Chopsticks and Forks
"I can't believe this place is still here! I hope it's still as good as I remember it," Mimi gushed.
"I know you've been gone for a couple of years, but you act like places close down every couple of months," Sora looked at her in concern.
"Because in New York, they do! It's literally worse than a breakup- just when you find a new favorite restaurant and go there for weeks, bam! It turns into some crappy overpriced or vegan place- even worse when it's both! How many places need to serve açai bowls?" Mimi wailed.
"That sounds...shitty," Joe frowned.
"That sounds bad if Joe cursed," Tai smirked.
"Hey, leave me alone. I'm just stressed out," Joe whined.
"When are you never?" Matt scoffed.
"True," Joe sighed and pushed his glasses up.
"Here we go! If you guys need anything else, let me know!" the waiter placed several trays of food on the table.
"Oh, can I get another Coke please?" Mimi held up an empty soda bottle.
"Yeah, sure. Just want to remind you we don't have ice. That's fine, right?" the waiter asked.
"Yeah," Mimi nodded.
"Great. Anybody else need anything?" the waiter asked.
"I could use another oolong tea," Izzy sheepishly said.
"Damn Koushirou, how many have you had already? Sounds like someone has a drinking problem," TK teased.
"Fuck off," Izzy shot him a look, his face red in embarrassment.
"Very well... I'll be back," the waiter forced a smile and walked off.
"Guys, let's dig in!" Sora cleared her throat.
"Umph...," Mimi struggled to pick up a piece of sushi with her chopsticks and ultimately just grabbed it with her hands and plopped it on her plate.
"Tsk," Matt rolled his eyes.
"What?" Mimi frowned.
"Nothing," Matt said, surly.
"Okay then...," Mimi made a face. She grabbed her chopsticks and fiddled with them.
"Seriously?" Matt scoffed as he watched Mimi struggle to pick some rice up with her chopsticks.
"What?!" Mimi angrily growled.
"You move to the States for a couple of years and you forget to eat with chopsticks all of a sudden? Is being a stupid American contagious or something?" Matt looked at her in contempt.
"Is that really necessary?" Izzy pressed his lips together.
"Yeah, Matt! You don't have to be so out of pocket!" TK flicked Matt in the head.
"Oh boy...," Joe pulled the collar of his shirt up.
"Matt, I don't understand you! We barely spoke three words to each other before I moved away, and now when you wanna talk to me, it's only to insult me?" Mimi jabbed her chopsticks in Matt's direction.
"She's got a point...," Tai said.
"Tai, stay out of it," Kari firmly put her hand on his shoulder.
"Maybe there's a reason I didn't speak to you much then, and I remember it now," Matt scoffed.
"If this is your attempt at being a tundra, you're soooo failing at it. You're just being a fucking dickhead," Mimi stabbed her chopsticks in her rice.
"Oh boy...," Joe whimpered.
"Are you trying to say tsundere? Oh my god, you can't even speak correctly anymore!" Matt tossed his chopsticks on the table in frustration.
"Lay off, you clearly understood what she was trying to say. I thought we were all just here to catch up with each other," Izzy sternly said.
"It's cause he's on his period," Tai smirked.
"Seriously?" Sora huffed.
"Fine Mr. Grammar Police, I might have gained an accent but I also picked up a lot of other new things while living in New York," Mimi haughtily said.
"Oh boy...," Joe groaned.
"For example, there's more types of food out there than just Japanese. You know, like Indian, Jamaican, Mexican, Mediterranean, Ethiopian-"
"Oh wow, good to know you didn't eat hot dogs and pizza every day!" Matt sarcastically said.
"And you know what else I learned? How to put someone in their place! You got me dumb tight, you dusty, crusty dub! You're just a motherfu-"
"Okay, I think we're done here!" Izzy got up from his seat, wrapped one arm around Mimi, and slapped his free hand over Mimi's mouth.
"Thank you, Izzy! I guess America really did a number on her already empty head because I didn't understand a word of what she said," Matt smirked
"Mmm mmmmph!" Mimi grunted and squirmed under Izzy's grip.
"Ow! You bit me!" Izzy gasped and let go of her.
"Sorry, I'll make it up to you later," Mimi sheepishly smiled at him.
"Guys, can we just calm down? This is getting embarrassing. People are looking at us," Sora crouched down and hissed.
