December 24 10:00pm CST
Nevada, Iowa
 
Snow started to fall lightly outside as a young man poked his scruffy blond head through a door into a dark room. The small occupant of the room seemed to be sound asleep, curled under her blankets, a stuffed rabbit in her arms. A black and white Dalmatian puppy lay at the foot of the bed and lifted its head when the door opened. The man put a finger to his lips and slipped into the room. He walked up to the bed, looked over his daughter, and made sure she was indeed asleep. Content that this was the case; he gave the dog a pat, turned, and left. When the door had closed the dog laid its head back on its paws and went back to sleep.

 

"Is she asleep?" a woman asked as she tried to pull her curly brown hair into a couple small ponytails.

 

"She's either asleep or has become an excellent actress," the man whispered as they walked down the stairs and into the living room.

 

"Well then, let's get to work," the woman announced. "You go get the presents from the shed, and I'll start wrapping the ones in here."

           

It was Christmas Eve at the house of Kaden, Emily, and Mercedes Reynolds and Santa was just about to arrive. The living room had a six-foot Christmas tree in it, with only a few presents below it. Rolls of silver wrapping paper lay on the couch; a couple scissors, two rolls of tape and red ribbon sat on the coffee table. Emily stood up on a small step stool and pulled a couple of bags from behind the books on the top shelf of a bookshelf. She took the bags to the coffee table and pulled the first item from them. It was a large box that contained a round-faced doll with a smile, dimples, and looped yarn for hair.

 

"I can't believe these are popular again," Emily smiled at the cabbage patch doll and laid it on the coffee table to begin wrapping it. As she wrapped the presents from the bags Kaden walked into the living room carrying two large trash bags. He set them down next to his wife and dusted the snow from his hair onto her.

 

"Will you stop that!"

 

“ It's starting to get heavy out," Kaden laughed as he grabbed a roll of silver paper and started wrapping presents on the floor. "How many presents is she getting this year?"

 

"Well, not counting those she'll from my side of the family, She's getting fourteen things from us, four from your mother, one from your sister, and two from your grandma."

 

"And two thirds of those will end up still in their boxes, shoved into the closet, never to be seen again."

 

"Now, why is it we spend all this money, only to have that happen?"

 

"Because it’s Christmas and the look on her face is worth all the money in the world," Kaden replied as he inspected the present he had just wrapped and set beside his wife's work. "Now my question is, even though I wrap the same number of presents a year that you do, my wrapping still looks like it'll fall off at any moment?"

 

"That is a woman's secret," Emily laughed as she pulled out the next present to wrap. "Oh, don't forget to eat the cookies and drink the coke, Santa."

 

"How could I? That's my favorite part," Kaden jumped up and grabbed a chocolate chip cookie from the plate on the mantle. "I don't know why, but for some reason, the cookies always taste better on this night than they do tomorrow."

 

"Maybe because they're still fresh tonight and tomorrow they'll be a day old," Emily offered, and giggled a bit.

 

"Ah, that could be," Kaden nodded as he thought about it; eventually he took a swig of the coke and sat down to wrap some more presents.
 

December 25 1:00pm Japan Standard Time
Sendai, Northern Japan
(December 24, 10 pm CST)
 

 

 
The snow fell lightly outside the window and the mountains in the distance were covered in clouds. A woman sat on a small couch, curled up in a blanket, with a space heater at her feet drinking some hot chocolate. Her thin hair was a mousy brown and cut short, framing her face, with a few gray hairs doting it here and there. She sat and stared at the TV before her, watching an old Christmas movie she had bought the last time she was in America. She was waiting for her family to come home. Her son and daughter were at school until 2, her husband at work till 3. She was lucky to have the day off, but it was only because she worked at an international school. Most, if not all, of the students were from Christian countries. Japan was definitely not a Christian country. Christmas in Japan was mind-boggling, even after 20 years. About 1 month before, stores were decorated, Christmas trees were put up, and Christmas music was heard everywhere. But when the 25th came, nothing changed. People still worked, students still had school, and stores were still open. In reality, nobody seemed to realize that the day they decorated for and had sells for, had even arrived. And then, on the 26th, the decorations were put away and the music stopped. Christmas in Japan was nothing more than that.
 
The woman looked into the corner of the room, at a small four-foot Christmas tree. It was decorated with red and white lights, that blinked madly, and gold ribbon. The ornaments were a mixture of bought ones, handmade ones, and free ones from the top of coca-cola bottles. Twelve presents sat neatly and organized under the tree, waiting to be opened. Mornings were always too hectic and early to open them then, so they waited until evening. She turned her attention back to the TV, sipped some more hot chocolate, and buried herself deeper in her blanket. Christmas was always so lonely in Japan.

