Part 11
“Hanketsu Part 11” Yuki Sembommatsu, edited by Louie
Kevin was in Akihabara with his father, his wife and Luna. They hired four cabs to put in the dresses that the two women had purchased at the cosplay store. Kevin was helping to load their purchases with two hardcore looking bodyguards in black tuxedos.
Suddenly, an angel dressed in a 60s era pink Playboy playmate costume complete with bunny ears, a bullet bra, black bow-tie and a cottontail on her perfectly shaped hanketsu ass, zipped by Kevin. She took out a pocket watch (where she kept it is still a mystery) and muttered to herself, “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” as if she were the White Rabbit in a soft-core porn version of the children’s classic Alice in Wonderland. Kevin chased her only to see her cottontail as it disappeared down a hole, what seemed to be a large rabbit-hole, in the center of the main street in Akihabara.
Kevin dove in and tumbled after her. He floated down weightlessly. Down down through darkness for a very long time. Suddenly he stopped floating and then, as if emerging from sleep, he rubbed his eyes and found himself in an airplane in a big, soft first-class seat preparing for takeoff.
The tinny voice from the cabin intercom emerged from the static and announced, “Thank you for choosing Angel Air. We will be departing Narita Airport momentarily. Please fasten your seat belt and return the tray to its upright position. Our estimated time of arrival at Los Angeles International Airport is approximately one hour and five minutes.”
“Only one hour and five minutes to cross the Pacific Ocean! There must be some mistake. That’s impossible!, he shouted and tried to get the attention of one of the flight attendants, who were running back and forth in a flurry of activity. They were all wearing 60s era uniforms in pink and orange with skirts so short you could see their cute little hanketsu if they bent over ever so slightly. On their heads they were wearing cute tiny pillbox hats to match their uniforms.
The plane took off. Kevin saw Tokyo Tower in the middle of the sprawling sea of jewels that were the bright neon lights of central Tokyo. The sign above him and the announcement over the intercom told him that seat belts were no longer required and he stood up to look around. Strangely he was the only passenger in first-class. He opened the thick black curtains that separated first-class from the rest of the passengers and was met with a wall. He was confused. How could this plane have only a first-class section and how could it even fly like that? And why, if he were the only passenger, were the angel flight attendants so busy?
“Here’s your drink sir”, the Angel Air flight attendant handed Kevin a glass of that familiar bubbling pink cocktail that he didn’t remember ordering. Kevin put his hand lightly on her arm and asked, “Can you explain what’s going on here? Why is the fight time from Tokyo to Los Angeles only an hour and five minutes, why am I the only passenger on the plane and why the hell are you guys so busy!” He could see the fear in her eyes and feel it in her body as his fingers were still on her arm.
The pink playmate angel with pink ears suddenly popped out of one of the overhead baggage compartments. This surprised both Kevin and the flight attendant and the flight attendant seized on the moment of confusion to escape.
Kevin shouted after her, “...and why am I going to Los Angeles?”
The White Rabbit was now sitting next to Kevin looking at her pocket watch and repeating “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” All seats were empty and strangely she chose the one right next to him.
Something about the whole scene before him was strangely familiar. He remembered a horror film he’d seen called “The Langoliers” which was based on the writing of Steven King. In the film most of the passengers on the plane disappeared and those who were left travelled in time and were, at the end, attacked by vicious monsters. One of the films he regretted watching.
The cabin intercom came to life, “Ladies and gentlemen, we have begun our descent into Los Angeles. Please turn off all portable electronic devices and stow them until we have arrived at the gate. In preparation for landing in Los Angeles, be certain your seat back is straight up and your seat belt is fastened. Please secure your carry-on items, stow your tray table, and pass any remaining service items and unwanted reading materials to the flight attendants. This is a recording. This tape, and this airplane, will destruct in five minutes. Good luck, Kevin and goodbye.” the standard arrival message said. Standard except for the surreal turn it took at the end. He looked down at his watch and exactly one hour and five minutes had elapsed since takeoff.
Suddenly the door opened and the White Rabbit jumped out followed by all the flight attendants in hot pursuit. The pilot and co-pilot dressed in white uniforms, who looked exactly like Luna’s mysterious bartenders/bodyguards/gardeners/massage-therapists, emerged from the cockpit and said, “Sir, you must go now because the plane will shortly dissolve into thin air.” They handed Kevin a parachute, gave him a salute and jumped out.
Kevin was frozen with fear. A strong wind rushed in and the plane began shaking violently. Suddenly he saw no other option but to jump into the immense blue sky. He fell as he had before down the rabbit-hole. He passed the flight attendants and rabbit who were holding hands in a circle like he’d seen sky divers do. Down, down, down he fell. The sky was blue, the air was warm and he was intoxicated by the weightlessness.
