Chapter 167: A Kid's Meal
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Skip Beat, for if I did, we would one day see Kuon eating a meal with his parents without dying...though his expression would be hilarious now that we know his mom can pack it away too. XD
He eased the dark horse off the road, bypassing the rows of motorcycles until he found a space beside the red Ducati in the cramped lot of the bar.
"How did she ride?" Kuu asked, slipping off his son's sportbike and removing his helmet. At the midway point of their ride, they had stopped for gas, switched motorcycles, and made their way back down the PCH. They had been riding for a couple of hours and were still twenty-minutes outside of LA.
Kuon dismounted the larger bike and removed his helmet before answering. "Kyoko wasn't lying when she said the seats were comfortable." His ass wasn't numb from sitting for an extended period and his back felt fine since he didn't have to hunch over the gas tank to grip the handlebars.
"It's been a while since I've ridden for that long," Kuu confessed, stretching out his arms and twisting his torso left to right to loosen up the tight core muscles.
"Are you going to be okay?" Kuon asked, biting back a smile as his father continued to stretch his body. It was at Kuu's insistence that they switched bikes to break up the monotony and have him try out the cruiser. There wasn't much opportunity to exchange words, but there was a quiet understanding between father and son as they rode side by side. Kuon had enjoyed the ride with his father and was grateful for the time they could spend together.
"I'm fine," Kuu replied quickly and stood taller. "I hope you're hungry because this place has some good barbeque."
"I could eat," Kuon answered, making his dad smile. He studied the single-story wooden building with a sign above that read Crazy Louie's. For a biker bar, the exterior was in great shape and the planter boxes decorating the windows probably looked pretty during the spring. The smell of hickory smoke in the air was strong and he could hear rock music coming from somewhere close.
"You'll love it," Kuu assured him. "Do you want to throw your gloves in here?" Kuu opened one of the saddlebags and threw his gloves inside, so Kuon did too. He waited while his dad rummaged through the leather bin and pulled out a skull patterned headwrap and a pair of sunglasses.
Kuon cocked a brow curiously and waited while his father put on the head cover and glasses. Was this his father's way of being incognito? Surely, the people inside watched enough of his movies to see through this flimsy disguise.
"How do I look?" Kuu asked seriously and used the side mirror on the motorcycle to check himself out. Kuon chuckled and gave him the OK sign with his fingers.
"Alright, let's head in before the lunch rush takes all the good meat, but first…" Kuu fished out his cellphone from his jacket pocket and removed his sunglasses. "A selfie to commemorate our first father-son ride."
Kuon winced and tried to smile naturally despite his dark looks as his father held the phone aloft, snapping their picture.
"It's a good one, son," Kuu said, staring fondly at the photo. His father didn't seem to care that he had dark hair or brown eyes and looked nothing like his natural self.
"Can you send it to me?"
"Of course! I'll send it to Kyoko and your mother too." Kuu happily obliged, tapping rapidly on his phone. "All set!" He put it back in his pocket and walked briskly toward the entrance as a trio of bikers pulled into the lot. For being early in the day, there were over a dozen motorcycles parked. Kuon noticed the new arrivals check out his fire engine red Ducati and realized it was the only odd one out of the bunch. Every other bike in the lot were cruisers, choppers, or the large touring kind with seats that reminded him of a La-Z Boy recliner.
Kuu opened the door wide and waved him in. Kuon felt like he had just stepped onto a movie set and noted several men wearing skull caps and sunglasses indoors too. His father's get-up didn't seem so odd after all. Drinks were stopped midway and conversations died from their lips as they paused to check out the newcomers. Ren nodded uncomfortably to some of the men and ignored the suggestive smiles from some of the older women. A little voice in his head told him not to be polite or make eye contact with any of the ladies if he wanted to have a peaceful lunch. A second passed before they all went about their business: drinking their beer, shooting pool, and resuming bawdy conversations. Kuon snorted internally, he should have known better. Inspiration for such dramatic moments usually stemmed from reality.
To Kuon's surprise, the interior appeared pristine and recently renovated, so unlike the dilapidated bars seen in films. The place had the residual smell of fresh paint and varnish. The exposed plumbing and ductwork above opened the space and made it feel larger than it was. The inside had a modern industrial feel to it with dark woods and metal furniture. Judging by the nondescript exterior, he expected a dive with peanut shells and sticky substances strewn about the floor. A roll-up door sat open on the other side of the bar bringing the outdoors inside. It was the perfect design element for enjoying the autumn California weather. The shiny wooden bar was a large rounded rectangle that could serve customers from the inside and those sitting outside on umbrella-covered picnic tables enjoying the live band. Now he had found the source of the music he heard from the parking lot.
