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The sun was setting over the flat, endless plains of Kansas as the gang’s rented van rumbled along the highway. Ichiban was at the wheel, his eyes scanning the horizon, occasionally stealing glances at the GPS that kept recalculating their route. Saeko sat beside him, engrossed in a travel magazine, while Zhao was dozing off in the backseat. Nanba, however, was anything but quiet.
"Ichiban, are we there yet?" Nanba whined for the umpteenth time, his legs bouncing restlessly as he kicked the back of Ichiban’s seat.
"Nanba, we're still like... hours away, man," Ichiban replied, trying to keep his patience.
"Hours? I swear we’ve been driving forever! How can a country be this big? And why didn’t we just fly?!" Nanba grumbled, pulling his jacket tighter around him despite the heat.
"Because you get airsick, remember?" Saeko chimed in without looking up from her magazine.
"Yeah, well, I’m car sick now!" Nanba snapped, leaning over to jab Adachi, who was sitting next to him. "And Adachi-san’s been hogging the chips! I haven’t had a single one!"
Adachi glared at Nanba, then at the crumpled, empty chip bag that lay on the floor. "You had plenty of chips, Nanba. In fact, you ate half of them before we even left the last gas station!"
Nanba crossed his arms defiantly. "That’s a damn lie, and you know it!"
"I’m gonna end this right now," Adachi muttered under his breath, his patience fraying.
Without a word, Adachi gestured for Ichiban to pull over. The van lurched to the right, pulling into the parking lot of a massive Walmart in Wichita.
“What’re we doing here?” Zhao asked groggily, waking up as the van came to a stop.
“Nanba needs an attitude adjustment,” Adachi replied with a grunt, cracking open the door and stepping out into the parking lot.
"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Nanba asked, squinting suspiciously at Adachi as he walked toward the store.
Ichiban shrugged. "Guess we’ll find out. Maybe he’s getting snacks?"
Saeko chuckled. “Or duct tape.”
Minutes passed before Adachi reappeared, carrying a large, brightly colored box under one arm. He had a determined look on his face as he approached the van.
Ichiban squinted through the windshield. "What the hell is that?"
Adachi ignored the question and threw open the sliding door. "Alright, everyone out."
"Wait, wait, what’s going on?" Nanba’s eyes widened as Adachi ripped open the box, revealing a large, garishly decorated baby booster seat—complete with cup holders, a cartoonish lion’s face on the headrest, and safety straps adorned with little yellow duckies.
“Adachi-san, have you lost your mind?!” Nanba protested, backing up against the far side of the van as Adachi started to set up the booster seat in the middle row. “I’m not sitting in that thing!”
“You are now,” Adachi grunted as he secured the seat in place, tightening the straps with surprising efficiency. “If you’re gonna act like a kid, you’re gonna sit like one.”
“Adachi-san!” Nanba shouted, but before he could react, Adachi grabbed him by the collar and hauled him out of his seat.
“Hey! HEY! I’m a grown man! You can’t do this to me!” Nanba flailed wildly as Adachi maneuvered him into the booster seat.
Ichiban, Saeko, and Zhao watched, completely dumbfounded.
“This is actually happening,” Saeko muttered, barely containing her laughter.
“Adachi-san, stop! This is humiliating!” Nanba squirmed as Adachi snapped the straps across his chest and lap, buckling him in securely. “I’ll behave, I swear!”
“It’s too late for that,” Adachi said with a smirk, stepping back to admire his handiwork. “Now, just sit tight and enjoy the ride.”
Nanba’s face was red with a mixture of rage and embarrassment as the rest of the gang got back into the van. The baby booster seat was barely big enough for him, and his knees were almost up to his chest. The little lion face stared back at him mockingly from the headrest.
Ichiban stifled a laugh as he started the engine. “You good back there, Nanba?”
“Don’t even talk to me right now, Ichiban,” Nanba huffed, crossing his arms and looking out the window.
Zhao leaned forward, grinning. “You look pretty cute like that, Nanba. Want me to get you a juice box?”
“Shut up, Zhao!” Nanba snapped, trying to shift uncomfortably in the seat. “This thing’s digging into my back!”
Saeko couldn’t resist chiming in. “I’m sure they have those padded neck pillows inside. Want us to get one for you?”
“Not funny, Saeko!” Nanba’s voice was muffled as he tried to duck lower in the seat, which only made him look more ridiculous.
Ichiban finally couldn’t hold back anymore and burst out laughing. “Alright, alright, let’s get back on the road. We’ll be in Oklahoma in no time.”
As the van pulled back onto the highway, the rest of the group was in high spirits, joking and laughing as the miles ticked by. Nanba, however, sat in his baby booster seat, silently fuming as the scenery passed by.
“This is the worst day of my life,” he muttered to himself, glaring at Adachi, who was grinning ear to ear in the backseat.
Adachi leaned forward, patting Nanba on the head like a child. “You know, Nanba, sometimes you just gotta enjoy the ride.”
Nanba swatted his hand away. “I swear, Adachi-san, if you don’t get me out of this thing by the next stop, I’m going to—”
“Oh, look! Another Walmart!” Zhao interrupted, pointing out the window.
Nanba groaned and sank lower into the seat, while the rest of the gang burst out laughing again.
It was going to be a long trip.