The Emergency

It was cold outside at one in the morning, but Rika refused to say anything. As grumpy as her husband was, if he knew she was freezing her ass off, he would probably tell her she deserved every moment of it. Without speaking a word, Shin slammed the car door with a force that shook the car, and laid his head against the steering wheel. He took a few deep and steady breaths. Rika remained silent.

Finally, Shin spoke. “Rika, I hope you know that I love you. Because I would have murdered any other woman by now.”

With a huff, Rika reached for the keys, only to have Shin grip them tighter in his hand. She leaned back against her seat, fuming to herself. “I told you I was sorry,” she grumbled. “If you would just let me have the keys to the car, we wouldn’t be going through this.” Secretly, she wished he would just start the car so they could get this whole situation over with. She regretted even mentioning her problem to Shin. Had that only been thirty minutes ago?

“There are a number of reasons dragging me out of bed in the middle of the night is excusable.” Shin continued, ignoring her requests, but still keeping a firm grip on the keys. “For instance, had you been in labor, I would have been more than happy to take you to the hospital. However, considering we have another eight months before that happy date, it’s unlikely. Excuses such as “I need tampons”, however embarrassing it might be, can be handled as well. But,” Shin raised his head from the steering wheel and gave his wife a sleepy, yet annoyed, glare. “Dragging me from my warm bed at one thirty in the morning for a fan is not something I appreciate.”

“It’s too quiet in the apartment!” Rika snapped, feeling offended. “If you would just let me go by myself -” She made a dive for the keys again. One hand pushed her back into the seat.

“As if I am going to let my nineteen year old pregnant wife go to the ghetto Wal-Mart after midnight.” Shin grumbled back. “I don’t even like to be there after dark. There is no way in hell I am letting you go by yourself.” He started the car. “Let’s just get this over with, shall we?”

Neither husband nor wife spoke to each other as Shin drove the few miles to the nearest Wal-Mart. Rika scrunched up in her seat and folded her arms across her chest like a little girl. She realized she was being immature about the whole situation, but by God her husband could be stubborn.

The closest Wal-Mart was just off I-240 and Santa Fe, a neighborhood that wasn’t known for being the safest in the world after dark. Rika had to admit the place made her a little nervous, and she checked her surroundings as they made their way across the parking lot. Although Rika had made a fuss about Shin being there, she really did appreciate that he cared about to make sure she was safe. Then again, she was his wife.

The Wal-Mart had a little cluster of cars in the parking lot, and three cops standing outside. They nodded toward the couple as they entered the doors, and continued with their conversation. It was not the first time Rika had not envied cops or security guards. They could not pay her enough to do their jobs.

Not fifteen feet into the store, an old man stopped them. He was dressed as though he had spent many nights sleeping on the sidewalk, and gave off that distinct smell of too much body odor, dirt, and other various unpleasant things. He shuffled up to Rika, his eyes wide and he pointed a finger at her.

“Do you have the time?” he asked in a raspy voice.

She blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“Time?” The man pointed at his wrist, and shuffled his feet once again. Rika couldn’t help but notice the man had yet to meet her eyes. “Time. Time. Time?”

“It is one forty-five in the morning,” She answered for her as he stuffed his cell phone back into his pocket. One hand went around Rika’s wrist in a protective manner and he all but dragged Rika away toward the hardware department. He shook his head in wonder. “Sometimes I worry about humanity.”

Rika frowned. “He wasn’t hurting anyone! All he wanted was the time.”

“Rika, he was staring at your breasts the entire conversation.” Shin was on the borderline of being seriously pissed off now. He glared at the hardware department, and pointed down the isle. “Now, go down that isle and pick out your fan. The sooner we can get out of this hell hole, the better I will feel.”

She had to giggle. “Do you hate the store that much?”

Shin stopped in his tracks and gave her a look. “You are finding this funny, aren’t you?”

She composed a straight face. “Of course not.”

“Liar.”

“Is that anyway to treat your pregnant wife!” Rika exclaimed, deciding to put on a show. No one around here gave a damn, and she could afford to be dramatic. Besides, it would see if her acting skills were still up to par.

They were. Shin’s face broke into one of slight concern, although he rolled his eyes. “Is this some pregnant hormone thing? One minute you can not sleep, the next you’re pissed at me for not wanting to be here past midnight, then you are all nice to the homeless man who is in serious need of a bath . .” He sighed. “Will I be able to put up with this for nine months?”

It took Rika a few moments to realize Shin had caught on to her act, and was joking back. “Oh be quiet,” she said, poking him in the side. Shin just grunted. She grabbed his hand and dragged him down the isles with the fans. . Only to stop dead.

There were no fans. Only heaters.

She swallowed. Shin looked highly annoyed. “Tell me the fans are on another isle?” he said through clenched teeth. “Tell me I did not leave my bed to come here only to find there are no fans?” He turned to catch an employee, and quizzed her on the whereabouts of the fans. The worker looked a little peeved, and informed Shin they no longer sold fans. This was winter.

Shin’s death glare hit Rika, and she felt her stomach drop. She swallowed, and made her way down the isle, determined to find something that would work. A heater could work overnight, couldn’t it?

He seemed to read her thoughts. “I don’t think we should risk it. I doubt we want to explain to the managers why we accidentally burned down their apartments.” He sighed. “I guess we could try the one in Moore. It’s the next closest Wal-Mart, and that one has never failed us when we needed something. . .” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ichijouji Rika, I swear.”

The Wal-Mart in Moore was considerably less crowded than the one on Santa Fe, and it made Rika less nervous. Shin was obviously in no mood to joke around anymore, and he all but dragged his wife through the store to the hardware department. “If there are no fans here,” he growled in his best menacing tone “We are going home. You can survive one night in complete silence. You managed it a month ago.”

Rika blushed. “A month ago I wasn’t pregnant. I had things to distract me from the silence.”

Shin just stared at her.

With a sigh, Rika started down the isle again, her heart sinking to find there were only heaters. But wait! Toward the very back of the isle, in the clearance section there was . . A fan.

After everything she had put her husband through tonight, Rika decided that $11.95 wasn’t a bad price for a box fan, especially if it would cover up the noise of the traffic behind their apartment. Shin sighed in relief as she came back to him, holding her holy grail in her hands with a giant smile. “See,” she said brightly, more perky than she felt. “Not all Wal-Marts are so bad.”

“Just pay for it, Rika.”

Twenty minutes later, they were back home, and Shin helped her set up the fan across from the bed. He sighed as his body hit the mattress. A look at the clock told Rika it was almost three thirty, and she snuggled into her husband. He placed a sleepy kiss on her forehead, and mouthed “I love you” into her hair.

They lay there in silence, with the new fan blowing steadily behind them. But something was bothering Rika. Something she couldn’t ignore. Not even for this evening. With a sigh, she pulled herself away from Shin and tip-toed to the closet. Shin’s voice came from the bed. “What are you doing now?”

“It’s too bright in here. We really should have bought some curtains while we were at Wal-Mart.”