It was a good thing that the young man named John Smith had been an affable and handsome amnesiac. The staff and other residents at Lethe were as familiar with John's story as he was, which, at first, wasn't very informative. Once his memories had returned - or mostly returned, at least - 'John Smith' had become Kai Mahuta. He continued to be popular, so when Markus asked for John and described his story, the woman behind the front desk knew exactly whom he was seeking.
She just wanted to be certain that the visitor's intentions were not nefarious. That was the phrase she used when she found Kai, who wore shorts, a necklace with a shell pendant, a bracelet made of little beads and shells, and nothing else. The woman knew that if he could, Kai wouldn't wear clothing at all, which would have been exceedingly distracting and be considered indecent exposure.
He was doing push-ups in the main area. A few of the other residents were sitting in the provided chairs, some working on a puzzle at a long table, some reading. Several of them were watching Kai; there may have been drool involved. The woman shook her head and said, “Kai, you have a visitor.” Her voice dropped to a stage whisper. “I wanted to make sure his intentions were not nefarious.”
Kai stopped doing push-ups and stood, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. His skin had a sheen of sweat which accentuated his muscles. He smiled at the woman and thanked her before heading toward the main entrance.
A man with red hair was sitting in one of the uncomfortable chairs made of molded plastic, similar in design to the chairs used in schools everywhere. He was dragging his index finger repeatedly across the small screen. Kai recognized him and his smile widened.
Pausing just inside the room, he said, “Markus!”
She just wanted to be certain that the visitor's intentions were not nefarious. That was the phrase she used when she found Kai, who wore shorts, a necklace with a shell pendant, a bracelet made of little beads and shells, and nothing else. The woman knew that if he could, Kai wouldn't wear clothing at all, which would have been exceedingly distracting and be considered indecent exposure.
He was doing push-ups in the main area. A few of the other residents were sitting in the provided chairs, some working on a puzzle at a long table, some reading. Several of them were watching Kai; there may have been drool involved. The woman shook her head and said, “Kai, you have a visitor.” Her voice dropped to a stage whisper. “I wanted to make sure his intentions were not nefarious.”
Kai stopped doing push-ups and stood, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. His skin had a sheen of sweat which accentuated his muscles. He smiled at the woman and thanked her before heading toward the main entrance.
A man with red hair was sitting in one of the uncomfortable chairs made of molded plastic, similar in design to the chairs used in schools everywhere. He was dragging his index finger repeatedly across the small screen. Kai recognized him and his smile widened.
Pausing just inside the room, he said, “Markus!”