Chapter Seven
They were only one mile from Diego’s house when his cell phone rang. He flipped it open, saw who it was and began speaking, “Yes, he’s here in the car with me. Yes, he’s in great shape. Yes, we’ll be there in a minute. Yes, I’m sure he’ll be as glad to see you as you are to see him. Now that I’ve probably guessed all of your questions, what did you want?”
He winked at Arthur as he spoke into the phone, “Uh-huh. Yeah. OK, OK. For crying out……OK. If that’s the way you want it, tell you brothers I said so, Ok? Arthur, she loves you. Grandpa, she loves you. Hey……..hey. How do you like that?” He closed the phone and continued with mock antagonism, “She loves everybody but her very own daddy. And, I brought her into this world. This is the thanks I get. Just for that Dad, drive around for another half an hour and make her wait. That’ll teach her.”
Arthur was laughing in the back seat as Pedro chuckled out his answer, “No way. Don’t get me involved in this. She’s my only granddaughter and you know how much she reminds me about that. I’m not about to get in dutch with her. The boys I can wrestle and almost whip them. But, she’s my pet and boy does she know it.”
Arthur chimed in, “Trouble is, everybody who sees you two together knows it.”
“Aw-w-w, I ain’t that bad.”
“Dad, you ain’t that good, either. One little look and a tilt of her head and you don’t even wait for her to ask. You go ahead and start suggesting stuff you’d be willing to get for her.”
“I do not,” Pedro tried to defend himself. However, the big smile on his face admitted what they already knew.
“What about that ice cream store?”
“We were at an ice cream store for crying out loud. What was I going to suggest?”
Diego looked at Arthur to plead his case, “Arthur, we were at Palacio’s Steak House and we weren’t even half-way through with our steaks and he started asking her what she wanted. And when she told him, he kept on suggesting all the other different flavors until she changed her mind three times. What does that sound like to you?”
“Truce guys. Let’s have a truce, will ya,” begged Arthur who was lying over in the seat almost doubled over with laughter. “We’re only two blocks from the house and I’ve got to straighten up. If she sees me laughing like this she’ll keep after me until I tell her everything you guys said.”
Diego turned back and looked at him as he argued, “Yeah. And you probably won’t give in until she asks you the first time, will you?”
His face turned from laughter to that of a proud papa as he said in a normal voice, “My baby’s growing up, Arthur. She’s growing up before my eyes.” He looked over at his dad.
Pedro pulled into the driveway and put the car in park. He, too, turned around to look at Arthur eye-to-eye, and said, “With the boys, we didn’t have that much of a problem.” He and Diego locked eyes for a moment and said with an embarrassing smile, “Our little girl is becoming quite a young lady, and we don’t know how to deal with it.”
“Not at all,” Diego confessed.
Just then, the front door to the house opened and there she stood. She was dressed in a denim skirt and a royal blue blouse. (Arthur’s favorite color, of course.) There were no more straight lines to indicate that she was a little girl. She had an eighteen-year-old's set of curves on her fourteen-year-old body. Her thick, black hair flowed in perfect waves until they covered her shoulders. Her laughing dark eyes betrayed the joy that was overflowing inside of her right now. What color was that mascara? Royal Blue, of course. And, she wore just a hint of dark pink lipstick.
Gorgeous would be one word to describe her. Precious would be the one that Arthur would pick. That best described their relationship over the past six years. A chill ran up his spine as he recalled their conversation in the car. 'Mayumi kidnapped? 'Not if I can help it. God talk to me. Tell me.....show us all what to do,' he prayed in his heart.
Dads can be………..you know,……dads. So, when Diego stepped out of the car he gave a loud whistle. Instantly, the front yard was filled with young boys. Actually there were only four and they were Mayumi’s older brothers. But, the way they yelled and ran around you would have thought there was a yard full of them. They all ran around to Arthur to give him hugs and welcomed him back to the Philippines. A-a-a-n-d, they wanted to poke fun at their little sister, too.
