.hack//LIMINALITY Fan Fiction / .hack//SIGN Fan Fiction ❯ .hack//CHECK ❯ Airport ( Chapter 23 )

Chapter 23 // Airport

. . .

"We will now review bill number10629358, which includes... What? Funding for project 'Swan'?"

"Yes! The project - ..."

"Senator Williams, you are aware that the funding was to be cut immediately. Attempting to sneak this in... I don't even know what to say about this. If you want the project to receive funding, then you will have to go through the proper channels."

"Now you see here! I didn't just - HEY!"

"Remove her from these proceedings."

"You can't do this!"

. . .

4 a.m. The surroundings are still and quiet. The occasional passerby or security guard provides small blurbs of noise. Even the janitors are nowhere to be found. The only shops open are the duty-free shop and Starbucks. In Starbucks, a lone figure sits on a stool, looking through the glass at the lack of traffic in O'Hare Airport. She nurses a small coffee, black, taking small sips every once in a while. "Ma'am, you'll either have to buy another coffee, or wait somewhere else...", said the employee on duty as he swept the floor next to the stool.

The Asian woman turned to look at the man, and she looked tired. She had black hair that seemed to have been hastily clipped by a blue, plastic hairpin in the back. She wore a loose-fitting, khaki-colored T-shirt with worn, loose-fitting jeans, and had a half-zipped, heavy, gray winter coat at her waist. Next to her stool, leaned a large piece of cardboard. She reached into the small purse dangling from her shoulder, and pulled out a ten dollar bill. "Okay, okay. Here, and please make sure it's stronger this time. I feel like I'm drinking hot water."

"#Ding, ding, Dong!# Flight 6535 from Seattle, Washington has arrived. Thank you.", announced the voice on the intercom.

The woman looked above the square at the flight-tracker. She then reached down, grabbed the cardboard, and put it in the window. The cardboard read:

DEACON STAN

in big, quickly written letters. "Here's your coffee, miss.", said the man as he handed her another small coffee. "And, here's your change..." He handed her a quarter which she then placed onto the counter in front of her.

Some minutes passed, and people began to walk past the Starbucks from the baggage claim. The young woman sat with her head in her arms, coffee going cold in front of her. A middle aged man stepped through the door, and said, "Oh, hello. I'm Deacon Bob Stan. You must be from the convention..." She looked up, and retrieved a permanent marker from her purse. She then grabbed the cardboard, flipped it around, made a mark on it, and put it back into the window. "Sorry. Mistake.", she said. The sign now read: DEACON / STAN. As the man walked out, another man walked in.

"Tiffany Izen?", inquired the man. Tiffany turned to look at the man. She found herself looking at a black man who appeared to be in his early twenties, like her. He was about six-five, and wearing a Phoenix Coyotes sweatshirt, a heavy-looking leather coat, and jeans. His hair was cut short, and he had a two-day stubble. He carried a backpack, a garment bag, and a duffel bag. "Er, did I get the wrong Starbucks? I could've sworn she said the east wing...", he began to look at his airport map.

"Jack Willows?", she responded.

"Yeah?", he said.

"You never said - ..." she began.

"Never came up.", said Jack.

"You know, I'm getting that answer a lot lately..." She smiled, still looking tired.

"Mind if I sit down?"

"Sure."

Jack sat in the stool next to Tiffany, reached into his backpack, and pulled out his laptop.

"Want a coffee?", asked Tiffany.

"Nah. I don't drink the stuff. Don't like the taste..."

"Hey, buddy! You gonna buy something?", asked the employee behind them.

"He gets really touchy if you don't buy anything...", said Tiffany as she took a sip of her now lukewarm coffee.

"Sure.", said Jack, "Whatever you have that doesn't taste like coffee."

"Sir, this is Starbucks, everything tastes like coffee."

"Okay... What tastes the least like coffee?"

"We sell a chocolate bar that kinda doesn't taste like coffee..."

"Fine, I'll take it. How much?"

"Five dollars."

Jack looked displeased. He glanced over at Tiffany. She stared ahead, shrugged her shoulders, and began to chug her small coffee. Jack paid the man. The man went to the counter, picked up a chocolate bar, and walked back to hand it to Jack.