 

 

December 25 3:58am CST
Nevada, Iowa
(December 25, 6:48 pm JST)
 
 A fresh layer of snow had covered the ground giving the world a crisp new look. All was quiet in the house as Mercedes tip toed down the stairs and peeked around the corner into the living room where the large Christmas tree stood. Underneath it sat dozens of presents, with more stuffed into a three foot long stocking that hung on the mantel. Still trying to be quiet she walked into the dinning room and pulled a chair from that room into the living room. She dragged it to the fireplace and stood up on the chair to look at the plate and glass that sat on the mantel. Both were completely empty. With a small squeak of excitement she climbed down from the chair and dragged it back into the dinning room. Once she was sure that her parents wouldn’t know that she had already been down to have a look, she tip toed back up stairs and headed for her parents room. Quickly she climbed onto their bed and jumped up and down between them.
           

“Wake up! Its Christmas!”

           

“What time is it this year?” Kaden groaned as he tried to roll over and ignore the fact that he was bouncing up and down.
           

“4 am,” Emily replied sleepily.
           

“That’s earlier than last year,” Kaden moaned. “At this rate she’s going to be waking up just in time to see Santa arrive.”
           

“That would be cool,” Mercedes cheered as she continued to bounce. Kaden sat up quickly and grabbed his daughter pulling her down beside him.
           

“But you see, if you see Santa when he comes, he won’t leave any presents.”
           

“Mommy is that true?” Mercedes crawled over her mothers figure to look at her face.
           

“Yep, and if he knows that you woke us up before the sun was up he may just come back and take the presents away.”
           

“But that’s mean,” Mercedes argued.
           

“Its all part of being good. You have to keep it up right up till the sun rises, or its ash from the fireplace,” Kaden added. There was a small fwomp as Mercedes flopped down between her parents,
           

“Fine then, I’ll lay right here and the second the sun is up, I’ll wake up again.”
           

“That sounds like a fine idea,” Kaden yawned and fell back to sleep.
 
December 25 6:48pm JST
Sendai, Northern Japan
(December 25, 3:48am CST)
 
           
It was almost 7 o’clock in the house of Celeste Sakamoto. She had fallen asleep earlier in the day as she watched her movies. When she had woken up she found her family standing around her looking disappointed. Celeste was supposed to have made dinner that night, and it was supposed to have been finished and on the table when her husband and children had returned home. However, her one dinner she was allowed to make had yet to have been started.
You see, Celeste wasn’t a very good cook, even in America. She only knew how to make things with a microwave and an oven. When she had moved to Japan she found that ovens weren’t that popular, and she never learned how to cook without using one. When her children were young, they had all lived with her husband’s parents and his mother did all the cooking. She did try, mind you, to teach Celeste how to cook and to be a proper housewife. But Celeste was never interested in being a proper Japanese housewife. Her and her mother-in-law clashed many times until they had finally moved into their own home, on the other side of town. Celeste got her oven and her family was bombarded by and array of casseroles and microwavable meals. Until one day her eight-year-old daughter told her to leave the kitchen. From that day on her daughter had been in charge of the cooking. It had taken Celeste a couple of years before they would even let her fix this one meal.
Her family had decided that while they waited for her to cook dinner they would take their baths. They played Jaken, or otherwise known as Rock Paper Scissors in the west, to decide who would get to go first. Shino, Celeste’s husband, had won as he usually did. Though, nobody could quite figure out how he always knew what the others were going to choose. He now sat at the table reading through his e-mail on his laptop.
           

“Even with all these mail filters, I still get 50 plus junk mail messages a day,” Shino complained as he repeatedly tapped the mouse button deleting all the mail.

 

“It’s because of all those newsletters you sign up for,” Celeste replied in a scolding sort of voice.

 

“Now, I only sign up for the ones that guarantee to keep my address private,” he replied and was going to continue his argument but instead stopped suddenly as an e-mail caught his eye. He looked at his wife and hesitated a bit. “Do you know anyone named Emily?”

 

“Why would somebody I know be mailing you,” Celeste asked as she pulled a pie from the oven and sat it on the stove to cool.

 

“I don’t know, just thought I’d ask.”

 

“Dad, will you tell Yoshie to get out of the bath before it gets cold,” Celeste followed the voice that spoke Japanese to the doorway from the hall and saw her son standing there. He was a young man who looked very much like his father, tall with black hair. Though his eyes were more rounded and his skin a bit lighter.

 

“Just be patient Kazuo. She’ll be out soon,” Celeste said. Kazuo didn’t reply and was just about to say something to his father, when he was pushed from behind.

 

“Quit being such a prude. The bathroom’s yours,” a girl about four years younger had appeared behind him. She was a few inches shorter than her brother, but looked more like her mother, except she had her father’s skin color. Her hair was black and pulled back into a ponytail so you could se her brown roots.

 

“Have you decided on a school yet?" Kazuo asked as he turned toward the stairs.

