Tabi ni Deyou:Journey

(22% translated)

"...this sucks," she said, sitting on the passenger seat, and looked up through the front glass at the clouds that covered the entire sky like a blanket made of old, dirty wool.

"Yeah... looks like the sun has left you in the lurch at last," he smiled bitterly and squeezed his drenched socks after opening the door.

The persistent rain outside of the car showed no sign of ending, whereas the clothes they had taken off showed no sign of drying.

A few days had passed since leaving boss' warehouse. The two had kept following the deserted road, aiming for the neighboring town as originally planned. Though they had detoured a little because of mistaking the way, they managed—with more or less effort—to reduce their delay to one day.

However, at dusk of this day, they had fallen victim to an assault of rain.

Before long it had virtually been raining in torrents, leaving them no choice but to become like drowned rats.

Of course they were not mindless. They always carried their rain gears with them, and they had a blue sheet to use as a tentative tent — they hadn't traveled for three months without happening upon any rain.

That said, those items had come to no use this time.

It was not reasonable to ride Cubby while holding out a plastic umbrella, and their cheap convenience store rain coats had stood no chance against that rain. On top of that, the strong wind kept them from setting up a tent.

The two had not had any choice but to put their rain coats on anyway and search for a shelter while praying to all gods that came to mind.

If it was because their prayer had reached the gods or because some devil had had mercy with them remains a mystery, but after a few hours' ride when rain water had seeped through every corner of their cold bodies from the hair-ends to the back of their pants, the boy had found a deserted station wagon by the street.

Thanks to the fact that the backseats could be folded down, they made two sections by hanging up a vinyl sheet in the center and decided to put on a change of clothes each. It wasn't their first night in a car, so that procedure wasn't new to them anymore. Fortunately, the wagon seemed to be sealed air-tight: there were no signs of any leaks or mold.

They took off one piece of clothing after the other, opened the door slightly and pressed the wetness out of them as much as possible before going on to the next one. Their clothes weren't going to get dry by just that, but if they had let them be, they would have gotten moldy. By the time they had taken off all their clothes, changed into fresh underwear and wrapped themselves in some blankets, they felt completely drained.

"Mh, what's the time?"

"Err... about ten. Ages after the time we should have had dinner!"

"Aah... so that's why I'm starving...," she said while rubbing her belly.

The boy was absolutely of the same mind.

"I was going to make us some tea, but do you want to eat something light to it?"

"Sure. As a substitute for dinner."

The boy opened their luggage and took out a portable stove and a tiny kettle. Since he wasn't too keen on being short of oxygen, he left the door ajar. The incoming rain was bearable if it was just for a short while.

He put a wooden board, which he had found in the trunk, on the seat in the middle and started to boil water there. With the rushing of rain adding to the already silent mood, there finally ceased to be any conversation between them. Until the water started to boil, the inside of the car was occupied only by the sound of raindrops.

As soon as the water boiled, the boy immediately put out the stove and prevented the warm air from leaking out by closing the door. He then poured water into their mugs and dropped a tea bag into each one.

The silence that returned was shortly after broken by the girl sneezing.

"Are you cold?"

"Nah, I'm fine. But aren't you? The rain should have hit you harder than me, after all," she inquired with a lopsided smile.

The boy responded with a laugh, "You need not worry, milady! I don't catch a cold so easily, for I am a member of the menfolk! But you are a lady, so please make yourself comfortable and take good care."

Queer as it was, the girl's brown blanket she had wrapped around herself suddenly looked like an elegant robe when he used such a style of speaking.

"Milady, your tea."

He held out her blue mug toward her seat.

"Mh, you have done good work. I am satisfied."

She accepted her mug and looked down at the brown liquid the mug was brimful with. A strong fragrance rose together with hot steam like a living being from from the black tea, despite it being of a cheap type, and tickled the girl's nose. Way too strong! Well, but he made it caring about me, so I'll be grateful.

The boy handed her some rock-hard sugar cubes, which she dropped into her mug and stirred. A slightly bitter yet fragrant aroma warmed her up from the inside when she took a gulp.

"...lovely warm..."

"Well, it's fresh from the kettle!"

"...awfully bitter..."

