I feel a gentle touch on my shoulder.
“Noah, you asked me to wake you,” a voice says softly.
I blink and my eyes start to focus. Why do I have so few eyes? I glance around. Right. I’m on an airplane.
“Noah?”
“Yeah, I’m awake. Thanks, Cindy.”
I hurry through my quick read and get my brain back together. That sleeping trick that Louise worked out was fantastic. I slept so well. It usually takes me a while to get down, but that knocked me right out. I might make that part of my regular routine. I hit the bathroom and drain my bladder, wash up, and quietly get back to my seat in the main cabin.
Most of the sibs are asleep, as is Valerie. The rest are doing quiet activities. Jen has one of the old paperback books from the plane’s bedroom, Lisa is nodding along to whatever is in her headphones, and Louise is reading something on her tablet. We’ve got about an hour left on the flight, so it’s almost time to go over the refresher for Vietnam with everyone. I consider asking Cindy for a snack, but my index reminds me that the street food where we’re landing is supposed to be really good, so I hold out.
The image of Lin slowly unbuttoning her shirt runs through my mind again, but it starts getting me riled up so I turn my mind to the project. Good old unsexy water filtration systems.
A beeping comes from Evan’s seat. He stirs and pokes his tablet to shut it off, but the noise was enough that most of my sleeping sibs start waking. He must have had the same idea that I did for adjusting to the new time zone. I give everyone a few minutes to hit the bathroom and get fully awake before I start briefing them.
“All right, everyone,” I say once everyone is back in their seats. “Ready for our final refresher?”
“Sure,” says Phil. He tends to speak for their group more than any of the others. He’s like a less obnoxious version of Chad in that way. Like if Chad actually had some real leadership skills and not just a bossy attitude. A chorus of affirmatives follows.
“I’m sure you all remember this from the briefings we did back on campus, so we’ll go fast. Our press event isn’t until tomorrow morning, which means that we’ve got some tourist time in Ho Chi Minh City this afternoon. Remember to stay covered up, especially if you want to go see the pagodas. Shorts and sleeveless shirts can get you in trouble there. If you see something you want to buy, let the guides handle everything. Haggling is normal and they’ll do it better than we can. Just let them know you want it and walk away, they’ll get it for you and make sure it makes it to the hotel. Please don’t go overboard. We’ve got limited space on the boats and we don’t have unlimited funds, but getting some clothes or souvenirs would be fine. Any questions so far?”
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Everyone shakes their heads.
“Good. On to the Do’s and Don’ts. Don’t mention the war. Don’t talk about politics or religion. Don’t point your feet at people or shrines when you sit down. Do bring your own toilet paper for most bathrooms. The guides have supplies, just make sure you get some before you go in. Do stay hydrated. Don’t do anything that might embarrass you or anyone else. Don’t use your bots unless you’re in danger. Don’t show off or make a spectacle of yourself. PDA is frowned on, so don’t hug anyone. Evan, I’m looking at you.”
“Talk to her, she’s the one who can’t keep her hands off of me,” he says defensively as he drops Valerie’s hand that he’d been holding.
Everyone nods for the laundry list of dos and don’ts. Hopefully everyone remembers everything. I’m keeping my copy of the list up in the corner of my overlay so I don’t forget any of it.
“Any questions?”
Heads shake no.
“We’ll be in groups of three with a guide for each group. We’ll meet up with each other and with Chad for dinner tonight. Your guides will get you there on time if you’ll let them. Does everyone have your buddies for today?”
Erik, Lisa, and Steph point at each other. Phil, Jen, and Becky do the same. Stan, Marc, and Andrea group up, leaving me in a quartet with Evan, Valerie, and Louise. Perfect.
“Erik’s group, you’ll be with Bora. Phil’s group, you have Simok. Andrea, you have Mai, and my group has Akara. Thao is already taking care of Chad. Our last guide’s name is Mek, and she’ll be getting our gear to the hotel, then staging our supplies at the docks. You all remember who’s who from the pictures of each of them in the briefings?”
More nods.
“Treat your guides right and they’ll take good care of you. Have fun and stay safe today. We’ll start work tomorrow.”
Cindy pops in to announce that we’re about to land and reminds us to buckle up. I feel the plane descending and look out the window to see the sprawling city below expanding from toys to real buildings. The wheels touch down and we get everyone’s bots turned back on.
To Evan: Do these kids argue a lot, or is it just me? Seems like it took them all day to pick a movie.
From Evan: It’s just you, we argued just as much last time.
To Evan: OK, had to check, I didn’t write it down. Also, please tell me you two didn't do anything that could result in pregnancy.
From Evan: No such luck, brother. Just some friendly smooching. Valerie still calls me jailbait if I try to get too handsy. I think she thinks it’s funny. It’s not.
I smile and give him a consoling pat on the shoulder as we file towards the exit. The door opens and a warm blast of wet air rushes in.