Portal

“So he was homeless when you met him?”

“Yep! He’d been in trouble a few times -nothing serious, mind you- and was starving when I met him, but he seemed alright. Took a chance, and here we are. Wouldn’t trade him fer nothin’.”

I dissolved the door behind me as William and I walked out of the kitchen. “Shit. Are you telling her how we met?”

“Ha! You know it. Did you know he was homeless, Will? Bouncing around from city to city without a care in the world?”

“Truly? You should tell me of your travels sometime, Jackson.”

“But not right now, William. We’ve got somewhere to be, right?” Anna stood, wrapping her arms around one of mine.

My face grew hot as my mouth went as dry as the Mojave. William grinned when he saw my face. “Certainly, Anna! Jackson? Are you ready to go?”

“Um… yeah. Yeah, I’m ready. I’ll see you later, Lab.” I waved my goodbye as the three of us walked out.

Lab pursed his lips together, stifling a laugh as he waved.

William led us down the street a way, then into some shadow behind a nearby house. As we walked hand in hand, the familiar sounds of my home receded, replaced by the silence of whatever realm William had control over. We walked for what seemed like hours, but was probably just a few minutes, before the environment of whatever street he knew of in Japan came into focus. It was rather jarring to see daylight slowly filter into reality as the sounds of lunch hour traffic also came into being.

We walked out of the shadows behind a pair of buildings onto a very busy street. Ahead of us was a large building with the word “Takashimaya” on it in red. Anna led us to a crosswalk, pressed a button, and we waited.

Wherever we were, it was a stark contrast to the impatient honking and at times too-loud conversations of home. Here, there were next to no conversations being held outside. Those that were, were hushed and soft, making the atmosphere feel almost sacred, like one would find in a church vestibule.

I looked out among the sea of heads, most of which were half a head shorter than my six foot plus frame. Several people openly stared at me for a moment before returning their gaze to the front.

William’s words snapped me from my musings. “I’ll go with you as far as into the building, and then we will split up. Jackson, you can get her home, yes?”

I held up my phone and opened a small door to my room. It was slightly more difficult than normal. “Yeah. Shouldn’t be too much of an issue. I’ve just never opened a door this far away before.”

“Hm. I wonder…” William nodded thoughtfully.

“Wonder what, William? Is there something going on?” Anna’s voice was almost too loud for the environment, causing her face to go slightly red.

“Hm? Oh. No, Anna. Just running some scenarios through my head, that’s all.” The light changed and we crossed swiftly, entering the cool air of the building a moment later.

“Okay, you two. I’ll see you at the gym tomorrow. Just whenever you can get there, as I’ll be there all day. Have fun!”

I watched William walk away, my palms growing sweaty. I was alone with Anna.

“Come on, Jackson! Let’s go have some sushi!” She held her hand out to me. I scrubbed my hand on my slacks, hopefully ridding them of some of the excess moisture and took her hand in mine.

She turned as red as I surely must have. I could feel her shaking slightly as we walked toward whatever restaurant she had chosen. My earlier concerns ran through my mind at a million miles an hour as I willed myself to not trip, to not stumble, and most importantly, for nobody to bother us while we were there.

Eventually, we walked into a small, well appointed restaurant, where we were seated at a table by one of the staff, as the counter was full. Anna thanked them, said something in Japanese and we sat there to wait.

“So… how do you know this place, Anna?” I asked in a low tone, seeing as there was little in the way of conversation happening at the counter.

She smiled softly. “I used to live here in Shinjuku. Mom would bring me here on occasion as a treat, and I just came to love it.”

“Wait. So you’re Japanese? I thought you were American.”

She laughed quietly. “Yeah. Dad was stationed here and mom and I moved around the world with him. I was born here, so I’m technically Japanese, but I’ve lived most of my life in the US. Dual citizenship and all. I’ve got several friends here in Japan, too.”

I nodded. “So that’s why you know Japanese. Okay. Makes sense. Anything else I should know about my date?” I crooked an eyebrow at her.

She turned beet red once more. “Um… I, uh… I dunno, Jackson. What did you want to know?” She interlaced her fingers, her elbows on the table, and rested her chin on the back of her hands.

“Well… Y’know, I don’t even know how old you are. Let’s start there.”

She perked up. “Oh! Well, I just turned twenty-seven last month. I was born and raised here in Shinjuku and moved to the states when I was eleven. I am fluent in both Japanese and English, as you can tell” -the server came back with some water, and Anna said something to her in Japanese- “and while I have reservations about my power, I can honestly say it’s been a blessing more often than not. What about you?”

I blinked at the rapidity with which she had spoken, marveling at the way she casually swapped languages. “Well. That was rather impressive. Anyway, I’m just a few months younger than you. I was born and raised in Chicago, went to the same school Zack did, and got my power at the ripe old age of nine, and have been in government care for most of my life.”