"I'm sorry..."

They shared a laugh together.

After ending their simple dinner consisting of durable biscuits and black tea, they cleared some tasks such as putting their luggage in order and checking their provisions, and then went to sleep early.

She accepted her mug and looked down at the brown liquid the mug was brimful with.

In the end, they woke up when the clock showed 7am—still raining outside. While he had the impression that the rain had weakened a little, the cloud were still as thick as before and did not let a sunbeam through.

He twisted his body and tried to stretch himself on the narrow passenger seat. He had slept longer than expected, making him realize that he had apparently been quite exhausted. He was tied up in knots, so to speak, and every time he bent himself like a resisting fish on a bait, a click resounded from some part of his body.

Flabbergasted by his strange movements—or perhaps just waking up—the blanket dumpling on the back seat, aka the girl, started rustling.

Her head came poking out of the dumpling, took a look at the situation outside and sunk into the blanket again. With a depressed sigh, the dumpling eventually sat up.

"Morning..."

"Mh, good morning."

Considering her usual difficulties in waking up, she had gotten up rather nicely, which was probably to be attributed to the sound sleep she had had. They had recovered from most of the exhaustion from the half day's ride.

Now that the desire for sleep had been fulfilled, however, the entrance of the next desire was a matter of course. The boy's stomach gave voice to its displeasure by rumbling aloud.

"I guess I'll have breakfast now—do you want to have something, too?"

"...Nah, thanks."

The boy was thunderstruck.

It was the very first time during their three months' long journey that it wasn't her who complained of an empty stomach.

"Are you feeling unwell?"

"Hey now... do you think I'm a glutton or something?"

"Yeah."

Preparing for a punch in the next moment, he kept his head down.

However, there was no payback. Something was wrong, no doubt.

"Let me take your temperature."

"No, really, I'm fine..."

"No. Your objection is rejected."

Her color was clearly not normal on looking more carefully. Her hale, tanned skin had turned a little pale.

The boy slipped through between the passenger and driver seat, still rolled up in his blanket, and crouched down by the girl. In his right hand he was holding a thermometer from their luggage.

"Come on, you're not well, are you? No need shamming in front of me, so please take your temperature at least."

"...Okay."

Finally giving in, she obediently accepted the thermometer and stuck it in her armpit after some struggling. Since she was wearing nothing but her underwear under the blanket, the boy turned from her just to be sure.

In the meantime, he opened their portable first aid kit and checked how many medicines they had left.

"I wonder what it is. Did you catch a cold, or something?"

The girl just turned away without answering him.

"...the rain, I suspect. But that's odd, I had no problems..."

The next instant, she grabbed him by the collar and scowled at him with a creepy grimace.

"There's that bothersome event once a month for us girls!!" she roared, making him shrink and go on his fours.

"P-Please forgive my rudeness, milady..."

"...Looks like you got it. I think it will last a while, but don't mind it since we can't get away until the rain stops anyway."

"...Honestly, I have no idea of anything in that respect, being a boy and all, you know, so... are you alright?"

"Hm... mine are quite light usually... but it doesn't look too good this time..." she explained as she hunched up, embracing her stomach.

"Do you want to use a painkiller?"

"Actually, I've already taken one before sleeping. Did it already wear off...?"

Men aren't of much use at such times. While they were managing the medicines together, her sanitary items weren't in the boy's control, so he just took a tablet out of a package that claimed to be good against headaches and menstrual pain.

"Here, and some water."

The girl sat up heavily and accepted the water and tablet from him.

"...I actually wanted to restock some of our stuff when we were at the warehouse. Well, I should have borrowed some from the secretary, but I completely forgot..."

"So that's what you were looking to search?"

"Yeah."

She gulped the tablet down with some water and handed him her cup. Normally, she would have emptied it, but this time there was still some left. Probably, her stomach was affected as well.

He drunk up the remaining content himself and wiped his mouth.

"Do you still want to eat something?"

"...No, thanks."

Most likely, it would be best to have her take in something, but he didn't want to force her. Instead, he handed her a vitamin jelly he had found.

Her temperature was 37.9°C. Rather high.

✱

The time was 02:00pm.