Mayumi stomped her foot and tried to look mad as she said, “D-a-a-d. I wanted to spend some time with Turo first. I told you that on the phone.” She smiled as she walked up to her father, threw her arms around him and gave him a big kiss. “That wasn’t too much to ask, was it?”
She looked over at Arthur. Oh, how she wanted to go running over to him and jump into his arms as she used to do. However, the growth spurt she just went through made her just a little bit self-conscious.
Diego put on a look of mock surprise as he answered, “Oh, Princess, you misunderstand my reasoning. I wanted to get the boys busy taking his bags and stuff to his new home so he could spend some alone time with you. That’s all.”
"Um-hmm. Like I'm going to believe that?"
"Why sure, Angel, watch this," he said as he walked around the car to the opened trunk. "Three here and two small ones in the back seat. Phillipe, I want you to take the big one as soon as Dad gets through...uh, taking it out of the trunk."
Pedro held the duffel bag at arm's length and carefully searched it with his eyes until he spotted the bulge. Gently he pulled at a silver looking object that resembled a small battery with a straight pin attached. He held it toward Diego as he handed the bag to Phillipe. He mouthed the words, "Put it next to some continuous noise. TV?"
Diego carefully took it from him with one hand and looked at his watch on his other arm. Without uttering a sound, he mouthed, "Soap Operas. It'll drive them nuts.” Diego smiled broadly at Arthur as he turned around and went into the house.
Pedro turned and went through the garage to the room they built for Arthur. He would supervise the boys and get them to put Arthur's things away for him. It would be quite some time before any of them went to bed.
Phillipe and Barto (short for Bartholomew) were 22 and 20 respectively. They were interested in chess and politics. Both of them could whip Arthur at chess and they relished it. However, Arthur did not like to discuss politics. He would much rather talk about the Atlanta Braves. And, that was almost a foreign language to them.
The other two, Riz (Rizal) and Max (Maximilian), 18 and 16, were more interested in taking Arthur down, martial arts speaking of course. Since their father owned one of the best martial arts studios in Manila, it was only natural that all of the boys be trained to the utmost. But, they could NOT take Arthur down.
Phillipe and Barto had stopped trying and gone to chess where they could beat the socks off of him. But, Riz and Max were too young, too hard-headed, too.......something to quit trying. No matter how they tried, it took both of them to bring him down. And, that was only when one of them sneaked up on his blind side. Which, by the way, was getting smaller and smaller the more they fought.
What was Arthur's secret? Why, Ramon Rodriguez of course. Ramon was raised in Mexico. Four families shared the house where he lived. He was the youngest child in the group and the thirteenth. Everyone claimed that he was bad luck. When they went out to play, who do you reckon got beat up on, whipped, shoved and generally pestered beyond imagination? Yep, Ramon. In self-defense, he learned to run faster, dodge quicker and make slick fake-outs that would give him any kind of advantage. He taught Arthur everything he knew. And, it just drove Riz and Max crazy.
Finally, Arthur and Mayumi were alone in the garage. They looked and grinned at each other for a second. Then the little girl on the other side of the car raised her hands above her head and let out a play yard squeal as she ran into Arthur's arms. She slipped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his shoulder for a moment. Arthur held on to her gently and patted her back as he felt a few sobs shake her just
a bit.
When she finally looked up, she smiled through a couple of tears. "Oh, Turo, I missed you so much. Look at me. I'm crying," she said as she pulled away and took out a small hanky that she conveniently had slipped into the back pocket of her denim skirt. She blew her nose very lady-like and continued, "I knew I would do that. I'm supposed to cry while you're gone not when you get here. Am I backwards or something?"
"No, not at all. You're female. Go with it," Arthur maintained.
She threw her arms around his middle and commanded, "Hug me again."
Arthur was going to say 'no', right?
She got close to his face and teased, "I can 'bonk' your nose with my forehead, can't I?"
