Poston

Chapter twelve : Fourth of July

Dear Kazunari,
I apologize for not writing as often as I should. I hope no one has had to worry too much about me. They sent me here to Camp Savage, Minnesota, just like they promised. I went by bus first, then by train all the way here. It was a very long trip, but one I'm very happy to be done and over with. Rides like that always make me sleepy, and I'm still exhausted and that was six weeks ago!
The training here is a lot harder than I expected it to be. Most basic training is sixteen weeks long, but here basic training is eight. Ten hours a day, I'm studying from a Japanese military book, having me learn code words and names for certain ships and attacks and everything like that. I've always thought that I knew my kanji very well, but this course is putting me to shame! It's very tedious work, but I like to think I'm getting better. There's a lot of us Nisei here from other camps, so we keep quizzing each other at the end of each day. I share a barrack with a couple other Nisei's, and we each get to talk about our lives and families back at camp. As much as we despise what has happened about the relocation, we cannot help but feel proud to serve our country. If we couldn't prove to the U.S. before just how proud we are to be citizens, maybe they'll recognize us later and realize we aren't like the Japs that came after our homes.
I get a stove and don't have to wait for food here, but I miss my family and friends. I would rather go without a stove than go without you all. I hope I can home soon.

Please continue to look after everyone in my absence.
Sincerely, Masaki

--

Nino felt a warm and strong pair of arms wrap themselves around his waist before a head landed on his shoulder. "You've read that letter a thousand times since it got here."

Nino sighed and turned around in the bed to face Satoshi. "I know he isn't saying everything. I'm sure he's been picked on, called ugly names, all that other stuff. I worry about him," he answered. "This was nearly three weeks ago, which means basic training is over with. They would have sent him somewhere overseas by now. Why haven't we gotten a letter yet about where he is?"

Satoshi kissed his forehead. "Relax," he said. Gently, he began rubbing his lover's back. "You're not the only one worried. Mai's about ready to crawl out of her skin from the lack of letters."

"Mai has a reason to be," Nino said folding up his letter. "She's married to him. She needs to be more freaked out about him than me. I just... I can't help it."

Nino felt himself being pulled closer to Satoshi, and he closed his eyes to take in the familiar and calming scent of him. "He'll be fine," Satoshi whispered. "He promised, remember? Besides, have you forgotten what today is?"

"Sunday."

"Fourth of July!" Satoshi smiled. "Which means we get to go swimming today."

Nino tsked and rolled over so his face was in the pillow. Today was swimming day, and it was a day he had dreaded going on for a while. It was too hot outside! Every time he took one step outside the barrack he felt like he was inside of his mother's boiling rice pot.
Plus, it meant that he wouldn't get to have as much 'personal' time with Satoshi as he usually did. They wouldn't be the only ones down by the Colorado River, so any sign of public affection was strictly off-limits.

"It'll be fun!" Satoshi nudged him. "C'mon, Kazu. I promise."

Nino peaked from his pillow. "You always make everything sound better than it is."

Satoshi leaned down and kissed Nino's lips, sending shivers down both their spines. "That's my job, remember?"

The pair only had a few more minutes of quiet bliss before everyone else started to wake up. The children were the first to jump up and immediately put on their swimsuits that Mai and Mao had proudly sewn for them, and after everyone was dressed, they went down for breakfast buzzing about the excitement of the day.

"Are you excited about going swimming, Miss Mao?" Samantha asked when they caught up with the woman.
Mao smiled brightly. "Of course I am!" she told them. "I'm so happy you like the swimsuits we made you." She looked up and suddenly her face changed. "Mai, what's wrong?"

At that, both Nino and Sho's heads shot up and looked at the woman in question. Mai had barely sat down at the table when she was holding her head with her eyes closed. "Mai," Sho said rubbing his sister's back. "What is it?"

Mai shook her head. "Nothing," she said finally. "I just... I feel sick. But I'll be fine. I just need to eat something."

Sho frowned. "You need to quit staying up so late, Mai-chan," he told her, a bit of sternness in his voice. "Your health is starting to fade from writing to Masaki-san all the time."

"Me staying up late is not affecting my health, Sho," Mai snapped. "And whether or not I write to my husband is really none of your concern!"

"Mai, relax," Mao said taking her hand. "It's okay. You'll hear from him soon, I'm sure."

"What if he's already dead?" Mai looked up at her best friend with tears in her eyes. "It's been two weeks! Almost three weeks! What if he was sent somewhere and killed? What if he's hurt or lost or—or what if he's never coming home?! What if everyone was right? What if we got married for nothing and he's not even coming—?"

"Stop it." Everyone looked over at Mrs. Aiba, who nearly had tears in her eyes. "Don't play your sympathy card around his family. We miss him just as much as you do, but we must do our very best to keep our hopes up that our sons will return home safely to us. The least you could do, Mai-san, is keep your concerns to yourself."