 

“I still have time,” Yoshie said and stuck her tongue out at him. Yoshie was in her final year of Jr. High and needed to study for her entrance exams into high school, which were coming up in January and February. But Kazuo felt that she wasn’t studying as much as she should have been and that their mother wasn’t doing enough about it.

 

“Just be sure to remember to dye your hair before hand, your roots are showing,” Kazuo added as he turned and headed back upstairs. Kazuo was in his senior year of high school so he had to prepare for his entrance exams into collage, which were held in January every year. His ultimate goal was to get into Tokyo University. However, nobody, including himself, expected him to make it into the school. It would be like an average American student trying to get into Princeton or Yale. Instead the school he was expected to go to was Tohoku University, right in Sendai. It was a prestigious university and a bit difficult to get into, but it was in the reach of Kazuo. Plus because it was in the same city meant that he didn’t have to pay for housing and could just live at home.  Though, he would have rather moved away from his mother than to have stayed there another four years. However, financially, this was the better choice.  

 

Celeste watched as her son disappeared up the stairs and didn’t see Yoshie sneak into the kitchen to check her cooking, “He’s stopped talking to me.”

 

“That’s just your imagination, dear,” Shino replied, but had also realized the same thing.

 

“Oh, yea? When was the last time he’s spoken English to anyone?”

 

“Well, he never did really like English.”

 

“He did when he was little,” Celeste frowned.
 

December 25 10 p.m. JST
Sendai, Northern Japan
(December 25 7 a.m. CST)
 
 
            Dinner that night was very quiet. Yoshie tried many times to get people talking, but it always ended in failure. Kazuo would consistently twist the subject to school and their up coming exams. Celeste gave only the minimal of answers, always in English. Kazuo would ignore anything she said and after only ten minuets he had excused himself and went up stairs. I don’t think Celeste ate much, but just sat, playing with her mashed potatoes and gravy until they were nothing but a congealed mass.
            Yoshie and I talked for a while as we ate, but eventually excused ourselves as well. I went into the living room with a beer to watch the news. Yoshie helped her mother clear the table and put all the extra food away. Usually I could hear them chatting away but that night the house was silent except for the TV.
            It was around nine-thirty to ten when Celeste came into the room, with a smile on her face. She took my empty can, threw it away, and then turned the stereo on to her favorite Christmas song. It was Nat Cole or something like that. I knew her smile was fake, I had seen it many times before. I just followed her lead, put on my own fake smile as Yoshie appeared dragging Kazuo behind her.
            I remember when the kids were really little, just after we had moved to this house; we had come down to find a mountain of presents. We thought Celeste had gone crazy and the kids were hesitant to even open them. She did this for a couple of years, until my mother complained. Then she had to promise not to do it again. I can see why my wife loves this tradition so, but it’s harsh on the wallet.
            I opened a present from Yoshie and found another tie. She gets me a tie for every occasion; I have enough to last the rest of t my life.  Kazuo got me some books, and some music from Celeste.
            “Father, why does she always do that?” I looked up to find Kazuo watching his mother. As always she had ripped through the wrapping to the box, while the rest of us were neatly unwrapping and folding the paper beside us.
            “I do it because its fun.” She had an even bigger fake smile on as she gave the paper a good rip. I started wondering what she was imaging the paper to be.
            “Why don’t you try, Kazuo? It was looks like fun.” I grabbed my last present and ripped the paper off. He looked at me a bit surprised and then Yoshie ripped the paper off her present. Celeste was smiling and waiting. This smile was kinder, almost hopeful.
“This is crazy.” Kazuo finished unwrapping his presents, threw quick thanks at us, and then disappeared. I looked back at Celeste. Her smile had faded.
            “Mom, what did you get? Huh?” Yoshie pulled on her mother’s sleeve, the fake smile was back as she turned toward Yoshie to talk to her.  With that fake smile, should I tell her?
 
December 25 7:00 a.m. CST
Nevada, Iowa
(December 25 10 p.m. JST)
 
 
Morning had come only a few hours after our daughter’s early arrival in our bedroom. Kaden was downstairs preparing everything. I was upstairs, just about to wake Mercedes up.
           

“Kaden, are you ready?” I called down the stairs in a loud whisper.  Kaden stuck his hand into the hallway with a thumb up. I turned and opened the door to our room; light from the hall fell on Mercedes’ figure, curled under the covers.  I crawled onto the bed and leaned over her.
           

“Mercedes,” I called and shook her a little.  She mumbled something about snow and fighting before rolling over and going back to her dream. “Mercedes, its time to open your presents.” She blinked sleepily and looked up at me.  It took her a second to work what I said through her head. Finally her eyes snapped wide open, she jumped to her feet, and jumped off the bed with a squeal. I could hear the dog bark as she stormed down the stairs. The dog ran up, and then changed course and ran back down again. I called for her to be careful as I stood up and headed downstairs myself.
           

