Before long, the plane was already airborne.
The three of us occupied the massive luxury cabin nestled inside what was essentially a flying mansion. Couches lined portions of the cabin, comfortable chairs were scattered throughout, and enough gadgets and amenities filled the interior that it felt more like a lounge than an aircraft.
Anathasia wandered around the cabin for the third or fourth time, occasionally glancing at the furniture as though she was inspecting it for the first time.
Fran, meanwhile, had retreated to one of the couches near the corner, quietly scrolling through her phone. Judging from her expression, she was probably trying very hard not to think about the fact that her mother casually owned a customized commercial airliner.
As for me...
I opened one of the refrigerators built into the side of the cabin.
Various drinks filled the shelves.
Juices.
Soft drinks.
A few sparkling beverages.
Mostly things Anathasia and I liked.
I glanced through everything before nodding to myself.
"No alcohol."
Satisfied, I closed the door and looked back.
Anathasia was already sprawled across one of the couches, staring at the ceiling like a cat that had claimed ownership of the entire aircraft. When she noticed me looking, she immediately gave me a thumbs-up.
I grabbed three cans.
Strawberry for myself.
Lime for Anathasia.
Raspberry for Fran.
"Anathasia, catch."
I tossed the lime-flavored can toward her.
Without even looking, she casually caught it with one hand before pushing herself upright.
A moment later, I handed Fran her drink.
"Thanks, Dad."
"Mhm."
I nodded before taking a seat beside Anathasia.
The soft hiss of aluminum tabs opening echoed through the cabin as all three of us opened our drinks almost simultaneously.
I took a small sip.
Then my attention drifted toward the windows. Clouds rolled past outside, bright white against an endless blue sky.
For a while, nobody spoke.
The quiet was pleasant. At least until Anathasia suddenly shifted position and laid down across the couch. Using my lap as a pillow.
Naturally.
She stared up at me while casually sipping her drink.
"They say people look ugly from below."
I blinked.
"What?"
She took another sip.
"People always say that."
Then she pointed vaguely upward.
"But I think that only applies to most people."
My eyebrow rose.
"What is this about?"
"I'm just saying."
She immediately continued.
"My man doesn't look ugly from any angle."
Silence.
A very particular kind of silence.
Across from us, Fran slowly looked up from her phone.
Then at me.
Then at Anathasia.
Then back at me.
The disappointment in her eyes was almost tangible.
I sighed.
Without a word, I grabbed a handful of Anathasia's hair that had spilled across the couch and draped it directly over her face.
"Pfft—!"
She immediately began sputtering and brushing her hair away.
"The hell was that for?!"
"Go to sleep."
I took another sip of my drink.
"It's a long flight, babe."
"Don't 'babe' me!"
She grabbed one of my hair strands in retaliation.
"What's wrong with calling something beautiful beautiful?"
She tugged lightly on my hair.
"Nothing, right?"
A scoff escaped her lips as she continued playing with it.
"I can't help it if my husband is just that gorgeous."
"Your smile is twitching, Anathasia."
She ignored me completely.
Naturally.
Instead, she wrapped another strand of my hair around her finger and continued fiddling with it as though she'd won some sort of argument.
Eventually, though, she calmed down.
Several minutes passed.
The hum of the engines filled the cabin while clouds drifted past outside. Then Anathasia suddenly looked toward Fran.
"By the way, Kyle."
"Hm?"
Her eyes shifted toward mine.
"If we ever got rich, would that make Lena, Fran, and little Grace heiresses?"
The moment those words left her mouth, I closed my eyes.
A sigh escaped me.
Across from us, Fran immediately removed one of her earbuds and shook her head.
I dragged a hand down my face.
"Girl."
"Seriously?"
"It's a legitimate question."
She pointed at me with her drink.
"A genuine one."
I stared at her for several seconds. Then decided that questioning Anathasia's timing was an unwinnable battle.
"What do you mean if we ever got rich?"
I gestured around us.
"We're currently sitting inside a customized commercial airliner."
"Details."
"That's not a detail."
Before Anathasia could continue defending her position, Fran spoke up.
"Honestly, I don't think I'd want to be a heiress anyway, Mom."
Both of us turned toward her. Fran removed her earbud completely this time.
"Heiresses are basically part of the elite, right?"
She grimaced slightly.
"I don't think I could spend all day acting like someone else in front of people."
Anathasia and I exchanged a glance.
Then nodded.
"Fair enough."
Anathasia admitted it surprisingly quickly.
"I wouldn't enjoy all the politics either."
Then she casually pointed at me. Repeatedly poking my cheek.
"Your dad would be good at it, though."
"You make it sound like I'm secretly one of them."
"Not necessarily."
She shrugged.
"But the way you think is pretty similar."
My expression flattened.
Unfortunately...
Looking back on certain situations, she wasn't entirely wrong. So I chose not to argue.
Across from us, Fran put her earbud back in.
"Mom and Dad are already rich without the title anyway."
She gestured around the cabin.
"I mean... owning an airliner isn't exactly something normal people do."
"That's exactly what I've been telling your mom for years now."
I shook my head and let out a sigh, sinking deeper into the soft cushions of the couch. Still sprawled on my lap, Anathasia simply continued sipping her drink.
As if she hadn't heard a single word.
Or more likely, as if she'd heard it so many times that she'd developed complete immunity.
A little over three hours later, the plane finally touched down at Tokyo's Narita International Airport.
The gentle vibration of the landing gear rolling across the runway spread through the cabin as the aircraft gradually slowed.
I glanced out the window.
The airport stretched endlessly beyond the glass. Taxiways, terminals, service vehicles, and aircraft scattered across the distance beneath the afternoon sky.
