Necessary Distractions

"It will get worse before it gets better, but it will get better," said Kylie, grasping her hand.

Fatima nodded and grasped back.

"I'm not a religious person, but I will pray for Khalid. I will come back to Caffé Nero every day until I have to leave for Tokyo, and even after I do, you can call me any time of the day or night. Your call is one I will never ignore."

"That would be an unreasonable imposition."

"Hey," said Kylie. "We don't impose on the ones we love. We only share."

Fatima covered her mouth and let a single tear crawl down her face. Kylie waited for a few long moments before she spoke again, her voice choked with emotion.

"You said love."

Kylie craned her neck over the table and planted a soft peck on her cheek where a teardrop had stilled.

"Who are you and how did you come into my life?"

"You saved me from deadly hospital cafeteria food once, or did you forget our meet-cute? Norah Ephron would have been proud."

"That day, Khalid's doctor had told me that he would never walk again. His spine was already damaged in the crash and had now atrophied to the point he would be paralysed from the waist down even if he woke up. I left the room, threw up and came down to the waiting room. Until that moment, all I wanted was for Khalid to wake up, but now if he did, I had to tell him that he would be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life."

She drank some coffee and took a brief pause to steady herself.

"In that moment, it dawned on me how alone I was. I made an instant decision that the first person I saw, I would help them and make them feel less alone. I needed the company, the distraction. A necessary distraction in helping someone else. I didn't know that I would be the one most in need of help."

They closed the gap slowly to the centre of the table and locked lips for a moment. A moment that went unnoticed by the scores of people around them too absorbed in their screen of choice, but a moment neither of them would forget.

"Thank you for choosing me."

"I've been thinking," said Fatima. "If Khalid wakes up-"

"Not if... when," interjected Kylie.

"... When Khalid wakes up. It will take a few months of physiotherapy and more surgeries before he is able to adjust to his new life and the wheelchair. After that, once he is settled and able to function on his own, I might leave New York."

"Really?"

"There's too much here that has bad memories for me. I need a fresh start. Somewhere entirely new. It will take me a few more months after to transition all my portfolios to my replacement, but it would happen."

"Where do you want to go?"

"I hear Tokyo's lovely all year."

"You want to move to Tokyo?"

"Why not?" she replied. "I'm a kick-ass investment banker. The Japanese have money and that money needs to be invested too. BlackRock has offices in Tokyo. It wouldn't be very hard to convince my superiors to transfer me."

"Is that all that you're moving for?" said Kylie coquettishly. "A fresh start."

"And a certain manga artist... sorry mangaka."

They shared a chuckle.

"I promise not to lose my temper at you again."

"I don't want that. I don't just want the good parts of you -- I want all of you. The good, the bad and the sexy. I want to see you cook. I want to fight over what we watch on Netflix and who we dress up as for AnimeCon. I want to hold your hand through earthquakes. I want to go shopping in Ginza, swimming in Okinawa and skiing in Hokkaido with you. I want to make fun of Michael Bay movies. I want to explore avant-garde theatre productions and modern art galleries. I want all of you, not just the good."

"I wish I knew what I've done to deserve you in my life, but thank you."

"You saw a stranger in a hospital cafeteria and wanted to comfort them. The universe owed you a karmic debt for that."

They had some more coffee, unable to take their eyes off each other.

"You don't need to wait 'til you're in Tokyo. I am planning to be stateside around Thanksgiving for a family reunion. It'll be in Nassau County, but I'm sure my family wouldn't mind if I came down to the city for a day or two in between."

"You serious?"

Kylie responded by leaning over the table again. Fatima closed her eyes and readied for a kiss, but at the last moment, Kylie moved her lips left and brought them to her ear.

"We'll need more bondage tape."

* *

EPILOGUE

"Am I speaking to Stuart Strand?"

"Yes."

"Hi. My name is Fatima Ozair and I'm from BlackRock Investments. Did you see the mail we sent you earlier today?"

"I did, though I didn't understand most of it."

"We saw your last three loan applications that were rejected. I did some checking up on your company, Mr Strand, and I have a proposal to make."

"Are you giving me a loan?"

"We don't do loans, Mr Strand. I'm offering you something much better -- an investment."

"An investment?"

"Yes. You give us a tiny slice of your company and we will give you all the money you need for expansion. The best part -- unlike a loan, you don't need to pay back an investment."

"This all seems too sudden. I need to think about it."

"I'll tell you what. Let me have some people in my team set up an exploratory meeting with you this week. You live in the Boston area, right?"

"Right."

"You can show us your expansion plans in detail. Your five and ten year goals and we can definitely help you with them. No hidden secrets. No surprises. All above board. No need to commit to anything."

"I'd be happy to do that."

"If you still have any doubts, Google the last company I invested in -- Schwarzmann Pharmaceuticals. They hit their five year growth targets in six months. I'd be happy to do the same for you."

"Why did you pick me?"

"Because I'm paid to know a good investment when I see it. Let's start with the meeting and then maybe a tour of your factory in Amherst. I have a good feeling you'll like what we have to say and we'll like what you have to show. I'll make all the red tape go away if you let me."

"Let's start with the meeting and take it from there."

"You got it, Mr Strand. I'll have my assistant contact you to set it up."

"Thank you so much for the opportunity."

"Not a problem. There is one more thing I need to tell you though. Something your cousin, Kylie, asked me to pass on."

"Kylie?"

"She said that Strands still look out for each other. Because J Fucking Henry taught them well."

* *