Transition And Restart

The ancient air conditioning unit coughed asthmatically in a futile protest when hot and humid air welled in, and most of those present agreed with apathetic nods. In a few weeks everyone should be used to summer temperatures, but right now most looked like they longed for the wetness of just a handful of days ago.

Those not overcome by apathy shared two tables with a quintet of surprise guests. A surprise to everyone but Urufu, Kyoko suspected.

She glanced at the tables where two Tokyoites, who had spent enough time in Sweden to share inside jokes with two girls and a boy who were most definitely not j.a.panese, made an attempt to translate questions and answers from all parties. After a while most seemed to agree English was a good enough compromise, to the dismay of the first year club members.

Urufu barked something in Swedish, and all five guests turned their faces in surprise. One of them, a girl short enough to have to tip toe even in j.a.pan, grinned and responded with a big grin on her face after she delivered her answering words.

"What was that about?" Kyoko heard Noriko say from the position beside Urufu she monopolised whenever she had the chance.

"He said that Santa Claus wondered if there were any nice kids here, and Jenny told him he"d better grow a beard first," the female of the two j.a.panese born guests said.

j.a.panese born, because her entire outfit was distinctly western, showing way more skin than was proper for someone with the looks of a cla.s.sic j.a.panese beauty. She might look j.a.panese, but Kyoko knew she had spent enough years in that strange country of Urufu"s to be anything but. She was also the former student council president of that Swedish high school, or chairman of the students" union as she preferred to call it.

"Where"s your club chairman?" she said.

"And you are?" Urufu answered.

Kyoko looked at the two of them, then at Noriko, who"s lips turned into a disapproving smirk, and then back at Urufu again.

"Rika. I"m Rika Uchida."

"Uchida Rika? She even uses the western style for her own name. Riksempai I guess."

"Ulf Hammargren, pleased to meet you. Christina"s working today, so I"m afraid you"ll have to do with me as club representative."

Riksempai shrugged, just the way Urufu and Kuri used to. "I don"t care. Just thought it was polite to ask for her."

"And that was just about as far from polite as you could be."

Urufu grinned and grabbed a chair. As he sat down Noriko took one for herself and sat down beside him.

Kyoko noticed Riksempai"s amused smile. "Girlfriend?" She said.

"No," Urufu said.

"Not yet," Noriko added.

"You like him that much?"

"Enough not to hand him over to you."

"Oh, gutsy. I like that." Riksempai grinned. "Don"t worry. I"m not interested in kids."

"He"s not..."

"Noriko, she"s not compet.i.tion, so just drop it!" Kyoko interrupted before Noriko had a chance to say something most of those present weren"t supposed to hear.

She felt Yukio clasp her hand, and closer to a year together with him had taught her how to read his thoughts from the way he touched her. This time she read firm approval.

Riksempai exchanged looks with the other Tokyo born guest, Hasegawa Jun, Ai-chan"s big brother.

"See, they"re the same here as well."

"Huh?"

Jun-sempai smiled and turned to the other male guest. "Alexander, maybe there"s hope for you as well," he said in English.

"I wouldn"t bet on it," Riksempai said. "Besides, shouldn"t that mean there"s hope for Emma as well," she added and grinned at a girl who had mostly stayed silent since the five of them suddenly arrived in the café less than half an hour earlier.

"Chance?" Ai-chan said from a table she shared with Nanchan.

"Eh," Jun-sempai said and grinned sheepishly. "It"s a bit of a mess. See, Alexander is in love with Rika, which everyone back home knows, and Emma"s in love with Alexander, which also everyone knows.

"Oh dear!"

"And they"re all very good friends ever since Emma more or less forced Rika to share a, eh, what"s the word, "fika" we call it, with Alexander."

"Fika, I know that word. The date that"s not a date, where you drink coffee even though you don"t have to drink coffee." And just like "fika", Jun-sempai"s explanation made no sense at all.

Urufu coughed loud enough to have everyone stare at him, which was probably a good thing since both Emmsempai and Alexanderu-sempai had turned beet red during Jun-sempai"s little speech. "Lemme see if I got this right. The kid over there," Urufu nodded at Emmsempai, "is in love with him," and shot Alexanderu-sempai a grin, "so she arranged a date between him and her rival?" At the last word Urufu bowed ironically to Riksempai.

The five guests exchanged looks between themselves, and almost as if reaching an agreement they said more or less in chorus: "Yes."

Urufu shook his head. "You"re strange all of you. I admit utter defeat."