"Yeah, Matt. Stop being a dick for two seconds," Tai smirked.
"One...two. Okay, now where did we leave off?" Matt sarcastically said.
"Speaking of leaving, this was nice! But I have to go and shampoo my notebooks so I'll...," Joe muttered something unintelligible and tossed some cash on the table.
"Wow, we scared Joe away," Sora crossed her arms.
"That was bound to happen. He always leaves," TK shrugged.
"And he coincidentally never leaves enough money each time," Tai scooped up the cash and counted it.
"Such a shame. I miss most of you guys," Mimi pouted.
"Most of us," Tai smirked.
"That's okay. Feeling's mutual," Matt scoffed..
"Great. Now that you're both on the same page, can we just eat without vocalizing opinions about eating styles?" Izzy pressed his lips together.
"I can," Mimi sneered.
"Whatever," Matt sucked his teeth.
"Thank you," Mimi smiled obnoxiously and clicked her chopsticks together before scooping them in her small bowl of rice.
"Uh...having problems there?" Tai raised an eyebrow as rice was flinging across the table.
"It's okay, I got it!" Mimi nervously laughed and continued to try picking up her rice.
"Ugh! Cut it out! You're getting your food all over me!" Matt brushed rice off of his shirt.
"I'm not doing it on purpose!" Mimi slammed her chopsticks on the table.
"Hi...uh, I'm back with the drinks. Is everything okay here?" the waiter awkwardly placed a Coke and an oolong tea on the table.
"Yeah. Can you get this girl a fork? She clearly doesn't know how to use chopsticks," Matt pointed at Mimi.
"Oh no, that won't be necessary because I'm leaving!" Mimi abruptly stood up and stormed off.
"Geez, way to go Matt...," Sora muttered.
"Yeah, actually I'm going to go too. You can ring my and her portions up, if you wouldn't mind?" Izzy asked.
"Sure. I'll be back," the waiter plastered a fake smile on his face and walked away.
"Well, this played out slightly differently than I expected...but still better," TK hummed.
"Huh? How could this be better than you imagined it?" Kari asked.
"Nah, if I said, then this lunch might end up just about, or worse than I expected," TK took a sip of his water and reached for a piece of sushi.
"Hey, I'm glad I found you before you got too far," Izzy walked over to a bench and sat down.
"Don't worry, I was going to sit tight for a while. I don't remember how to get home from here. Maybe Matt is right after all...it already sucks when kids at school avoid and critize me for not being 'Japanese enough', but Matt too? I shouldn't get that treatment from someone who's supposed to be my friend," Mimi frowned and rested her head on Izzy's shoulder.
"Don't let him get to you. You're just adjusting to things back home. Just give it time," Izzy wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer.
"I suppose, but it's frustrating. I can't even do something simple like eat without getting judged now," Mimi pinched her fingers together and flicked her wrists.
"Speaking of, you must be hungry since you didn't have a chance to eat anything back there," Izzy bit his lip.
"No, I'm not even interested anymore. I'll just wait until I get home," Mimi crossed her arms and pouted.
*rumble rumble*
"Yeah, let's go get something to eat before I take you home," Izzy got up from the bench and outstretched his hand.
"I can wait...," Mimi hunched over, holding onto herself.
"Mimi, you always checked up on me and made sure I ate something. Let me do the same for you," Izzy said.
"Okay, fine...," Mimi grabbed his hand and got up from the bench.
"So what would you be in the mood for?" Izzy asked.
"I dunno. I guess something quick? I am a bit hungry," Mimi sheepishly said.
"I know you are. Uh...there's a ramen shop around the corner. How does that sound?" Izzy asked.
"Sure," Mimi shrugged as they made their way inside.
"Hi, party of two?" a hostess asked.
"Just the two of us," Izzy nodded.
"Very well, follow me," the hostess pulled out two menus and led them to a high top counter. "Take a look at the menu and someone will be with you shortly."
"Thank you," Izzy said.
"Thanks," Mimi hopped onto one of the stools.
"Anything catch your eye?" Izzy glanced over the laminated menu.
"Hmm...there's a couple of options. Once the waiter gets here, I'll just blurt out the first one that comes to mind," Mimi bit her lip.
"Okay, sounds good," Izzy said.
"Hi, welcome to Instant Ramen. Have you had a chance to look at the menu or do you need some time?" a waiter came up to them with a notepad in hand.