"Ahhh, shit, Johnny," the barkeep cursed, throwing down his rag and glaring beyond Kuon. "I just finished fixing up the place."
Johnny? Who is he talking about? The only person behind him at the moment was his dad.
"Awe, Louie. I love what you've done here. You have good taste!" his father boasted with what sounded like a midwestern accent.
"By the way, I'm Johnny," he whispered as he passed Kuon and took a seat at the bar.
"Is Janie at least with you?" Louie asked hopefully. "I got her favorite Vodka in stock. Plus, the last time you came here alone, you left my bar in tatters. If you start any trouble I'm going to ban you from the premises."
Janie? Is that mom's alias. Are their last names Doe? Kuon snickered to himself at the lack of imagination his parents had for names. It was almost like they wanted to get caught.
"Didn't I apologize for that? I mean, look how good the place looks."
"Thanks to your generosity on top of insurance, I was able to hire a fancy interior designer."
Johnny leaned closer to Louie and whispered, "I'd appreciate it if you keep that incident on the DL if you know what I mean." He straightened up on his stool, "Besides the missus is having a girl's day, but I did bring my friend Ren here to keep me in check. He's from Japan doesn't speak a lick of English."
Well shit! He could have given me a little more warning.
"Ren," Kuu waved him over and patted the seat beside him. "I'm showing him the best of California."
Ren bowed and said, "How do you do?" in English with a heavy Japanese accent.
"No, English, my ass. That was perfect. How are you liking California kid, and how did you get saddled with this jackass?" Louie inquired.
Ren's professional smile graced his lips as he stared daggers at his father, making the barkeep chuckle. Johnny repeated what Louie asked in broken Japanese with Ren responding rapidly.
"He...ugh…" Johnny hesitated, trying to find the right words. "said thank you for the compliment. He's been practicing his English. And we just met at the gas station in Santa Barbara. He was struggling with the cashier, and since I speak some of the language, I was able to help him out. Thought I'd bring him here to try out the place."
"He said all that, huh?" Louie clucked his tongue skeptically. The barkeep was no slouch. The number of words Johnny used to translate was longer than what Ren had said in response.
"As you know, Japanese are not wasteful, and that includes their words. I had to embellish a little for you to understand."
"You're so full of shit," Louie accused his father with a laugh. Ren had to sit with a dopey smile to give the illusion that he had no clue what they were talking about.
"What can I get you, fellas?"
"We'll take two beers, and I'll have the special, and he'll have the kid's special."
Ren exploded in a coughing fit to cover his shock from his father essentially ordering him a kid's meal. He wasn't supposed to understand what was being said so it was the only solution he could think of to hide his offended expression. Louie quickly retrieved a cold beer from the cooler and placed it on a coaster in front of Ren. Still coughing, he nodded in thanks to the barkeep and took a swig.
"You do realize the kid's special is only for kids, eleven or younger," Louie clarified, pointing up to the chalkboard menu that clearly showed the age for the kid's menu.
"I thought that was a joke. Who the hell brings their kids to a bar?"
As if on cue, the sound of a crying child could be heard coming from the patio. "I stand corrected." For a moment, they watched the mother inspect and dust the child off after what appeared to be a fall.
"I'll have you know this is a reputable family-friendly establishment," Louie began arguing when a patron across the bar shouted.
"Hey, you drank all my fucking beer, jackass!"
Ren and Johnny turned their heads to observe the little spat that ensued by the pool tables. Two grizzly men with scruffy beards, bandannas, and leather vests were squaring each other up.
"Celia hon," Louie called out to a waitress working the floor. "Get those men a refill before they break my new sticks."
Ren and Johnny gave Louie a questionable look.
"Any parent that claims they've never sworn in front of a child is a liar…" The barkeep said, defensively. He did have a point. Growing up in Hollywood, among adults, pretty much guaranteed Kuon was introduced to bad language early on in his life.
"Besides, this guy is built like a quarterback. I don't think that's going to be enough food for him," Louie commented.