Arthur admitted, "Yes, you sure can. Nine months ago you could just barely 'bonk' my Adam's apple. Now look at you."
She looked down and commented, "And, nine months ago I could stand a little closer to you, too. Now, look at me.” She realized what she had said and looked at him wide-eyed with embarrassment, "NO! Don't you dare.” She turned around real quickly and folded her arms in a vain effort to hide...herself and continued, "I get real embarrassed sometimes, Turo. Guys stare at me and make jokes. I can't help the way I am."
Her back was to Arthur and he gently held her shoulders as he said, "Your grandfather must have told you some of the things that my great-grandfather passed down to us. You'll never go any farther in your life until you accept yourself for who you are and accept where the Lord has put you. He created all of us different for a reason and it's His reason."
She admitted, "Yes, I do remember Grandpa saying things like that. But, it's hard, sometimes. You know?"
Arthur turned her around to face him and looked into her eyes. "Mayumi, God doesn't make mistakes. Sometimes we don't understand what He does. Somewhere down the road we might understand more. But, until we do understand more, it would help our journey if we would just admit that God was smarter that we were and enjoy Him being our Lord."
That simple explanation turned a light on inside of her. The little girl went away and the young lady spoke, "That makes perfect sense to me. You know, I remember Dad and Grandpa saying things almost that way. But, there's just something about the way you said it that made it all become clearer.”
She stood up on her tip-toes and kissed him on the cheek. She couldn't help it. The little girl came back and nibbled on the side of his neck right under his ear.
That was only one of Arthur's ticklish spots and she knew it from wrestling with him in the years past. As Arthur instinctively pulled away from her, he marveled at how quickly she went from little girl to young lady and back again.
"Angel," crackled her cell phone.
"Yes, Dad?"
"Why don't you and Arthur walk down the street for a few minutes? I'll send Riz and Max on their motorbikes. They'll have the camera and we'll start taking a lot of shots of the two of you to have just in case we need them. You and Arthur tussle and play around with the boys. You know, be normal."
"'Cause they're going to be normally obnoxious, aren't they?" she asked in her I'm-the-only-daughter-you-have tone of voice. But, she knew Diego loved it.
"If they don't, I'll whip them all soundly and put them to bed. How about that?"
"Not until Max cooks the hamburgers. Then send HIM to bed without his supper. No, wait. Make him watch us eat and then send him to bed without his supper.” She laughed at her digs at her brothers. Of course they had their shots at her, also. Now, it was even more so when Arthur was around because it usually led to a wrestling match.
"Negative on the Max and the hamburgers. Mom's taking that chore and they are hitting the grill as we speak."
"Memaw bringing the baked beans?"
Arthur begged, "Oh, please, please, please, please, please."
"Only if Arthur will promise to be nice and dance with her."
"My arms await the moment."
"Dad, he means his stomach awaits the beans."
Diego could hear they're laughter in the back yard without the aid of the cell phone. His command was clear, "You miscreants start walking and await your punishment. Riz and Max are already planning your demise."
"Bring 'em on. My Turo will keep me safe," Mayumi goaded as she grabbed Arthur's hand and began walking down the driveway.
As they walked toward the road, Arthur pulled his hand away from her and put it around her shoulder. Instinctively she put hers around his waist. He pulled her tight against himself for a moment of unspoken endearment. She laid her head on his shoulder for a moment and then giggled. She covered her mouth in embarrassment and he smiled at her.
They had walked arm in arm before, but that was when she was a little girl. Right now, Arthur was wondering what it would take to bring the young lady out to talk to. They had both changed quite a bit in the past nine months.
Holding on to each other felt good for both of them. For Arthur, holding this young lady in his arms was a comfort to him. Like the movie, each person has a scent. Would it be goofy to say that Arthur enjoyed her scent?
For Mayumi, she enjoyed the physical touch of the one she admired so much. She could be as close to her Turo as she wanted to be. His touch was reassuring. She was comfortable and calm. They could respond to each other and not feel like they were crossing some forbidden line.
