Read Online Midnight and the Meaning of Love by Sister Souljah - Free Book Online

little girl only removed one hand from her hip and said through a half smile, “He’s only scary for you guys. My father’s very nice to me.” She turned on her toes to take off, and I slowed her down. “We’ll walk over with you,” I said. She and Naja began skipping slowly. Naja got her first scuff mark on her new ACGs.
    “
Konbanwa
, Uncle Nakamura,” I said, using the Japanese language intentionally.
    “Good evening,” he answered in English dryly and for his own reasons too.
    “How’s it going? How’s business?” I asked, even though I had just seen him on Sunday when I was searching for Akemi. I suspected that he may have even called the cops on me for loitering outside of his store door, but really for loving and marrying his niece.
    “Fine,” he responded with one word only.
    “See you next time, Saachi,” Naja said.
    “Good night,” I said.
    I purposely wanted to appear to be calm and pleasant in this “thought battle” that I was having with the Japanese men in my wife’s family. There was no reason to tip him off that I was headed over to take back what was mine. Inside I was boiling once again. I could tell from this uncle’s posture that they thought they had won. It was as though they believed that they lived in the first world and I was stuck in the third or fourth or fifth world, that somehow I wouldn’t be able to figure out how to cross the Pacific Ocean beyond Alaska and over the Siberian mountains to get my wife. In a short time, they would discover that they were wrong.
    “What did Saachi say to you?” I asked Naja.
    “First she asked me what I was doing over here. Then she showedme this string that she had in her pocket and how she could twist it into a bunch of different shapes. Then she asked me if I missed Akemi and if we had heard from her.”
    “What did you tell her?”
    “What could I tell her? I don’t know anything,” Naja said with her arms raised halfway and palms facing up.
    “Are you sure you didn’t say anything extra?” I checked.
    “I just told her that I do miss Akemi and that I am sure she will come back real soon.” Then Naja shifted her eyes away from me.
    “And?” I pushed.
    “And what?” she said softly but understanding the intensity in me. “Saachi said that Akemi is
never coming back.
”
    The words of my seven-years-young sister hit me in the chest like powerful kicks.
    “But I told Saachi that she really doesn’t know that for sure,” Naja said confidently.
    “And?” I continued.
    “Saachi said that her father told her that Akemi’s father saved Akemi from ruining her life.”
    My jaw tightened. I stood still on the busy block holding my sister’s hand, thinking.
    “That’s it, that’s all Saachi said. Oh, wait a minute, I left one thing out. Earlier, she told me that her real name is Sachiko but that she lets people she likes call her Saachi for short. She said Sachiko means ‘happiness.’ But the mean thing she told me about you ruining Akemi’s life, she said that last. Then you came outside.”

Chapter 10
DOJO
     
    “Me and Chris dipped into our funds and bought you a wedding present. We
could’ve
got you something before, if you
would have
let us know you was getting married,” Ameer said.
    We were in the dojo locker room suiting up in our
dogis
—me, Ameer, and Chris, my two best friends. They were weeks late with their gift, but it was cool. Truth is, I wasn’t expecting anything at all.
    “So, since the money came from our car fund, that means that I paid for a third of my wedding gift?” I said, kidding them about the money that we all three had saved up over our seven-year friendship.
    “True, true.” Chris smiled. “But, brother, that’s not the point!” Chris added.
    “So where is it?” I asked, standing with my arms extended doubtfully.
    “It’s at Ameer’s place,” Chris said.
    I turned toward Ameer and asked him, “Is this gift something that you used first? ’Cause if you already used