Matt silently looked at the girl sitting across from him in the booth. The restaurant was almost vacant except for three other people besides Matt and this girl. His eyes moved from her intense stare to the street filled with strangers outside the window. The world outside was dark; the nightlife was in full swing. A paper cup blew with the wind, rolling down the empty street, a road leading nowhere. All the suddenly, Matt wished he did not agree to meet this woman. On the telephone her voice was so urgent, her demand to see him so great that he felt obligate to meet her. He closed his eyes, wishing he could undue so many wrong choices that but him in the present circumstances.
"Matt?" The girl leaned across the table to cover his hand with her own. Matt remain silent. "Matt, I understand how you are feeling," She said slowly, "I know exactly how shocking this is right now. I went through the same thing when I found out the results. I had to tell you though…" The girl sighed and leaned back in her seat. She grabbed the ends of her long dark hair to twist around her finger idly as she watched the boy in front of her. That is all he really was, just a boy and here she is giving him very grown up news. "You have every right to know. '' She continued to stare at Matt, waiting for him to say something, anything then just sit there with that unemotional expression upon his handsome face. "I know what I'm going to do, Matt. I thought about it, I have lost sleep over this Matt. I spent weeks thinking about this, nothing else but this and I know I cannot keep it. I do not want it. I cannot raise it, you understand. Not only can it ruin my life but also I cannot give it a good life. I had no business to be with you. Our ages…well you now what people are like. Besides, I don't love you. I know you don't love me. What we had, it was a mistake and we both are aware of it. Isn't that why you stop coming to visit? '' Still the boy said nothing. The young woman sighed before going on, "I can't give it the life a child needs to brace itself against this world. Do you see those people out there?" She pointed to the fine clothed executives as they rushed to their late dinner parties. Matt glare followed her out stretched finger, "Those people are going somewhere with their lives, Matt. So am I but I can't do it with a kid tagging behind me."
"You're going to abort it then?" Matt barely whispered when he turned to the girl.
"No," She said slowly. "I'll have it but I am getting rid of it as soon as I can. That is…" She looked at him careful. "I mean you are the father Matt. I don't want this child in my life but if you want to…"
"You're just going to forget it then?" Matt titled his head, "Just like that?"
"This isn't something someone can just forget every happen," She shook her head slowly.
"But you don't anything to do with this child's life?" Matt asked.
"Isn't it for the best?" She asked him. "If a woman knows she won't make a good mother, doesn't she get credit for giving it to someone that might give it the love it needs?" She stood up, collecting her purse and slipping the strap over her shoulder. "You have my number, Hun. You have seven months to think about if you want to be a dad at seventeen. If I do not hear from you, I will assume you agree with me. Nevertheless, if you do want it, just call. I am doing everything by the book with this child, I'm not going to hurt it but I am not keeping it." She leaned down and gave Matt a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving him to sit alone in the quite restaurant.
"Your late," Mr. Ishida barely looked up as his oldest son walked through the door. "Not a little late, not even an hour late but severely late."
"Sorry," Matt mumbled, unloading his books onto the table beside the door.
"That's it? Sorry?" Hiroaki glanced up from his work to look at his son. "Where were you?"
"Just out," Matt shrugged.
"Where?"
"Out," Matt sat down across from his father, "I just lost track of time, that's all."
"Matt it's two in the morning. How the hell could you just lose track of time like that?" Hiroaki watched his son as he stared at the floorboards in the apartment. "You okay?"
"Yeah." Matt said quickly.
"You sure?" Hiroaki asked again.
"Yeah I'm fine." Matt watched from the corner of his eye as his father turned back to his business work.
"Something you want to tell me?" Hiroaki asked, not even looking up.
"No."
"You know I am going to ground you for this," Hiroaki asked.
"I imagined you would."
"Did you now?" Hiroaki sighed and dropped his pen to rub his eyes. "Go to bed."
"Sorry…"
"Matt, you have a cell phone."
"I know."
"You do know how to use it, right?"
"Dad…" Matt looked up from the floorboard.
"What am I suppose to think? You never use the bloody thing; I don't even know why I got it for you!"
"I..didn't charge it." Matt shrugged.
"No but I did."
"Oh…"
Hiroaki watched his son for a moment. He wasn't mad at Matt, just furious that he did not bother to call. He had no idea where his son was, if he was safe or if he was hurt. "Go to bed, you are still going to school tomorrow and I don't want you late. Tomorrow you can call your band and tell them the bad news about how you have to cancel practice…"
"Dad…"
"Then you can call Tai and the group to tell them you can't go out on Fridays as you normally would…."
"Why can't I practice?"
"You can, just not for three weeks."
"Three weeks? You grounded me less when I accidentally broke your windshield!"
"I can make it four weeks if you'd like."
"No…" Matt sighed leaving his chair, dragging his feet to his room.
"Did you eat?" Hiroaki yelled before Matt could reach his room.
"Yeah." Matt yelled back before shutting the door. He climbed into bed, not bothering to change. He felt exhausted, yet unable sleep.