Ren cocked his head, feigning confusion to keep from checking out his body. Am I really that buff?
The main door opened and Louie paused to greet the new patrons that walked in. It was good to know the people here didn't discriminate. They stopped what they were doing to check them out as well.
"Do you think you could make an exception this once? Japanese aren't big eaters, the food would only go to waste," Johnny explained, bringing the conversation back to Ren's kid's meal.
Louie huffed, "fine, do you want the brisket or the pork?"
"Both," Johnny replied without hesitation.
The barkeep chuckled, "I should have known." He turned his back on them to place their order into the fancy touchscreen monitor. Louie had another bartender in there with him, but he seemed to be a friendly and hands-on owner. So far nothing indicated that he was crazy. He left them to drink their beer as he tended to other patrons.
Ren was relieved to find the food coming out of the kitchen wasn't so intimidating: chicken wings, fries, homemade chips; all the standard American bar fare.
It wasn't long before Celia brought out a cafeteria-style metal tray laden with food and set it before Ren. He gulped at the monstrosity that was his kid's meal. On the paper-lined tray sat a burrito larger than his forearm (which was pretty big) and two large bowls filled to the brim with mac and cheese and bread pudding— both of which he had never eaten before.
"That's mine," Johnny said in Japanese, sliding the tray in front of him. "Let's eat over there," he told Ren nodding to an empty table in a secluded corner. His dad stood and relocated to the table taking his tray and beer with him. Ren followed him with his beer and moments later, Celia was back with a tray for him.
"Can I get you guys anything else," she asked cheerfully.
"Could we have extra napkins and two glasses of water, please," Johnny responded, flashing her that million-dollar smile that made women swoon.
"You got it." She was back in a flash with Johnny's request and left them to eat.
Ren stared at the kid's meal on his tray trying to figure out where to start.
"Say chizu, son," Kuu teased in perfect Japanese. That was his cue that they could drop the pretenses now that they were alone. Kuon smiled for his dad to take the picture.
"So, Johnny," It was now Kuon's turn to tease him. "It seems something interesting happened the last time you were here...something that 'Janie' doesn't know about?"
Kuu chuckled. "Don't use it as blackmail against me. I may have gotten myself involved in a little tiff last time I was here. Tempers were running a little hot that day," his dad admitted between bites of his food.
"Did you get hurt?"
"No way. I dodged the blow. The guy's fist connected with a man behind me and so that guy went after him. I was forgotten as the brawl escalated and hid behind the bar with Louie. I figured I owed him one for not ratting me out to the cops."
Kuon stared at his father, awed that he got into or almost got into a bar scrap.
"You should eat. It's really good," Kuu said with a mouthful of food.
Kuon let the subject drop. It was good to hear that his father wasn't negatively affected by that altercation. He focused on his food and was thankful Kuu had the hindsight to get him a child's portion. It appeared to be less than a quarter of the size of his dad's four-pound burrito, but it looked like it could still feed two adults.
Kuu watched and waited for his son to take his first bite. Kuon picked up the end of the burrito that was marked with a flag pick indicating that it was brisket and took a bite. The hickory-smoked flavor in the juicy meat tasted delicious. It had been a long time since he ate this style of barbecue, but even then he didn't enjoy it like he did today. Thanks to Kyoko, he was slowly regaining his appetite and appreciation for food.
"It's pretty good," he said after swallowing his food.
"Right," Kuu smiled and resumed eating with more gusto.
"How did you guys find this place, anyway?" He asked after another bite. His parents weren't snobs, it just seemed out of the way of their usual.
"We were out for a ride and followed some bikers off the PCH. The sign said cold beer, live music, and BBQ. Can't beat that right, plus I was starving. We come back every time we go out for a ride this way. Janie has made quite the impression," Kuu winked. Kuon could only imagine what kind of vodka-loving woman his mother portrayed while they were here.
Kuu wiped his hands and mouth and picked up his phone again. Kuon continued to eat while his father scrolled through his phone searching for something.
"Here's a picture."
Kuon took the phone and stared at the picture of Janie and Louie standing in front of a wall covered with metal road signs and unique license plates. The wall no longer existed in the bar, but some elements remained as tasteful wall decor. His mother was dressed in a leather jacket and jeans with her hair pulled back and covered in a headwrap similar to the one his dad wore now. He probably wouldn't have recognized her even without the aviator sunglasses she sported. In that getup, she fit right in with the other biker chicks in this joint.