Mai froze and seemed to sink back a little into her breakfast, and no one else spoke of Masaki or Yusuke the rest of the morning. Instead, everyone focused on the happiness that everyone was soon going to experience in just a little bit. "We get to go swimming in the river!" the children exclaimed over and over again.

"I'm still amazed the army is letting us go down," Sho spoke up. "To actually go outside of camp and go swimming? Who knew?"

"Maybe they've come to their senses a little bit and have realized that we're not a threat," Jun spoke up. "Besides, we're in the middle of the desert. Where could we escape to?"

"Papa," Samantha said nudging her father's arm. "Can you teach me how to swim?"

"Of course!" Jun smiled. "You haven't learned yet, have you?"

"Samantha-chan doesn't know how to swim?" Yuki asked curiously. "Papa taught me before we came here. We went to the pool together!"

Sho beamed. "Just like her mother, too. A regular fish out of water."

Nino frowned into his porridge. He didn't really like swimming because he got seasick a lot, but for everyone's sake he promised he would try. Besides, when he saw how everyone else was looking forward to it all, Nino felt like he had to participate or else he would regret it.

As soon as everyone was done eating, the kids went and got their sack lunches from the kitchen as the adults made their way back to the barracks to grab towels.

"Mai, are you okay?"

Nino and Satoshi stopped slightly to see Sho standing next to his sister, who looked like she was about to be sick. After a second, Mai stood up and continued to walk. "I'm fine," she answered her worried brother. "Really."

Sho frowned. "Alright," was all he said before he followed.

Finally, after everyone had an extra towel borrowed from the laundry, they began walking west, out of the gates and across the desert towards the Colorado River. Mao was walking with her father, but it was very noticeable how close Jun was to her and how, at every little stumble she had, Jun had his arm out to help her if needed.

"I think he finally likes her," Satoshi whispered to Nino.

Nino laughed. "Really? I hadn't noticed." But even though he had noticed Mao and Jun, really his eyes were on Mai. She was walking slower than normal and seemed to be in her own little world. She wasn't really interacting with anyone, and if Nino had to think of the right word, detached would be on his list. Sho seemed to really notice too, but didn't say anything.

It took about thirty minutes to walk to the river, but once the clear blue water was in sight, nobody could resist immediately jumping in. Once the cool water hit Nino's hot skin, he felt sudden relief wash over him, the water protecting him from the desert's scorching and treacherous heat. He looked up from the water and saw Satoshi next to him, floating on his back with his eyes closed as he seemed to just take it all in along with everyone else.

"Papa!" Yuki called out in the water. "Papa look what I can do!" She took a deep breath and dived forward in the water, going under and flipping before jumping back up again. "Yay!"

"Good job Yuki!" Sho clapped.

Charlie joined Yuki in the water, flipping with her and splashing her along with the rest of the other kids that came along. A lot of people had actually come down to the river to spend their holiday, so it was crowded but not too terribly so. The men went into the water and splashed around with the kids while the women and wives generally stayed by the side of the water, only getting their feet wet as they talked to the other women.

Nino stopped playing long enough to really take in everything. Sho, Satoshi, and Jun were laughing with their kids, splashing them and teaching them tricks on how to make the biggest splash and how to create the biggest wave. His mother and aunt and uncle sat on the edge of the water, socializing as they usually did, and the girls, surprisingly, were in the water as well laughing along with the boys. Everyone seemed more calm and at ease with their surroundings. No more wrinkles or worried expressions. Everyone was just... happy.

The only one who wasn't playing with her friends was Samantha, who Nino noticed looked smaller than usual and had a look of fear towards the water. She took her foot and gently put it in the cold before retreating a few steps back on shore.

"Jun!" Nino called out.

Jun looked up at him before noticing his daughter too. He swam over. "Samantha! Come in the water!"

"No!" Samantha yelled.

"Samantha," Jun said. "The water isn't going to hurt you. Water isn't mean."

"No!" Samantha yelled again.

Jun sighed, thinking about what to do before he saw a quick solution. "Sammy! Come over here to this edge. I'm going to teach you how to jump."

Samantha looked over to the six inch edge that her father had pointed at before pouting. She followed him anyway though until she stood on the very end of the edge, looking just as if not more terrified than she was a second ago. "Papa! It's too high!"

"No it's not," Jun tried assuring her. "I'm right here, so you're not going to get hurt!"

"Papa!" By this time, Samantha was nearly in tears. "I'm scared!"

"Samantha, it's alright!"

"I'm scared!"

"Samantha." Jun looked next to him and saw that the gentle voice he had heard came from Mao, who now had her eyes locked on Samantha. "Sammy, look at me please."

Samantha, who had been crying, looked up at Mao as she wiped off her face. "Miss Mao, I'm scared," she sobbed.

