CITRUS ~ A Long Way From Home / Trust

Chapter 4

Yuzu and Harumi walked out of the third shop they've been to that morning, gathering her clothing she'll need for Mei's business trip.

Everywhere they went, Yuzu was trying on every outfit she could find. Although this was suppose to be about business, she still hoped to find something cute.

Harumi has her own idea of how a business suit would look. She followed her "PPB" philosophy... "Perfect, Professional, and Boring".

But they put their heads together and compromised on what to look for. And so far, everything was working out as planned.

Yuzu was feeling on top of the world as they walked out of the shop, thinking of how much she'll be helping Mei on this trip.

Harumi was happy to help her best friend. As she watched Yuzu get excited, she would remember the first time they met back at the academy. Where Yuzu was trying too hard to fit in with the other girls, who weren't prepared for Yuzu's outgoing personality. So she decided to take her under her wing and show her the way around the school. And in a short time, they became the best of friends, almost like sisters in their own way. And Harumi was as happy as a clam.

"Okay" said Yuzu as she hung up the phone, "Mama says we have time to get something to eat before we head to the last shop and then back home. But I think we have almost everything we need."

"We still need to get you some pantyhose and shoes" said Harumi. "That's the last shop. But you might only need one pair. Beyond that, I think your mom was getting everything else."

"That one Café is nearby, let's just go there" said Yuzu.

"Sounds good" says Harumi.

As they start walking towards the cafe, Yuzu is looking over her list, trying to see if she needed more. But she was too excited to think about any of that because she kept thinking about Mei and what she'll be doing to help her. And as she looked at her ring on her finger, it made her that much more happy.

"It's hard to believe that this time tomorrow, I'll be on a plane with Mei flying across the ocean" said Yuzu. "I told her that I've heard stories about California since I was little. They say it's like another country in itself. I hope she likes it there."

It was then that Yuzu noticed that Harumi was thinking of something, like she didn't hear her.

"Harumin?" questioned Yuzu. "Is everything okay?"

"Hmmwhat?" said Harumi a little surprised. "Sorry, I was thinking about stuff."

Yuzu was beginning to feel guilty towards Harumi. All their plans they made were changed literally overnight. Although Harumi hadn't said anything about it.

"I'm sorry Harumin" she said. "It's not fair to you. Guess I messed everything up for us for this break huh? I mean, first Mei had to cancel our plans, then I go and do the same thing."

"Nah, It's not a huge deal" said Harumi. "It'll only be a week, then we'll make up for lost time when you get back.

"It's just ... well..."

Yuzu looked at Harumi as she stared straight ahead. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Harumi obviously had something to say, but was holding back her words.

"Well" said Harumi, "it's just that the people in America can act all weird around people from other countries. I've seen it with some of the tourist that pop up around town sometimes. They tend to point at stuff they don't get or even make fun of some the things we have here. Always taking pictures of our temples or shrines, like we're nothing more then a novelty to them.