Cocktails and Sushi
Chapter Two: Le Collier d'Ai
Thursday night came rather slowly, as do all things that one greatly anticipates, sort of like a watch pot doesn't boil. All things a side like every other day Colonel Karl Schubaltz had had a rough one. He quickly changed into a pair of black slacks and a dark blue shirt and headed out of the base to Sakura no Ie.
As soon as he got past the small hostess desk that he had so familiarized himself with (that along with the taste of scotch and the scent of sushi and wasabi sauce) he quickly scanned the room checking for the woman he had met last night. As the hostess seated him at his usual table he waited for what seemed like hours, always keeping his eyes on the door, figuring she was the kind of woman who enjoyed making a point of being fashionably late. Finally she came through the doors dressed in a rather strange outfit (although we now recognize it as full kimono) and had black lace up sandals similar to the ones she had worn the previous Thursday night.
As she made her way over to the table she could see Karl turning over her choker between his thumb and forefinger, and sat down quietly; Karl assuming he would be the one to make the first move again until she uttered one word, which he took it to mean was her name.
"Ai"
It sounded just about as foreign to him as the outfit she was wearing, but none the less he responded back as well, wondering why she only wanted to remain on a first name basis.
"Karl S-"
Before he could finish sounding out his last name, Ai, as she was now called, put a finger to his lips and then removed it placing it firmly on her lap before speaking again.
"I'd still like to retain a certain amount of mystery, once you're on a first and last name basis things start to get stale. There's a certain amount of passion that exists between two people when things are kept secret. We have a different life here, one that doesn't take flight outside this restaurant. You agree?"
Before he could answer the waitress came, Karl ordered his usual and Ai ordered a dry martini on the rocks and made a point that it be shaken and not stirred. When the waitress left Karl decided to find out what this woman was looking for without prodding too much and he figured she liked to sustain a certain air of mystery around her.
"What are you looking for here, besides the alcohol?"
Ai traced her fingers along the frame of the chopstick holders and brought her lips slightly upwards, into something that very closely resembled a smile before answering. Her Japanese accent that was laced with a German sound almost soothing him as she spoke.
"I've always been interested in relationships just based on passion. I've had a few before, and I guess I was looking for another one. I like it when things are new, when everything is still uncertain, and everything is filled with romance and passion, even if the hints are subtle. Believe me finding this is hard but I know when I've got what I want."
Karl slightly raised his left brow seemingly intrigued by the young woman before him. He'd never met anyone like her before and was wondering what this would lead to, although he did have somewhat of an idea. She was beautiful and all for relationships based on passion and love at first sight, Karl admitted to himself that he was a stiff who only found passion and love in his job, and could hardly believe he was attracted to someone who was interested in a love affair that had no strings attached. He guessed that maybe he was different here, away from his job, the stress, and the idiots who Prozen had the nerve to call officers. His whole perspective had dramatically changed since he met this woman. And he wondered that if she had found the kind of relationship she had been seeking so badly in him.
"Do you have it now?"
Their drinks had come a few seconds earlier and Ai took a sip of her martini, glancing over the glass at Karl before she preceded in responding to his question, that was obviously aimed at what she had said about knowing when she had what she wanted when it came to the sort of relationship she was in search of.
"It would just eat away at you until next Thursday night when I see you again if I didn't answer that, wouldn't it?"
Karl noted that what she said did have a ring of truth to it, or rather a large resounding echo (The kind that can only come from striking a rather oversized gong), since the last time he had met her fact that she did not reveal her name ate away at him for the whole week. Ai new the best way to keep men coming back for more was to always have them keep guessing. It was a technique she used whenever she felt the need, it was something her mother had taught her, and surprisingly it worked very well.
"Keeps me guessing doesn't it?"
He responded almost as if he had read her mind, but tonight it seemed that the two done very well when it came to guessing the others way of thinking, although as always, they did not go into great depths about their personalities and lives. Ai smiled, he had hit the nail right on the head, she also took it as her cue to leave, as her mysterious personality often required her to leave things up in midair. She stood up and walked over to him, whispering in his ear as she had done the previous Thursday night.
"There will be less talking next time and as always I trust you have enough money to take care of my tab."
She kissed him on the cheek again and walked out. Leaving behind a half empty martini glass, a small lipstick smudge, and the same choker he had been fiddling with for a week.