"And nobody has guessed at your identities?" Kuon asked curiously.
"If they have, no one is talking."
Kuon chuckled and shook his head as he handed back the phone. He picked up his fork and poked through the mac and cheese, discovering bits of bacon mixed in it. Thrilled by the idea of eating the delicious breakfast meat, he took a decent size scoop and ate it. As he chewed, he noted some interesting flavors in the bite.
"How do you like it?"
"It's not bad. It tastes like…" Kuon hesitated trying to figure out the right ingredient to describe the familiar flavor in his mouth.
"Beer?" Kuu laughed.
"Yessss," he agreed and took another bite. "I can taste the beer. Wait...isn't this the kid's meal?" Kuon asked, horrified.
"Relax, son. You've had meals cooked in a wine before when you were little. Most of the alcohol evaporates during the cooking process. It's perfectly harmless."
His father was the food expert so Kuon shrugged it off and continued eating. As always, his father finished first, eating the absorbent amount of food without leaving a single crumb on his tray. Kuon on the other hand had managed to finish his "child-size" burrito and mac and cheese but struggled to make a dent in the bread pudding. He glanced up nervously to find his father watching him through those sunglasses with his chin propped in hand and a doting smile plastered on his face.
"Would you like the rest of this?" Kuon asked, throwing in the towel. He held out the barely eaten dessert to his dad.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I can't eat another bite," he replied weakly, handing it over. Kuu took the bowl and wolfed down its contents in seconds.
"I'm proud of you, son," Kuu said when he was finished. "Thanks for making the effort to eat all your food. It means a lot to me."
"I couldn't even finish a measly kid's meal," Kuon mumbled bitterly.
"Did you see the size of those portions? This is why obesity is on the rise in young Americans: not enough exercise and too many carbs."
Kuon let his father's words console him, but kept silent.
"Do you want to shoot some pool before we head back to the house?...Oh, I almost forgot you have to prepare for the audition. We should head back."
He did need to study that script if he wanted to have a fighting chance at snagging the role. Kuon also had a load of laundry sitting in the washing machine and another load in the dryer, but all that could wait, spending time with his father took precedence right now. He had not played pool since his teen years. The idea of moving around after eating such a huge meal sounded appealing to him. Kuon twisted in his seat to survey the billiards area. All the tables seemed to be occupied.
"I don't mind a round, but…"
"Are you sure?"
Kuon nodded, "but there's..."
"Well then, come on, Ren," his dad cut him off excitedly, the accent returning. Johnny squeezed his shoulder as he stood then threw down a hundred dollar bill on the table. "Let's see if we can coax someone into giving us a turn."
"Or we could just go," Ren replied, no longer liking the idea of interrupting someone's game. Johnny was already halfway across the bar before Ren grabbed his water and hurried after him.
"Thanks for the meal, Lou. Delicious as always," Johnny saluted the barkeep with his glass of water as he passed. Ren stopped to offer his small bow of appreciation.
"You got it, Johnny, Ren," Louie said, in the middle of chatting up a patron.
"Hey fellas, any chance my friend and I can get in a round," Johnny asked nicely. He had purposefully targeted the group that had the least number of balls on the table.
"Yeah, sure. Let me just put this guy out of his misery," the man taking his shot answered. It took six more shots between the pair before a victor was declared. Surprisingly true to their word, they gave up the table without a fuss and sat on the nearby stools to watch.
"Pick out some cue sticks," Johnny instructed him in broken Japanese. He removed his sunglasses and jacket, laying them on a nearby stool. The guys watching didn't display any outward signs indicating recognition of the actor. It was probably too farfetched for them to think one of Hollywood's biggest stars would be in a place like this one.
Ren removed his jacket too, then walked to the rack holding the sticks and examined each one. The length he was considering all seemed to be the same weight and diameter, so a couple for them to use. The other choices were clearly for women.
Johnny was nearly finished racking the balls when he returned with the cue sticks and some chalk.
"Do you want to break?" Johnny asked, holding up the white cue ball.
"I defer to you since it's been a while."
What language are they speaking? Chinese?
I don't know man, Korean? Vietnamese?
"It's Japanese," Johnny clarified, interrupting the whispers as he rubbed blue chalk on the tip of his cue stick and placed the white ball down on the table.
