at all. I just know the next days are going to suck as my body is getting used to it.

Knowing very well that a shower is only going to wake me up more, I jump under the hot water quickly and rinse off in record time. It only takes me ten minutes until I’m dry again,apart from my hair, and walking back into the bedroom to get my shirt and jogging pants.

I grin as I remember Lily's crestfallen face when she realized that her bag was missing. The poor woman. It seems like everything that could, has gone wrong for her. It’s almost making me pity her. In the taxi, she almost fell asleep several times, her head dropping, before she startled awake again until we finally arrived.

At least she’s not going to have to fight with the time difference. And clothes are replaceable. I’m not even sure what the big issue is.

I don't get the big deal. It's just clothes. Our hotel is in the middle of the city, it can’t be that hard to find a store.

Anyways. I hope they find her suitcase soon and that she didn’t put anything important in there. An airline once lost my suitcase containing Reed’s favorite plush he gave me to take along on a trip. It took a lot of time to track another one down and come up with excuses in the meantime.

My phone is blinking with more messages when I pull up the chat and start my laptop.

Adam: Did I mention I hate you guys for hogging the jet yet?

Jackson: *laughingemoji*

Adam: Seriously, why the hell do all of them have to be in Europe right now?

Reed: You’re the one doing our schedules. Pat yourself on the shoulder for that.

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