16. Akemi
Akemi
With Auntie Kua’s blessing and Oakley’s infusion of both energy and cash, the little house next to Paradise Books was soon gutted and well on its way to achieving Akemi’s vision.
Noah and Kekoa had both stepped back from construction work – Noah to flip houses, and Kekoa to focus on his carpentry business – but they both agreed to help with the café as a favor to the Kalamas.
Between the two of them – and with the added muscle provided by Noah’s foster son, Jayce – they were making rapid progress.
“I can’t believe how quickly it’s all coming along,” Akemi marveled.
“I can,” Oakley said. “That’s why I hired them.”
“I mean, yeah, but still… this is amazing.”
“After the magic Kekoa worked with the old dance studio next door, I knew this place would be a breeze.”
“I guess it seems like magic if you’re not the one hauling materials,” Noah teased as he passed by with an armful of boards.
“Magic!” Oakley did a little softshoe routine, complete with jazz hands.
He laughed. “You’re in good spirits.”
“That’s because…” She did a drumroll on their newly installed wooden counter. “We’re firing up the espresso machine today! We are officially a café!”
Noah raised one eyebrow and looked around with a dubious expression. There was no furniture yet, and they had torn out the entire back porch in order to build something that wouldn’t suddenly give way underfoot.
But even so. They were making progress, and Akemi was excited.
She’d spent the whole morning placing orders for soft mats, foam blocks, plastic slides, and the rest of the things that they would need to make their playspace a reality.
It was all coming together.
Best of all, Lorenzo was still there. He wanted as much time with Kaleo as he could get, and so he spent his days exploring the island with their son while Akemi worked on bringing her café to life.
Rory was with them too, whenever her mother would allow it, and Akemi was glad that the half siblings were finally getting more time together.
“I’m going to run to the store for some milk,” Oakley announced. “Anybody need anything?”
“Food!” Kekoa shouted from the back door.
“You just had breakfast!”
“It was insufficient to my needs.”
Oakley snorted at his word choice. “You’ve been spending too much time with Laurie.”
“Impossible,” he declared.
“I’ll see what I can scrounge up.”
Akemi went back to work, making a short list of mug options to go over with Oakley. Her sister was back a short time later. She tossed a pastry bag at Kekoa’s head and fired up the espresso machine.
After a few false starts, she was off to the races. She lined up five lattes and called the boys inside.
“Come taste test these for me.”
“Here I thought this was a reward for our hard work.” Noah turned to Kekoa with an overwrought, mournful look. “She just wants to use us as lab rats.”
“I’ll take the caffeine.” Kekoa grabbed the nearest coffee and took a swig.
“Yeah.” Noah dropped the schtick and grabbed a mug. “I could use the boost too.”
“You tired?” Oakley asked.
“Stayed up too late last night. The twins wanted to do a Lord of the Rings marathon.”
Oakley held out a fist. “Respect.”
He bumped it and took another drink of his latte. “This is great.”
“Success!”
Akemi closed her laptop and grabbed one for herself. She took a sip and was immediately delighted by the quality.
They had shelled out a lot of money for local, organic espresso beans. The prices that they would have to charge per coffee to make any profit at all made her anxious. But with a final product this good, they might actually stand a chance.
“Oakley, this is fantastic.”
“Thank you!” She was glowing. “It takes me back to my barista days.”
“When were you a barista?” Noah asked.
“In college!”
“Ah, yes. When you abandoned us for the mainland.”
Oakley rolled her eyes and lifted her mug. “A toast! To our hardworking construction crew. We would be lost without you.”
“Cheers to that!” Akemi lifted her mug too. “You two are the best big brothers a girl could ask for.”
“We’re the same age,” Kekoa said with a laugh.
“We are not!”
“We were in the same grade at school.”
“You’re older than me.”
“By a couple of months, maybe.”
“Okay, but you’re twice my size.”
“At least,” Noah chimed in.
Kekoa grinned. “You can be my little sister if it’s that important to you.”
“It is,” she said with a toss of her hair.
“Cousin wasn’t good enough?” Noah asked.
“Around here, everyone’s a cousin.”
“True.”
“I demand sibling status.”
“Granted.”
She put her fingertips together, supervillain style. “Excellent.”
“Who’s the extra one for?” Noah asked, gesturing to the latte still sitting on the counter.
“That one’s for Laurie.”
“Of course. I should have known.”
“I’ll take that.” Kekoa snatched it up and was out the door in a flash.
“I suppose that’s the last I’ll see of him today,” Noah muttered.
“He’ll be back,” Oakley said. “Laurie won’t let him hang around the stacks forever.”
“She might,” Akemi said. “She’s awful sweet on him lately.”