When I reached the living room, Kaden had just finished attaching the camcorder to the tripod in the corner of the room. Mercedes was already half way through her stalking with a candy cane in her mouth.
           

“All right, lets get these presents sorted out,” Kaden announced. Mercedes jumped up and ran to the presents announcing it has her job.
           

I walked over to my favorite chair and started to sit down, but Kaden stopped me, “Sorry, you need to sit on the couch or you won’t be in the video.”
           

“That’s fine with me, I haven’t had a chance to even comb my hair yet.”
           

“Mommy, I’ll only give you your presents if you sit on the couch.” Mercedes warned. Having been beaten I got up and moved to the couch where Mercedes had set my first present. She continued to pass out the presents while keeping count. In the end Kaden and I both got five presents, while Mercedes ended up with fifteen.
           

When the presents had been sorted and handed out we tore into them without restraint. I tore off the wrapping from a flat square box. Inside was a beautiful diamond necklace I had picked out for myself. Thought of course, I let Kaden think he picked it out.  I started to put it off to the side when Kaden grabbed it. He stood and walked behind the couch. He fasted the necklace around my neck and leaned down and kissed my cheek.
           

“When are we going to tell her about the move?” He whispered in my ear. I looked over at Mercedes as she searched through the paper for another present.
           

“Let’s wait a couple of days.”
           

“I’m gonna get a buckeye, want one?” I nodded and he left to go into the kitchen. I sat watching Mercedes and I must have zoned out because the next thing I remember was Mercedes pulling at my arm, with her new cabbage patch.
           

“Mommy? Are you okay? Did Santa forget something?”
           

“No dear, I got everything I wanted.” I smiled down at her but I think she could sense my true feeling.
           

“Mommy, are we going to lose Daddy”
           

The question shocked me a bit, “Why would we loose Daddy?”
           

“He has to play baseball somewhere far away doesn’t he?” I wanted to ask how she knew, but that really didn’t matter now.

 

“Yes, he does. Do you want to go with him?”
           

“We’ll always be together. We’re family.  I go where you go”
           

“But it’s really far away.  We won’t see grandma Reynolds or Grandma Evens for a long time.”
           

“We can talk to them on the phone, can’t we?’
           

“Well, yes, of course.” I hesitated for a bit. Should I tell her everything? But it was Christmas.  But, she should know. “I’m afraid Puddles can’t come with us.” Mercedes’ smile faded and she looked over to where the dog was burrowing through the shredded wrapping paper.
           

“Why not?” Mercedes asked with a frown.
           

“Because he wouldn’t be happy.” The real reason was of course the fact of trying to import a dog.  It was a year long process and not to mention the cost. But it was also true that he probably wouldn’t be very happy. “We’re going to be living in a small apartment in a big city. There will be nowhere for him to run around.  He’d always be on a leash.”
           

“But Puddles don’t like leashes,” Mercedes turned back towns me, “Where is he gonna live?”
           

“Grandma Evens said he could live with her.” Slowly a small smile appeared on her lips.
           

“It’ll be like a long vacation. He loves playing the Grams dogs.”
           

“Yes they do get along well.” I smiled and gave her a quick hug.
           

“Your done unwrapping already?” We both jumped, we had forgotten Dad was in the kitchen.  Mercedes dove back into her sea of wrapping paper, gave Puddles a quick hug and kiss and then went searching for her next present.

 

I sat on the sofa and watched Mercedes and Puddles wade through the paper and fingered the diamond around my neck. This was the last Christmas I would see in what had been my dream home. Kaden sat down beside me eating his buckeye. I bit into the one he had handed me, letting the frozen peanut butter and chocolate melt into my mouth.  I leaned onto Kaden; I had just gotten one ugly deed done, I had one more to go.  But it was Christmas, and he looked so happy.  Should I tell him?

 

February 10th 8:00 pm JST
Sendai, Japan
(February 10th 10:00am CST)
 
 
The next few months were very tense around the house. I had not heard from Emily for over a month and it seemed that Kaden had not agreed to put aside what had happened in the past. Then one day, in late January, I got an e-mail from Emily. Kaden had agreed to meet her, though she said he was hesitant to do so. Yoshie took over from there and it seemed they were exchanging e-mails almost every night. Celeste was not as eager for the meeting. She tried to forget about it, but it seemed that every time she was successful there was some reason for either Yoshie or I to remind her. Kazuo didn’t want anything to do with it, and had even become a bit cold to his sister, whom he was usually overprotective about.

 

A few days later, those that were in charge of the players had finally agreed to let us help with their move. I was surprised when I received their call to tell me that their house had already been prepared, even though it was still a month before their arrival. So, the next day I went to their offices after work and picked up the key. Of course with all of the formalities it took two hours to do so. I chose not to mention it to Celeste but I didn’t realize how long it was going to take. Because of that my phone had started buzzing half way through. When I had gotten out of the meeting I texted her that I was on my way home, but didn’t tell her why I was late. I walked up the front path slowly looking at the lone key attached to a small tag with my name on it. I stood at the door, took a deep breath, opened the door, and took a step in.
           