She opened the stew pot with, "What would Marci think if she saw us walking together like this?"
Arthur smiled as he wondered, which one asked the question. Was it the girl or the lady? He took a deep breath and looked at the pavement as they walked. "She's more interested in her medical studies. I believe that she would like to eventually be one of those doctors who constantly look for cures and stuff. Me, I feel like my calling is to help the mountain people over here. I just don't know how, yet. We talked before I left.”
He shrugged his shoulders and tried to look off at the mountains as he concluded, “I guess God’s taking us separate ways.” He turned and tried to smile at her but he knew she could see through it.
"God's working on somebody especially for you. That's what I've always been taught. Weren't you taught that also?" she asked as she bent her head down to catch his attention.
Arthur looked at the young lady who was waiting for an answer. "And might that special someone be you?" he asked almost embarrassed by his boldness.
"Might," she answered. "I guess we'll know when God lets us in on His plans for us, huh?” She stopped and faced him and hugged him again. She rested her head on his shoulder so that her lips would barely touch his neck as she spoke, "But, right now, I say let's just enjoy being friends without worrying about who we're gonna marry. I've heard it said that marriage could ruin a good friendship."
"I've heard that before," Arthur agreed. Why, oh why did he do it? God only knows. He bent his head down and playfully gnawed on her neck while growling like a dog.
Guess who had a ticklish spot on her neck, also? It was the little girl. She let out a scream that caused a few of the neighbors to look up. Arthur quickly stood up real straight and she fell on his shoulder. They both laughed so hard that they had to hold each other up.
The neighbors realized that summer had begun in earnest because Turo was back. Yes, it could get a little noisier around here for the next three months just like it had every summer for the last six years.
Diego and his family lived at the end of a cul-de-sac so there was not a whole lot of through traffic. That was a pretty good thing, too. The five boys and sometimes Diego would be charging up and down the quarter mile asphalt on skateboards, bicycles and now motor bikes.
None of the bikes were more than 50ccs and not very loud. The "loud" came from the cowboys and Indian type games they played up and down the street. Now that Turo was back, it would probably be an everyday occurrence.
All in all, it wasn't a very crowded street. Each house had a good sized yard to it. But, when they heard the motors rev and the yells come, they moved their lawn chairs out to the edge of their
front yards. Inevitably, a camera will come out from somewhere.
Riz and Max made it to them but neither one was carrying a camera. Of course, they circled the hapless couple and began with their war hoops and plenty of "bang-bangs."
Turo and Mayumi stood back to back and drew out their six shooters to return fire. "Hey, Indians aren't supposed to have guns," yelled Arthur.
Riz answered between bangs, "We bought them from Sears and Roebucks and we don't read the white man's phony novels."
One set of neighbors, Steve and Terri Givens, started laughing so hard that they dropped their camera. Terri picked it up and handed it to Steve and told him, "I'm going to go in and get us a glass of tea. Get down there real close to them so we can get all of the action. This one already sounds like it is going to be a classic."
The hams of the Philippines heard her and the four of them picked up the banter.
Mayumi yelled between shots, "Hey, you guys are imposters. Indians didn't speak English that good."
Riz answered as he continued to circle them, "Humph. We learned good English from the missionaries. We had them for supper last night. They were delicious. I'm wearing his clothes for good luck."
Max fluffed his hair with a free hand and added in a falsetto voice, "And, I'm wearing hers.” Then, he put his hand over his mouth and pretend giggled real loud.
Terri dropped the glasses of tea and stumbled back into the house for some new ones. Steve set the camera on the mail box to keep it steady. Being the trooper that he was, his finger never left the record button, bless his heart.
A new war hoop was heard as Phillipe and Barto were seen tearing out from their driveway. Steve aimed the camera at them. Barto held his camera high in the air and waved it back and forth. Knowing him, he had already flipped the switch to make it record continuously. He fancied himself the camera guy of the family. And, since he wasn't too shoddy at it, they let him have the privilege.
