Prodigy Eternal (book 2)

Chapter Two

Alex remained at the rear of the subway platform until the train arrived. As it came rushing into the underground station, a gust of whirling wind peeled back her loosely fitted hijab. Alex quickly clamped down on the silky fabric and repositioned it over her face. The train came to a stop and the doors split open, allowing boarded passengers to spill out. She approached the train, but stood off to the side. Unbeknownst to Alex, a man had spotted her and approached her from behind.

“Excuse me, miss, don’t I know you from somewhere?” a voice spoke softly in her ear.

Alex’s heart pounded as she turned around to see who it was.

“Aris, quit messing around!” she whispered before playfully hitting him on the arm. “Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“I’m not sure who this ‘Aris’ is that you speak of, my name is Toshi, remember?” Aris said.

“Yes, Toshi. I’ve confused you with someone else, please accept my sincerest apologies,” she bantered back.

“I had you going, didn’t I?” Aris said, relishing in his own amusement.

“That’s not funny, you know. You scared me.”

“I’m sorry, Aoki, I won’t do it again.”

“Thank you, Toshi.”

The Shinjuku station was one of the busiest in all of Tokyo, so they did not expect to find seats. Alex and Aris boarded the train together and crammed in with the other passengers. They shuffled into position and reached overhead to grab onto a hanging triangular handle for support, not that it mattered much anyway. The train was packed so tightly with people it would be impossible to fall over.

As the train began to move, Alex observed a man with an ancient Japanese character tattooed on the back of his neck. Aris saw what Alex was looking at and made a comment.

“Ever think about getting a tattoo?” he asked.

“No, you?”

“I’ve considered it, but I’m too afraid of lasers.”

“Wuss.”

“Speaking of wusses, did you see our friend on the news?”

“Yeah, I saw it.”

“It’s funny, sometimes I forget… you know, who you are, and it’s weird to see you—“

“I get what you’re saying,” Alex interrupted, “let’s save this conversation for later, shall we?”

“You know, a tattoo may solve a lot of your problems,” Aris said.

“What do you mean?”

“Think about it, you could get a giant eagle or something tattooed across your face. It’d be the ultimate disguise!”

“Toshi, I love your unorthodox approach to problem solving, really, but don’t you think having a giant eagle tattoo on my face would actually draw more attention to me?”

“Alright, so that idea’s a throwaway,” Aris said, “but it’s a lot less permanent than what you’re planning on doing.”

“We came all the way across the world for this; you’re not having second thoughts are you?”

“No, of course not. Are you?”

Alex took a moment to answer. “You know, I was almost spotted again today.”

“All your troubles will be over soon, my friend.”

“I hope so,” Alex said, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a small object.