Prelude to the Second Weltkrieg - Part 6: Japan

Part 4

The first time the baby woke he and Masaki up, the mother rose to take her away, but Kazuhiro reached out to hold his wife's arm.

"Don't go."

"She's hungry. I need to feed her," Masaki said.

"Do it here."

"Are you sure?"

"I've seen everything Masaki," he grinned in the darkness.

"That's not what I was concerned about. I don't want to keep you awake."

"I'm awake."

"Ok."

In the darkness of the bedroom – the night cloudy and the only streetlight far away from their bedroom window – she watched the dark contours of his wife and the swaddled little infant. He sighed contentedly as the new mother stroked her child's soft head as they nursed.

"Your father offered me a job tonight," Kazuhiro mentioned.

Even in the dark he knew the look on Masaki's face. Surprise, concern, a little bit of frustration. They had never talked much about using her family's connections, but the few times it had come up Kazuhiro had received the clear impression she was hesitant to use them in any way. Kazuhiro had viewed their self-reliance as a sign of her father's faith in them. Masaki though, viewed their independence as something much more invaluable.

"Did you accept?" Her voice was surprisingly calm and neutral.

"I have a meeting with him and the Nakajima people tomorrow."

"I see," and Kazuhiro saw she wasn't mad or upset, but the possibility for both emotions was definitely there.

"It would mean more money, more opportunities for the future."

"We are doing just fine," a thin edge appeared in her reply as the baby shuffled and coughed a bit.

"For now, yes. But if she's just the first of many..."

"You could ask Mr. Sojiro for a raise."

Kazuhiro was the most experienced pilot at Kyushu Air, and a raise wasn't out of the question, but right then Kazuhiro didn't want to talk about a raise. He wanted to consider the opportunities. "He already gave me a raise when we were married."

"That was two years ago."

"I'm just saying Masaki, I could make much more, and do more important work. I could be a part of Nakajima for the long term, just like your father."

"Yes," her voice turned to steel in a word. "Just like my father."

"I don't have to take it," Kazuhiro immediately retreated, even though he didn't want to.

Masaki didn't immediately reply, instead she lifted the baby up and began to pat its back. The tiny burp that emerged set Kazuhiro's heart at ease. It did not work the same wonder on Masaki.

"Go to the meeting. See what they say. It is an opportunity." Then, before Kazuhiro could reply at all, she concluded, "I need to change her now too. Go back to sleep."

She slipped out of the room quickly, and Kazuhiro felt the happiness he'd been building all day slowly drain out of him. So too did his remaining energy. He was asleep when she returned, and he didn't wake the second time the baby did.