I'm sorry for not updating lately.
The truth is, I'm working on turning this story into a book, and I'm working on figuring out how to transition everything over to Mei and Yuzu's counterparts.
But not only that, I ended up with a severe burnout again and a lack of genuine passion. I got too far into my head about another story, "Autumn's Bounty," and I do appreciate the honesty on it. Just I wrote myself into a corner, and I'm trying to get out of it while being happy with what I put writing and not wanting to upset people. But instead of making progress, I just ended up wearing myself out mentally and lose my drive.
I'm so sorry for forgetting about this story. Still, I'm trying, and I want to thank the people who've been supporting me, you folks here but also disappointmenthuge, Mistiqarts, and several others.
Hopefully, you'll like the changes in the book if you guys want to buy it after I finally try to publish it. If not, well, I can understand because you'll have MOST of it for free right here XD.
Also, I'm beginning to throw a little Spanish into the story, and I'm aware that some of the words I'm using require specific accent signs, but I can't figure out how to do that in LibreOffice so please don't rag on me for that.
Thanks to Melissa for helping me with some of it. We're both not native speakers, but she has more of a grasp on it than me and friends who are fluent, so I hope it all works out. There are pejoratives in this, but that's all part of plot and character motivations, I do not intend to offend anyone.
This chapter once again relies on food as a barrier breaker.
And Yuzu is going to be a little more OOC this time, but it fits within the novel aspect so again and the background I've given her, So it's just me testing things out.
Chapter 10
"So what kind of restaurant are you taking us too and where is it," inquired Mei while trying to catch a glimpse of Yuzu from between the large spirals of Himeko's hair, now that her best friend had firmly wedged herself between them.
"It's a bit of a walk," laughed Yuzu nervously over the top of Himeko's head, trying to make eye contact the taller woman. "I'd suggest a cab, but seeing as how the day is so nice, I was hoping you two would be okay with us walking."
"I'm fine with that." Mei felt her ears turn red, but couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or the way Himeko's hair had brushed against her ear. "I haven't gotten out much lately because of work, so I'm glad to get a bit of fresh air."
"What about you, Hime...Momokino-san," asked Yuzu with a strained smile. "Is there anything you don't want to eat? If so, you can tell me now, and I can find us someplace else to eat."
"I'm fine with whatever. As long as it's tasty and I'm with Mei, I don't care," replied Himeko, her face returning to a polite smile after hearing Yuzu correct herself, clinging tighter to Mei's arm.
Mei winced at how hard Himeko was squeezing and did her best to avoid Himeko's braids from hitting the bottom of her ear as the vice-like grip dragged her in.
Yuzu nodded and smiled, but Mei thought she could see a slight twitch in the corner of the blonde's mouth but wasn't sure if it was a trick of the light or her inability to focus because of Himeko.
After a cursory glance at Mei, Yuzu straightened herself and nodded, saying, "Well, if that's all it takes, then I'm sure you'll enjoy it. It's a place that serves Puerto Rican food, have you ever had it?"
"We haven't had that yet," said Himeko, cutting off Mei's reply. "Mei-Mei and I try to go out for dinner at a new place once a week to get out and have fun away from the house since she's always stuck trying to meet deadlines. They've made having time together really difficult."
"I know how difficult that can be," said Yuzu, a little deflated by Himeko's answer. "My parents are like that because they work different schedules. My dad works overtime a lot, but my mom tries her best to take him dinner sometimes if she has time to cook, and my dad does his best to make dinner before he leaves if he works the night shift."
"They sound adorable," said Himeko, catching Mei off-guard without the sincerity in her best friend's voice. "My family rarely eats together, but when we do, it's a big affair. What do your parents do, Okogi-san?"
"My mom works in the construction industry," explained Yuzu with a small blush while her hand began playing with a few strands of hair. "When I was a kid, she was gone a lot doing work all over the country building skyscrapers, theaters, stuff like that. She even got invited to a bunch of theater openings, so we got to see lots of plays. But we had to leave most of them early."
While Himeko kept her attention focused on the sidewalk, Mei focused on Yuzu and noticed something that looked like guilt flash across Yuzu's face before returning to the smiling face the blonde usually presented herself with.
"I can understand that," said Himeko with a loud sigh. "My parents always dragged me to things involving their business partners. A lot of it was boring stuff that I wasn't interested in, but there were a few times I managed to escape and have fun somewhere else."
"Yes, and you also managed to drag me along with you," snorted Mei as they followed Yuzu around a corner and let out a relieved sigh when a fresh breeze blew down the street. "Despite my telling you that I didn't want to leave my grandfather's side."
"What did she make you do," asked Yuzu, peeking over her shoulder, her eyes eager to learn more about the taller woman. "Nothing too dangerous, I hope."
"If you consider her sneaking us out of a party when we were ten and climbing over a fence that led to the dress that I was wearing getting caught on the fence which sent me crashing to the ground, and resulted in me getting stitches on my leg dangerous. Then yes, I'd say that counts."