As our plane taxied toward a designated section of the airport, I noticed something unusual. Several vehicles were already waiting nearby.
Black cars.
Quite a few of them.
And farther away—
News vans.
I frowned slightly. Before I could get a better look, Anathasia suddenly grabbed my wrist.
"Come on."
"What—"
"We're getting off."
And just like that, any chance of satisfying my curiosity disappeared.
A few minutes later, we descended the passenger stairs.
The moment my shoes touched the tarmac, flashes of light flickered somewhere in the distance.
Cameras.
Or at least cameras from what I could tell.
Unfortunately, a group of men in tailored suits immediately moved toward us.
Professional.
Efficient.
Almost suspiciously efficient.
Before I could properly process what was happening, they had already guided us toward a row of waiting vehicles.
My sightseeing ended for the second time that day.
Now seated inside one of the sleek black cars, I stared out the window for a moment before turning toward Anathasia.
Fran sat across from us.
Anathasia sat beside me.
And somehow she was already holding a different drink. This time it was lemon-flavored fizz. I didn't even know where she'd gotten it.
"What exactly is going on?"
She blinked.
"Hm?"
I gestured vaguely outside.
"The convoy."
Then toward the men in suits.
"The security."
Then toward the other vehicles following behind us.
"Did you arrange all of this?"
Anathasia glanced through the window.
Then at me.
Then back outside.
"No?"
She took a sip.
"I just called the CEO and told him we were coming because Fran has the Student Association meeting."
I stared at her.
Slowly.
"So..."
My finger pointed toward the windshield.
"The Land Cruiser escorting us."
Then toward the rear window.
"The two escort vehicles behind us."
Then toward the driver.
"And whatever this is."
A pause.
"That's because you made one phone call?"
"Probably."
"Probably?"
"Probably."
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"Don't you think this is a little excessive?"
"It definitely is."
She answered immediately without hesitation let alone any shame. Then took another sip of her drink.
"Should we tell him it's excessive?"
Silence filled the car. I thought about it.
Then nodded.
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
Across from us, Fran suddenly raised a hand.
"Um..."
Both of us looked toward her.
She was staring at her phone. Then she slowly turned the screen around for us to see.
Anathasia and I leaned forward slightly. The article displayed on the screen came from some news page.
The headline read:
"International Student Association Meeting Held in Japan, Funded by Kithia Corp. A Direct Support From One of the Largest Names in Commercial Industry. A Shift in Vision or a Hidden Agenda?"
The car fell silent.
I looked at the article. Then at Anathasia. Then back at the article. Fran lowered her phone slightly.
"What exactly is this about?"
Anathasia pulled back first. I did the same a second later. For a brief moment, neither of us said anything. Then Anathasia pointed at herself.
"...I feel like that's somehow my fault."
"Somehow?"
I stared at her.
"Somehow?"
Anathasia simply took another sip of her drink.
Which, unfortunately, told me everything I needed to know. Silence settled over the car afterward.
The convoy continued moving through the streets of Tokyo while city lights drifted past the windows. High-rises gave way to quieter districts, busy roads gradually turning into calmer residential streets.
For the most part, none of us spoke.
Fran occasionally scrolled through her phone.
Anathasia quietly worked her way through yet another drink.
And I spent the ride wondering how a simple trip for a student meeting had somehow turned into an event important enough to attract news coverage and an entire security convoy.
Eventually, the vehicles slowed.
Then stopped.
"We're here," Anathasia announced.
I glanced out the window.
Our other house sat near the edge of Tokyo, tucked away from the busier parts of the city. The property itself was large enough to stand out without looking ostentatious, surrounded by trees and a high wall that offered a degree of privacy from the outside world.
The moment the convoy came to a halt, the men from the other vehicles immediately stepped out.
Almost in unison.
Several of them moved toward our car while others positioned themselves around the entrance.
Fran climbed out first.
Anathasia followed shortly after.
The two of them headed toward the house while I lingered by the gate, watching the men carry out their duties with almost military precision.
After a moment, I shook my head slightly.
"Has any of you eaten yet?"
A few of them blinked. Instinctively, my hand drifted toward my wallet.
"I have some cash here if—"
Before I could finish, the men immediately bowed their heads.
The one standing closest to me stepped forward. His English was somewhat broken, but more than understandable.
"No, sir. We already eaten."
He placed a hand over his chest.
"But we appreciate the care."
The others mirrored the gesture almost immediately.
"We are honored to be of service, Mr. Abe."
His posture remained perfectly straight.
"Being near is enough."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"If we take cash, that would be too much."
For a moment, I simply looked at him. Then at the others standing behind him.
None of them looked uncomfortable.
None of them looked forced.
If anything, they seemed genuinely sincere. Slowly, I pulled my hand away from my wallet.
"Well... alright."
A small smile tugged at my lips.
"Thank you for the help then."
The man nodded.
"We are happy to assist."
I glanced toward the house where Fran and Anathasia had already disappeared inside. Then looked back at him.
"You can head back now."
I gestured toward the property.
"We'll be fine from here."
The man nodded once more.
"As you wish, sir."
He raised a hand.
A simple gesture.
Immediately, the rest of the security team began returning to their vehicles.
Doors opened.
Engines started.
The convoy gradually came back to life. Before entering his own car, the man lowered his head one final time.
"Have a pleasant evening, Mr. Abe."
"You too."
A few moments later, the vehicles pulled away from the curb one after another. The headlights disappeared down the street. Then around a corner.
And finally, they were gone.
Leaving the neighborhood quiet once again. I stood by the gate for a few seconds longer, staring down the now-empty road.
Then let out a small sigh.
Somehow, the trip hadn't even properly started yet, and it already felt exhausting.