Kai laughed again, then forcibly turned her head away from him. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he looked out the window with her. Out of the corner of his eye he watched her mouth fall open as she gasped. “God, Kai…how could you ever leave this place?”
They were still a ways away, but the closest island in the string of islands that collectively made up the state of Hawaii, was quickly growing larger and larger in the glass windowpane. The innate beauty of his home made a peaceful smile grace Kai’s lips. Green was the first thing he noticed. It was green in a way that most places weren’t anymore, green with the lush life of jungle vegetation. Fog ringed the taller mountain peaks, mere hills compared to the mountains of Colorado, and the blue-green water endlessly lapped against the white-sand beaches. It really was, as Jessie was constantly telling him, paradise, and Kai sighed in contentment. He might be coming home to a bittersweet reunion, but he was still coming home, and a part of him had really missed it here.
Jessie’s face was glued to the window as they finally started their descent. She giggled as she watched the emerald island growing and expanding, until the only thing visible in the window was the lushness of life. As the more urban areas drew near, she finally turned back to him. “We’re here!”
Kai nodded as he felt the plane begin to slow down. Yes, they were here and his parents were waiting for them. Smiling at Jessie, Kai clenched her hand as the plane lowered to the ground, lightly bumped against the pavement of the runway, and then forcefully screeched to a stop. He was immensely happy that she had decided to go on this little trip with him. As much as she’d wanted to, she hadn’t been sure if work would let her go, especially since she’d called in sick so many times already this week. But the last phone call she’d made had ended with them telling her that another masseuse would cover her clients and it was no problem if she wanted to take the rest of the week off. Kai had her until Monday…and he was really happy about that.
The plane disembarked, Kai’s section exiting first, and Kai clenched her hand even harder. He’d never in his life imagined that seeing his parents would cause him so much stress. But he supposed that was part of the problem—they weren’t both his parents, and they’d hidden that fact from him. His dad was a genetic stranger and his mom…well, she sort of felt like a stranger after all he’d learned about her.
A beautiful Hawaiian girl greeted them as they exited the plane. She gave them the standard “aloha” greeting and draped a couple of leis over their necks. Jessie thanked her as she fingered her flowers. Her smile was so bright, her delight so clear that Kai momentarily forgot his discomfort. He thanked the greeter with a quick, “Mahalo,” before pulling Jessie toward baggage claim.
He wanted to whisper in her ear that she’d just been lei’d in public, but as they approached baggage claim, his eyes locked onto a pair of people that he’d known very well for most of his life. He instinctually straightened as he met gazes with first his father, then his mother. They’d surprisingly come together; they generally avoided being at the same place if they weren’t at work, and Kai knew exactly why they did that now.
Jessie stopped when she felt his stance change and twisted to look at what had his attention. “What is it, Kai? Are your parents here?”
Kai wasn’t sure how to answer that simple question anymore. Knowing what she meant though, he only said, “Yeah.”
His feet felt encased in cement, but he made himself trudge over to the people who had shaped his formative years. Stopping well before them, he gave them each a polite nod. It surprised him some that he managed to move at all; his entire body felt like one rigid, immobile piece. “Mother…Nate.” Kai noted the chill in his voice. He wished it wasn’t there, but he couldn’t do anything to alter it, either. These people had sent him thousands of miles away, so that someone else could tell him that his childhood had been a lie. They would have to excuse him if he felt a little bitter about it.
His mother began to cry once she heard his tone. Kai’s eyes drifted to the dark-haired woman, her deep skin color an identical match to his own. The sight of her cheeks wet with tears cracked Kai’s resolve, dulled the hard edge of his anger. Regardless of what they had done to him, Kai didn’t want to hurt them. They were family.