"Ouch," hissed Yuzu while Himeko looked indignantly at Mei.
"I said I was sorry," muttered Himeko as they ran across an empty street. "Besides, you didn't need to tell her all of that, your scar isn't even that big and I didn't force you to follow me."
"You're right in that regard," sighed Mei, finally removing her arm from Himeko's. "But as you were my only friend at that party, I guess a bit of youthful rebellion did seem more fun than listening to your parents' drone on about their business. Still as bad as you, right Yuzu?"
"I guess," laughed Yuzu nervously, her face flushing. "But I haven't done anything like that since, and my parents rarely bring it up anymore, so can we not talk about it?"
"If you wish," said Mei, cutting off a curious Himeko from forcing Yuzu to talk about her arrest after. "How much further if you don't mind my asking?"
"Not too much further," said Yuzu with a yawn before pulling out her phone and sighing and texting a reply.
"Can I ask who it is your talking to," asked Himeko, trying to link arms with Mei again, but being denied every opportunity.
"My dad," explained Yuzu as she stretched her arms above her head. "He managed to get a few days off, so he's going to get stuff ready for his and my mom's dinner and needed help remembering ingredients. They're eating the same type of food tonight for her birthday, and he just wanted to make sure I mailed her gifts and birthday card."
"That sounds romantic," said Himeko dreamily. "I've always wanted to spend my birthday like that with someone."
"They can be pretty annoying about it." Yuzu smiled, and Mei was glad to see that Himeko was genuinely nice for a change. "What about you, Mei? Have you had Puerto Rican food before?"
"Uh, I've had it a couple of times," admitted Mei, smirking at the look of surprise on Himeko's face.
"When did you have it," asked Himeko with a stamp of her foot when they stopped at the crosswalk. "Was it when I was out of town?"
"I had it before you moved in." Mei shrugged at the angry look her best friend was giving her while Yuzu laughed before pulling her cellphone out of her bag again and answered another text. "A client took me as thanks for helping them meet a deadline, and I've ordered it in once or twice because I wanted to try something different from my usual takeout places. But I wasn't impressed by the place I ordered from. It was too spicy for me, and there were too many beans."
"Well, lucky for you, I've got an in with the people that run this restaurant." Yuzu gave them a wide grin and flexed her arm triumphantly as they crossed the street. "Also, if you have difficulty understanding what we're ordering, I'll explain everything to you, and don't worry about asking for substitutions, though spice may be a little more difficult. They'll try, and if you're feeling nervous, I'll ask. Henry isn't a fan of spicy foods either, and they don't give him any trouble."
"Good," said Mei as Yuzu came to a stop and held her arms toward a somewhat dingy-looking entrance.
"Is this it," asked Mei, looking up at the sign while Himeko read out the name of the restaurant.
"Ra, no sorry, La...Co..cosina..."
"It's pronounced 'koh-see-nah," explained Yuzu patiently.
"If it makes that noise, why isn't there an 'h,'" asked Himeko, annoyed.
"Because it's the way the language works," said Yuzu, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "Like how you started to say make an 'r' sound instead of an 'l.'"
"This is why I despise languages from Europe; you can never tell what the pronunciation is supposed to be."
"Japanese isn't much better," sighed Yuzu, lowering her arms in disappointment at Himeko's complaint. "Seriously, how often have you seen a Kanji character that looks almost exactly like another one and screwed up the translation?"
"Japanese is much more graceful than..."
"Himeko, that's enough," said Mei, flicking Himeko in the elbow. "We are her guests and remember that while we're here, try to speak English. You said you need the practice outside of work, so maybe start following through with it?"
"But..."
Before Himeko could complain, a loud squeal of excitement echoed from inside the restaurant. Moments later, a middle-aged woman with tan skin, brown hair, warm smile, wearing an apron, flowery dress, and hair done up in a bun covered in a hair net ran out of the restaurant scooped Yuzu up and began squeezing her.
"Yuzu! Carina, what are you doing here? It's not like you to be here without Henry. Is my Lindo sick? Do I need to send you home some sopa de pollo? Or is it a fever? If it's that I can come over and make him some arroz con leche."
"He's not sick, Tia," grunted Yuzu as she struggled to break out of the woman's vice-like grip, used to the woman's jovial demeanor. "He's at work right now. I had the day off, and I brought a couple of friends with me to have lunch."
"Oh, did you now?" The woman Yuzu had called Tia put the blonde down and turned on Himeko and Mei, and though she was shorter than the woman she'd just man-handled, Mei couldn't help but feel intimidated by her analytical look.
"He...hello," said Himeko in nervously and slowly in English while giving a polite bow. "I'm Momokino Himeko."
"Uh, what's she doing," asked Tia quizically, unsure of how to handle Himeko's overly formal greeting. "Am I supposed to do this too?"
