The Ninja and the Ranger ((Sequel to "More than just a hat")) ((BH6 fanfic))

Chapter 5: Tour de Texas, Part 2

Tadashi's POV

I looked at her and decided to go with whatever this was. It was a small joint, painted white. It had a sign above the door 'El Arroz Rosa.' Interesting title. The words were written on a little black bowl filled with pink rice. I hoped this was good food.

"BIANCA DONDE ESTAS, PRIMA?" Chántel screamed into the diner. It was mostly empty and reminded me of the Lucky Cat Cafe, except the smells coming from the kitchen weren't fresh baked goods or tea, but sweet rice and...Mexican food? I sniffed the air and I guess Chántel knew what I was thinking.
"It's my aunt's diner. We make all sorts of things here, Mexican style!" She giggled. A young woman walked out of the kitchen. She had darker skin than Chántel and raven black hair. Her face had smile wrinkles and her black eyes had been softened over the years of work. She was about the same hight as Chántel, and they dressed similarly, with cowboy-style boots. The woman's hair was pulled into a ponytail and she had on a simple black shirt and bootcut jeans. She and Chántel hugged. After a small conversation in Spanish, she introduced us.

"Friends, Tadashi, th--"
"Hey." I joked.
"This is my Tia Marta. My cousin Bianca isn't here, but we can still have a good time!" She smiled. I felt myself go to the moon. I couldn't help but smile back. "Order up! We've gotta get to eatin' a good meal!"

We ordered our food at the register where a young man was sitting, bored. He looked no older than seventeen. His skin was as dark as Marta's and his hair was black, with a bowl cut that was well kept. His brown eyes lit up when he saw Chántel.
"Hi, cousin!" He said and immediately started taking orders, which were mostly tacos and enchiladas. Until I ordered. In our senior year, Chán had taken me out to her favorite restaurants in San Fransokyo, most of them were Mexican. I had earned a real taste for Mexican food.

I ordered a chicken enchilada with rice and bean, covered in cheese with chips and queso on the side. The boy looked at me with surprise. For a Japanese-American, I knew my Tex-Mex stuff.

Chántel didn't join us for our meal. The gang are happily and Hiro loved it. Wasabi had some problems with trying to eat a taco(the tomato and meat kept falling out) but, with Gogo's help, he managed. Fred ate vigorously, while Honey picked at a salad she had ordered. She said she enjoyed it, but by the look on her face, she hadn't enjoyed it. That was, until the desert came. We hadn't ordered it, but the boy, Julio, said Chántel had ordered it for us. Flan. A sweet treat that had caramel and a sweet jello. Honey seriously enjoyed it. We chatted and rested in the diner for a while, until I heard yelling coming from the kitchen. Chántel's voice was screaming. I got out of my seat and went to check on her.

"Chán, is everything alri--" I had to stop myself. What I saw wasn't pleasant. Marta has a furious look on her face and Chántel's eyes were filled with rage as tears slid down her cheeks.
"Everything's fine. Are y'all done eating?"
"Yea, but--"
"Then let's go." She stormed out of the kitchen and out of the diner. I heard the engine of the car rumble to life. Her car shone like fire. It was super sleek and special. A 69 SS Camaro, red with black stripes. She loved it to death. (Maybe more than she loved me)

I didn't understand why she was so upset, but I knew that when she was mad, it was best to let her cool off by herself and do as she says. So I pulled the gang out of the diner and we piled into the car. She drove out of Amarillo, not saying a word. Her eyes were intently on the road and she didn't falter from her driving. I was in shotgun and everyone else was crammed into the back (quite difficult when you have five people sitting in a space meant for three, but since the car was pretty large, they fit tightly).

The way to Abilene took throughout the evening. We managed to find a hotel and rent out four rooms for the night. Each room had two queen-sized beds so everyone got their own, except for me and Chántel, since we were together we decided that we would sleep together. We spent the night in Abilene. A peaceful night with stars twinkling and Wasabi snoring a few rooms over.
~
I woke up to find that Chán was gone. Now what had happened? It was still dark and everyone else was still asleep, except Chán, who had disappeared on me.