Act 1: Going Home Again

Vince sat in his first-class compartment aboard the All Nippon Airways AirBus A380. He was eight hours into a twelve-hour flight. Returning to Los Angeles after ten years in Japan felt wrong.

He’d jumped at a chance to head a Robotics startup in Tokyo that had gone better than expected. Now, with things settled and running smoothly, he’d been urged by his Japanese Colleagues to return home and see his family.

Not at all interested in any movies or television available on the plane, he sat watching the clouds pass by outside his window. Tiny bottles of booze littered his table. His thoughts kept roaming about how far he’d been apart from everyone, not just in physical distance but emotionally as well.

“Sumimasn, Vince-san,” came a whisper-quiet female voice from just outside his cubicle.

“Yeah!” Vince said, suddenly startled out of his reverie. “Sorry, Yes ... come in,” he said in a calmer voice.

“May I take your used bottles?” asked the meticulously uniformed Japanese woman. She was dressed in a stylish navy blue skirt and blazer, and a cerulean blouse and a blue and white scarf whimsically tied around her neck. Her hair was combed back and tied in a bun behind her head.

Vince smiled. “Oh, Hitomi-san, thank you, yes please do,” Her smile was infectious.

“Shall I bring you the menu for the evening meal?” she queried. “We will serve in just two hours,” her manner was both pleasing and disarming as she waited patiently for his response.

Vince had opted for a light dinner and a non-alcoholic drink this time. After dinner, he had a pot of coffee brought to him and nursed it for the remainder of his flight.

It was odd to think that he’d left Tokyo just before five o’clock in the evening on Friday and would arrive in Los Angeles five hours before he left Tokyo. “Damned International Date Line!” he cursed to himself, as the L.A. freeways became visible out his window.

After retrieving his single suitcase and heading out of the airport. He sat on a bench and pulled out his phone to call for an Uber. Taxis were already too expensive when he left. He couldn’t imagine them being more affordable now.

The driver was intuitive enough to read the mood and the ride went by silently as they drove to his family’s home in the San Fernando Valley. The Sherman Oaks home had been left to him and his sister in their parent’s will.

As they cruised along the freeways and streets, Vince thought back to the day he left. Arguing fiercely with Claire, the older of the three. Telling her that this was for the best and this job would ensure the family would be secure.