"I'd do it just to make sure she doesn't feel silly," whispered Yuzu as several people stared at Himeko. "So if you want to bow and reply, you can. She's doing her last name first because that's how Japanese people introduce themselves, I did it all the time as a kid and still do it without thinking. Oh, and ask for permission to use her first name."
"Oookay," said Tia nervously before giving what she hoped was a stiff but polite bow. "I'm not great with this stuff, so my name is Liliana Cabello, uhh, my first name is Liliana, or Lily if that's easier for you, and would it be all right if I called you by your first name?"
"That's fine with me," said Himeko in her carefully planned English. "Also, I thought your name was Tia?'
"Oh, that's just a nickname most of my regulars call me," chuckled Lily with her hands on her hips. "It means 'aunty,' but I don't know if that's common in Japan."
"Only with close friends or family," explained Mei, stepping forward and extending her hand, "but the word we'd use is 'oba' or something similar. I'm Mei Aihara, by the way."
"Is Mei your first name," asked Liliana reaching confidently for Mei's hand, "or your last?"
"First," replied Mei with a polite smile, "and you don't need to worry about being so formal with us. Himeko is still getting used to living here, whereas I've lived here most of my life."
"Got ya." Lily beamed and squeezed Mei's hand and gave it an energetic shape. "Well, now that that's out of the way, let's get some food in you. Yuzu, I know you said he isn't sick, but I'm still sending you home with some sopa, and I'm not taking no for an answer."
"All right." Yuzu let out a loud puff of air, sending her bangs flying, causing Mei to smirk. At the same time, Himeko ignored her and too focused on following Liliana into the slightly packed restaurant to notice the exchange.
"She seems friendly," coughed Mei nervously as they listened to Himeko begin pestering Liliana about how to pronounce the name of the restaurant.
"Very," agreed Yuzu with a smile as Liliana began slowly helping Himeko with a few pronunciations. "Seriously, it's hard to find people who make food that Henry will eat, and if we hadn't found this place, I'd be spending way more time in the kitchen than I already do."
"Does he not know how to cook," asked Mei, a little worried.
"Oh, he can cook," laughed Yuzu as Mei sit next to Himeko, and she sat across from Mei. "He's getting good at it too. He's a lot better than when we were younger. Still, he gets picky about certain preparations and some meals he always has to have on certain days and on the days I have to cook them I can be in the kitchen for hours because I'm that much better at making them for him and they can take a long time sometimes. But as long as he likes it, I don't mind, even though it's a little annoying."
"I see." Mei nodded, trying to ignore Yuzu's comment about how long she'd known Henry, and took the glass of water that was poured and felt immediately revitalized at tasting the refreshing infusion of mint, strawberry, and lemon they'd applied to the drink.
Letting out a satisfied sigh, Mei looked around and noticed that despite all the people in the restaurant, it didn't feel remotely crowded thanks to the layout, and the smells coming from the kitchen had her stomach grumbling.
"La Cocina de Mama," said Himeko trying to type it into her phone, but she sighed in frustration, typed something else out, and set her phone down.
"Everything okay, Momokino-san," asked Yuzu politely in Japanese as she sipped her diet soda and bit into a yellow looking chip that a young male waiter set in front of Yuzu. He smiled at her and conversed briefly but animatedly in Spanish before leaving them alone.
"As I told you," began Himeko, in English. In contrast, Mei started trying to quiet a beast that rumbled inside her chest after Yuzu's exchange with the waiter. "I'm not a fan of European languages as it's a little more difficult to find a proper translation, on top of other things, but I found something that should work. I just hope they don't think I'm back home. What are those?"
"Maduros," said Yuzu offering the plate to Himeko. "They're made from like a small banana-like plant called a plantain. They're easy to cook too. You just need to make sure they're super ripe, and then you cut them up, fry them in some oil, and add a little bit of salt or sugar. They're delicious."
"Which do you prefer," asked Himeko eyeing the plate nervously. They certainly smelled good, but she was worried about the sweetness ruining her appetite. "Salt or sugar?"
"I prefer them plain," said Yuzu grabbing an appetizer plate and handed it to Himeko. "That's how they serve them here, but we have sugar and salt at the table, so if you want, you can try them with both to see what you like."
Taking the plate, Himeko gave the food another sniff and felt her stomach grumble.
Setting the plate down, Himeko grabbed a fork, cut one, took a cautious bite, squeaked in surprise at the taste, and filled her plate with a few more before she began experimenting with different combinations of salt and sugar the food.
"Want one," asked Yuzu tipping her head toward the plate and smiling at Mei. "They're pretty good, and most people get charged for them, but since you're with me, you're getting the celebrity treatment."
"Consider me impressed," said Mei cooly, taking a couple and chewing on them quietly as she stared down at the menu, enjoying the mild sweetness. "So tell me again why we needed you? It looks like everything has an English translation for it."