"I know," Mao said softly. "The water is scary, isn't it?" Samantha nodded. "I understand what it's like being afraid. When I was your age, I was afraid of the water too."

"Really?" Samantha asked. "But you're swimming."

Mao smiled. "That's right, I am." She swam closer to Samantha until she was at the edge by Samantha's feet. "Samantha, trying things for the first time ever is pretty scary. Remember when you first came here to Poston? How scared you and Charlie and Papa were that you had to move away?" When Samantha nodded, Mao continued. "But now you're not afraid anymore, ne? Poston isn't a place to be afraid of anymore. It's just like swimming. Once you take your first leap of faith until the water, everything else will be okay. You just have to take a leap of faith. Papa's right there, waiting for you. He will never let you fall or get hurt. All you have to do is trust him."

Samantha looked back at her father, who then came just a little bit forward to get closer to his daughter. Everyone else had frozen in their places, watching what might happen as Jun held out his arms. "It's okay, Samantha," he said. "I'm here. I promise."

Slowly, but with more determination, Samantha nodded. She took two steps back before she ran straight for Jun, and the next thing she knew she was inside of his arms floating in the cold river water. Samantha beamed. "PAPA I DID IT!"

"YOU DID!" Jun screamed with delight as he threw his five year old into the air, catching her flawlessly. "YOU DID IT SAMANTHA!"

Nino, who was now sitting on the shore, felt his heart swell at seeing how happy everyone around him seemed to be, watching the little girl's big accomplishment. I wish everyone was this happy all the time, he thought as he continued to watch everything around him. Everything here is perfect.

"Mai! Oh my god, Mai!"

Everyone stopped and looked towards Natsumi, who was kneeling down on the sand with a heaving Mai next to her. Her breakfast began coming up very quickly and nonstop, and Sho was immediately out of the water and by his sister, trying to ask what could possibly be wrong.

A guard, who had come down to watch everyone and who had been playing with everyone himself, ran towards the commotion and started to take Mai towards his jeep. "Which camp are you in?" he asked Sho.

Sho stuttered, trying to compose himself quickly. "P-Poston One."

"Are you her husband?"

"No, I'm her brother."

"What is her name?"

"M-Mai. Mai Aiba. And I'm Sho Sakurai."

"Okay, Mr. Sakurai, I'm going to take your sister to the hospital on Poston One in the jeep. If you want to come with me, you're more than welcome to."

Sho nodded and began to follow the guard and his sister to a jeep before he realized he had forgotten something. He turned and kneeled next to Yuki, taking her hands. "Yuki-chan, I'm going with Aunt Mai to the hospital, okay? Stay close to everyone and be safe. Listen to the adults, alright?"

Yuki nodded but she was shaking out of fear too. As Sho went with the guard, Mao went over to her and took her into her arms, rubbing her back soothingly as a way to try and calm her down. "Don't worry, Yuki," she said. "It'll be okay. Your aunt is going to be just fine."

--

Shortly after Mai went to the hospital, everyone from 2B and 6D walked back to camp, too anxious to have any fun anymore. Yuki stayed silent the entire time, hardly touching her peanut butter sandwich as they walked. Mama, Natsumi, Ayumi, Mrs. Aiba and Mr. Aiba went back to their own barrack, too tired to socialize with the younger crowd anymore, and to Nino and Satoshi's relief, Mao's father went with them. As soon as Nino, Satoshi, Jun, Mao, and the kids got back to their barrack, Yuki grabbed her doll and held her close as she sat on the bed. No one said a word. No one could say a word.

About two hours later, the barrack door opened and Sho and Mai walked in. Mai was beaming as she said hello to the silent barrack. It shocked everyone to see her in such a happy mood while Sho, on the other hand, had a grave expression on his face. Yuki quickly ran up to her aunt and hugged her legs tightly. "I was so scared!" Yuki sobbed.

"I'm sorry, Yuki-chan!" Mai said, smiling at her. "I'm okay! The doctor said I'm just fine! Nothing serious!"

"What did the doctor say?" Jun asked finally, disrupting the silence only broken before by Mai.

"Food poisoning," she told him. "Just a mild case. Other than that I'm—"

"Can you guys make sure our towels get back to the laundry?" Sho asked, holding his towel out to anyone who would take it.

Satoshi grabbed it from him, no one still unsure if they should say something or not. "We'll take care of it," he answered quietly.

Sho's eyes wandered to everyone in the room, as if he was expecting something from them. "Now?" he said, trying to give a hint.

"All of us?" Nino asked.

"Of course," Jun replied, shooing the kids and the other adults out of the barrack. "We'll be right back."

"Thank you," Sho told him as the barrack door closed.

Once the door was closed, however, Jun knelt down to the kids and handed them the towels. "Make sure this gets to the laundry, okay? Go!"