“Tadaimaaaaaaaa! ” Next thing I knew my cheek was against the floor and my feet were in the air.
           

“Shino are you alright?” Celeste had come running into the room worried, but when she saw me she cracked up laughing.
           

“When you’re done, I could use some help.” Celeste quickly apologized and lent me a hand. I looked at the mess of boxes I had tripped over, “What are all these?”
           

“They came today. From Iowa.” Celeste’s tone quickly changed. “So, why are you so late?” I could tell she wanted to get off the subject and I was a little sad that I couldn’t

help her.
           

“I had to pick up the key to their house. It’s actually not all that far from here.” I smiled but she just looked away and remained silent.
           

“I knew it! They came!” I turned to see Yoshie standing in the entrance behind me with a huge smile on her face.
           

“Yoshie, what are you doing home? You should be at cram school!” Celeste scolded her daughter, but it didn’t seem to effect her too much.
           

“I just had a feeling their things would come today, and I was right,” Yoshie squealed as she counted the boxes.
           

“Fine, you were right, now go to your room and study. You’ve got your entrance exam next week.” Celeste was looking sternly at Yoshie and pointing to the stairs. Yoshie didn’t seem to be listening as she picked up the key I had been carrying earlier.
           

“Is this to their house?” Yoshie asked excitedly.
           

“Ah, yes, must have dropped  it.” I took the key from her and before I even had the chance to say anything Celeste interfered.
           

“NO!” Celeste had put her foot down, but Yoshie wasn’t about to give up.
           

“Come on, Mom, please. Tomorrow’s Saturday. There’s no school and I promise to study extra hard on Sunday.” I knew Yoshie wasn’t going to give it up easily, and she had been studying a lot, so I thought I would back her up this once.
           

“She could use a break. And we really can’t leave these boxes sitting here.” After I finished speaking, I realized I should have kept my mouth shut. Celeste turned her eyes toward me, and I could feel the electricity burring into my head.
           

“Fine. Do what you want. Just don’t come crying to me when you’ve failed your exams!” She turned and stomped into the kitchen. I sighed; it was the couch for me tonight, that was for sure. I turned toward Yoshie, but then I felt it again. The same electrifying eyes were burring into my back.
           

“What is going on down here!?” I turned and right then, I realized Kazuo had gotten most of his personality from his mother!
           

“We’re going to take these boxes to Uncle’s house. Want to come?”
           

“I’m busy studying, which is something you should be doing too!” Yoshie countered by sticking out her tongue.
           

“Come on Yoshie, let’s get these into the car.” I handed Yoshie a box and ushered her outside. One thing I knew in this house was not to make either Celeste or Kazuo mad. They seemed timid and nice on the outside, but once they got mad, watch out.
 
February 10th 6:00 am CST
Nevada, Iowa
(February 10th 8:00pm JST)

 

“Emily, wake up!” I felt someone shaking my shoulder. I didn’t want to wake up, it was so cold. “Emily wake up or I’m going to pour this bucket of snow on you!” I bolted upright and looked at my Mom who stood over me. I quickly looked to her hands and was relieved not to actually see a bucket of snow in them. Mom never made idle threats. I was woken up many times by buckets of snow, ice, and water when I was younger. I looked outside and was a little shocked to see that it was still dark.
           

“What time is it?” I asked as I rubbed my eyes.
           

“About 6am. Come on, get up and get dressed,” I rubbed my eyes again and looked around at the empty room to get my bearings. There was not a lick of furniture in the room. The fire that had been burning in the fireplace the night before was completely cold. Mercedes was just beside me, and Kaden was on the other side of her. We were curled up on the floor with only some blankets and pillows to sleep with. I started to pull my feet from under the blankets but found them unusually heavy and warm. I looked down and Puddles was laying on them. I pried my legs from under the dog and stood up. That was our last night in that house.
           

“Kaden, you too. Time to get up.”
           

“Mother, why are you here? We’re not leaving until ten at least!”
           

“Not anymore. There’s a big snow storm on the way, and you guys need to get out ahead of it while you can.”
           

“Great.”
           

“Mercedes, come on honey.” Mom was bent over her granddaughter now.
           

“Did you come alone?”
           

“Don’t be silly. Your brother’s in the truck.”
           

“I don’t wanna get up, Grams.” Mercedes squirmed as she tried to pull the blankets back over her head.
           

“I know, I know. We just need to get you dressed and then you can go back to sleep, hon.”  Mom picked her up and hugged her. “Kaden, once you’re awake, get Bill and load up the chest that you want us to take.”
           

“Yes, ma’am,” Kaden yawned as he stood and grabbed some clothes that laid near by. Mom busied herself getting Mercedes dressed while I picked up the blankets and got dressed myself.
           

