Be My Strength

As soon as I landed in Haneda International Aiport, I could hear everyone was talking in a foreign language. I somehow always fascinated by people who talk in different language. I finished my immigration process and went on to picked up my luggage. I waited for a while until I saw my black suitcase that full with stickers all over it. I walked outside the luggage check and bought an ice coffee at a nearby coffee shop. I walked outside and I could see a lot of people were waiting for their friends and relatives to picked them up from the airport, while some of them looking for taxi or busses.

I saw a little girl running to a man that kind of looked like her, that I was sure he was her father and they hugged each other so tightly before he kissed his wife. Some other people were raising signs and extended their heads looking for whoever they were about to picked up.

I was there standing alone awkwardly not sure where should I go first. I thought I’d know what I will do as soon I was in Japan, but when reality strikes that I was all alone in here and I know nobody in here slightly making me nervous. I sighed and walked forward to a nearest bus stop that would bring me to the center of the city where I’d find a cheap inn to stay for a while until I got a job and a place to stay. But suddenly someone bumped into me and made my coffee that I bought earlier fell off from my hand. Dammit why am I being so clumsy, bumped into people a lot lately.

“Sorry miss, I’m sorry!” the man said.

“Careful, okay,” I replied as I bent down to picked up the coffee cup that already empty. The man also bent down to helped me that was when I recognized him. “Andy?”

He looked up to and saw my face, “Kelsey? Wow we meet again,” he smirked as we both got up.

“Are you doing this on purpose? I mean you bumped into me like a lot,” I frowned.

“Maybe it’s destine to be,” he chuckled. “Or maybe I just like bumped into you,” he said and I rolled my eyes.

“Nice try!” He laughed but it didn’t last long when suddenly I heard someone shouted in a distance.

“There he is!” shouted the man to his partner who standing beside him as he pointing at my direction.

“Oh shit!” Andy panicked. He grabbed my hand and he took me ran out from the airport to the parking lot.

I was too shocked to scream or even pulled my hand away from him. My adrenaline was rushing since the two men who kept chasing us looked insanely furious, and it really freaked me out. I recognized both of them were the same men who chased Andy in the airport back in the US.

“Let me go!” I snapped at Andy after we were already in the parking lot. “Let me go or I’ll scream!” I threaten him and he let my hand go. “Who are those people?” I asked but he ignored me. He just kept trying to open one car to another car. “Just use your damn key!”

“Lower your voice! And no, I don’t have one!”

“What!? Are you going to steal a car!?”

I started to walk back and forth. I could’ve just left him and ran away but I didn’t understand why I didn’t do it yet. Andy kept moving from one car to another one until one of them was opened without an alarm going on.

“Get in!” He shouted at me.

“What!? No! What makes you think I will go willingly with you!?” I stood still doing nothing as both of us were staring to one another until I saw the men who chasing us showed up.

“Hey he’s here!” I shouted to them and they saw me but then a gunshot landed in the car next to us making me scream.

“Shit!” Cursed Andy and he got into the car. “Hurry up Kels, jump inside now!”

I didn’t want to go with him. He was basically a stranger, I barely know him but I heard another gunshot and ducked away behind the car. Andy opened the door and I jumped inside. Andy struggled to find some wires under the steering wheel and he started to connected it somehow that I didn’t really don’t know but the engine started just in time right when the men showed up right outside my window. He pointed the gun but the other man pushed him, “no gun you asshole!” The other man banged the window and tried to open the door but Andy hopefully already hit the gas and left the parking lot. Andy hit the barrier and I screamed out loud. Those two men trying to caught us by running but it was useless because our car already hit the road and we left them behind.

We were in the highway and for a while I thought we were already save but I just jinx myself. Suddenly there was a car horned, just a couple cars behind. I looked back and I saw a black jeep driving furiously trying to get closer to our car.

“It’s them!” I shouted.

“Fuck!” Cursed Andy when he saw the car from the rear mirror.

“Do something!” I shouted again and he hit the gas even deeper making the car faster than before. I heard the engine started to rumble, and I just hope it wouldn’t explode or anything. Not until we were save from the men who wanted the person who drove beside me dead. I stopped looking back and forth and sat still holding whatever I could hold so tightly right now. I was already shaken up and it got worse when suddenly the black jeep already side by side with our car. The man in the passenger seat pulled out a shotgun. “Oh shit no no!!!” I cursed and he shot the window in the back. I covered my head and tried to hid my head down between my thighs. “They’re going to kill us!”

“They won’t do that!” answered Andy confidently.

“How can you be so sure?”

“I just know!”

Right in a fork, Andy turned the car in a sudden moved making them passing the small road. Andy faster the car and I looked back to see if the men still following us or no, at least we had some more time to got away from them. Right when we got out from the road, the jeep suddenly came from another direction and hit our car so hard making Andy losing his grip to the steering wheel. Thankfully he recovered quickly and hit the gas making the car rolled again. Andy drove to another path but the road ends up to a flea market, Andy was too late to hit the brake and the car bumped into a fire hydrant. The hydrant broke and the water exploded so high making a lot of people screamed in shock. Thank God I was using the seatbelt, but my head was still a little dizzy from the caused of the crashed. Andy already got out from the car and he went to me, helping me unbuckled the seatbelt.

“Are you okay?” He asked and slowly nodded. “Come on we have to go.”

My clothes were soaked wet from the water that splattered all over us. We ran through the flea market, where people were so busy that morning buying things, hoping that we could sneak inside crowd of people and get lost from everyone sight at the end of the corner.

After both of us walked to a small narrow path, Andy stopped walking, giving me time to catch my breath and rest down my feet. “Do they lose us?” I asked.

“Guess so,” answered Andy as he started to walk again and left me behind. I didn’t move and sat still in the ground. Andy walked back to me, “we have to move now.”

“Can we take a break for a second?” My hands rested on my knees.

“We don’t have much time Kels.”

“N-no! You’re the one who doesn’t have much time. Not me! I don’t know who those people are. Oh my fucking God! Who the hell are they? Why are they chasing us?”

“They are looking after me,” answered Andy quietly.

“Sorry? What? What’s going on?”

“I deceive an old perverted rich man and I runaway with his money and now he wants it back,” he made a confession, but his face still flat like he didn’t feel he did anything wrong.

“What the fuck! You? You’re a con man? And now you’re getting me into trouble!” I screamed again. I freaked out and my body was shaking.

“I’m sorry Kelsey, but we have to move now!”

“No! I’m not coming with you! I’m coming to this country to find peace and here I am chasing by a men with guns! Hell no I’m coming with you. I have to go back!”

“It’s not safe. They already see you. They probably think you’re one of my accomplice,” explained Andy.

“Fuck! You drag me into this trouble!” I punched him several times and Andy didn’t do anything. He stood there accepting anything I did to him. But my body was too tired and I ended up crying on his chest.

“Kelsey, I know. I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to drag you into trouble. I just…”

“J-just what?” I snapped him as I raised my face and wipe my tears.

Andy bit his lower lip and looked me in the eye, “never mind. We need to go to my friend’s base now,” he said.