The rain was still falling and the girl's condition had worsened dramatically.

In the beginning, she'd frequently sat up to do things such as changing the cloth, but after noon, she'd stopped moving and started cycling between light sleep and awakening.

Having used their last remaining antifebrile, her fever had exceeded the 38°C mark. Even the boy realized that this could never come just from the monthly thing. He suspected that she had caught a cold on top of it. Considering that she had been exposed so long to so much rain, there was even a possibility of lung inflammation.

Even if it was not pneumonia, how should he deal with any other illness? The only medicaments at hand were a couple of headache and cold tablets and some ointment. He had no means of treating any illness more serious than a cold. All he could do was putting a cloth wet with rain water on her forehead.

She was in danger.

He could not help but admit that he had been thoughtless not to consider such a situation during the entire three months they had been on the go. It was actually rather surprising that this had not happened before on their journey, which was so equally heavily based on strong luck and good fortune.

However, he wasn't given the time to regret the mistake he had made. The boy found himself confronted with a choice that was many times harder than any of the numerous exams he had come to pass during nine years of compulsory education.

Stay here and gamble on the girl's innate immune system?

Alternatively, go to the neighboring town by himself and catch a doctor?

Both choices had flaws that piled up to Mount Everest's height.

—On top of it being unknown whether it was an illness that could actually be cured by her immune system, this situation had come about because that immune system had been weakened. What if it was an illness that couldn't be cured without treatment of a doctor?

—If he went alone to a doctor, how high was the probability of that doctor accepting to come along for an inspection? What if he didn't find one? Who was going to look for the girl while he was away? Did he have enough fuel?

Either way was one all-or-nothing gamble—in which it was even unsure whether his efforts were of any use. The girl bore all the risk.

The boy clenched his teeth, vexed by his own weakness, and glared at the sky and the never-ending rain.

Time went on and he was left changing the wet towel on her forehead and holding her hand.

While still glaring at the clouds outside of the window, a certain outrageous idea came to his mind.

Struggling through to the next town with the girl on his back.

As the town appeared to be well-populated, there was supposed to be one or two doctors, and if he refused to examine her, the boy could threaten him.

This way he only needed fuel for one way and the doctor could look at her twice as fast as compared to going alone and bringing him along. Though he was going to be unable to care for her while driving, he could still stop from time to time to take a look at her.

However, this gamble was much riskier than the other two. Carrying a seriously ill patient on a Super Cub through the pouring rain sounded like a foolish idea however one looked at it. Even the boy, originator and executor of the idea, was about to doubt his state of mind.

However. However, she was suffering as he kept thinking—worn out by illness, even though she weighted six kilos less than him anyway despite being the same height.

Not even able to cry for help, his dear girl was suffering.

He was not able nor did he want to blink the facts.

The time was winding down.

The boy started packing more swiftly and skillfully than ever before.

He gathered that he couldn't go with their usual sitting position. Carrying someone whose strength has completely drained is a troublesome task — worse than a water-filled mannequin. Even when tying her to him, putting her on the tandem would leave the risk that her legs might get caught up in the back wheel.

There was only one way to go about it: binding her on him while hugging each other and riding while sustaining her. Lucky in the circumstances perhaps, the Super Cub motorcycle was designed mainly for fulfilling work with it, therefore could be driven one-handedly. If he could really endure such a long stretch, riding at full speed with one hand, was left to be seen, but he had no intention of considering any problems that he could solve with some effort on his part.

As for her clothes, making her wear a skirt was no good as her body temperature would drop. He dressed her in two jerseys they had in reserve and put a raincoat around her after covering her in a thin blanket.

Changing the clothes of the unconscious girl in the narrow car required to twist her body like an entanglement puzzle, but that was easier than walking through a one-way labyrinth compared to seeing her half-naked in all those positions.

While struggling to contain himself for all he was worth, he changed her into trousers. They were baggy around her waist, but he fixed that by tightening the belt.

He had considered leaving the luggage behind, but decided against it.

If he didn't find a doctor, he would have to search on with lacking provisions, and if he did find one, he may demand some kind of payment. They were going to slow down, but that couldn't be helped. He had to believe in her willpower.