"Well I mean," Yuzu's face turned red, and Himeko snickered quietly while taking a second helping and trying her best to figure out what everything on the menu was, "yeah, the menu is in English, but you haven't eaten a lot of this kind of food, right? So you'd need someone to explain everything to you."
"Isn't that what the staff is for?" Mei's voice was calm, and her gaze focused on the redness of Yuzu's cheeks and the oddly adorable look of disappointment that formed due to Mei's teasing.
"Well, this is considered light for them," said Yuzu quietly after a desperate sip of water. "If you came at dinner or another time, they sometimes don't have time to explain, so I thought it'd make things easier for you. But also...I kinda..."
Yuzu's voice drifted off as the sound of raised voices entered the restaurant, and Mei noticed a few younger looking people laughing and talking loudly in a mixture of Spanish and English as they pointed out the window at something that Mei couldn't see.
"Anyway," said Yuzu ignoring the noisy customers and collecting herself and trying to regain her confidence and control over the situation, "just let me know if you need to know anything the food. I know we got the maduros early, but just so you're aware, the meals a lot of time come with rice, beans, or plantains, so they're starch heavy, and the portions are enormous! Which isn't bad if you're busy for a few days since you'll have leftovers for lunch or dinner.
"Thank you for the information," replied Mei with a soft smile. "I was just about to order this, but now I want your opinion."
"Which one is it," asked Yuzu leaning over the table and staring down at the menu.
Contrary to her efforts, Mei managed to no notice just how baggy Yuzu's tee-shirt was and caught a glimpse of a black sports bra and the cleavage beneath. Feeling her ears burn and noticing the angry look Himeko was giving her, Mei shifted her attention to her menu and tried to find what she was planning on ordering. While she was scanning for the meal in question, noticed for the first time how a few of Yuzu's knuckles seemed to be abnormally large and mild crookedness to the bridge of her nose.
"This..this one," said Mei pointing at a random item. "How big is this one?"
"Mofongo and pernil?" Yuzu's eyes went wide, and she chuckled, turning her eyes up at Mei, who, despite her best efforts, managed to catch another glimpse beneath Yuzu's shirt. "That's a big meal Mei, I know when we first met, you ate a ton, but that might be a lot even for you."
"We could share," countered Mei looking at Himeko, who was still glaring daggers at the black-haired woman, though the effect was lessened by the fact that she was chewing the last of their appetizer. "You said so yourself that these meals can get large, so how about we all share. Himeko can get her empanadas, and we can get a few other things to sample."
"Okay." Yuzu nodded and sat down with a smile, her hair fluttering and sending a waft of a flower scent up Mei's nose. "Then, if we're doing that, we can get a couple of empanadas as well as sancocho, that's a stew,and empanadillas.
"What's the difference between the empanada and empanadillas," asked Himeko, annoyed by the blonde's brazen closeness to Mei but was instead choosing to turn the conversation toward the food as opposed to causing trouble.
"Well in Puerto Rico an empanada is more like a katsu," explained Yuzu, looking up at the menu board to see if there was anything unavailable and smirked when she saw that a particular item wasn't on the board. "But if I'm right, you're thinking of the pastry kind of empanada which in Puerto Rico goes by empanadillas and uses a thinner crust."
"That's confusing," huffed Himeko before taking a sip of water. "But as long as I get something similar to what I was looking forward to, then I won't complain."
Mei sighed and bit back a comment about how she was already complaining but didn't want to stir up trouble and selected a few more items. As Yuzu waved down their server, a young man whom she guessed was named Joaquin based upon Yuzu's conversation with him and tried to recognize any of the words they were using. However, Mei was unable to and resigned to listening to them talk, both in admiration and jealousy at Yuzu's transitional skills and her popularity, and resigned to sipping her water.
When Joaquin left, the group that had entered earlier got loud again, interrupting a conversation between Mei and Himeko about what Mei a meeting she had with a client and what needed to beforehand by shouting, "Look at this pendejo. Why the hell doesn't he just come in and sit down?"
"Maybe he's retarded," snickered a girl pointing out the window. "I mean, did you hear him out there? He kept going back and forth between English and something else and kept talking about a person I guess is named 'Yuzu' or something like that."
"The hell does that mean," asked one of the boys, earning a contemptible glare from another server who shook his head and walked away.
"It's a fruit," laughed the girl, holding up her phone and rolling her eyes.
"I've heard dumb names before, but naming a kid after fruit is just mean."
Finishing her glass of water, Yuzu slammed it down and stood up and headed toward the door, catching the attention of a few other guests, and glaring daggers at the table as she approached the door.
Looking past her, Mei and Himeko noticed Henry standing outside the restaurant, pacing back and forth, tugging at his hair with one hand and waving the other, talking to himself until he felt Yuzu's hand on his bicep. They stood there talking for a moment, and from his body language, Mei could see Henry was looking nervous and kept pointing at the window and shaking his head. Still, Yuzu shook her head and took his hand, much to the surprise of the group that had been momentarily mocking him.