They were still sipping their lattes when Lorenzo appeared at the front door.
“My baby!” Akemi exclaimed. She put her drink down and held her hands out to Kaleo.
The ability to put in long days was a blessing, but saying goodbye to him each morning still felt like leaving one of her legs behind.
She would be glad when the playroom was finished and he could come to work with her every day.
“In a construction zone,” Oakley added in a flat voice. “Yay.”
Akemi squeezed Kaleo and looked up at Lorenzo. “What are you doing here so early?”
He opened his mouth to speak, then glanced over at Oakley and Noah. Oakley busied herself at the espresso machine, and Noah stepped outside.
“I have to go,” Lorenzo said quietly. Akemi’s stomach sank.
“Go where?”
“Back to Italy.”
Akemi’s mouth opened and closed a few times without sound. She was acutely aware of Oakley standing a few feet behind her.
She walked out the front door, out into the sunshine, with Lorenzo following just behind.
“Amore,” he began, and she shot him a warning look.
If it hadn’t been for Kaleo in her arms and her family so close by, she might have shouted. Instead, she turned away and bit her tongue.
Lorenzo stood at her shoulder and spoke very quietly.
“My father is in the hospital.”
Immediately, she felt a wave of remorse. And yet, if she was being honest with herself, there was a stubborn selfishness growing beneath her empathy.
His father had been sick for years.
Filial duty was all well and good, but his children needed him too.
Rory might have a new dad who was there for her year-round, but Kaleo didn’t. Lani had found someone else, but Akemi had put her faith in Lorenzo. She felt like an idiot for taking him at his word, for believing him when he had told her that he would stay.
It took every ounce of self control for her to keep those bitter words bottled beneath her throat. She pressed her teeth together, terrified that she might say something awful – terrified of the sudden rage that was boiling in her chest.
There was nothing he could do for his father, no practical reason for him to be there. And yet he was leaving. She had already seen it in his eyes, heard it in his voice. He was leaving them. And for what?
Then she thought of her dad.
Kimo was just gone, one day to the next, decades before any of them had expected to lose him.
She would give anything for a few more hours with him.
Even in a hospital. Even if there was nothing she could do.
And with that admission, her rage turned to grief. Tears fell from her eyes, and Lorenzo reached to brush them away with the pad of his thumb.
“I’ll come back,” he promised, voice so low that it was almost a whisper. “As soon as I can.”
She steeled herself and turned to meet his eyes. They were filled with tears too.
Suddenly, she felt like a horrible person for resenting him.
She should be offering to go with him, offering to bring Kaleo to Italy.
But there was no part of her that wanted to board a series of planes with her toddler. She had zero intention of taking Kaleo into an Italian hospital.
And so she didn’t make any false offers. She just nodded her acknowledgement, held Kaleo a bit closer, and cleared her throat.
“When do you leave?”
“I am going to the airport now.”
She wanted to stagger backwards dramatically. Wanted to throw her arms around him and beg him to stay – or at least tell him how much she loved him. But in that moment, holding a squirming toddler and holding back more tears, she could only plant her feet and focus on staying upright.
“Okay. We’ll see you when you get back.”
He looked at her for a moment, and his eyes were full of pain. Then he kissed her briefly, kissed Kaleo’s head, and walked away.
Akemi felt unsteady. Moving slowly, she walked inside and stood Kaleo up on the counter.
“Would you watch him for a minute?” she asked her sister.
“Of course.” Oakley put both hands on Kaleo’s waist. He danced on the counter, delighted to be up so high.
Akemi went into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. She sank to the floor, heedless of the sawdust and loose nails.
She tried to talk herself down, did her best to batten her feelings down tight… and finally, when that didn’t work, she buried her face in her knees and cried.
Once that was done, she stood up and regarded herself in the mirror, pink-eyed and miserable. With a sigh, she washed her face with cold water and then walked back out into the main room.
Oakley stood at the counter with Kekoa, looking through a pile of papers.
“Where’s my baby?” Akemi asked.
“I took him next door. Hayden and Harper are reading him board books.”
“Oh.” She sniffed. “Okay.”
Oakley gave her a long look. She seemed to consider asking her how she was and then think better of it. Instead, she held up one of Kekoa’s sketches of a chair.
“What do you think of this one?” she asked.
Akemi crossed the room and turned her mind to the task at hand. It was simple – something that he could provide a dozen of by the end of the month – but it was beautiful too.
“I like it,” she told them.
Kekoa put an arm around her.
“Thanks,” she said, her voice thick.
He squeezed her shoulder. “Sure thing.”
“I’m really grateful for your help.”
“We’re in this together,” Oakley said, and Kekoa nodded.
“We’ve got you, sis.”