He tied her up to him using their hammock net and laundry rope and made sure he could even walk around with her like that. The girl would have beaten the living daylight out of him if she saw how they were bound on each other.

But he was determined to do anything to have her regain that liveliness.

He put on a rain coat as well and slipped into his still half-wet blazer. The soaked synthetic fiber was heavy, but this was his combat uniform.

Bidding farewell to the wagon car that had served them well as a temporary shelter, he entered the never-ending rain outside.

For the ones that may be to come, he closed the door.

The remaining question was whether the Super Cub still worked after being exposed to the rain for so long.

The tank was full. However, while he had protected it with a vinyl sheet, it had still been exposed to the rain. It was left to be seen if he could properly move it.

But right now, the boy was not ready have any consideration for Cubby.

He jumped onto the saddle and checked whether the girl sat firmly. He had tied up all their luggage on the tandem seat to achieve a balance.

While listening to the sound of the rain hitting their rain coats, he put on his goggle-type helmet.

Super Cub! Show me what you can!

He stepped on the starter with a vengeance.

He didn't know whether his Super Cub answered, "Leave it to me!".

But the powerful roar the 4-stroke air cooled single cylinder raised appeared more reassuring to him than any other reply could have.

The Super Cub was running down a straight road in the pouring rain.

Its speedometer was wavering past the maximum mark and the rain drops that would have been harmless water normally were hitting the boy's head like pellets. His grip on the throttle, however, did not show the slightest sign of loosening.

While embraced in his arms, the girl was lost in thought.

As much as she appreciated the boy's nursing, she could in fact not clearly remember anything that had happened after noon.

Her field of vision was shaking despite there was no earthquake—because of her fever, she suspected.

Cubby's loud echoing humming right beside her ear was nerve-splitting. She could feel the boy and his pleasantly cold raincoat, therefore she wondered if by any chance she was in his arms.

She could not really tell what position she was in anymore because the light dizziness she had been suffering from since the morning had become worse and worse. She felt as though her head was being shaken about.

To make matters even worse, her stomach was on the very brink of sparking off a revolution. A nasty combination of nausea and stomach-ache turned her abdominal region into a living hell. It hurt as though something spiky like a crocodile or a chestnut was inside.

Strangely enough, one gets a cool head when unwell like that; even while being shaken in his arms, she found herself watching the scene from somewhere in a corner of her head.

Not only her vision and her ears had gone to pieces, but also her nose and sense of taste, so she failed to grasp was going on. Perhaps she had just gotten off her head because of her fever, anyway, but she didn't particularly care.

"Still...," she thought, "are all boys cold like this?" It might have been pouring, but it was still summer. Yet his boy was cold.

"Aah," she found a lucid explanation. She was hot. Relativity was bound to be the cause.

"Still...," she thought again, "since when have my periods become so bad? How embarrassing!" Sure, she'd had a hunch that it was about to start since a few days ago, but she hadn't expected that she would be knocked out so easily. Jeez, it sure sucks to be a girl at times.

When she fell asleep at such times, she would never have good dreams.

"But well, if I get him to look after me like this," she thought, "it might not be bad to get a fever once in a while even so." After all, this way she could get him to hug her completely legally and without seeming awkward!

Mysteriously though, she wasn't haunted by any nightmares during the time she was in his arms.

"This is bad... her fever has gotten very high...," he grumbled while feeling her forehead.

Holding the girl in his arms, he stopped the bike and supported himself with his leg.

Since she was constantly trembling, he gave only her a disposable hand warmer, but there was no way something like that could do the trick. She wasn't pale anymore. Instead, she had become as red as a tomato and was breathing wildly.

Perhaps he could consider himself lucky in the circumstance that the rain had weakened after two hours, but there was still no trace of a patch of blue sky. He also used their last cooling gel sheet on her, but it remained to see whether this was of any use...

He had done everything he could. All that was left now was to head straight for the neighboring town, believing in her constitution.

Putting power into his numb left hand in order to sustain her, he tightened his grip around her.

Cubby's engine that had completely warmed up was humming without stop.

✱

It was past six when the "neighboring town" boss had told them about came in sight. As he said, it seemed to be a port town: beyond the misty townscape he could see the vast blue sea. He was approaching a port.