While they slipped into whispers and pointed at the two of them, Yuzu squeezed Henry's hand tighter as he continued to look nervous. A few greeted Henry in a friendly manner causing him to grin awkwardly and wave before slipping back into a neutral face.
"Sorry to do this, but do you mind if he joins us," asked Yuzu with a nervous grin.
"Hello," said Henry giving them the same awkward, strained grin he'd given the other customers. "It's nice to see you again."
"Nice to see you too," answered Mei a little more cooly than expected, a familiar uneasy feeling boiling in the pit of her stomach.
"Hello." Himeko gave him an awkward smile of her own and nodded at Yuzu. "Are you hungry? We just ordered some food."
"I already ate," said Henry as Yuzu took her seat and looked cautiously at the chair," and it's not Saturday lunchtime, so I can't eat anything here, and even if I wanted, I went through my snack budget already so I'll just have water."
"But you can still sit with us, can't you?" Himeko's s face was screwed up in confusion at Henry's reply, while Mei was fighting the urge not to have him sit with them despite being against her better nature. "Food is usually enjoyed better with company, so even if you don't eat, it would be nice to have an extra person to talk to."
"Is that okay?" Henry turned to Yuzu, his face and voice betraying the nervousness he felt. "I laughed at her, and you said that made her mad."
"If she says it's okay, it's okay." Yuzu let Henry take the seat next to the wall and slid back into the seat across from Mei.
While the women began to chat, Henry started to go through his bag. After a few awkward moments pulled out a battery pack, two cables, his cell phone, and removed his headphones from his neck and plugged them in before pouring himself a glass of water from a freshly arrived pitcher that their server had handed directly to him.
"What are those for?"
"They're for listening to music and books and stuff," snorted Henry after finishing his second glass of water. "Haven't you seen a portable charger or worn headphones?"
"Henry," said Yuzu warningly after seeing the look of shock on Himeko's face.
"What?"
Henry looked at Yuzu, and Mei could see that despite their differences in appearance, the look of annoyance on both their faces was nearly identical.
"You're being rude," explained Yuzu pointing at Himeko, who'd returned to nibbling on some newly arrived appetizers. "You need to apologize."
"How was I rude," fumed Henry looking frustrated and almost as upset with Yuzu as she was with him.
"Okogi-san, it's...," began Himeko, worried that the conversation would bring unwanted attention but stopped when Yuzu raised her hand in a manner that told them all not to interrupt.
"Because you hurt her feelings by insinuating, she was stupid."
"But I didn't call her stupid," snapped Henry, his voice filled with frustration.
Mei noticed a couple of people looking at them, but most of them, particularly the people who had greeted him, let it alone, which was both a relief and slightly troubling to Mei.
"You don't have to say someone is stupid to insult them, Henry," said Yuzu patiently, but with a slight edge. "Remember what we told you about how you need to be careful about how you phrase things?"
"Yeah." Henry's fingers began pulling at his hair. After a surprising, but quick struggle with him, Yuzu wrestled his hand from his head and squeezed it with one while patting it with another, amazing her guests with how easily she was able to handle the large man.
"Well," began Yuzu calmly and quietly, "when you asked Momokino-san about how she'd never used headphones or used battery back, you said it in an insulting way."
"But I didn't..."
Mei and Himeko kept quiet and saw Henry begin to rock back and forth and shake his head while Yuzu whispered something to him that sounded calming. After a minute, Henry finally settled enough that Yuzu was able to ask, "Did I make it too difficult to understand?"
"Yeah." Henry nodded and shook the hand that Yuzu was holding.
"Okay," said Yuzu patting his hand and looking frustrated with herself. "How about we do this? The next time someone asks you a question, you just answer it, okay? Like you do at work. Treat it like how you answer people's questions at work, and if you get confused, just do what you do there and ask for help. Sound good?"
"Yeah." Henry gave another nod that Mei guessed was a grateful smile before pulling his hand back and turning back toward the table. "Thanks for explaining, Yuzu."
"You're welcome." Yuzu smiled back and then turned her attention back to Himeko and Mei and said, "Now apologize."
"But..."
"Henry, you just said you understood so, please apologize."
There was a slight pause, and Henry's face screwed up in frustration as he and Yuzu began an uncomfortably long staring contest. While he drummed his fingers on the table, Yuzu crossed her arms and glared at him. While Himeko chewed nervously on her food, Mei smirked at the scene, being reminded of a misbehaving child and a reprimanding parent. Though despite the humor she saw in the situation, Mei's curiosity was once again piqued as to why Yuzu spoke to Henry the way she did but held her tongue as the battle of wills continued to play out in front of her.
Finally, Henry stopped his drumming, turned toward Himeko, bowed his head, and in stiff, but fluent Japanese, said, "I'm sorry for talking that way to you Momokino-san. Umm, if you want to know, I don't like loud noises, and I use the headphones to block them out, but they died on my way here, and I have to charge them. Oh, and Yuzu said if I didn't apologize for laughing at Matsuri's joke about how your eyebrows look like caterpillars, I need to apologize for that. So I'm sorry for that also.
