117 Chapter five, 2016, extended stay: 5 (2/2)
”Fill up,” she said. ”This is your last decent meal this side of Tokyo.”
”Decent?” Ryu murmured, and his sister agreed.
”Shut up silly!”
”Meal?” Noriko pondered, and her brother agreed.
”You're hopeless, both of you.”
”This side of Tokyo?” Urufu shot in.
”Eh, yeah, sorry about that,” Kuri-chan said and took a seat for herself. She loaded her own breakfast in front of her while Kyoko waited for the rest of her information. When whatever substituted for a proper breakfast in Sweden lay before her Kuri-chan took a deep breath and continued. ”Our tickets won't leave us enough time to eat in Nagoya. We have less than fifteen minutes.”
”Fill up it is then,” Urufu said and started shovelling food into his mouth.
Yukio followed his example, and faced with the prospect of an entire day's travel on an empty stomach Kyoko reluctantly grabbed a bowl, filled it with cereals and milk and started eating for real.
With that silence settled over the table. It was only broken by Kuri-chan moving between her seat and the trolley, loading food onto her own and the other's plates. Even the Wakayamas were unusually subdued and made their best to try the odd food out.
When they were done Kyoko quickly made for her room and the last of her luggage. Everyone else's already stood in the lobby, and when she came down again two taxi cars already waited on the courtyard.
'I guess this is it,' she thought. Kyoko looked up the wooden stairs as if she would be able to see around the corner, into the corridor and turn to the room that had been her home for weeks. It was fun. 'I'll miss it.' And she would. This summer break had been the best she could remember. She felt a little guilty about that. Her first time without her parents was the best time. Wasn't that a sign of ingratitude? Wasn't that improper? Even so it didn't make it any less true that it remained the best.
She smirked and looked at the stairs a last time. For a while her eyes lingered on the reception desk before she turned and grabbed her bags. A few steps later she stood in the sunshine looking at a member of the staff who came rushing to take her bags and carry them the last distance to the waiting taxi cars. It was stupid, and it was tradition.
With mixed feelings Kyoko climbed into the last taxi. The time at the resort had seen her grow. She didn't know how, but she knew that she had definitely taken an important step towards adulthood. And she had become closer to Yukio. For now that was more important than growing up.
She waved to the staff through the window, and shortly after the taxi started rolling. The sound of tires over gravel carried through the car. Soon she could only see the courtyard through the rear window, and after a last turn the resort vanished behind her as if it had never been there at all.