Her eyes widened. “Nine? You realize how statistically unlikely that is, right? I think the youngest known was eight.”

“No…” I sighed heavily, remembering the tests. “It’s me. By three days. The suits just chalked it up to a random twist of fate. Never looked into it afterwards.”

“Gosh. That’s… I don’t even know what to say. What about your parents? Do you talk to them much?”

I paused then, my mind screaming into the past. I must’ve been quiet for a beat longer than usual, because she broke into my reverie. “You don’t have to talk about it. It’s okay, Jackson.”

I felt queasy as I thought about my parents. I rested my chin in my hand, elbow on the table. “It’s okay. My parents, huh? Well… They were hardly there, really. From the age of nine until I was eighteen, I was in the school. Once I graduated, I left state and wandered the country. I could get into and out of any building I wanted, so I always had a safe, dry place to sleep. I really didn’t think much of them after my grandparents died, and they never really came and looked for me.” I shrugged. “So, there’s that. They might be dead for all I know, and I don’t really think I care.”

Unbidden, my mind pulled up the last memory I had of them. My senior year, they came to school to tell me I was going to have a little brother. Mom was about seven months into her pregnancy, and I just nodded at them and said ‘Congratulations. Hopefully, you’ll even get to raise this one.’ I couldn’t tell if they were hurt, as Dad just nodded and agreed. After a polite lunch with them, I thanked them for the visit and wished them well. Mom was mostly blank. Not emotionless, but just… there.

Anna put a hand to her mouth, and with the other, took my free one. “I’m so sorry, Jackson. I didn’t know. I didn’t want to bring anything bad up.”

I shrugged, letting the memory fade, and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “It’s okay. You couldn’t have known. I’m not really too bothered by it, really. Lab is my only family now.”

She shook her head, a smile on her face. “That’s not true, Jackson. You have us” -she squeezed my hand tightly- “and we won’t leave you.”

I smiled, pulling away as the server brought out our meal. It looked amazing. Anna said something else -probably a thanks- and then she described each item as we ate. It was one of the most amazing experiences I’d ever had for a dinner. A pretty woman patiently explaining what each item was, its history and how to eat it? Quite a unique experience. Learning the etiquette and manners for dealing with the locals here was also wonderful.

We continued to chat throughout “dinner”, sharing laughs and tales from our pasts. I felt more at ease with her as time crept forward on its silent feet.

Eventually, our meal was finished, so we got up, Anna paid at the counter, and we left. I knew I was pleasantly full, so I figured she was too. She took my arm and we left the building.

Once we were out on the oddly quiet street, heading down the road at a leisurely pace, I felt the need to address the proverbial elephant. “So… now what? I don’t even know where home is in relation to where we are right now, so this is your show, Anna. I’ll follow your lead.”

“Well. How tired are you?”

“Honestly? I wish I’d had a nap beforehand, but I was just so damn nervous that I simply couldn’t.”

“Nervous? You? How? You’ve always seemed so calm and composed every time I’ve seen you. Hell, even after you passed out at the gym, you were as cool as a cucumber.”

I stopped, gently tugging her by the shoulder so she could face me. She reached up, taking my trembling hand in hers with a smile. I took a moment to work some saliva in my suddenly dry mouth. “Because I’ve never been on a date before, Anna. And here I go getting asked out by a woman who is, by any measure, a knockout. How do you think I’d feel? I’m quite honestly terrified that I’m gonna screw something up. I’ll say or do something that bothers you or triggers an old memory or-or-or something. I’d hate to lose the chance to continue to get to know you just because I couldn’t keep my stupid mouth shut or something.”

She searched my eyes, an impish smile on her face. “Jackson, you’ve been a perfect gentleman. I’ve enjoyed every second of the past two hours. We can end the night here, if you want. Now that you’ve been here, you can return at any time, right?” I nodded. “Well, let’s plan for a longer date next time, okay? I know I sprang this on you pretty fast.”

So I hadn’t screwed up? Score one for me! I scanned the area, seeing a shady spot between a pair of buildings. “In that case, why don’t I take you home?”

She nodded and wrapped her arms around my left one again, holding it close to her. I headed down the narrow space between buildings, opening a door to the gym. As we stepped through, the door vanished, and I grabbed my head, a splinter of pain lancing through my brain. “Oof. Shit, that hurt.”

“Jackson? What’s wrong?”

I rubbed my head gingerly. “Nothing, really. Like I said, I’ve never made doors that far apart before. Kinda taxing, that’s all.”

“If you’re sure. It’s your power, and you’d know it best.”