"Oh, that's right," one of the guys replied nodding in agreement. "That's what they speak down at the sushi place on Sunset," he told his friend.
Ren pursed his lips to keep from laughing. The idea of these rough-looking bikers wielding chopsticks and eating sushi had to be a sight.
Johnny's break was clean and sank a couple of balls into the pockets allowing him to choose which balls he wanted to use. He chose solids. His next shot yielded nothing making it Ren's turn.
He studied the table looking for an easy ball to play. Once he found something promising, he set himself up to take a shot at a striped ball in the far corner pocket. His aim was off on the cue ball that he missed the other ball entirely. Ren groaned internally at his poorly executed shot. He was rustier than he thought.
While Johnny set up for his next shot, Ren examined the way the man held his cue stick and placed his hands. The cue-ball hit its mark and easily sank another one of his balls into the side pocket When it was Ren's turn, Johnny took it as a teaching moment to help him set his hand and demonstrate how to keep the stick steady during the forward thrust. Apparently, Ren was using too much force. This time the white ball made contact with the intended striped ball, but it slowed right in front of the hole and teetered on the edge. Ren hissed at his misfortune.
"Ooh, that was a close one," Johnny said aloud. "You'll get it next time," he told him encouragingly.
Like all things he had done in life with a little practice he progressively got better. It was his first time playing in a while, so to a skilled player he would still appear terrible. Johnny won that round, even though Ren could tell he intentionally prolonged the game by missing shots he could have easily made. At least he didn't completely try to let me win with my shitty skills. That would have been too much, even for dad.
They were going to leave it at that and go home, but the guys watching them suggested a match. Us versus them with money on the line.
"What do you think, Ren?" Johnny asked, a challenging gleam in his eyes. "Want another go?"
"I suck," Ren answered, recalling how good the guys had played before them. "You're going to lose your money."
"It's only money, but we get to play together some more," Johnny replied too enthusiastically, unbecoming of a hardened biker in a bar.
"Okay," he nodded not wanting to disappoint his dad. It did feel nice to spend quality time like this with his father. He had always been too busy working when Kuon was a kid for them to do anything together.
"Looks like we're a go fellas," Johnny said, pulling out a twenty-dollar bill from his wallet and throwing it on top of the cash the other guys laid on the pool table. "Let's rack 'em up."
This time they set up the game in a diamond pattern to play with nine balls. The objective was to get the balls in the pockets in numbered order starting with the one-ball. Ren did much better this round with Johnny helping him out; however, he fouled in the end, losing them the game. The match was over so quickly that everyone agreed to another round, throwing more cash down. Ren had to wonder if these guys were playing to their full potential or were they being hustled just like in the movies. Johnny didn't seem to care about the money lost, he was having a good time. Ren's problem was he hated to lose.
Several games later, the pot had risen to over two hundred dollars. They now had a growing audience of happy drunks that weren't shy to dole out advice. Johnny played up the crowd with his charisma and had them cheering whenever Ren made a successful shot. Ren smiled and pumped his fist, thrilled by his improvement. They were finally ahead this round since he was playing his best game of the day. In their merriment, they failed to notice that their competitors were no longer happy now that they were losing.
"Hey, phone's ringing," a woman watching yelled, holding up his leather jacket. It had been relocated to the nearby railing that divided the pool area from the rest of the bar and doubled as a counter to free up the stool it previously occupied.
"Play for me," Ren told Johnny and rushed to retrieve his Jacket after thanking the woman.
The caller ID on his phone read Tina. She was supposed to meet up with Kyoko and his mom. He answered the phone without thinking.
"Hello?"
"You fucking idiot!" She screeched angrily into his ear.
Whoa! He pulled the phone back from his ear and verified the caller.
"Tina? Is that you?" He asked hesitantly. It wasn't like her to talk to him like that.
"Yes, it's me! You idiot!"
Kuon pursed his lips trying to keep his temper in check for having been called an idiot twice. He couldn't understand where all this animosity was coming from. What did I do?
"What's wrong? Is everything, okay? Is Kyoko or mom okay?"
"What? I'm not with them, thanks to you! And everything is not okay!"
Kuon was officially confused.
"Do you need help? I don't understand why you're so angry. Did something happen with Damian?"
"Ohohoho, don't you dare turn this on me. You have no idea what you've done! You and your teenage hormones have screwed up royally."
"I'm not following."