In mock fear, Mayumi shouted loud enough to be heard on Barto's camera, "Oh, my goodness. Renegade reinforcements are storming towards us. Whatever shall we do?"
Arthur spoke in a lowered voice, "Have no fear, my dear Princess Lea, we shall defeat the Empire because............the force is with us.” He scooted around to where their backs were together. Mayumi caught on and they made their elbows touch. They pointed their forearms straight ahead and moved their arms forward and back like the canons on the x-wing fighters. Then, they started turning around and around and going, "Tsh-sh-sh-sh, Tsh-sh-sh-sh-sh, Tsh-sh-sh-sh-sh."
Philippe, Max and Riz tried a variety of sounds. But, they couldn't come up with anything that would top "Tsh-sh-sh-sh.” They did the only thing that honorable Empire Sith warriors could do. They dismounted their war horses, held their hands in front of them and said, "Bzzrrrt!"
Arthur and Muyami stopped and brought out their own light sabers. Of course, Arthur brought out two because there were three Siths to fight. Barto was busy manning the camera.
As they stood still for a moment, Arthur realized that Barto wasn't moving around and around as the group of 'fighters' were. It suddenly dawned on him that there was a white panel van parked outside the empty house on the corner less than half a block away. Or was there? He started fighting and began edging his way around until the van came into view. That put a whole new slant on the events of the day.
They turned in a circle until Arthur was facing Barto. He said lowly, "Guys, Mayumi and I are going to pull away from each other and y'all play along. Barto, don't just stand in one place. They might catch on.” He saw Barto nod slowly. He increased his sword play and yelled, "Take that and that, you evil, evil Siths."
Riz yelled, "Luke, I am your father."
Phillipe yelled, "Luke, don't listen to him. I am your father. I was there. I remember."
Mayumi yelled, "Luke, I am your twin sister."
Max yelled in falsetto, "No, Luke, I am your sister."
Barto yelled, "Memaw," and pointed to the car coming toward them.
Filming was over. They dropped their weapons and pulled the bikes out of the way so she could come through. She rolled down her window and said to them as she passed by. "Get to the house and get washed up. I'm starved."
No one needed to be told twice. Barto looked at the camera as he walked over to Turo and said, "Say, uh ...how's your left shoulder? Everybody heard you dislocated it. If that is who we think it is in the van. It might be a good thing to rub it and act like you're talking about it."
"Good thinking," said Arthur as he moved his shoulder a bit and rubbed it. Mayumi pretended to rub it a little as Arthur went through a little pantomime of telling how he fell and hurt it. He hoped he did a good job of selling it.
Little did Arthur know how important it was for him to give that sales pitch.
For the next two weeks, Arthur was up at 4 a.m. to get in some prayer and Bible study time. At 5:30, there was a small snack and a couple of hours of personal tutoring from Diego. They worked on perfecting his technique. They worked on him keeping a look on his face that would fool his opponent. They worked on him faking pain in his left shoulder. Half of the time, they would tie his left arm to his chest to force him to use his right arm with greater dexterity. They worked on the style of martial arts that the new school taught. They worked on Arthur being able to read his opponents face. They worked on Arthur expecting something other than what was on his opponent's face. To put it plainly, they really worked Arthur.
Two hours of Diego, shower, breakfast and then he went to Diego's studio to help teach. At least one hour of the morning was devoted to sparring with every student close to his age or over. Then a shower and a great meal back at the house.
The afternoon and sometimes the evenings belonged to him and Mayumi. They went everywhere together. They took tons of pictures the first week. They tried to take pictures the second week also.
However, as the second week got closer to the round robin tournament, Mayumi could not hide the apprehension in her eyes. Her face would smile but her eyes showed fear. I guess the news of terrorist interference in the mountain villages didn't help either. She knew that Arthur and her grandfather would be leaving, soon.
Chapter Eight