Author: Krissy
Warnings: None.
Word Count: 344
Rating: G
John fumbled with the chopsticks, nearly dropping them onto his plate of rice... And other Japanese 'delicacies.' He was always up for new things, but he knew he should have turned this particular venture down when Luka Kovac had asked him to go.
"Good, no?"
John held back a grimace, and just gave a dubious nod.
Oh, he was used to foreign food, but Japanese? Even Gamma had never forced this particular menu on him.
"You don't like it," Luka observed, raising an eyebrow.
"How'd you guess? What is this made of, anyway?" John asked, suspiciously eyeing his plate of sushi.
"Do you really want to know?" When John nodded, Luka continued, "Raw fish. Although, yours has vegetables rolled into the rice."
"Hmm," John poked a chopstick at it. "Do I have to eat it?"
"Yes. It would be rude to leave it on your plate."
"Oh." John continued to stare at the rolled sushi. It looked... edible, but he'd learned the hard way that edible did not equal delicious. He recalled his first time in a French restaurant, when he was a kid, and had tried a snail, not knowing what it was. Well... He would never make *that* mistake again.
"Come on," Luka urged, "eat! It is good, I promise."
Heaving a slight sigh, John straightened the chopsticks between his fingers and clumsily picked the smallest piece of sushi up. He tried to ignore the encouraging looks Luka kept shooting him, and quickly shoved it in his mouth before it could fall back onto the plate. It was awkward enough sitting on the floor, let alone using chopsticks for the first time.
Why couldn't Luka have wanted a *normal* meal? Like fast food? Or even Chinese would have been better, that way he could have used a fork!
"What do you think?"
John grunted, and slowly chewed the fish, ignoring the question. After several seconds, he swallowed, and stared down at his plate.
"Well?"
John's lips curved into a smile, which brightened when Luka returned it.
"What's next?" was all he asked.