"Apology accepted," said Himeko politely and returning the gesture, unsure of how to handle Henry's explanation but happy that he'd at least understood the situation. However, she couldn't resist kicking Mei underneath the table to quiet her snickering. "But don't worry too much about the last time. You aren't the first person to laugh, and you probably won't be the last."
"Okay." Henry's head shot up, and Mei noticed that his face had returned to its usual neutral setting and began looking through his bag as Himeko and Yuzu started to discuss specific fashion trends. At the same time, Mei listened quietly, enjoying the fact that Himeko and Yuzu were getting along, only ignoring them when Henry pulled two books out of his bag.
"Umm," said Henry a little louder than he intended as he gripped the books tightly. "Yuzu...Yuzu said that you'd sign these if I asked. So, could you please sign them?"
"I didn't say that," groaned Yuzu, her face turning red. "I said if she wasn't busy and you asked her she might sign them. Also, we're at lunch and trying to have some fun, so now isn't the best..."
"It's fine," said Mei as their server returned to take their lunch order and began sternly conversing with Henry in Spanish. As they bickered, Mei retrieved a sharpie from her bag and asked Henry for the books which he gave to her without complaint.
After their server left, Mei looked at Henry who had the closest thing she'd seen to an excited look on his face as she uncapped the marker and politely asked, "So do you want me to sign on the inside of the cover or on one of the pages where I'm featured."
"Inside the cover's fine," said Henry, his hands rubbing together eagerly. "I don't want the ink to mess up the pictures."
"Brilliant," said Mei nodding as she wrote her name and a few kind, but genuine words to him.
While her public appearances had been few, Mei had signed autographs before, so she had a few vague ideas of what to write, though these would be much less superficial than her previous ones.
When she finished the group that had preceded, Henry began conversing loudly in Spanish, but she ignored them and handed the books back to him. However, she noticed Yuzu's hands begin flexing in frustration as she listened to them and only looked up when she heard Henry say, "Are we friends? Because you wrote that you're my friend."
Yuzu's eyes widened in amazement while Mei heard a small grunt from Himeko.
Taking a sip of her water, Mei swallowed, and despite the low rumblings of the beast in her chest, she nodded and said, "I would hope so, and it's not just because you're a fan of my work either. Yuzu's my friend, and you're important to her, so I figured that we should try to be friends too."
"Cool," said Henry with a small shrug and a grin. "I'm gonna tell my friends when we go out on Friday what you said. Look, Yuzu."
Henry handed the book to Yuzu and read the inscription and smiled, "That's great, Henry. I'm happy for you."
When the book was put away, Joaquin and Lily showed up carrying a couple of trays laden with food and set them on the table.
"This is a lot," said Mei noticing the bowls of fragrant soup, plates of spiced rice, beans, meat, and other things and began trying to figure out where to begin.
"I told you," laughed Yuzu as she began loading plates with a few things and handing them to everyone except Henry, who was preoccupied with a book while Lilia talked to him.
"It's good to see you Lindo," said the woman, patting Henry's head after getting his permission. "How are you? I thought you'd be at work, are you sure you aren't feeling well?"
"I'm fine Tia Lily," replied Henry, annoyed at the attention as he was trying to concentrate on a comic book he was trying to read. "I get to work from home this month, and I was scheduled for a half-day today, and I already did today and tomorrow's work.
"That's my good boy," giggled Lily before giving him one last pat. "I made you a special container of sopa to take home with you, so make sure you freeze it if you don't eat it right away, okay?"
"Okay," answered Henry disinterestedly as Lily told them to enjoy their meal and returned to the kitchen.
Despite there being three of them eating, the food seemed never-ending.
Even when their stomachs were full to bursting forty-five minutes later, they'd barely eaten half of the food and asked for a series of containers to separate everything into what each of them preferred.
"I don't want anything else," burped Himeko as she rubbed her stomach after telling their server that they didn't want dessert. "Mei-Mei, you can have it all."
"I can take some back to the shop," offered Yuzu after she tied the bag of her leftovers along with the container holding Henry's soup. "They'd be more than happy to take it off our hands."
"Sure," said Mei with a tired nod and wiping a bit of sweat from her forehead, her voice a little louder as the restaurant had filled up throughout their meal. "How much do..."
"It's on me this time," said Yuzu with a smile as she pulled out several bills while Henry sat next to her, his headphones back on his head as he tried to focus on another book he'd brought with him.
"Are you sure?" Mei felt her face flush, this time from embarrassment rather than food.
"You bet I am." Yuzu smiled and handed them to Joaquin before saying something in Spanish.
Turning back to Mei, Yuzu gave her a nervous smile and said, "But if you want, next time we hang out, you can pay. That sound fair?"
