Homeward Sail:

By morning, Sappoto-san and I set sail back to Japan. We bit the people in Taiwan farewell and sailed away. Before we left, I left Andi a little text message.

Hey, Babe. I’m coming home today. Wait for me at the boat rental place near the Sea of Japan. Feel free to yell at me all you want. Love you.

Miho-chan

I smiled at the message and hit send. Sappoto-san looked at the moving water before her.

“So when will be home?” she asked. I thought about that for a moment.

“I’m guessing about…” I said. I did one more count in my head. “By this evening if all goes well.”

She looked up at me with such surprise. “Really?”

I nodded at her. “Yep.”

She over to me at the wheel. “Did you tell Andi-san to meet us?”

“Yeah.”

“Hm.” She leaned on my shoulder. I tried to push her off.

“Stop,” I said. Sappoto-san took a step back.

“Sorry,” she murmured. I shook my head.

“Could you do me a favor?” I asked.

“What?” Sappoto-san asked. I turned around to her.

“Stop apologizing so much,” I said. “It’s okay not to be so humble all the time.” Sappoto-san looked at me so confused.

“But…” she said.

“Don’t,” I said. “Just stand up for yourself and stop apologizing. Don’t argue with me either.” She drew her mouth closed. I bowed my head at her.

“Thanks,” I said.

“So, what kind of gifts should I get my family?” she asked. I glanced over at her.

“Hm? Oh, like I said, the kids should get toys or something to do with sports or art,” I said. Sappoto-san slowly nodded.

“And what about for my husband?” she asked. I smirked to myself as I held back a snicker.

“Do you really want to know?” I asked her. Sappoto-san gave me a little nod. I shook my head to myself. Oh, you poor innocent soul. I put the boat on autopilot and turned to her.

“Sit down,” I said. “This is going to take a long time.” She looked at me rather lost.

“Okay…” she mumbled. I sat down in front of her and took a deep breath. Four… Three… Two… One! I broke down and told her a couple of bedroom tricks. I took my time and gave her my best knowledge. By the end, Sappoto-san looked at me red-faced and with big eyes.

“W-Wow!” she said. I nodded at her with a serious face.

“Yes,” was all I said. Sappoto-san just looked away in silence. I pressed my lips together and walked back to the wheel. The poor dear, she’s just so clueless. I don’t think she can look at me anymore at the moment. I cleared my throat and looked at my cell phone. Three o’clock already? Wow. I glanced over at my naïve friend.

“We should be home by sundown, you know?” I asked.

“Yes!” Sappoto-san said aloud as she kept her face to the sea. I just went quiet from there. Somehow, I can’t blame for not talking to me or not making eye contact. Alright…

We pulled up to Tokyo bay about ten o’clock. I looked out to see Andi flagging us down and running. Oh, my heart could’ve exploded with joy in my chest then and there.

“Sappoto-san!” I called. “Look up! We’re home!”

“Huh?” my friend asked as she looked up. She too saw Andi flagging us down.

“We’re home!” Sappoto-san called out in joy. I nodded at her.

“Yes,” I said. “We are home at long last.” I steered the boat into the dock and shut the power off for good. Sappoto-san and I made haste with packing everything up that belonged to us. Once I checked that we retrieved everything, we headed off the boat as fast as we could. I paid back the rental fee while Sappoto-san and Andi waited for me in the hallway. I didn’t care how much Andi yelled at me for just up and leaving her out of the blue like that afterwards. In the end, it just felt good to be back home in Japan again.