“It’s a two hour drive here. When did you get up?”
           

“About four. John’s home from college, he was up watching TV and saw the weather report. I told him last night that you guys were leaving today, so he woke me up.”
           

“Hey, sis, there’s a mirror in the garage, too. Did you want us to take that as well?” John asked as he poked his head through the front door.
           

“Yes, they go together.”
           

“Okay, we about got it loaded then. The wind is picking up, you better get a move on.” I shivered as the wind made its way inside. I quickly looked around in the dark room to make sure nothing had been left behind. When I was certain that everything was packed and ready to go, I pulled on my coat and lugged the rest of our luggage out to the truck. The ground was already covered in snow and the wind was bitterly cold. Mother came out a second later carrying Mercedes with Puddles following them.  I had just started the truck and turned the heaters on when Mom brought Mercedes to me.
           

“Mercedes, dear, you have one job before you can go back to sleep. Remember?” Mercedes looked up at me sleepily and then dropped her head. “You know we have to. He can’t come with us.” Mercedes nodded and Mom put her down. Puddles immediately started licking her face and she hugged the dog.
           

“Come on, Puddles, we’re going for a ride.” She took the dog by the collar and led it do the pick up that was now laden down with a chest and mirror. John opened the door to the truck and Mercedes climbed in. She called for Puddles to join her and the dog obediently followed. She hugged him again while John attached a leash to his collar and then tied the leash to the inside of the truck. I walked over to her and she crawled into my arms crying. I carried her back to our truck as Puddles strained on his leash, trying to follow and then started to bark when he found he couldn’t.
           

I buckled Mercedes into her booster seat and shut the door. Kaden hugged Mom and then got into the drivers seat. I was crying by this point. Who knew when I would see my family again. I hugged Mom and John, and wished I could have seen my other two brothers and my father as well, but I was lucky that John had come at all.

 

"You be careful," My mother whispered tearfully as she hugged me.

 

"You too."

 

"Be good Sis. I'll make sure Puddles is taken care of."

 

"Thank you John."

 

"Call us when you get there!" I nodded and then I got into the truck and shut the door.
           

“Are you ready?” I looked over at Kaden and nodded. He put the truck into gear and we pulled out of the driveway. John and Mom were right behind us, but they turned the other direction. I watched as their taillights disappeared into the dark. I was unsure of what our future was going to be like from that point on, and I was worried what was going to happen when Kaden finally met up with his past.
 
February 13th 7am JST
Sendai, Japan
(February 12 6pm CST)
 

I woke up to the annoying beeps of my alarm. I had just had a dream, but all I could remember was a strange pink rabbit with a yellow beak telling me to listen more and talk more. It was a very evil looking little rabbit. I sat up and ran my hand through my hair and then rubbed my eyes. It was a big day today. I was finally taking the entrance exam into Tohoku University. I had been studying non-stop for the past year for this exam. I got out of bed and walked downstairs to the bathroom. I noticed it was awfully quiet in the house, but it was Saturday and everyone usually slept in anyways. I washed my face, gargled, and brushed my teeth.
I went back upstairs, walked to the back of the hall to my parents room and knocked on the door. There was no answer. I knocked again and opened the door a crack. The room was empty. It was odd of Mother to be up this early. I walked to my sisters room and knocked. Again, no answer. I opened the door and that room too was empty. I walked back downstairs. I looked in the kitchen and living room. Not one was there. Then I remembered. They had been making a racket last night and Yoshie had said something about some boxes.
           

“Shit” I ran up to my room and grabbed the cell on the desk. I flipped it open and an e-mail appeared on the screen.
 
            Brother
           
We’re all at Uncle’s new house unpacking. Even Mom’s here! Come and join us when you wake up. Here are the directions…
 

“She forgot after all,” I sighed. I had reminded her about it just two days ago. I had an inkling that she wasn’t paying attention and it seemed as if I was right. I started pulling on my school uniform as I gathered my things together. Then I went into Yoshie’s room and grabbed her schedule book and some paperwork from her desk. Once I was sure I had everything I locked up the house, got on my bike, and took off.
           

It was lucky that I had woken up early to get a few extra hours of studying in. It took me half an hour to get to the house. The door was unlocked so I let myself in. I could hear Yoshie squealing about something from the second floor.
           

“YOSHIE!!!” There was a moment of silence and then Yoshie pounded down the stairs.
           

“Yah! You came!!” She smiled but then noticed that I wasn’t, “What’s wrong?” I held out her planner opened to today’s date. “Yea, so? I’ve still got a week to study.”

 

“Yo-chan. Today is the 16th.” She looked at me a bit uncertain, as if she was
trying to tell if I was lying or not. Then when she realized that I was not, her eyes got big.
           

“MOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!” She screamed and ran off into the kitchen.