Kevin fell into a cloud and couldn’t see the angels and pilots anymore. As he emerged from the cloud he saw the familiar landscape of Los Angeles spread out under him. The parachute had never opened and he was just floating above the city as he had in previous out-of-body experiences. He passed, as if he were a ghost, through the roof of a a mansion with a swimming pool just outside Beverly Hills. He floated through the house and saw his teenage self in his room. There were his volumes of works by the Japanese novelist Yukio Mishima. He must have been around fourteen as that was when he was deeply into the bisexual novelist. Teenage Kevin was watching Mishima’s “Yukoku.” He devoured anything Japanese. He read novels, watched movies and anime to get closer to Japan as his dream was to eventually live in Japan.
Teen Kevin heard a noise from the swimming pool just outside his window but he kept watching the film mesmerised by the final hara-kiri scene. The noise outside began to get louder. He close the windows and drew the curtains and muttered to himself, “I can’t stand those stupid people!” As he watched himself he remembered how he hated his father for hanging around with bleach blond women with fake breasts. He never knew his birth mother as spent most of his time with their Filipino housekeeper and her son, who was the same age as he. Kevin became fluent in Tagalog.
He followed teen Kevin to the pool. There were about thirty men and women in and around the pool. His dad, now in the pool, had an actress on one arm and a fashion model on the other. He could see how teen Kevin despised his father’s actions.
Someone cued the disco music and eight of the angels, dressed in shimmering red metallic hanketsu swimsuits circled the pool in a Conga line and jumped, one by one, into the pool. When all were in the water they began to do an amazing synchronized swim routine. The spun under water with only one leg visible above the water. Seven of the angels threw one high into the air and it made the most complex and intricate gymnastic twists and turns. These moves became more and more complex. The ones who could see the angels clapped their hands and the others wondered what the were clapping for. Again Kevin wondered what made only some able to see the angels.
He noticed a beautiful woman with small, natural breasts exclain, “Oh, they’re so cute!” Which led him to believe that natural breasts had something to do with the ability to see them. Luna, who couldn’t see them and had fake breasts, correlated with his little theory.
The angels now became more artistic as their swimming made beautifully intricate drawings on the water’s surface. He’d never seen anything like it. Kevin’s dad burst into tears saying, “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life.” The bimbo now on his arm said, “Clark, what’s the matter with you? Are you going insane.” Not wanting to deal with it she swam away. Teen Kevin was amazed by his father’s sensitivity. He went into the pool fully clothes and held his dad saying, “Come on dad, you don’t have to cry like this.” as he patted his father’s back.
After their stunning performance, the angles sat by the poolside and spread their wings to dry in the warm California sun. Kevin, the floating Kevin, lay on the grass next to them and thought, “What a perfect day! It feels like paradise.” Just then the pink bunny girl forever in a hurry to get somewhere ran by him saying “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” and she dove into a rabbit-hole that appeared under a nearby hedge. He followed close behind and saw teen Kevin waving goodbye as he fell once again down, down, down the rabbit-hole.
He was pulled, once again, into a comfortable first-class seat on an airplane. “Welcome to Angel Airlines. We will be taking off from Los Angeles International Airport in ten minutes. The estimated time to our destination, Narita Airport in Tokyo, is one hour and five minutes. Please fasten your seat-belts for takeoff. Next to him was a playmate bunny reading a magazine her breasts spilling over the top of her revealing outfit. Kevin put on the headphones and began to watch the news.
There was Kentaro being interviewed for an entertainment news show from Korea. The interviewer said, “Kentaro, congratulations on your groups success in Korea. Can you tell us a little about yourself and your group for our audience?” The show cuts to a video of Kentaro’s group on stage. The large audience is clapping their hands and shouting “Kentaro! Kentaro!” Kentaro is doing his “hanketsu” dance. He spins around and bends to show his ass and everyone is raising their phones and taking photos. Kentaro shakes his ass for his fans. The show cuts back to Kentaro and the interviewer. “We’ve been having a wonderful time here in Korea. We love our fans here and the food and the country so much. The only think I really miss is my boyfriend.” A big round of applause comes from the audience. “Thank you all for watching. This has been Entertainment News from Korea.” the announcer says as the program concludes.
“Here’s your drink sir,” the flight attendant in a ultra skimpy uniform says as she hands Kevin a pink bubbly cocktail that he hadn’t ordered. She looked like Marilyn Monroe walking and flapping slightly wet wings.