I nodded. “Yeah. Damn, that stings.”

She reached up, touching my cheek with her soft hand. Her other hand found the opposite cheek, and she gently brought my face down to meet hers, where she planted a soft kiss on my lips. It felt light being struck by Zack’s electricity all over again, only this time, it was an infinitely more pleasant experience. I was so stunned that I simply stood there, hunched over like some sort of gangly gargoyle, blinking rapidly as fire and butterflies raced along my veins.

She smirked. “Goodnight, Jackson. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

“Uh-huh…” was all I could muster, my eyes firmly fixed on her face, my memory searing this moment deep into my soul.

She giggled then, slipping into the gym, leaving me there alone, half-hunched over in a stupor. I don’t know how long I stood there, but it was William who found me.

“Jackson? Jackson, you okay?” He laughed softly.

“Huh? Um… Yeah.” I closed my mouth and shook my head, bringing myself back to the here and now. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

He clapped me on the shoulder. “I take it you two had a good time, then?” I nodded. “Good. Good. Get yourself home, Jackson. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Okay. See you, William.” I opened a door to my room and walked in, collapsing on the bed. I was asleep in moments.

***************

I awoke around noon, my stomach groaning loudly. My bladder was rather insistent as to my awakening, too. I got up and took care of the second need first, then went downstairs to find a bite to eat. Thankfully, there was half a pizza on the counter with a note telling me that I’d better eat it all. Who was I to argue with the pizza gods?

After devouring the pizza, I felt whole enough to make my way to the Gym. I changed into some more comfortable clothes, and opened a door to the office. I knocked on the door, seeing Bethany’s smiling face.

“And hello to you too, Jackson!” She winked conspiratorially at me. “Anna says she had a wonderful time last night and can’t wait to go out with you again. I’m so happy for her. Make sure you treat her well, okay?”

I felt my face grow hot. “Um… yeah. No worries there. I, uh… I gotta go? Talk to you later, okay?”

She tittered and nodded. “Have a good workout, Jackson.”

I made my way downstairs, shifting my thoughts to whatever Jennifer had cooked up for me. She had said that she developed a new kata for me, and I was curious to see it in action. As I opened the door at the end of the hall, I heard a rather irritated voice in the arena.

“No, no, no! I told you that you can’t do that here, Zack. If you wanna practice that, you have to take it elsewhere. I’m not about to get zapped because you can’t control your lightning.”

I recognized Jennifer’s tone, and knew that something had happened.

“But, Jen! I gotta practice this! What do you propose I do, then? Start zapping randos out there on the street? I’ll get arrested!”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care, Zack. You’re not endangering anyone here.”

Zack stormed off, posting up against the wall. I walked up to Jennifer. “What’s happened?”

She sighed in annoyance. “Zack’s trying to get better at throwing his electricity. We don’t have the budget for targets for him, so it’s pretty difficult for him to practice.”

“Well, what does he need?”

“Conductive targets. We don’t have it in the budget.”

“Is that all? I can help with that.” I turned to face Zack, calling a plethora of steel doors into existence in random spots. “Will those suffice for targets, Jennifer?”

She raised an eyebrow. “How long can you keep that up, Jackson?”

I shrugged. “We’ll see.”

She shook her head, still annoyed. “Zack! Hit those doors.”

Zack looked up, startled. “What the… Well, okay.” He pulled his hands back, mimicking the Kamehameha stance and threw a soccerball-sized ball of electricity at one of the doors, where it impacted with a bang and a shower of sparks, flinging the door open. “Thanks, Jackson! This’ll work!”

I waved and faced Jennifer, feeling sweat beading on my brow. “So. What’s the new kata?”

“You sure, kid?” she asked softly. “I can see you start to sweat already.” I nodded. “Okay then. Watch me carefully.”

In all, I had her walk through the kata four times. Once from each side, so I could form a better mental image of how it should look. At the end of the fourth walkthrough, she and I were both covered in sweat.

“That’s enough, Zack! Jackson’s about tapped.”

I saw him nod and I let the doors vanish into nothingness. I fell to my knees, gasping from the effort. Two pairs of hands helped me rise, seeing me to a nearby chair. Someone draped a dry towel around my head and I dried the sweat as best I could.

“Thanks, dude. I really appreciate that. I didn’t know you could do that with your doors.”

I smiled, peering up at him with one eye. “You don’t remember, do you?” When he shook his head, I continued. “That first time we fought in school, I pulled up a steel door, and you dented it with an electric punch. I figured it’d be conductive enough to pull whatever you were doing towards it.”

“You remember that?”

“I have a truly eidetic memory, man. I can’t forget anything.”

“Is that so, Jackson?” I froze as I heard a voice behind me, as small, soft hands caressed my shoulders.