"I'm talking about last night, Kuon! Think! You and Kyoko! Damian has security cameras all over the fucking bar!"
It took him several seconds to process what she was telling him. Dread filled his body as guilt washed over him. Those regrets he thought he didn't have on the drive home early this morning finally reared their ugly heads. They had been there all along waiting for an opportunity like this one. He felt the cold breath of death breathing down his neck. Her father, Taisho, Kanae, Yukihito, her mother, his parents...many more people came to mind that would most likely kill him for this one. The perfect life he began to build with the love of his life was teetering on the edge of collapse. I can't lose her.
"Because you can't keep it in your pants, I'm heading to the bar instead of meeting your mom and Kyoko to help Damian try to fix this."
A glimmer of hope flickered in his heart. What she said sounded like there was still a chance.
"It hasn't been leaked?"
"As far as I know, no. That's why I'm heading to the bar."
"I'll meet you there in forty-minutes," he assured her, unsure of the current state of traffic that could possibly hinder his commute downtown.
"Fine!" She exclaimed and hung up.
Kuon allowed himself one shuddering breath to calm his racing heart and shrugged on his jacket. Since he wouldn't be able to shake his dad, he needed to work up the courage and come clean. He turned around slowly noticing the eerie stillness of the once boisterous crowd behind him.
A sea of faces except three stared at him in stunned silence. Worry was etched all over his dad's face as he stood like a statue. The men they were playing with appeared hostile.
The more outspoken of the pair broke the silence first. "You mean to tell me this fucking Jap could speak English this whole time," he demanded stepping to Kuu. "Were you trying to hustle us?" That's my line.
A few people in the crowd agreed and commented fueling the man's anger while several others sided with him and his father. Apparently, his father was on the verge of winning this round when everyone tuned in to his phone call.
Kuu waved Kuon off when he made a move to close the gap.
"Whoa, settle down everyone. No one was trying to hustle anyone here. You brought up the friendly wager, not us. We just wanted to play," Kuu explained, trying to placate the crowd. "Keep the money, we don't need it."
"So now you're saying we need your charity," the guy spat on the floor as Kuu tried to move past him.
Uh-oh. It was only a moment, but Kuon noticed the flicker of anger in his father's eyes.
"This is why we can't have nice things," Kuu sighed. He picked up a cocktail napkin from under the nearest drink and held it out to the guy. "Clean it up," he ordered.
Fuck! I don't have time for this. We need to get out of here. He should apologize to these people for the deceit and leave, but he was interested to see how his father would proceed.
"Make me," the guy taunted, poking Kuu in the chest.
"Please don't do that."
"What? This?" The man poked him harder.
Kuu shook his head, obviously fighting to control his temper. Kuon couldn't stand it. He wanted to break every bone in that man's hand for touching his dad.
The next time he did it, Kuu reacted. He grabbed his hand and twisted, catching the guy off balance. The man ended up with his arm awkwardly pinned behind his back and the floor where his globule resided just inches from his face. Kuu was on bended knees holding the man by the back of his neck. If his dad wanted to, he could easily use the man's face to wipe up the tobacco riddled spit he left on the ground.
"What the fuck? Let him go?" His buddy cried coming to his friend's rescue. He raised the cue stick in his hand to slam it down on the back of Kuu's head. His dad was too preoccupied to notice the impending danger. With Kuon's anger flaring, he rushed forward, snapping the pool stick with the heel of his high kick. The shattered pieces of wood flew in the man's face startling him. The guy yelped and retreated, dropping the broken halves of the pool stick on the floor. Kuon kept his guard up, glaring at the crowd, in case anyone else made a move.
"Thanks, son," Kuu smiled and gave him a thumbs up. The guy he was holding groaned as he face-planted the floor when Kuu let his neck go to praise his son.
"Oh, sorry about that," Kuu apologized, patting the man's back. "Let me help you up." Kuu grabbed the guy by the arm and hauled him to his feet. The crowd began laughing, and howling, and clapping, as a brownish-red goo ran down the side of his cheek.
"Awe fuck," the guy shouted in disgust and smeared the rancid saliva he tried to wipe off his face. He shoved past the crowd in search of a bathroom. Nothing like nasty spit on the face to ruin a man's ego.
"Goddammit, Johnny," Louie exclaimed, breaking through the crowd and surveying the damage. The casualties were one cue stick and a dirty floor.
