Mao started touching Tessa all over, pinching at her waist and butt. “Yeah, I think it’s just your chest. And just from a little rubbing on my part...”
Mao always got a little touchy-feely with Tessa when she got drunk—though she hadn’t gotten drunk in a while lately.
“I think the idea that rubbing makes them bigger is an urban legend,” said Tessa.
“Oh, is it?”
“Not that I would know. But, oh... my mother was quite large in that regard, so it’s possible I’m a late bloomer.”
“A late bloomer?” echoed Mao.
“So it might just work out after all. Hee hee hee...” said Tessa, giggling easily.
She had been like this all the time lately. It was as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, a rebound effect from the heavy burden she’d carried during the last three years while serving as a submarine and battle group commander. Even during the brief stint in which she’d attended high school in Tokyo, she’d come off as more mature than she did now.
“But getting back to the subject at hand,” said Tessa, “what do we do about my luggage?”
“Right, forgot about that. Let’s see...” Mao was immediately at a loss again. “Honestly... you’ve just got too much you don’t need. Stop talking nonsense about some 3D scanner and use your head. You know, the ordinary way.”
“Grr...”
“Think like a soldier on a recon mission,” she advised. “Do you really need all these shoes? Just take the bare minimum. And cooking utensils? Don’t be stupid. And the only spice you need is curry powder. After all—” Mao cut off there. She scowled and turned her eyes down, breathing strangely, then stumbled out of the room.
“Melissa?”
“Sorry, just a minute,” she called back. “It’s here again.”
“D-Do you want me to rub your back?” asked Tessa.
“No, I’m okay. Geh...” said Mao, rushing straight for the bathroom. The door slammed, followed by the sound of retching from within.
Tessa waited five minutes, then heard the sound of the toilet flushing before the exhausted looking Mao reappeared.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah. Well, I guess I’m not, actually... But I’m okay,” said Mao, staggering back to the sofa.
“Morning sickness is pretty rough, huh?”
“I hear it’s different for different people, but I guess I get it pretty badly.” Mao threw herself onto the sofa and took halting breaths. Her pregnancy was still in its first trimester, so there hadn’t been many changes to her body just yet. She looked more or less like she always did during a bad hangover. But behind all the suffering, she seemed vaguely giddy.
Does she still have some innocence left in her? Tessa wondered.
“Ah, but it really pisses me off,” said Mao. “Why did that bastard father have to go flying all around the world and leave me in this predicament?”
“It’s not as if Kurz-san is just playing around,” Tessa pointed out, “and he’ll be back in New York in two days, right?”
“That’s the plan, but... I’m really gonna work him like a slave when he gets back. Urk.”
“Do you want something to drink? Maybe tomato juice?”
“I am pretty thirsty... but not right now, I don’t think.” Mao was limp on the sofa, so Tessa put a cushion under her head and gently laid a blanket on top of her.
“Then let’s think about fun things,” said Tessa, “like names for the baby.”
“Hmm. Names...”
“What if it’s a boy?”
“Hmmm... maybe Gail, or Ed?” Mao mused.
“And if it’s a girl?”
“Eva.”
“All names of dead comrades?” observed Tessa. “That’s a bit depressing.”
“I guess. There are so many of them, makes it hard to narrow it down to one,” Mao admitted. “And I don’t think they’d want me to name a kid after them out of some weird sense of duty, either. Maybe I should open up my options.” She buried her face in the cushion and began mumbling out a variety of names.
“Let’s try again. What if it’s a boy?”
“I can’t think of anything,” said Mao. “Maybe something like John?”
“Too ordinary. It’s no fun.”
“It’s okay if we’re just spitballing. We still have six months to decide.”
“Then what if it’s a girl?” Tessa asked again.
“Hmm... What about Clara?”
“Oh, that one is good. I should write that down.” Tessa wrote the name ‘Clara’ down on her left hand with a finger, as if to take notes in her mind.
“What, really?” Mao asked. “It doesn’t sound weak?”
“Of course not. It sounds cute.”
“Fine. I’m gonna sleep now. Cut your own luggage down, would you?” Mao pulled the blanket up to her chin and gave a short cough.
“All right. I’ll do my best.”
“I already sent the package, too. Make sure you accept it when you arrive there, okay?”
“I should be able to,” Tessa told her. “Don’t worry.”
“I wish I could go along with you... but, you know. Sorry.”
“Think nothing of it. It’s a personal matter, after all.”
“I still can’t help but worry,” said Mao. “You’re not used to traveling alone, are you?”
Tessa intended to travel to her destination on her own. Mao had debilitating morning sickness, and Kurz was already traveling all around with preparations to start up his new business. Mao tried to insist that she take another of their former allies along to protect her, but Tessa was tired of relying on the kindness of others, so she was determined to go by herself.
Her destination was the South Pacific—Lantanfushi Island, in the Republic of San Jorge. Tessa had prepared a little insurance before her departure, but if she still couldn’t keep out of danger... she’d deal with it then. She felt completely indifferent about it.
“I’ll be fine,” she said. “Take care of yourself, Melissa.”
“Thanks. I’ll still worry, though.”
“I told you, I’ll be fine. Don’t cry.” Tessa stroked Mao’s hair gently as tears filled the other woman’s eyes.
“Maybe it’s because I’m pregnant, but I’ve been so emotional lately...”
“Of course you have,” Tessa agreed. “And I love you this way, too.”
“There’s nothing lovable about it,” Mao sobbed. “I’m not good at anything but fighting. If I’m a weak, whiny mess, I’ve got nothing left...” She really did sound timid, even though something wonderful was happening.
Tessa felt bad for Mao, yet at the same time, found her very amusing this way.
After one day and two connections away from John F. Kennedy Airport, Tessa arrived halfway around the world, in the city of Sasbona, San Jorge. The airfield was larger than she’d expected, with lots of people coming and going.
“I’m exhausted,” she groaned. She’d spent most of her trip in business class, but for some reason, Tessa still felt very tired. She’d grown accustomed to the roar of military transport helicopters and planes, so the relative quiet of civilian craft somehow made her anxious.