There were still about four or five kilometers between them, so he could not really make out much yet.

He tried lifting his goggle and peeping through his binoculars, but with the current weather and the poor magnification, it was of no avail.

There was nothing to worry about if it was a peaceful town. However, in these times of chaos, "peaceful towns" weren't so common. There were even ones that were left deserted because of plunder and raging riots.

The most dreadful ones, however, were the towns that had decided on a closed-door policy and would do anything to protect their walls, eliminating any intruder without exception.

He didn't know whether this town was one of those.

He shook off the manifestation of anxiety that had suddenly formed within his heart.

He could not turn back anymore. He had to buy boss' words and fully believe that it was a lively town.

He felt the girl's cheek, which turned out to be extremely hot. The gel sheet wasn't of much use. He absolutely had to find a doctor, or, in the worst case, at least get hold of medicaments.

He would reach the entrance in a few minutes' time after starting the engine once again.

However, what waited for him right at the entrance was an obstacle that surpassed his expectations... no, to be exact, it was "obstacles".

"...What the heck...," he muttered, flabbergasted.

With good reason! The number of buildings had finally started to increase when he had entered the town. However, in the middle of the street he found a light bus that had been overturned sideways. Two of them.

Whatever way one looked at this scene, this wasn't natural. The two buses were tightly obstructing two traffic lanes each, and from the gap between them and the sidewalks poked some minivans, completely blocking the way.

All gaps had been piled with sandbags and the buses were even filled with those. This was no doubt a barricade to ward off intruders.

The fact that there was a barricade—a means of fending off forceful invasions—meant that they didn't welcome wicked people.

"...Shit...!"

Most likely, this had been built in fear of looting. The height of the barricade could easily be overcome if one had something to stand on, but its purpose was to hinder cars and motorcycles from entering. Plunderers only take the offensive when they clearly have the advantage. Probably, the townspeople had presumed that such outlaws wouldn't have the courage to intrude a town that seemed to have a vigilante group.

However, that meant that he couldn't go any farther with Cubby. However excellent a motorbike Cubby was, it could never leap over a overthrown minibus. There was no way around proceeding by foot. He had to overcome this accursed barricade with his own two legs and search for a doctor.

Having made a decision, there was no reason anymore to flinch. He untied the rope that had bound the girl to him and gave her a piggyback.

It was rather tough to climb onto one of the buses with one free hand, but it was the right decision. Thanks to the fact that he was on a higher ground, he could well recognize the traps that had been laid out everywhere. One met with a mine field of pitfalls and steel traps if one tried to go around the buildings. Furthermore, for the improbable case that someone managed to break through the barricade, there was a huge hole behind it that could swallow several cars.

The intruders were meant to fall in there if they broke through forcefully. It was also effective against humans who carelessly climbed over the barricade—and they could consider themselves lucky if they only broke a few bones. It were nasty traps indeed.

The more he proceeded in the direction he assumed the center to be, the more the number of cars decreased. "Assumed", because he was groping his way based only on the broadness of the street and the atmosphere of the townscape, since the names of the places had entirely disappeared from the signposts and boards.

The number of cars that had been illegally parked, no, "abandoned", on the street became almost zero after he had gone past one traffic light.

He didn't know whether they had been moved somewhere else because they were in the way or because they could be used for something, but it was clear that this town was governed by humans. And apparently quite organized: when he sneaked a peek at the shelves of the shops, he noticed that they had all been taken somewhere. However, there were no signs of plunder. Someone had probably transported them systematically.

There was still no soul, but carrying someone on one's back consumes more energy than one might think. The difference of their weight summed up to about six kilograms, which still meant that his legs had to sustain almost twice as much as usually.

Having steered his bike for a long time in the pouring rain, his steps had gradually become painful.

On top of that, his arms and legs had grown almost numb from the elbows and knees because of his low body temperature. Due to this, the scratches on the back of his feet had abated to a dull pain. The fact that his sense of balance was starting to suffer, however, was very bad. If he fell down now, he would not be able to stand up anymore.

When sped up, bracing his wavering will and body, his field of view suddenly broadened and a large school came in sight.

