“Boimoubou, how can I help— Xa. Naoki! Haven’t seen you in here for weeks!”
Naoki grunts, heaving up the wooden box his aunt had left in front of her house for him this morning. It lands on the counter with a loud thud, startling the Cotaes on the windowsill. He flashes the farmer an apologetic smile when they fly off with a squeak. “Cais,” he mumbles, “I’m here for the...” trailing off, he fishes a slip of paper out of his pocket. It takes him a few moments to open it. “The Ilaes?”
“Of course,” the farmer replies, already reaching for the bags of fruit behind them. They glance back at him for just a moment, worrying at their lower lip with their teeth. Naoki feels the hair at the back of his neck stand. “Mehi vis, Xa. Naoki?”
“I’m fine.”
The farmer startles at his quick response, the bag nearly slipping from their hands. They soon recover, giving him an uneasy smile. Naoki knew something like this would happen the moment his aunt asked him to take care of the errands. Small town folk have always been a curious bunch — especially in Nauwai. Too bad Naoki has absolutely no desire to share anything with anyone, least of all the farmer from the other side of the village.
“Ah, well,” the farmer stammers, one hand scratching at the back of their neck, “I’m glad you are, Xa. Naoki! Your aunt seems to be doing better as well, doesn’t she? You know, we were all very happy when she reopened the shop after...,” they trail off, eyeing the next batch of fruit for a moment, “well, everything, really.” A pause, in which Naoki watches the farmer fiddle with the bag while suppressing a sigh. “Anyway,” they chuckle, “it really is so vital to the community, you know? Most people only come through for the Bemoaes. They’ve been doing really well this season too, haven’t they? The amount of people I see around here lately!” They ramble, storing more and more fruit into Naoki’s crates. His vision begins to swim as he feels himself zone out.
“Anyway, I really don’t think I would’ve been able to sell as much as I did without the shop here. I mean why would people even come all the way out here to my farm — through all the Cae-bridges, too!” The farmer laughs. “Speaking of, if you’re going towards the fields next, don’t forget that the bridge—”
“The last bag, too?”
“Huh?”
Pointing at the bag of Ilaes behind the counter, Naoki shrugs. “You want me to take all of them?”
Laughing, the farmer scrambles back and drags the last bag up into the crates, “Yes, yes, moubou.”
“Thanks,” Naoki sighs before hauling the crates onto the trailer of his bicycle. One shouted “Kapa!” later and he’s off.
His muscles burn as he pedals along the rural roads and steep hillsides of the Northern farm lands. Below, he can see sickles move in nearly synchronised cutting motions as the farmers wade through the wetness of the paddy fields. At this time of the year, the terraces shine in a palette of greens and yellows, only interrupted by the beige patterns of winding walkways. When he was younger, Naoki remembers being carried down the hills on strong shoulders, eyes wide with wonder and curiosity.
Now, the grassy hues have long become timeworn.
It doesn’t take him long to reach the hillside as well as the massive construction area obstructing the way onto the bridge. “Qixa,” he hisses. His outburst must’ve been louder than he thought, alerting one of the construction workers at the front. When he turns to him, Naoki’s eyes are drawn to the logo on his helmet, orange and blue a stark contrast against the white material. “Of fucking course,” he mumbles, face twisting into a grimace.
“Hey!” The booming voice makes Naoki jump, foot nearly slipping off the pedal. “This cae-bridge is closed.”
“You don’t say.”
“Excuse me?”
“I— uh,” Naoki stutters. The man moves closer, chest puffing out as if making sure that Naoki respects his authority. In response, Naoki tilts to the side and looks past him at the still untouched bridge. “It looks like the bridge is still pretty intact though.”
“The bridge is closed,” the man's voice is void of any emotion. Taking a step to the side, he moves into Naoki’s line of sight. With a swirl, Naoki shifts his weight to the other leg and continues to squint past him.
“The area around the bridge is closed,” he stresses, lips forming into a smile, all faux charm and barely-there charisma. “Look, I just need to get through for a quick errand. I’ll take the long way ba—”
“The bridge is closed for all traffic.”
Naoki’s smile freezes at the man’s tone. He should’ve known there’s no bargaining with Aixewos; it’s not like it’s ever worked before. Grumbling, he eyes the adjacent road, curling around the fields and sure to lead him to his desired destination, albeit leaving him wetter than he’d like to be. The man in front of him shifts, crossing his arms when Naoki remains silent.
“Bet you’re fun at parties,” Naoki sighs under his breath.
“What?”
“Nothing,” he flashes the worker a big grin, “Keep up the good work in making everyone’s lives a lot harder than they need to be.” Fucking Noca.
Slamming his feet back into the pedals, he pushes himself forward; all the while ignoring the man’s sputtering. He could just turn back, he thinks and discards the idea within the same thought. “Not like I got anything else to do,” he mumbles and halts his bike when he arrives at the bottom of the decline. With a sigh, he flicks the button at the side of the handlebar to deploy the paddles of his wheels and loosens the float underneath the trailer.
Wading through the flooded walkways proves to be just as hard as he expected. He feels his pants cling to his calves, their train tugged into his belt to avoid it trailing through the water. Not exactly the most appropriate outfit choice for a quick pedal through the paddy fields, but it’s not like Naoki to let anyone see him in something he considers mediocre. He tips his head back in an attempt to keep his glasses from sliding down his nose and in doing so, notices the cart full of wahi-rice floating on the side of the road. One swift turn of the handlebars and he just barely avoids crashing into it, alerting the farmer tending to the fields next to it. Naoki swallows a curse when she looks over to him.
“Naoki!” She proceeds to wade up to him while waving her hands. Rising out of his saddle, Naoki quickens his pace. “I haven’t seen you out here in so long,” she calls, breathless, “I thought you left to live in the bucket! How long are you staying?”
“Indefinitely,” he mumbles and proceeds to ride past her.
Water flows through the blades of his wheels as he pushes on, shaking his head to stop the line of thought that conversation managed to unearth. He doesn’t want to think about staying in Nauwai, doesn’t even want to contemplate the idea of spending the rest of his life right here, in a town with no future.
Instead, he focuses on the ripples beneath his feet; the light painting speckles of white onto aquamarine. For a moment, his eyes blur. The ripples melt into each other, shining like scales on the ground. He’s seen this before, he thinks, many years ago. The thought gnaws at him, refusing to let go even as an ache builds at his temple. A blink and the water settles, stagnant once again.
He reaches the bottom of the field with wet feet and muddy calves. Sighing, he eyes the flowers at the top. “She’s gonna laugh at you, Naoki,” he mutters as he climbs off his bike and forges on, “she’s gonna laugh.”
A hoot echoes above him.
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