 

“Ah, Kazuo, what’s all the racket?” Dad poked his head out from the living room.
           

“They seem to have forgotten we had our entrance exams today.”
           

“That’s today? Yoshie!” He yelled as he crossed the hall into the kitchen. I looked at my watch; Yoshie had an hour and a half to get to the school and I only had an hour. Yoshie dashed past me and went into the bathroom. Luckily for her the water had been connected. Unfortunately the gas had not. Mother followed a moment later with a bottle of Fabreeze in her hand.
           

In 20 min Yoshie was cold but refreshed and ready. I had hoped Dad would take us, but it was Mother who ushered us out the door. First she dropped Yoshie off and then took me to the University. I was one of the last ones they let into the testing hall.
           

The test lasted a couple of hours, but I left feeling fairly confident about it. Mother was waiting in the car to pick me up.
           

“So, how did it go?” She asked as I buckled myself in.
           

“Fine.” I leaned my elbow on the door and looked out the window.
           

“I’m sorry I forgot about today. I could have sworn it was next week. Man, With your Uncle coming, my mind’s been a mess.”
           

“It’s nothing new, so why apologize now? And even if you’re doing it to be polite, don’t bother.”
           

“What are you talking about?” She attempted to look at me while she tried to check traffic at an intersection only to get honked at by a taxi. I didn’t reply as she asked me again. I glanced forward and noticed we were on the wrong side of the road. Quickly I grabbed the wheel and pulled the car onto the right side. Luckily we had already left the downtown area and were going down a vacant neighborhood street lined with houses. Well, actually it was lined with the stone walls that surrounded the houses.
           

“What are you doing?”
           

“Stop the car, Mother. You’re driving on the right side again.”
           

“Huh?”
           

“The right side. Not the left side, like everyone else.” I clarified. She pulled over, almost clipping a telephone pole that sat on the side of the road. I got out and walked around the car, “Move over. You can’t drive properly when you’re upset.”
           

“I am not upset!” She slapped her hand against the wheel.
           

“Yes you are, now move over.” I didn’t give her a chance and started to get in on top of her.
           

“Kazuo!” She quickly pulled herself to the other side, “I was just asking you a question!”
           

“And here is your answer. All you’ve ever done is think about him. He’s the only important person in you’re life. So it’s no surprise that you forgot something that has been important to me for the past three years.”
 
 
February 12th 4pm EST
Indiana
(February 13 6am JST)

 

“Alright, we’re here. Everyone take a deep breath and put on your happy smiles.”
           

“I have to wear my happy smile for three weeks?”
           

“Only when your grandmother is in the room.”
           

“I don’t know if my cheeks will last!” Mercedes slapped her cheeks a few times, adjusting her smile appropriately. We pulled into a tree hidden drive. In the distance, through the bare, leafless trees, sat the blue house. As we rounded the turn in the drive we could see and hear a cocker spaniel barking. A slightly plump woman, who was well into her sixties, was standing in front of the house. Her hair was short and dusted with a dark brown. It was the first time in three years to see her, and it was sad to see how much older she had gotten.
 
He called me just as they entered town. Even through I knew it would take them another fifteen minuets to reach the house I immediately pulled on my coat and stepped into the chilly air to wait. Bella went out with me and spent her time chasing the few birds that had hung around all winter. The second their truck hit our gravel lane Bella started barking. Luckily she’s a coward, so I didn’t have to worry about her running off.
           

The truck pulled up and the engine was cut off. The three of them piled out of it looking tired. They approached and I noticed they were ‘smiling’.
           

“Take those things off your face and put on some real ones!” I scolded them as I pulled them into a hug. “She’s not here right now. I sent her into town for something.”
           

“Oh, thank you, Mimi. I don’t want o wear them out too fast!” Mercedes laughed and hugged the dog. I looked at Emily confused but she just laughed and shook her head.
           

“Let’s get your things inside and then you can relax,” I announced, walking to the back of the truck and pulling the hatch open. A suitcase came tumbling out and I was barely able to get out of the way.
           

“Mom, let me get that. They’re pretty heavy.” Kaden come around and picked up the suitcase that had fallen. I grabbed a small bag that was probably Mercedes’ as Emily appeared and pulled the other large suitcase from the truck. We were able to get everything they needed into the house in one trip.
           

“Kaden, go wake up your Papaw. He’s been worried about you. I’ll take these two to their rooms so they can freshen up.” Kaden nodded and walked over to an old recliner that sat in front of a rather large TV. I pulled the suitcase behind me, and headed down the hall. I could hear Kaden even as we reached the end.
           

“Dad! Dad!!”
           

“Eh?! Oh!!! Look what the cat dragged in!!”
           

“Mimi!” I jumped and looked down at Mercedes. “Mimi, which room is mine?”
           

“Oh, I’m sorry. You get the computer room, but no playing with it unless someone is with you. Understood?”
           