"I think I'm ready, are you?" Izzy looked over at Mimi.
"Yep!" Mimi nodded.
"Okay, great. So what can I get you?" the waiter asked.
"I'll have the kuro tonkotsu ramen please," Izzy said.
"And I'll have theeeee...spicy miso ramen," Mimi pushed her menu away.
"Very well. We'll get that order started for you," the waiter said and walked away.
"Good choice," Izzy smirked.
"Thanks. I think any choice would have been a good choice though," Mimi flashed him a smile.
"You're not wrong. Everything looks good here," Izzy remarked.
"I'm glad you found me and convinced me to get something to eat. I'm not sure if I would make it all the way home after all, especially if I'd have to use my phone for directions," Mimi idly ripped open the wrapper to her chopsticks.
"Me too. Now you won't be hungry and I'll take you home, so you won't have to rely on your phone's GPS," Izzy said.
"Thank you," Mimi reached for his hand and squeezed it.
"Of course," Izzy stiffly nodded.
"Alright, be careful. This is hot," the waiter brought two bowls of soup and gingerly placed them down on the counter.
"Thanks," Izzy said.
"If you need anything else, just wave me over. Enjoy," the waiter said and slipped away.
"Mmm...mmph, ugh...," Mimi held her chopsticks like crotchet needles, attempting to pick some noodles up.
"You need some help with that?" Izzy winced.
"It's okay, I got i...ugh," Mimi groaned as the noodles slipped through her chopsticks.
"Here," Izzy gently took her chopsticks out of her hands. He grabbed her hand and positioned one chopstick in the crook of her thumb. He took the other chopstick and rested it on her other fingers, her thumb holding onto both chopsticks. "Keep the bottom one still, hold the top one like you're writing with a pencil. Is this ringing a bell?"
"Kinda," Mimi blushed as Izzy guided her hand with his.
"You're getting the hang of it. Here, I'll let go and let you try by yourself," Izzy said, his face turning a slight pink color as well.
"Mmmph," Mimi pressed her lips together as she attempted to pick up some noodles. She was definitely more successful this time, but she wasn't going as fast as she wanted to go. She took a deep breath and placed her chopsticks on the table. "I'm sorry, Izzy but I don't think I can do this. My hand is getting tired and I'm starting to really lose my patience."
"Hold on," Izzy said and motioned the waiter over.
"Hi! Is there anything I can get for you?" the waiter asked.
"Yes. By any chance, do you have two forks?" Izzy asked.
"Not a problem. Here you go," the waiter pulled two disposable forks out of his apron. "Anything else I can help you out with?"
"No, I think that's it for now. Thank you," Izzy said and handed a fork to Mimi.
"Okay. Again, if you need anything, just wave me down!" the waiter said.
"Will do. Thank you," Izzy said and tore open the cellophane wrapper from his fork.
"You didn't have to do that," Mimi whispered.
"But I wanted to. We can practice using chopsticks another time, just the two of us. What's more important is making sure you actually eat. Who cares how you do it?" Izzy shrugged.
"I suppose you're right," Mimi smiled as she looked at the redheaded boy next to her absentmindedly twirling his noodles through his fork. She might have forgotten several Japanese mannerisms, but she never forgot the many reasons she was still wonderstuck with him. Even after all of this time, he was still her safe space.
"Is everything okay?" Izzy placed his fork down and looked at Mimi in concern.
"Yes, everything is definitely okay now," Mimi gently stroked her fingers along his face and kissed him on the lips.
"Mimi...what was that for?" Izzy blushed.
"It's nothing. I just felt like I was home again," Mimi shrugged and pushed her noodles around with her fork.
"Me too," Izzy picked up her chin and brushed her hair out of her face. He took a lingering look at her face, almost as if he were trying to memorize every detail, then leaned in and kissed her back.
"I missed you most. I thought about you every day," Mimi said.
"I missed you as well. I thought about you every day too," Izzy looked into her eyes solemnly.
"How about we finish up here and catch up a little more before I head home?" Mimi asked.
"I'd be very okay with that," Izzy smiled.
"Great," Mimi beamed. They had a lot of lost time to make up for, and right now, chopsticks were the least of either of their concerns. Their private chopstick lessons would have to be put on the back burner in the meantime, but at least they had forks to hold them over until then.