"Sure." Mei nodded and brushed a bit of hair behind her ear and looked to Himeko, glad to see that her friend was too preoccupied with the pain in her stomach to pay attention. "Did you have anywhere in mind?"
"Well, there is something we can do, but I need to double-check the date when I get home. Is that okay?"
Mei nodded and took a minute to open her schedule and said, "I've got to head out of town next month for a week, so as long as it's before or after that, we should be fine."
"Great," squeaked Yuzu excitedly, this time earning her a glare from Himeko, but she ignored it. "Anyway, thanks for hanging out with us today, but we gotta get home and do a few things, not to mention I'm going to take a long nap after eating all of this. Henry?"
Yuzu reached over and carefully poked Henry's arm, making him grunt in annoyance, but he removed his headphones.
"What," he asked, rather rudely.
"We're going home," said Yuzu, unaffected by his attitude. "Make sure you have everything."
Groaning, Henry made sure everything was in his bag, and Mei couldn't help but notice the meticulous way he went about doing it. When he finished, he stood up and gave a polite farewell to her and Himeko before grabbing the bag of food and pointing at the door.
"Are we going?"
"Yeah, yeah." Yuzu rolled her eyes and gave a tired smile and grabbed her bag before standing up and was about to say goodbye when Mei and Himeko both climbed tiredly to their feet, leftovers in hand. "Uh, what are you guys doing?"
"We need to get going before Himeko falls into a coma," explained Mei as Himeko clung to her arm and continued to grown loudly in pain.
"Mei-Mei. Let's go. My tummy hurts," moaned Himeko, resting her head on Mei's shoulder and not even attempting to avoid brushing her braid against Mei's ear.
Thankfully, Mei was able to control herself and motioned toward the door and said, "Do you mind if we walk out with you?"
"Sure," said Yuzu with a nod and a smile.
Once they said their goodbyes to the Lily and the rest of the staff, they headed toward the exit just as one of the guys from the loud group was walking back into the restaurant with the girl who'd been with him reeking of cigarette smoke and alcohol walked right into Henry, knocking the bag out of his hand. It landed with a dull thud, breaking the knot and sending soup all over the man's shoes and pant legs.
"What the hell man," shouted the guy, his slurred voice catching the attention of several people as he shoved Henry and pointed down at his shoes and ruined pants. "Why weren't you watching where you were going? These shoes cost me like four-hundred bucks!"
Henry looked down at the floor, then at the guy, and then turned around and asked Lily for a mop and bucket before grabbing some napkins from an empty table.
"Are you listening to me asshole," shouted the guy as Henry began cleaning up the mess with the help of a few regulars using some paper towels and napkins, ignoring the shouts, though Mei and Himeko noticed several people were wound so tight they seemed more like snakes and given her experiences with Matsuri was worried that a fight was about to break out. "The fuck is he...is he as deaf as he is stupid?"
Yuzu stepped forward and gave a cursory glance to Henry, then at Mei, and shook her head before turning her stone-cold glare on the drunken man and calmly said, "He's wearing noise-canceling headphones, and he's cleaning up the mess. It's what he was taught to do when something like this happens, which is more than I can say about you."
"The fuck did you say?" The guy reached up and pushed Yuzu. There was a scraping of chairs as a few people moved their seats back. "Are you giving me lip you cojuda maricona?"
"What's that mean," whispered Himeko as she shifted behind Mei, who was trying to figure out whether or not she should intervene.
"Something bad, I guess," answered Mei when she saw the looks a few people were giving the guy and the annoyed look on his companion's face though Yuzu looked more humored than offended before hearing Yuzu retort.
"I'd rather be that than a pendejo whose breath smells like culo cagado."
Several people, including a few of the guy's friends, snickered at Yuzu's comeback, which made him go red in the face; his attention now focused solely on Yuzu.
"You hija de puta," snarled the guy as he heard his friends laughing at him. Grabbing Yuzu by the shoulder, he jerked her forward and raised his fist, growling, "I'm gonna show you and that maldito retardado..."
"Yu...," began Mei, but she was cut off by the sound of a loud crack as Yuzu's legs shifted, breaking the guys hold, as her right arm hooked around, slamming into the guy's jaw and sending him to the ground in a heap while his friends swore at her.
"What the hell," shouted one of the girls while her friends made began trying to get the guy Yuzu had just punched off the floor. "What'd you do that for?"
"You saw what he was about to do," said Lily with a smug look on her face, "and we have it all on camera. She defended herself, and everyone here can attest to the fact that he started it, so I think you should clear out before you make her any more pissed than she already is."
"Also," said Yuzu so coldly that Mei was surprised that it was the same person she and Himeko had eaten lunch with, "tell your friends that insulting me is fair game, but if you insult him in front of me ever again, next time, I won't stop."
"You bitch," shouted one of the guys who was being forced to steady his still dazed friend while the girl Yuzu was speaking to backed slowly toward the door. "If I ever catch you..."
