Saturday morning sunlight slipped through my window, and the first thing I heard was Lavender knocking over my manga stack.
"Hey!" I yelped, sitting up. She'd perched on the desk, one paw on One Piece volume 12, like she was claiming it. "That's Tao's favorite—don't ruin it."
She blinked, then curled up on the comics. Typical cat move.
Mia banged on my door five minutes later. "Jax! Tao's here! He's holding a mango—said it's for us!"
I scrambled out of bed, grabbing a hoodie. Tao was on the patio, holding a mango so big it almost covered his hand, grinning.
"Found it at the market this morning," he said, holding it out. "Vendor said it's 'honey mango'—sweetest kind."
Mia practically tackled him. "Can we eat it now? Or make mango ice cream? Or both?"
Mom laughed from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. "Both. But first, let the boys look at their manga. Tao, you want iced tea?"
Tao nodded, following me upstairs. My room still smelled like jasmine—Mom had put a small bouquet on my desk—and Lavender was still on the manga stack, eyeing Tao like he was a threat.
"Sorry about the cat," I said, moving her to the bed. "She thinks my comics are hers."
Tao waved it off, leaning in to look at the shelf. "Whoa—you have Naruto volume 27? I've been trying to find that for months!"
I grinned, pulling it down. "Dad got it for me in Tokyo. The fight scene with Sasuke is crazy."
He sat on the floor, flipping through the pages so fast his fingers blurred. "No way—you have the limited edition cover? Mine's just the regular one."
Lavender jumped into his lap, purring. Tao froze for a second, then laughed, scratching her chin. "She's actually pretty cool. My mom won't let me get a cat—says I'll forget to feed it."
"I forget sometimes," I admitted. "Mia has to remind me. She says Lavender's 'her second child.'"
We spent an hour talking manga—Tao ranted about the latest One Piece chapter, I complained about how long it took for new volumes to come out in Thai—before Mia yelled up the stairs.
"Mango time! Mom says we need to peel it!"
Tao and I raced down, and Mom handed us each a peeler. The mango was soft, its skin peeling off in big strips, juice dripping down our wrists.
"Lick it!" Mia said, holding up her sticky hand. "It's like candy!"
Tao laughed, licking his wrist. "She's right—this is way better than the ones at school."
Mom cut the mango into chunks, putting some in a bowl for us and setting aside a handful for the ice cream maker. "Lila texted—she's meeting us at the mango stand in an hour. Said they have fresh mango sticky rice today."
Mia cheered, shoving a mango chunk in her mouth. "Yes! I'm gonna get two bowls. One for me, one for Aom—she's meeting us too!"
Tao wiped mango juice from his chin. "Aom's coming? She knows all the best snack stalls near the market. Last week she showed me a place that sells coconut ice cream in bamboo cups."
I grabbed a napkin, dabbing my wrist. "Nice. I've been wanting to try that."
We left an hour later, Mia bouncing ahead with her elephant keychain swinging, Aom joining us halfway. She was holding a small bag of lotus seeds, offering them to everyone.
"Grandma made these," she said, handing me a seed. "Roasted—they're crunchy."
I popped it in my mouth. It tasted like nuts, with a hint of sweet. "These are good. Mom would love these."
Aom smiled. "I'll bring her some next time. She's always nice when I see her."
The mango stand was busy, but Lila was already there, waving us over. The vendor—an old man with a white beard—grinned when he saw Mia.
"Little mango lover!" he said, in Thai. Aom translated, laughing. "He remembers you from last week—you bought three mangoes."
Mia blushed. "They were good! Can I get a honey mango? And two bowls of sticky rice?"
We all got mangoes—Tao got a green one, said he liked them "sour and crunchy"—and sat on a bench under a tree to eat. The sticky rice was warm, covered in coconut sauce, and the mango melted in my mouth.
Lila pointed to a stall across the street. "They sell satay there—best in the market. My dad says the vendor uses a secret peanut sauce."
Tao stood up, wiping his hands. "Let's go! I'm starving. Jax, you in?"
I nodded, standing. Mia and Aom followed, chatting about elephant stickers. As we walked, I passed a small stall selling carved wooden jewelry—lotus necklaces, elephant bracelets.
One necklace caught my eye: a tiny ivory lotus, almost identical to the carvings on my box. My pocket felt warm—the ivory box was in my backpack, I'd brought it to show Aom (just in case).
"Hey, look at this," I said, pointing to the necklace. Aom leaned over, her eyes widening.
"That's just like your box," she said, quiet. The vendor smiled, holding the necklace out.
"Lotus," he said, in broken English. "Good luck. New start."
I thought about Aom's grandma's story, about the box warming up when I touched the bookmark. I reached into my backpack, pulling out the box.
The vendor's eyes went wide. He touched the box gently, then nodded. "Old. Very old. Good luck for you."
Tao leaned over, curious. "What's that? A jewelry box?"
I nodded, tucking it back. "Found it in my yard. Just… old."
Lila grinned. "Old stuff is cool. My grandma has a old fan that belonged to her mom—she says it's magic."
We laughed, walking to the satay stall. The vendor handed us skewers of chicken, covered in thick peanut sauce. It was spicy, sweet, perfect—Tao ate three in two minutes.
"Best satay ever," he said, mouth full. "We need to come here every weekend."
Mia nodded, her face covered in peanut sauce. "Yes! And get mango sticky rice. And coconut ice cream. And—"
"Slow down," Mom said, walking over with Dad. She'd joined us after finishing her errands. "You'll get a stomachache."
Dad laughed, handing us each a coconut ice cream in a bamboo cup. "Vendor said these are new. Try it—they're cold."
The ice cream was creamy, with bits of coconut, and the bamboo cup smelled like wood. Mia moaned, taking a big bite. "This is better than Tokyo ice cream!"
We sat there for an hour, eating, laughing, talking about school. Tao told us about his soccer game next week, Lila ranted about her math test, Aom showed us photos of her grandma's garden.
When it was time to go, Tao clapped me on the shoulder. "Tomorrow? Can I come over to read that Naruto volume? My mom said it's okay."
I nodded. "Sure. Bring your One Piece volume 18—I haven't read that one."
Aom smiled. "I'll come too! I can bring more lotus seeds for your mom."
Mia cheered. "Yes! We can make mango smoothies. Mom has a blender."
On the walk home, Mia held my hand, chattering about the day. Lavender walked beside us, her tail high, and Dad carried the leftover mangoes.
I thought about the box in my backpack, about the lotus necklace, about my new friends. Making friends had been easier than I thought—talking about manga, eating mangoes, laughing at Mia's peanut sauce face.
That night, I sat at my desk, the ivory box next to me. I pulled out the lotus bookmark, touching it to the box. It warmed up, soft and gentle, like a hug.
Lavender jumped onto the desk, curling up next to the box. I smiled, flipping through Naruto volume 27.
Tomorrow, Tao would come over. We'd read manga, eat mango smoothies, talk about Luffy and Sasuke.
This was what it felt like to belong—to have friends who liked the same things, who laughed at your jokes, who wanted to hang out just because.
I closed the manga, setting it on the desk. Outside, the mango tree swayed in the night breeze, and the moon shone bright.
For the first time since moving to Chiang Mai, I didn't miss Tokyo.
Because this—my family, my friends, Lavender, the old box with its lotus carvings—was home.
And home felt pretty great.
Chapter 16 — High energy begins!
One blink, one mistake… and Jax wakes up in ancient China.
A new world, new faces, and a destiny waiting to unfold.
From Chapter 16 onward — all gas, no brakes. Full energy till the end! 🔥