"Sorry, Lou. I tried to get him to clean up his mess," Kuu explained with a lopsided grin. He picked up the cash sitting on the edge of the pool table. "This should be more than enough to cover the damage."
Louie huffed but didn't argue. Celia was already on the mess with antibacterial wipes while someone else collected the shards of wood.
"I'm sorry for the trouble, Louie," Kuon apologized in perfect English and bowed deeply.
"Hah!" He chuckled. "Don't sweat it kid...occupational hazard."
"Come on, son. Let's get out of here," Kuu said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "See you next time, Louie."
"Don't come back without Janie," Louie called after them.
"I got it," his dad said with a wave as they left the poorly named bar. There was nothing crazy about Louie. Overall, he was a genuinely nice guy in Kuon's humble opinion.
While Kyoko waited for Julie to finalize work with the designer and photographer, Kyoko sat in the living room in front of the massive stone fireplace signing autographs and taking pictures with the excited staff. It was crazy to have so many Americans as fans already. Granted there were less than a dozen people here today; to her, that was plenty. The last one to come up to her was Moira. After Moira's insinuation earlier, Kyoko had been wary of her.
"Hey, peace offering," Moira smiled apologetically, holding up her fingers in a peace sign. "I'm sorry about earlier, I was feeling a little jelly."
Kyoko's eyes widened at the assistant's honesty.
"I'm sorry about the whole older man thing...I can be such a bitch sometimes."
Kyoko raised her brows.
"Okay, you got me. I'm a bitch most of the time. Anyway, I'm sorry...peace?" Moria asked, holding out her hand.
Kyoko smiled and shook her hand. "You're not entirely wrong," she admitted.
"Wait, which part."
"The older man thing. My boyfriend is four years older than me," Kyoko blushed. "So you aren't wrong."
Moira burst out laughing. "Girl, you almost had me going there for a minute. That's nothing when you're over 18 and unmarried."
Kyoko grew silent.
"Kyoko, how old are you?" Moira asked, suddenly concerned as she looked over Kyoko's body. "I know Asians tend to look on the young side and judging by the maturity with which you handled work today I would guess you're in your early twenties."
Kyoko remained silent and squirmed under her scrutiny.
"Oh, dear lord. Please don't tell me you're fourteen or something."
Kyoko gasped. "I know I'm lacking in womanly curves but I'll be eighteen in December."
"Oh, thank God. Girl, don't scare me like that. Jeez, I was about ready to hunt down this man and give him an earful for preying on innocent young girls."
"He's not like that. He loves me and he's a really good guy..." she began to explain until her phone rang. Saved!
"Excuse me for a second, Moira, I have to take this," she said after checking the caller.
"Sure, I'll go check if Julie needs anything."
"Hey, Tina," Kyoko answered, excitedly.
"Kyoko, hi. I'm running a little behind today. Some work stuff at the gallery came up. I'm having issues with a delivery that I need to handle. I don't think I'll be able to make lunch."
"Oh, is there anything we can do to help? I'm sure more hands will get it done quickly."
"No, no, I got it. You see Damian has offered to help."
"Oh, I see," Kyoko smiled knowingly. She was happy Tina and Damian were making good progress.
"I'll call you guys once I'm finished and we can meet up. I shouldn't be more than an hour or two."
"Okay, that sounds good. Call us if anything changes and tell Damian I said hello."
"Thanks, Kyoko. I'll let him know. Oh and please apologize to Julie for me. I'm so sorry about this."
"I will. See you soon."
After hanging up with Tina, Kyoko went in search of Julie to break the news. She didn't know all that Julie had planned for today and hoped Tina would be able to join them.
AN: Ah shit! 5K+ of Hizuri boys filler...Whaaa? *Pikachu face* I have no clue how that happened. Thanks for sticking with me and I hope you enjoyed it.
I'm trying to figure out a name for Kyoko's character in the MV. I've been going at this for weeks and I keep coming back to wanting it to be a name of a flower, like Camellia (they're so beautiful and represent romantic love and devotion), Zinnia (for its vibrant colors and representation of endurance/lasting affection), or Lavender (for its calming effects and grace/elegance). I'm looking at it from Ren's character's POV, I want him to think after their night together, how fitting and then melt XD. What do you guys think? Any good name ideas?
Thank you for always reading and I appreciate your reviews on the last chapter.
Until next time, ja ne! ^_^