"So, how long 'till Danny gets here?", asked Jack.

"His flight should be in by noon...", replied Tiffany.

"I see...", he turned on his laptop, broke a small piece of the chocolate bar off, and ate it. "Yuck. This is horrible... You want it?"

"Sure." Jack handed her the chocolate bar. To him, she looked half-sleep.

"So, I'm guessing you're not a morning person...", said Jack.

"God, I hate mornings...", she yawned. She took a bite of her chocolate bar.

"So, like, we wait here?"

"Yes."

"Hey! Are you two gonna buy something?", shouted the man.

Jack and Tiffany both looked at each other, then at the man. "Is McDonald's open?", asked Jack. Tiffany took a look at her watch. "Well, it's now after five o'clock. They should be...", replied Tiffany.

Jack powered-down his laptop, and put it back into his backpack. Tiffany grabbed the piece of cardboard. After Jack had gathered his bags, they both left Starbucks, and walked across the square to McDonald's.

. . .

9 a.m. People travel hurriedly through the airport as boarding calls are announced. Various squeaks and crashes accompany this rush. Tiffany and Jack sit on stools at the counter overlooking the traffic of the square. Tiffany's make-shift sign sits in the window.

"...So, you honestly believe your dog understands what you say?", asked Tiffany. She was more awake.

"Yes.", replied Jack as he typed on his keyboard, "He was pretty bummed out when he heard that he had to stay at my sister's place... He hates it there because she feeds him tofu dog food."

"Wow.", Tiffany just finished her coffee. "I'm gonna get another coffee. You want something?", she asked as she started to get up from the stool.

Jack looked slightly surprised. "That's the tenth coffee I've seen you drink. Don't you think you've had enough...?"

"Nah...", said Tiffany.

"Okay... Don't you get the jitters, though?", he asked.

"Nope. Nerves of steel.", she replied. She held her hand out. It was not moving.

Jack looked slightly perplexed. Tiffany walked back to the counter to order another coffee.

. . .

12:50 p.m. The airport is officially crowded. Tiffany finishes another coffee.

"That's thirty... You going for a world record?", mused Jack.

"Where is Danny?", asked Tiffany, "His flight landed about an hour ago..."

A man who appeared to be in his mid-twenties, wearing a 49ers coat ran into the McDonald's holding a briefcase, a duffel bag, and what appeared to be a bag for a laptop. He was slightly winded. His red hair peeked from beneath his Yankees baseball cap, and slightly obscured his brown eyes. Tiffany squinted as she looked at the man "Danny?", asked Tiffany.

"Tiff?", Danny replied.

"What happened to you?! Where have you been?", she asked.

"You said the east wing Starbucks!", he said, "I didn't find you there, so I searched the north, south, and west wing Starbucks!"

"Oh... Whoops...", said Tiffany.

"It wouldn't have been wise (or cost-effective) to stay,"said Jack as he powered down his laptop, "the guy there was being a jerk."

"Jack?", said Danny.

"Yeah?", Jack replied.

"It never came up...", interjected Tiffany.

"Oh... How's your vacation?", asked Danny.

"Well, so far, I've seen the scenic square just outside of this Mickey D's.", answered Jack.

Tiffany laughed. "Ready to go?", she asked.

. . .

They arrived at Tiffany's car. It was a black '99 Isuzu Rodeo. There was a slight discoloration on the back bumper.

"This is your car... Nice.", said Jack, "It's in pretty good condition for such an old car."

"Yeah. I've been keeping it in a parking garage for a long time. Public transit costs less than gas, you know.", she said. "It has some slight engine trouble, but runs well enough to use on occasion."

"I would imagine so...", said Danny. She unlocked the doors, and the two men loaded their bags into the back. They all got into the car.

"So, who wants to get something to eat?", asked Danny.

"Didn't you eat on the plane?", asked Jack.

"Nah. Costs extra.", Danny replied.

"Well, I haven't eaten since breakfast...", began Jack.

"Fine, fine... Where do you guys want to go for lunch?", asked Tiffany as she turned the key in the ignition.

"Know of any good pizza joints?", asked Danny and Jack at the same time.

"PIZZA!", replied Jack and Danny, hastily. They high-fived each other.