Ride on Time

Chapter 121

They spotted Mitsuo eagerly waiting at the pick-up/drop-off point, grinning as soon as they drove up. He got in beside Shree, holding a plastic bag.
"What's with the plastic bag?" Shree asked, nodding towards the bag in his hand as she drove down the ramp to exit to the highway.
"Oh, I just got you guys some stuff from Goma," Mitsuo smiled. "I know how much you like mochi and onigiri. I got you some green tea chocolate and some matcha milk too."
"Sounds good," Shree said. "Alright, now we can go to... SS2... and have our durian."
"It's an all-you-can eat buffet, forty bucks per head," Vasu leaned forward. "So eat up!"
"Better buy mangosteen later lah..." Shree remarked. "Very heaty if not."
Mitsuo processed this. "Heaty as in... it heats the body, right?"
"Yeah," Shree nodded. "If wanna say like you guys means, it's Yang like in Yin and Yang. Yin is cooling while Yang is heaty. I think y'all believe this also; if body too heaty also bad, too cooling also bad. Must be balanced."
"Yeah, we do..." Mitsuo nodded. "So we're getting mangosteens, then? Okay. I've never tried the Malaysian version, only the Japanese Crystal Mangosteen."
"Well, mangosteens are native to Southeast Asia, so whatever you ate must've been a cultivation from here only," Shree smirked. "Anyway... you got appetite, right?"
"A big one," Mitsuo smirked. "I'm starving!"
Vasu suddenly cleared his throat. "Is it really a good idea to eat durian on an empty stomach?"
"No..." Shree shook her head. "Vasu, check whether got bun or anything or not."
"Bun ah...?" Vasu said, rummaging in the bags. "Don't have lah..."
"That's okay, I got some onigiri in here," Mitsuo said, taking a few out. "We can eat these, right?"
"Nah, too filling," Shree chuckled. "Something smaller got ah?"
"Mochi?" Mitsuo suggested, taking out a pack of mochi.
"How about this?" Vasu casually handed him the pack of fragrant sesame biscuits. "It's light."
"Biskut Bijan Wangi," Mitsuo read the pack. "What is this?"
"Fragrant sesame biscuit," Shree translated. "Eat lah."
Mitsuo did, and apologised for spilling some of the flaky crumbs.
"It's fine, it's always like that," Vasu said, also munching the same biscuit. "Anyway, you want anything else?"
"Nope," Mitsuo shook his head. "I think this is enough to keep my stomach from empty. How about you, Nika? You didn't eat anything."
"I'm driving, I'll eat one of those sesame biscuits once we stop," Shree said.

Shree somehow found a parking space and the three of them now walked over to the durian shop. They were instantly hit by the King of Fruits' aromatic scent.
"Mmm!" Vasu murmured. "It smells so good!"
"I don't care if tourists compare this to stinky socks or sewers," Shree remarked, her mouth watering. "I say this smells heavenly."
"It's a little overpowering but I really like this sweet smell," Mitsuo remarked. "Who says this smells like stinky socks?"
Shree shrugged. "The Internet, apparently. Anyway, let's go in."
It was a good thing the shop also sold rambutans and mangosteens, fruits that were known for their cooling properties.
"Which shall we take?" Vasu asked. "Durian, definitely. But rambutan or mangosteen to cool down?"
"Just take both, I know you want," Shree chuckled. "Let Mitsuo try also."
"How do you even eat that fruit?" Mitsuo asked in surprise. "It's so hairy!"
"Just like how you eat durian lor," Vasu simply said, biting into the hairy red fruit to crack it open. "There, like this. Just open and eat."
Mitsuo stared at the fruit that the younger man handed to him and shrugged, taking it. He bit into it the same way and peeled the hairy shell off under the siblings' instructions. He found the flesh looked very much like a peeled lychee.
"Is this a lychee?" Mitsuo asked.
"No lah, it's rambutan," Shree said, pointing at the fruit's hairy shell. "Taste also different."
Mitsuo nodded. "I'm learning a lot of stuff from here. Anyway, where's the king?"

"How do you open that?" Mitsuo stared at the thorny fruit in surprise. He extended his hand and touched it, feeling needle-sharp spikes. "Ouch!"
"Careful!" Shree warned. "Is your hand okay?"
"Yeah, it's okay," Mitsuo sighed in relief as he examined his hand. "How do you open it?"
The durian was already pre cut so Shree carefully placed her fingers between the slit and pulled it apart. "There, that's how."
The siblings already washed their hands earlier and went right at the fruit with their fingers. Mitsuo, on the other hand, whipped out his trusty cutlery kit and took his chopsticks out, much to the siblings' surprise.
"You're seriously eating durian with chopsticks," Shree remarked in disbelief.
"Anything wrong with that?" Mitsuo simply said as he picked up the mushy flesh of the durian and placed it on his plate. He tore a bit off the seed and bit on it, his face instantly lighting up. "This is so good! Who said it tastes like stinky socks?"
"People who don't know the taste," Vasu shrugged as he ate. "I mean, I didn't like it the first time too, when I was a kid. But the second time... yummy..."
"This durian very nice," Shree said after swallowing her mouthful. "The seed also very small. The smaller the seed, the better the durian."
"I can see that," Mitsuo nodded. "Can we go get some more or...?"
"Can also," Shree smirked. "I wanna go get some young coconut."
"Can I come too?" Mitsuo eagerly asked, getting up.
Shree just motioned for him to follow, asking her brother to take care of the durian. Vasu smirked as he watched them leave and turned back to the unfinished durian with grin.
Mitsuo and Shree were surprised to see nothing left of the durian besides an empty shell and a pile of seeds. Vasu sat there, licking his fingers.
"Vasu!" Shree groaned in dismay as she placed an opened young coconut on the table. "You finished the whole thing alone?!"
Vasu let out a burp before speaking. "I couldn't help it, sorry. Also, you guys had two pieces, so I didn't eat the whole thing alone."
"That's fine, let's just go and get another durian," Mitsuo suggested. "I know I only had one piece, but that was still amazing."
Vasu shrugged and started sipping on one of the cooling fresh young coconut. The other two soon returned with two more durians, which his sister forbade him from touching, but Vasu still managed to snag a few extra pieces.

The three of them left the durian shop, holding two bags of durians for the rest of the family and some mangosteens. They even bought some young coconut too.
"That was a very large budget," Shree sighed, unlocking the car. "Thanks for chipping in, Mitsu."
"It's fine, don't worry," Mitsuo smiled as he got into the front passenger seat. "The durian was really good, though. Glad you brought me here."
Shree chuckled, pleased that he liked the fruit.
"But my eyes are burning!" Vasu groaned, rubbing his eyes. "So heaty..."
"I admit, I feel that too," Mitsuo nodded. "But the mangosteen and rambutan helped."
"True," Vasu agreed.

Mitsuo was about to get out of the car but was surprised when Vasu handed him a large plastic bag.
"What's this?" Mitsuo asked in surprise.
"Well, you brought us stuff, right?" Shree smirked. "It is our custom to not let a guest leave empty handed as well. So just accept."
Mitsuo bowed and graciously took it.
"It's filled with Malaysian snacks," Shree continued. "I'm sure you'll like them."
"Thank you," Mitsuo bowed again. "I really appreciate this."
"Aiya, nothing lah," Vasu chuckled. "Today was fun."
"It was," Mitsuo agreed. "Anyway, text me once you reach home, okay?"
"I will," Shree smiled. "Bye!"
Mitsuo got out of the car and waved before entering the lobby. Shree drove straight home where her mother and grandmother were awaiting the King of Fruits.