Chapter Two: Le Collier d'Ai
Thursday night came rather slowly, as do all things that one greatly anticipates, sort of like a watch pot doesn't boil. All things a side like every other day Colonel Karl Schubaltz had had a rough one. He quickly changed into a pair of black slacks and a dark blue shirt and headed out of the base to Sakura no Ie.
As soon as he got past the small hostess desk that he had so familiarized himself with (that along with the taste of scotch and the scent of sushi and wasabi sauce) he quickly scanned the room checking for the woman he had met last night. As the hostess seated him at his usual table he waited for what seemed like hours, always keeping his eyes on the door, figuring she was the kind of woman who enjoyed making a point of being fashionably late. Finally she came through the doors dressed in a rather strange outfit (although we now recognize it as full kimono) and had black lace up sandals similar to the ones she had worn the previous Thursday night.
As she made her way over to the table she could see Karl turning over her choker between his thumb and forefinger, and sat down quietly; Karl assuming he would be the one to make the first move again until she uttered one word, which he took it to mean was her name.
"Ai"
It sounded just about as foreign to him as the outfit she was wearing, but none the less he responded back as well, wondering why she only wanted to remain on a first name basis.
"Karl S-"
Before he could finish sounding out his last name, Ai, as she was now called, put a finger to his lips and then removed it placing it firmly on her lap before speaking again.
"I'd still like to retain a certain amount of mystery, once you're on a first and last name basis things start to get stale. There's a certain amount of passion that exists between two people when things are kept secret. We have a different life here, one that doesn't take flight outside this restaurant. You agree?"
Before he could answer the waitress came, Karl ordered his usual and Ai ordered a dry martini on the rocks and made a point that it be shaken and not stirred. When the waitress left Karl decided to find out what this woman was looking for without prodding too much and he figured she liked to sustain a certain air of mystery around her.
"What are you looking for here, besides the alcohol?"
Ai traced her fingers along the frame of the chopstick holders and brought her lips slightly upwards, into something that very closely resembled a smile before answering. Her Japanese accent that was laced with a German sound almost soothing him as she spoke.
"I've always been interested in relationships just based on passion. I've had a few before, and I guess I was looking for another one. I like it when things are new, when everything is still uncertain, and everything is filled with romance and passion, even if the hints are subtle. Believe me finding this is hard but I know when I've got what I want."
Karl slightly raised his left brow seemingly intrigued by the young woman before him. He'd never met anyone like her before and was wondering what this would lead to, although he did have somewhat of an idea. She was beautiful and all for relationships based on passion and love at first sight, Karl admitted to himself that he was a stiff who only found passion and love in his job, and could hardly believe he was attracted to someone who was interested in a love affair that had no strings attached. He guessed that maybe he was different here, away from his job, the stress, and the idiots who Prozen had the nerve to call officers. His whole perspective had dramatically changed since he met this woman. And he wondered that if she had found the kind of relationship she had been seeking so badly in him.
"Do you have it now?"
Their drinks had come a few seconds earlier and Ai took a sip of her martini, glancing over the glass at Karl before she preceded in responding to his question, that was obviously aimed at what she had said about knowing when she had what she wanted when it came to the sort of relationship she was in search of.
"It would just eat away at you until next Thursday night when I see you again if I didn't answer that, wouldn't it?"
Karl noted that what she said did have a ring of truth to it, or rather a large resounding echo (The kind that can only come from striking a rather oversized gong), since the last time he had met her fact that she did not reveal her name ate away at him for the whole week. Ai new the best way to keep men coming back for more was to always have them keep guessing. It was a technique she used whenever she felt the need, it was something her mother had taught her, and surprisingly it worked very well.
"Keeps me guessing doesn't it?"
He responded almost as if he had read her mind, but tonight it seemed that the two done very well when it came to guessing the others way of thinking, although as always, they did not go into great depths about their personalities and lives. Ai smiled, he had hit the nail right on the head, she also took it as her cue to leave, as her mysterious personality often required her to leave things up in midair. She stood up and walked over to him, whispering in his ear as she had done the previous Thursday night.
"There will be less talking next time and as always I trust you have enough money to take care of my tab."
She kissed him on the cheek again and walked out. Leaving behind a half empty martini glass, a small lipstick smudge, and the same choker he had been fiddling with for a week.