Better Eight Than Never

Chapter 14: Rapping up the day

As Bato opened the door to the apartment, the smell of cooking broth poured over him like a cloud and made his mouth water. His Stepmom's chicken noodle soup couldn't be beat, the smell alone would be enough to convince most people. As he closed the door, his stepmom called from the kitchen.

"Bato? Is that you?" She asked, voice concerned.

"Yeah, it's us!" He called back, making sure the door was locked.

Tanya came around the corner, hands on her hips. "Oh thank goodness, what was that all about? You two were gone for a while, and left in a hurry."

"Hachi left her pouch on the train." Bato lied. "It's what she keeps her train pass and things in. We went to the station to see if someone had found it and brought it in." He glanced toward Hachi, watching as she pulled out the little fabric pouch to show his stepmother.

Tanya glanced at the pouch, then nodded slowly, seeming satisfied enough with that explanation. "Well, we're lucky that they left it at this station. You could at least let me know next time, though, alright? You two scared me."

"We will." Bato promised. "Sorry."

She looked between the two of them, then shrugged a little and chuckled. "Ah well, you're back now." She stepped forward and hugged Bato, then lightly patted Hachi's shoulder. "Soup should be ready in about half an hour." She said, turning and walking back towards the kitchen. "And your Mom said she should be here in twenty."

"Alright." Bato replied, waiting until she was out of sight before sighing in relief and taking off his shoes. "Looks like it worked."

Hachi stuck the pouch back into her pocket, brow furrowed. "Hour?"

Bato froze, glancing over at her. "... You don't know what an hour is?"

She slowly shook her head.

"... It's... a measurement of time." Bato explained. "Like days? Minutes? Seconds?" His explanation was met with yet another of Hachi's usual frazzled looks. "Judd... You don't know how to keep track of time?" He ran his hands over his tentacles.

Hachi hesitated. "... We have shifts." She said.

"You mean, times when you work?" Bato asked.

"Each shift is one session of work, two meals, one before you go to bed, and one when you get up, and you have some spare time to spend for yourself in there as well." Hachi said.

"Oh..." Bato said slowly. "So... a shift is a day?"

Hachi paused. "... It would be one 'day' and one... 'night'." She answered. "That seems to be roughly the same amount of time."

Bato nodded. "Right... well, a day is 24 hours. An hour is 60 minutes, a minute is 60 seconds, and a second... is... about the time it takes to say the word 'alligator'."

Hachi's nose crinkled in confusion. "Alligator?"

"Ooof..." Bato murmured. "Let's go with one thing at a time... come on, it's bad for you to be standing this long." He guided her to the couch in the living room, then continued his explanation. "Where was I? Right. A 'year' is usually the longest amount of time we have to measure something in. A year is a twelve months, or four seasons, or three hundred and sixty five days."

"... Which one usually happens first?" Hachi asked.

Bato blinked, realizing he hadn't been very clear. "Oh, no, um... no, sorry. It means the same thing; There are three hundred and sixty five days in a year, but the way we keep track of time is we divide them up into twelve months, for... convenience, I guess? I don't know actually. Anyway, so we keep track of them in months, and each season lasts about three months."