"We'll be right behind her to back her up," said one of the patrons who had been helping Henry with his cleaning. "So unless you want something worse, get your asses out of here."
While Mei watched in stunned silence as the group hurried as best they could out the door along with a few patrons to ensure the group didn't come back. Himeko's hand clutched at the back of her shirt, both of them shaking, while several other people shouted cheers and patted Yuzu on the back and offered some apologies for not stepping in.
"Don't apologize," chuckled Yuzu smiling at them. "I saw how you guys were getting ready to jump in and how you were helping Henry, so you don't need to be sorry. Also, thanks for helping him clean up, is he okay?"
"He's washing up in the back," said Lily smiling at Yuzu, Mei, and Himeko. "He's complaining about how he stinks now and is worried you're mad about the food. I don't even think he even translated what was happening too much."
"But I'm still going to have to talk to him," sighed Yuzu, looking worried, "and we all know how long that can take."
"Is everything all right," asked Himeko from behind Mei. "I know we didn't do anything, but we can stay if you're afraid those jerks will come back. I promise I'll help this time."
"It's all right," said Yuzu when she noticed Mei's and Himeko's nervous looks though she smiled at Himeko's offer. "Those guys won't be back any time soon. But I'm surprised you locked up Mei considering what I've heard about your nights out with Matsuri and the others."
"Yeah," gulped Mei, finally being able to speak through her heart pounding in her ears, "well, it's been a while since I saw something like that, and even then, I never really got involved. How's your hand?"
"Nothing to worry about," said Yuzu holding up her hand and flexing it with no trouble though the smile she gave Mei faded a little as she scratched her head and pointed toward the corner. "It's going to take more than a wimp like that to bother me. But unfortunately, I'm gonna be here a little longer. I'm sorry things ended up like this."
Mei followed to where Yuzu was pointing to see Henry being led back to the table they'd been sitting at staring down at the table as he tugged at his hair. In contrast, a man larger than even Henry dressed in restaurant attire sat next to him and began talking to him quietly while Lily brought Henry a soda and the man a coffee.
From the way Lily looked at the man next to Henry, Mei guessed it was her husband, and despite her jealousy felt thankful that Yuzu had a little help.
"Is he going to be okay," asked Mei a little worried about what the aftermath would bring. "Are you sure you don't want us to stay?"
"Not this time," said Yuzu, her smile growing bigger, but Mei noticed a sadness behind it. "I know you're concerned about him and how he acts, but I promise you he's mostly harmless, okay? I promise I'll explain soon. I think I promised that before, but I gotta make sure Henry's okay with me telling you, not that he'll care, but I want to be respectful about it. But I'm glad you're willing to stay, it means a lot and Momokino-san?"
"Yes?" Himeko moved out from behind Mei, her nerves still rattling, but Mei could see that she was trying to look tough after seeing what Yuzu did. "What is it?"
The actions weren't lost on Yuzu; the blonde pointed at the two of them and said, "Make sure the two of you stay safe, okay?"
"You can count on me," said Himeko, her arm hooking around Mei's so tightly that she practically pulled Mei off her feet. "You never need to worry about Mei-Mei when she's with me."
"Good." Yuzu smiled, but Mei could see something in it that unsettled her.
Before she could ask about it, Yuzu excused herself, and as Himeko led her out the door. Mei watched as Yuzu returned to the table where Henry was sitting, sipping his soda, his headphones now down around his neck.
As they exited the restaurant, Mei heard Henry ask, "Did you get into another fight because of me?"
But before she could hear Yuzu's, answer they were outside, where the patrons standing guard bid them farewell as they headed back the way they came.
Once they began walking, Himeko loudly sighed, "That was intense. I don't know how she was able to do something so barbaric. Not that I'm trying to insult her, I know you two are friends, but I've never known a girl who was able to do something like that. Have you?"
"A few," replied Mei, her mind replaying the confident stance Yuzu took before punching the man, causing her heart to pound violently in her chest. Even though she knew better, Mei couldn't help wondering if push came to shove that Yuzu would fight for her like that but immediately began to bury those feelings. "But not like that. It was kind of amazing, wasn't it?"
"I suppose it was in its way." Himeko's face turned a bit red at Mei's response, and her grip grew tighter. "But promise me if you hang out with her when I'm not around, you won't make a habit of getting into situations like that. I don't think I'd forgive either of you if that were to happen, her especially."
"I promise I won't," sighed Mei lazily, annoyed at Himeko's jealousy but thankful she was worried.
"Good." Himeko cuddled up closer to her best friend as they walked down the street. "But promise me that if you do, you'll take me back there for something to eat as an apology. If nothing, that girl does have an eye for good food."
"On that we can agree," laughed Mei, deciding to move a little closer to Himeko, glad to have her best friend at her side to help distract her from the conflicting emotions that were beginning to dig their hooks into her brain and heart.
