Title: Riding the Roller Coaster (Part XX)
Author: ficeler37
Note: Don't own Mai-Hime. I'll let Sunrise take the credit.
Rating: PG
Word count: 1219
Summary: Natsuki tackles healthy food.
A/N: It's update time! (Somehow Power Ranger's "It's morphing time!" phrase was in my head for a split second. Haha.) Some might find that Shizuru is letting Natsuki off the hook too easily after the whole music video deal. Well, I don't know. If you really have to keep score on both sides, I feel like Natsuki is still losing by a lot overall. Anyways, on with the fluff!
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"This way, please." A waitress in kimono politely leads the girls into a secluded tatami room. On the way to their seats, Natsuki could not help but notice how Shizuru and she are standing out in this establishment that is populated with so many wrinkly customers. I thought the majority of people who come to the amusement park are young people. Why is there a restaurant serving healthy food here? I want my grease! And where did all these old people come from anyways? Flopping down on the cushioned seat grumpily, the blue haired girl nevertheless grabs a menu from the waitress.
Even though on the outside the chestnut haired girl still has her stoic face on, seeing how the veins on the blue haired girl are more visible than usual after she had scanned their surroundings is enough to send the inner evil Shizuru into fits of giggles. Payback is a bitch, my dear Natsuki. I'm not going to let you get off the hook that easily, ho ho. Another tidbit the older girl learnt from her resourceful internet search the night before was that this is the restaurant that young couples are mostly to avoid for its lack of greasy food. People in my generation should really watch their diets more carefully. I hope Natsuk hasn't been stuffing herself with mayonnaise and instant noodles everyday since I last saw her.
Where is the meat section? "Excuse me. I think you gave me the vegetarian menu by mistake." Green eyes look up at the patient waitress standing not to far from them. "There was no mistake. We only have one menu in this restaurant." The waitress smiles cordially at the blue haired with a frozen expression on her face. Staring hard at the menu once again with furrowed brows, Natsuki begins scanning for dishes with a particular cooking style. This is just great. Hopefully they have something fried at least. That way I can just smother the dish with mayonnaise to give it some taste. At this point, the younger girl has completely forgotten that her empty wallet is not going to help pay for anything that she orders, however tasteless the food may be.
"We would like to share tonight's dinner special for two please. May I also some green onions on the side?" Smiling for the first time since the recording studio, Shizuru is secretly going through her plan to get back at Natsuki in her head.
"Uhm … yes! Of course. Anything else?" It seems like another girl has fallen victim to Shizuru's professional smile.
"Some hot tea would be nice. I think that will be all." Still smiling at the blushing waitress, the chestnut haired girl does not forget to sneak glances at the younger girl sitting on the opposite side.
Why is she always smiling like that in front of random pretty girls? What about me? When was the last time she smiled at me? A jealous Natsuki is too annoyed to realize what Shizuru had just ordered for the both of them. I know what I did was a bit extreme, but how long is she going to stay mad at me for?
For the next fifteen minutes, the only sound between the two girls was the quiet tea-sipping noise from the chestnut haired girl. Natsuki's natural instinct let her know that it was probably not a good idea to disturb the woman sitting in front of her, however peaceful and non-threatening she may seem. Finally, the still slightly flushed waitress arrives at the table again with ten small vegetarian dishes and a side dish of chopped green onions.
Glancing at the two or three dishes that seem to have something fried in them, Natsuki lets out an audible sigh of relief. "Excuse me, can I have some may…"
A hand slammed on the wooden surface cuts off the blue haired girl's request abruptly. "Ara, I thought I saw a fly on the table." If you thought you were going to see that awful off-white colored sauce in my presence, then you were surely mistaken.
Sweat drops slide down the blue haired girl's forehead as she stares at the tea-sipping woman whose movements are so graceful that the hand slamming a few seconds ago could only be treated as an illusion. "Okay, never mind." Natsuki buries her face in her palms and pouts at the dishes on the table.
Stop being so cute, Natsuki! The older girl struggles to remain facially expressionless as her heart leaps in joy at the adorable sight in front of her. Taking a deep breath to control her increasing heart rate, Shizuru proceeds to execute her next plan of action.
Green eyes widen in horror as anything remotely fried got sprinkled with chopped green onions. Argh! It'll take forever to separate the green onions from the fried stuff. Examining the rest of the dishes on the table who escaped the cruel fate of green onionization does not make Natsuki feel any better. Great. This is just going to be one fabulous dinner. "Shizuru, do we have to eat this for dinner?"
"You know, for someone low on money, you sure are picky about what you eat." Crimson eyes observe in mirth the cute face reddening at the speed of light. You think I am just going to forget about your odd behavior outside the candy store and the look on you face when the magician took out that ten thousand yen bill?
"How did you know?" The question came out a bit incoherent due to the speed at which it was delivered. I can't believe I forgot about that.
"It doesn't matter. Anyways, you should have some nutritious food every once in a while. By the way, I can tell that you have been stuffing yourself with mayonnaise since I graduated from Fuka High School." The Kyoto woman smiles at the flushed girl in front of her in a teasing manner.
"What kind of superpower would let you know what I have been eating?" Damnit, why does this woman always seem to know everything about me? Am I really that predictable? Confusion aside, Natsuki is relieved that Shizuru is finally teasing her again. Tense shoulders relax quite a bit as if a heavy burden had been lifted off of the biker girl's body.
"I don't need any superpowers to know that Natsuki feels softer to the touch at the waist. I seem to remember that there was not an ounce of fat on that slim waist of yours back when I used to ride behind you on the motorcycle. But now … ho ho." Shizuru brings up her hand to her lips elegantly to stop herself from laughing too loudly.
"You haven't been riding on my motorcycle lately. How did you know that I gained weight?" How dare you diss my killer curves?
"Natsuki is just so huggable nowadays. (happy sigh) Who needs a big stuffed toy when they can just hug Natsuki on the waist in a haunted house?" The older girl chuckles quietly as the blue haired girl crosses her arms defensively over her flat tummy.
"As if I'll let anyone hug me on the waist normally …" Natsuki lowered her head to hide her embarrassment as she muttered softly. Only you, Shizuru. Only you …
TBC.