“Yes, ma’am!” Mercedes grabbed her bag and ran into her room. I followed Emily into her and Kaden’s room.
           

“I’m sorry you have to put up with Rebecca. She had been talking about getting an apartment in town, but…”
           

“It’s okay, Karah. She is his mother after all,” Emily smiled.
           

“Take you’re time and rest; I’ll call when dinner is ready.” I left the room and glanced back into Mercedes’ room. She was laying on the bed with her eyes closed. I walked back to the living room; David was still awake and was now flipping through the stations. “Where’s Kaden?”
           

“He went to talk to Jen. How much longer till dinner?”
           

“It’ll be a bit. Don’t worry, you won’t starve.” I walked through the living room and into the kitchen. I couldn’t start dinner until Rebecca was back with the groceries. I looked in the cupboard and found I still had enough fixings to start some cookies while we waited.
           

“WHAT?!!?!!?!?!?!?!!??!?!”
           

“Oh my…” I shook my head, “Looks like she told him.” I walked into the laundry room where it shared a wall with what had been the garage and was now an apartment. We had originally converted the garage for my parents, but they had died quite a few years ago. I had hoped to change it into a sewing room, but Rebecca and Jennifer decided to move in before I could do anything about it.
           

“Kaden, will you cool off? I already have Mom at my throat. I don’t need you too!” There was a thump as someone sat in a chair next to the wall.
           

“I’m surprised you’re still live if you’ve told Mother.”
           

“Well, I told her it was Matt’s.”
           

“And that’s the guy I met three years ago?”
           

“Right.”
           

“So, where is this other guy?”
           

“I don’t know. He disappeared after I told him.”
           

“Right. So, what are you going to do?”
           

“I…don’t know.” I heard Kaden sigh and the bed squeaked.
           

“You are planning to tell Matt right?”
           

“I want to, but…”
           

“But?”
           

“His family hates me. I had to beg just to find out he had joined the Navy.” I could hear Jen sniff a little before she went on, “I tried to get them to tell me how to contact him, but they said he left to get away from me. I know it’s a lie, but what else can I do?”
           

“We have to tell him. You won’t be able to keep it a secret from Mother for long.”
           

“Won’t be able to keep what a secret from me?” Their mother was home, and one thing that Rebecca hated worse was finding out someone was keeping a secret from her. I decided that then was a good time to get away before anyone found me eavesdropping. I walked back into the kitchen and found Mercedes standing on a chair looking at the ingredients I had set out.
           

“Mimi, you weren’t going to make cookies without me, were you?”
           

“Of course not. I was just getting it ready.”
           

“Well, get over here and let’s get started.” I smiled. It was nice to have a young one in the house again. We had just opened the flour container when the door to the apartment flew open and Kaden stomped into the kitchen pulling his sister behind him. This was the first time I had seen the two together in three years, and it still amazed me how much they looked alike, even though they had different fathers.
           

“Kaden Zachary Reynolds, Jennifer-Brent Olivia Reynolds! GET BACK HERE!! I asked you two a question!!” Rebecca stormed in after them filling the kitchen with a cloud of rage. Her long thick blond hair was pulled up in a ponytail and her blue eyes were blazing.
           

“And I gave you and answer, Mother.” Kaden shot back and then turned to me, “Jen and I are going out for a bit, Mamaw. We’ll get pizza in town.” He gave me a quick peck on the cheek and disappeared from the kitchen. Rebecca stood there for a moment, staring at the door.
           

“Mimi, help!” I looked down and Mercedes had ignored the scene and was trying to fill a measuring cup with flour. The flour container unfortunately was too tall for her and was tempting to spill over. I grabbed the container and helped her measure the flour.
           

“Mercedes Reynolds.” Rebecca had finally realized we were there, “Come over here and give your Mamaw a hug.”
           

“Okay,” She chirped, then turned, and hugged me.
           

“Mercedes, that’s you’re Mimi.” Rebecca smiled, but her lip was twitching.
           

“No, that’s my Mamaw. I just call her Mimi.”               
           

“You better go hug her, and put on your smile.” I patted her on the rear to get her moving. Like a good girl she put on a fake smile and ran into her grandmother’s arms.
           

“Karah, I saw Kaden and Jen leave, where are they…going…” Emily trailed off when she noticed Rebecca. Rebecca too had noticed her daughter-in-law. For a moment Rebecca’s smile wavered but she plastered it on again.
           

“Emily! It’s so nice to see you!” Emily too plastered on her smile.
           

“You too. It’s been too long.” They hugged each other lightly and then Rebecca excused herself and returned to her room.
           

“I wish you two would just fight to release some of the tension that’s around when you’re both in the same room.”
           

“Sorry, Karah. My Mom always told me never to fight if there was a chance to be civil.”
           

“And she’s right. But I still wish you would.” Emily laughed and then joined in to help with the cookies.