It was probably a high school. It had been months since he last saw this peculiar kind of institution.

As was characteristic for schools with too much land, the school grounds were very broad. He couldn't spot anyone outside, but the light was switched on in several rooms of the school.

Perhaps, evacuates lived there. Schools were a common refuge. Besides, those lights were no doubt of electric nature.

"Mh?"

There was someone. At the entrance of the gym neighboring the school building, there was a man.

He squinted his eyes and carefully made sure whether he was friend or fiend.

He was probably somewhere between his late twenties or his early thirties. He was standing upright under the eaves of the gym in a suit.

He didn't seem to be carrying a weapon and at least looked all right.

Deciding on asking him about the whereabouts of a doctor, the boy approached the school gate.

But the moment he was about to pass through the gate, he started to waver.

Was it really safe to leisurely walk in there? Wouldn't it be better to hide her somewhere and negotiate on his own?

He shook his head and chased these sudden negative thoughts away.

It was of no avail to harvest such doubts now. If he was attacked, he would be lost anyway, even if he managed to knock out one or two of a lot. Fighting his way back through to the barricade while carrying a sick girl was impossible. In the first place, he wouldn't even reach the warehouse with the remaining fuel.

This time he had no choice but to confide in his tough luck and her strong luck.

After making sure she was sitting firm on his back, he passed through the open gate and walked straight through the school grounds towards the gym.

"Hey there! Excuse me!"

When he started to yell, the man instantly gave him a look. From close up, the boy noticed that he was facing a quite large man that was about 20 centimeters taller than him. The man wore a well-tailored suit with a neatly tied tie. It was a pretty handsome guy, so to speak, wearing a short haircut that suited him well. His inner alarm bell reacted to that rather showy appearance, but it was too late to turn back.

The man, however, while rounding his eyes, didn't make a move.

After clicking his tongue in his mind, he started walking towards him once more.

After a ten seconds' mystification, the man finally realized what situation the two were in and trotted to them. He didn't seem to care about the rain.

"What's the matter?"

"Um... this girl is feeling unwell... is there a doctor around?"

While firming his hold on the girl who was about to slide down, he prayed that there was one.

"...So you want a doctor to take a look at her? I sure hope you brought your insurance card with you?"

"What?"

"Don't get me wrong. I am not talking about that card that verifies that you are member of a medical-care insurance. It's something that proofs that you own enough to make up for medical treatment."

The muscles of his cheeks almost twitched.

"...in other words, I must offer something of equal value?"

"You can't be thinking to get a doctor for free these days, right?"

The indifferent voice the man spoke got the boy's hackles up. The only reason why he didn't beat him up right now was that he couldn't use his hands because he was sustaining the girl.

"...a Super Cub in good order and condition, enough water for a grown-up man to survive for four days, provisions to get through one week, and two sets of general goods. Take whatever you want!"

"Heh, now that sounds extravagant. But these are your legs and meal, right? How do you plan on getting by without all that?"

"I'll think about that when she's well again," he said as he glared at the man.

The nonchalant man put on a grin and looked down at him, "What if that wasn't enough?"

"I'd bite the bullet and, after having her treated, I'd take revenge."

"Whoa whoa! Do you want to make the whole town your enemy or what?" he laughed baffledly.

However, the boy kicked off that laugh with his scowl.

"If needed."

"...Oh?"

The man flashed a smile. Not a ridiculing one like before, but a small, interested smile.

"I may not be Superman, but if it's for her sake, I'm ready to become a fiendish criminal at the very least."

"...I see. Fine!"

The man was smiling all over the face. Even though the shape of his smile hadn't changed, the boy somehow couldn't sense any ill-will nor sarcasm.

"Carry her into the school building for now."

"Huh? ...No, I need a doctor right now..."

"I'm in charge of health education here, you know. Almost the same as a doctor. Follow me, I'll lead you to the infirmary."

The boy was left completely dumbfounded as he listened to him.

"Then! That stuff about compensation..."

"Idle talk. I was interested in how you'd answer me. Come on, get her over here."

After standing there thunderstruck for a moment, he followed the trotting man with great difficulty through the rain, towards the school building.

✱

[in translation]