Aido sullenly grumbled to himself over the seating arrangements. Not only was he sat next to the lazy looking guy, Hiroki, but Akane was sat opposite him, between the two boys that had annoyingly clung to her side all day. Nori Maki and Kenshin Matsumura. The two had, once again, sandwiched Akane between them, conversing obnoxiously together (in his opinion). They leant on Akane's chair, subtly draping their arms behind her.
To his well-hidden annoyance, Akane seemed unaware of it all! Instead, she was thoroughly involved in the conversation, as was her blonde friend Kimiko, who sat on a separate table next to theirs, with Naomi, Kohaku, Sayori and Yasu, all happily conversing with each other. Miu sat excitedly down next to Aido, giving him a delighted, nervous smile as their waiter arrived and began handing out menus.
After some noisy minutes of deliberation, the waiter returned to collect their orders.
"I'd like to try the steak, medium rare with fries, and a coke please," Miu requested with a raised hand to gain the man's attention over the din.
"Yeah, looks good. Make that two please," Nori said. "What would you like, Miss Nakamura?" he asked the midnight-haired girl as she stared hard at the menu.
"We'll have the Tonkatsu, and two glasses of lemon water please," Shun ordered for himself and Kaede, as she was currently occupied, staring dazedly at Ichijo sat opposite her, next to Yuki.
"I'd like the Katsudon please, and water," Yasu requested, handing the man back the menu.
"Me too please,"
"And me!" both Kenshin and Naomi called out.
"I'll have the Okonomiyaki, and a coke please." Ichijo smiled pleasantly up at the waiter, causing Kaede to sigh dreamily and her boyfriend to cough to gain her attention once more.
"May I have the curry please, and some water is fine." Kohaku's soft, melodic voice floated into the mix, accompanied by Sayori's calm and pleasant tone.
"I'd like the same please."
"I'll have a burger with onion rings, and orange juice, please," Hiroki asked from his slouched position, leaning his head on the tabletop.
Aido wrinkled his nose at the display of utter disregard for basic manners when in public but quickly turned his attention to the waiter.
"I will have the Kaiseki dish, but no onions and an iced tea please," Aido ordered, handing his menu back to the man, who frantically took their orders on the tiny notepad he carried.
"Yes, I will also order the Kaiseki, and iced tea," Kimiko affirmed with a satisfied nod. "I'd like to see what the chef comes up with," she said as she handed the waiter the menu.
"Me too! That sounds good! One more please, with a coke," Yuki said cheerily turning to talk to Kimiko before addressing the waiter.
Lucky, we came when they had a lull in customers, Aido observed as his topaz eyes glanced around the restaurant. It was spacious and brightly lit, with plenty of seating space. The décor was a little cheap for his high standards of luxury, but it was still a well-designed establishment.
The theme was city chic. Large, bulbous light fittings that hung on thick cables from the high ceilings. The furniture was a solid wood frame, with metal tops to the tables and plush padding on the seats. Red and grey were the primary colours of choice, with some dusky blues and muted greens, thrown in. The kitchen area was partially open to customers, so, people could sit at the bar and watch their food be prepared.
The uniforms for the waiting staff were modest and stylish. The men wore pressed, charcoal trousers, a visible crease running down the centre, and a crisp, white shirt with a black, silk tie and a pair of polished, black shoes. The waitresses wore the same ties and crisp, white blouse, coupled with thick black tights, and fitted, charcoal skirts that came to mid-thigh, and flat, polished pumps on their feet. Their hair seemed to be part of the uniform as well. They had all styled their hair in a fashionable messy bun, for the ladies, and messy bed-head style for the men.
Level E's wouldn't come into a place like this without large numbers to back them up. We should be fine here for a while. It'll take them at least an hour or so to organise themselves if there are enough of them to organise in the immediate vicinity in the first place. Ichijo observed, doing his own discreet check of the place, letting his heightened senses expand to detect any threats they would be quick to avoid. The Vampires had easily immersed themselves within the group (as planned), now, they needed to occupy the Human's long enough for the inevitable tiredness to settle in. They had been out for hours so Aido, Ichijo and Yuki imagined it wouldn't be long now. The Discipline Committee member was certainly feeling worn out.
Akane had still not ordered, and the waiter was now waiting, after catching up with the orders being thrown at him. Aido watched as her eyes darted over the menu almost desperately. Nori and Kenshin pointed out potential dishes, offering their opinion on ones they thought Akane would like to try, but still, she couldn't decide. He raised a brow slightly at the look of slight panic she sent him, with a lightning-quick flick of her eyes. He smirked inwardly at the light tinting of her cheeks as her blush started to show, with so many of their party's attention now turned to her.
"Akane," Miu called. She looked up at her friend. "Order what you want, don't worry." Miu's reassuring smile made Akane curl into herself in embarrassment, highlighting the fact she had little money to spend on extravagant meals. As a scholarship student, she had a weekly allowance to spend on new school supplies and uniforms, but she had little leftover today after buying Miu a cuddly toy at the arcade, as well as paying for some of the games she wanted to play, and ice-cream. Akane knew Miu would most likely offer to pay for her, and she was grateful, but still felt inferior, being surrounded by so many people who seemed to take money for granted, and in front of these damn Vampires too!
Akane looked up and caught the eye of the Vampire opposite her. She frowned at the perfectly pleasant smile he was sending her. I wish I could slap that look off his smug little face! She grumbled, shifting in her seat, bringing the menu back into focus. Ok, I don't want anything that's only going to fill me for a couple of hours. I still have about five hours until tea-time back at the dorms, and if the Bloody Blond (Aido) shows up early again, I might miss dinner! After a few short moments of silence, Akane finally came to a decision.
"May I have the Tonkatsu with a glass of lemon water, please?" she asked politely with a convincingly cheerful grin.
"Of course, Miss," he smiled after jotting the order down in his book. "Will that be all?" A resounding nod was his reply. So, with a bow to his customers, he swept away to the kitchens.
The wait for the meal had been just as rowdy an affair as eating it. Kenshin and Hiroki had started arguing about Kenshin's terrible taste in music, and his insistence in playing it while studying, after a harmless comment from Yasu, about her roommate playing music first thing in the morning, when getting ready for school.
This also emboldened others to offer up the unwelcome behaviours of their roommates, which led to Miu voicing, rather loudly, that she found Akane's habit of leaving her wet towels on the floor whenever she finished drying after a shower, odd and irritating. Akane had flushed in embarrassment and apologised, promising never to do it again. Miu just laughed it off, saying she was getting used to picking up after her anyway.
After Akane adamantly promised it would not happen again, she'd locked eyes with the blond opposite, who wore a poorly concealed smirk. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion, her scowl deepening as Aido merely sipped from his glass, not revealing anything about the cause of such a wicked grin.
"Don't worry, Nakamura, he drops his crap on the floor all the time. No need to feel too bad," Hiroki offered lazily, gesturing to Kenshin, who looked affronted by the accusation, and their arguing continued.