Nino waited until the kids were gone before saying what everyone was already doing. "We're eavesdropping?"

"Shhh!" Mao shushed him as she pulled Nino's ear to the tar barrack along with everyone else. They could barely hear what Sho and Mai were talking about, but barely was just enough.

"I don't understand why you're so upset about this," they could hear Mai say. "This is good news!"

"I don't see how you being pregnant in your condition is good news, Mai," Sho answered.

Mao gasped. "She's—!"

This time, the men shushed her, making sure she didn't blow their cover before listening in again.

"My condition?"

"Did you not hear the doctor?"

"I heard him just fine, Sho."

"Apparently not."

"He said that I'm anemic."

"And you've known that for years now! Since before you came to America you've known you're anemic."

"Why should that make a difference?"

"Mai! You do not have enough blood in your body to take care of you and a baby! You going through with this pregnancy could kill you both!"

"Don't say that!" Mai yelled. "You're acting like I should choose between this baby and me!"

"That's exactly what I'm saying! Think about what would happen to Masaki-san if you were to lose this baby! Or if he lost you! It would tear him apart!"

"That's exactly why I won't die!"

"You cannot be too sure of that!"

"Why are you so against this? If I die, don't you see? You could finally have Masaki all to yourself!"

Silence. Everyone looked back and forth between each other as it dawned on them what Mai was implying. It seemed to finally get through to Sho as well. "What?"

"You heard what I said."

"What in the world would make you th—"

"Oh shut up Sho! You may have fooled everyone around us and kept everything to yourself, but I know you better than anyone! I've seen the way you've looked at him! It's the exact same look you used to give Haru when you absolutely adored her! And you're always so quiet around him and never saying anything! That's exactly how you would behave around Haru!"

"How could you possibly imply that I have romantic feelings for your husband?!" Sho asked, his voice sounding nervous and out of breath. "Have you forgotten that he's married to you?! If I was even the least bit interested—"

"You let me have him because you knew I love him!" Mai countered. "And you thought he would never return the feelings!"

"Of course he wouldn't!"

"God, you are so stupid!"

"Yet, you're the one who stands there, saying that if my sister were to die then that would be my magical chance to finally have him to myself?! You think I would ever wish for you to die because of that?! You honestly think that if you were to die, then I would sweep in and save that broken man and make him fall in love with me?!"

"Why wouldn't you?!"

"HE IS YOUR HUSBAND, MAI! HE MARRIED YOU!"

"Yet you don't even deny your feelings!"

By now, everyone outside had stopped pressing their ears against the barrack and took the time to really ponder through what Sho and Mai were saying. No one spoke but only because they were too shocked to think of any sane words to say. Nino leaned closer to Satoshi, needing to feel his warmth as the words sunk in.

Sho was in love with Masaki. Mai had known it all along, yet no one saw it or didn't think anything much of Sho's actions. Nino went through every possible moment he had seen between Sho and Masaki, looking for any possible indication that Masaki might have even felt something back towards Sho. When he failed to find anything, the shock made him sick to his stomach as he fell to the ground, his back against the barrack and Satoshi's arm wound tightly around his shoulders as he sat next to him. Before long, Jun and Mao had joined them on the ground, instantly regretting staying to listen in.

After a minute, the barrack door opened and Sho stormed off without even giving a second glance at the group sitting on the dirt. The silence between everyone was almost deafening.

"I had no idea," Mao said quietly and finally.

"No one did," Satoshi told her.

"What are we going to do?" Jun asked, just as quietly as Mao had spoken.

Nino stared at his knees, unable to form any words before now. "We don't speak a word of this to Masaki or his family," he answered. "I don't think he needs to know about this."

"What about Mai's condition?" Mao turned to look at the men next to her. "Mai won't tell him she's anemic, that much I know for sure. But if she doesn't make it...."

"We just won't think about it until it comes. For now, she's fine. So unless something bad happens, we won't say anything or think of anything of it."

Nino leaned closer to Satoshi, still feeling nauseous and worried, and without a word Satoshi took him into his arms. "Don't worry," Satoshi whispered to him as he rubbed his back.

"He may not come home."

The other three stared at Nino. "What do you mean?" Jun asked.

"Masaki is in the army fighting for this country," Nino explained. "God only knows where they'll put him, even as a translator. There's still a high chance that he may not come home. And if he doesn't, both Sho and Mai will be heartbroken beyond belief. But if he dies in battle and Mai dies in labor, there's going to be an orphan baby born with no parents inside an internment camp." He looked up at Satoshi. "We absolutely cannot tell anyone! If my aunt and uncle find out about this, they'll never let Sho anywhere near that baby. This has to be kept between us."

Everyone nodded in a silent promise. They knew that what Nino was saying was true, but it still didn't help get rid of the rocks still stuck in their stomachs.