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1. The Way East

Zeke:

Well time sure had flown by those last few weeks from the party Matt and I had attended. We'd spent a lot of time together since then when we could, and talked online or on the phone when we couldn't get together. A few months ago I would have never seen my life going the way it was now and yet here I was actually happy and loved by someone. I was a nice feeling and something I hoped to continue feeling for as long as I could.

The day had finally come, the day when my dad and I would be traveling over the country and over the Pacific Ocean to reach Japan. My dad had been going there for years at random times, but over the last few years the company that hired him to install machines for him had set up a schedule where he could come and do it all during the summer months. I didn't know the reasons behind it or for that matter really care. All I cared about was going on a new adventure and seeing Japan again.

It was always nice to go there, it was warm and the weather was normally not to wet or humid. Crime was low and the sights were something to see; from the ancient temples and monuments, to the new age architectural wonders that were, at the time of their completion, a testament to the progress the country had gained over the past 100 years.

The only real problem with the whole place was that it was a bit of a prudish society when it came to Furs like me and my dad. We were accepted socially but individually it wasn't always positive. Not to mention the fact that Furs and humans didn't really interact that much and had their own divisions and towns. While anyone was allowed into any town or area, it wasn't normally met with the friendly open arms you'd want to be greeted with.

The last time I'd gone there I had to beat some sense into a group of punks that had tried to jump me, but like most punks they weren't much so I'd beaten them off easily. On the other hand though, one of them turned out to be the son of some businessman and he made a funk about it after I'd broken his kid's arm, but after surveillance videos showed that he was the one to attack me and I only acted in self-defense the case was dropped and no charges were filed against me. The bad news was though that because of my strength and ability I had to check in with the police there and submit fingerprints in case I ever did something like that again.

Well regardless I was packed, ready, and sitting in the airport waiting for our plane to be ready for boarding. I was sitting next to Matt with my carry-on bag next to me and my dad was off getting a drink at a bar nearby to help relax him for the journey ahead. We'd be flying all the way non-stop to California and then boarding another plane there to head to the Tokyo Airport in Japan. In total we would spend about 18 or so hours in the air and as much as I hated being in the air I wanted to hurry up and get on the plane to get it over with. Sooner we got on, sooner we would fly and then land, that's the way I saw it.

"So you sure you got everything for your trip? You want me to get someone to collect the mail and make sure the lawn is cut and all?" Matt was looking out the big windows they had and watched as some plane took off for some unknown destination. He had agreed to stop by our house to make sure everything was good until he went to camp, but I told him we had asked our neighbor to just collect our mail and we'd get it when we got back. This wasn't the first time we'd had to do this after all so my dad had a most of it planned already.

"Nah, you just be careful at that trainin' camp and all. Don't get hurt and when we get back we can go to the beach one night and enjoy the moon and stars, huh?"

"Sounds like a date, Z. I look forward to it."

It was kinda weird to be called by my initial like that, but since I didn't have anything that stood out on me that could be used as a nick-name I guess that just had to do for Matt. It wasn't much but it was something I guess.

I checked my watch again and sighed, it was getting close to time for us to board. As much as I looked forward to this trip each year, this year I was actually a bit melancholy about leaving. This was the first year that we'd actually had a steady home that we would be comin' back to, too. Not to mention the love interest I'd found here and could actually be myself around.

I looked over at Matt and nervously reached for his paw. I wasn't a big fan of public displays of affection, but I figured this small a gesture would be enough to comfort the both of us. I intertwined our fingers and looked at him with a smile. I had been so happy these last few weeks having a friend like him around who I could be more intimate with than I could another friend of mine (that one being Jarrod of course). Of course sex hadn't happened yet, I was still nervous about that and how he'd take to me being like that. Plus, call me old fashioned but I didn't want to just jump right into that so fast, I wanted to take my time and have a feel for things before we took that step, and I sorta wanted to wait until the right time. Yeah go ahead and call me feminine from that, but hey say it to my face and I'll have you choking down your shoelaces along with a couple of your teeth.

Anyway we sat there quietly for awhile waiting for the time to come when my dad finally came over looking calm and looking at his watch. It was almost 11 and our flight would be taking off around 12:30. That meant that we'd be getting on the plane any minute.

"You ready to go, Zeke? Said your goodbyes and hit the bathroom and all that?"

I sighed and rolled my eyes, "Yeah, dad, I'm not 6 anymore and I can actually hold it for more than 30 minutes now, I just went like 5 minutes ago anyway. Are we all set though; ready to head towards 'The Land of the Rising Sun'?"

"Yep, we're all set, got the passports, cell phones, all the stuff at home is taken care of, adapters, and I got my pills so I can sleep through the journey over the ocean. Ya' sure ya don't wanna take one, I know you don't like flyin' that much especially for as long as we're gonna be up in th' air."

"Ehh I hate takin' those things they make me groggy when I wake up and besides if I'm awake I can write, read, and play a game or something once we're stable in the air." I groaned unhappily. I really did hate flying but I'd be ok after awhile; just needed to get settled and try and relax. The take offs and landings were the worst and roughest parts normally and once you were in the air it smoothed out until you landed.

"Well ok, we'll be boarding soon so make sure you don't need anything from the stores here before we take off because we'll be in the air for awhile after all."

With that he sat down in a chair and I sighed as I saw the plane start to dock. Seeing that I just held Matt's paw a bit harder, I really didn't want to let go of it yet but I knew now was the time we'd have to say goodbye.

"Well... This is it..." A flight attendant went up to the reception desk and pinged the intercom before saying that they'd be boarding for California here in the next few minutes.

"That's us, Matt." I sighed again and stood up as first class was called to board and people started to head into the plane. "I hope you have a good time training and that everything goes ok with you.... Uhh... I'll miss ya." I felt really awkward for some reason at this and I had no idea why. I guess this being a first time thing for me made me unsure of what to really do in a situation like this.

"Oh for the love of...!" I looked back to see my dad stand up and pushed me into Matt. Thankfully he caught me before I could stumble and fall and I landed with my head into his chest. Matt was really strong and under the fur and clothes I could feel that he was pretty muscular and I liked feeling that on him. Right now though he had caught me in his strong arms and helped me stand back up from being pushed into him, and looking at him for a second I just brought him close to me and gave him a hug. For as cold as I was, feeling this kind of closeness with a person really was nice and I was already looking forward to being like this again when I would get back.

I looked up a bit into Matt's eyes, he was a few inches taller than me after all, and smiled. I couldn't seem soft so I turned and grabbed my bag before I looked back and gave Matt a smirk.

"I'll see ya in July, Slick, take care, and good luck."

He just shook his head and crossed his arms looking at me, "Always gotta be the tough guy, don't ya, man?"

I just held up a thumbs up and chuckled to myself, somehow parting like this somehow made it easier. I don't know why, but it just did and as me and my dad boarded I just thought about Matt and those thoughts just kept me happy through the take off and through a large part of the flight.

I won't bore you with the rest of the details of our trip. We flew for a few hours to California and landed and then ate a small dinner while we waited for our flight over seas. It was a long flight and took several hours, but thankfully I had fallen asleep somewhere over the ocean and by the time I woke up we were preparing to land in Tokyo. It had been a long, boring, and uneventful trip, which in a way was good, but I was glad to be there and to be starting a new adventure that would start me on a course in life I had never imagined.