Pulling the door of room open, I walk inside and then pull sideways the Japanese sliding door and inside Azrael and James are waiting for me. They sit at a the low table with cushion chairs where they smile at me when they see me.
"Hi, Hogarth," says Azrael as he smiles, "did you enjoy the bath?"
"I did," I say as I smile and also sit down next to him, "I really liked it."
"You should wear one of these," suggests James as he points to what he and Azrael are wearing.
"What is it?" I ask as I look at Azrael's.
"It's a yukata," answers Azrael, "it's a gown. I think there's one there."
He points to a dresser where sure enough, one sits.
"Oh, perfect," I say, and thinking a little more lascivious thoughts I pull off my clothes and leave on my underwear and slip into the thing.
I notice Azrael's eyes on my body, and again his pink cheeks that were touched by the hot bath heat up to a red. I see James giggle into his hand, and almost laugh myself.
Keeping a little of the top part open, and exposing my chest to be visible to Azrael, I sit down and say, "So what are we sitting here for?"
"We're waiting for our food," says James, "we ordered it earlier, and soon it'll be here."
"That's good," I say as I lean back in my chair, making sure Azrael can see my chest still, "do you think it'll be sushi, Azrael?"
"Oh! Um," says Azrael as he catches himself and his face heats up more, "I-I'm not sure about that. But perhaps other things."
There's a knock from the door, and several of the ladies with the beautiful kimono come inside with trays of food that I don't really know, but smell and feel my mouth water. After the ladies bow and then leave, we start to dig in.
Azrael picks up the chopsticks and begins to use them as if it's nothing. James picks them and tries to use them, but can't seem to do so with the same ease as Azrael. I don't even know how to begin.
"Um, Azrael," I say, and I immediately have his attention, "how do I use chopsticks?"
"Oh, well," says Azrael as he sits his down and picks up mine, "let me show you."
I hold out my hand and put the chopsticks in my hand and try to copy the motion that Azrael does with his hand. But, there's some difficulty. I just manage to pick up some rice and raise it to my mouth, and snatch it up before one of the sticks falls from my hand.
"It's hard, don't worry," says Azrael, "I at one point didn't know how to use it either."
"Yeah," I say as I try to pick up some fish, and then fail, "I might need more time than most."
"Here," says Azrael as he picks up my chopsticks and uses it to hold out food from my plate to me, "how about now?"
I smile, and lean forward to eat. Azrael watches my mouth the whole time, and when I say it's delicious, he smiles, saying, "I like Japanese food too. Can't get enough of it."
"Oh, wait," says James as he stands up and goes to a drawer and opens it, "I recall seeing forks and spoons in here. Probably put here in case somebody like us needed it."
James picks out two pairs of a fork and spoon, and comes back over to hand it to me. I think he doesn't think that Azrael needs one, which is true to say that he does have no issue using the chopsticks of his to eat.
"What is this?" I ask Azrael as I open a pot lid that rests on top of metal arms with a flame inside.
"I think it's some fish," answers Azrael, "the fire is just to keep it warm, and it's already cooked. It's good."
I use a fork and spoon to gently pick up the white-meat fish, and gently put it in my mouth. It is as Azrael says, but maybe not, as it's delicious.
"It's so soft," I say, "and the flavor is so gentle."
"It really is," agrees James.
"What do you think causes it to be like this?" I ask Azrael, "It's so different from what I'm used to eating."
"I think it's from how in Japanese cuisine there's not that much seasoning, compared to our Western style," says Azrael, "there's an appreciation for the material being used, and they try to not tamper with the natural tendencies of it."
"It really has it's own allure, doesn't it?" says James as he eats more of it and the other foods.
"Yeah," I say, and some of the other foods which include fried vegetable in a soft crust.
There's also some fried chicken that's completely different form the ones I've had before with pickled vegetables. I've never had an affinity to pickled food, but it's strangely sweet just as it is tart, and after two bites that I take to finish most of it I'm missing it.
"Did you like that?" asks Azrael as he seems me staring at the empty plate of the pickled vegetables.
"I did, yes," I say.
"You can have mine," says Azrael as he puts his dish of pickled vegetables on my tray of food, "I don't exactly like them."
"Really? You don't mind?" I ask, but gladly take the vegetables.
"Not at all," says Azrael with a smile.
I smile back, and gratefully eat the vegetables. Azrael is pretty much finished with his food, and so am I. James finished before both of us, and takes a drink of of some alcohol and his cheeks get a little red. I take a sip too, but decide to not try and drink too much. Azrael also refrains from over-doing it, and soon James after about two cups of a fizzling drink stops as well.
After we finish eating some bit, the ladies come by and take the dishes and trays away, while the three of us get futons ready to sleep. Since while we were eating we had the residual heat of the baths on us we didn't feel that cold. But now that it's worn off some bit, we all feel a little cold, regardless of us being inside a heated room.
So, I guess that naturally leads to a pillow-fight.
"Think quick!" says James to Azrael, and throws a pillow at his face.
Azrael being too surprised is smacked by it and tumbles backward onto his futon. Laughing, James picks up another pillow and then throws it me, and I dodge it and laugh while picking up a pillow and throwing it at him.
Azrael at this point has gotten up and throws a pillow at James, and it catches him in the back while the one I throw hits his chest.
"No fair!" says James, "You two can't be partners!"
The way he says it makes me falter for a second, until Azrael throws, a little more gently than when he did to James, though from the beginning it wasn't at all hard how he throws the pillow, and it hits my stomach. But I laugh and throw another one back at him.
That instigates a full-blown pillow fight. Luckily, there's nothing breakable in the vicinity and out of the three of us nobody throws a pillow too harshly. Also there's laughing and much joking.
It seems I am the winning the most out of the three of us, perhaps as I have the most height and most muscles. But my large chest and body also makes me a target of the other two, and I'm fending them off more than them fighting one another.
Thinking quick, I throw one pillow at James, which hits him in the face and he tumbles back. I think then to focus on Azrael. But I stepped backwards when I threw the pillow at James, and then I fall onto Azrael and a futon.
I maneuver so that I land my weight on an elbow, and turn so that I loom over Azrael.
Because of moving around so robustly, Azrael's yukata has become undone slightly and exposes much of his chest and his stomach, and he pants under me as I look down at him.
"You alright?" I ask worried that I may have landed on him painfully.
"Yes," says Azrael, and then his eyes trial down from my face to my torso.
My own yukata is similar in state to Azrael's, as it's open at my chest, and is actually worse, as it opens wide all the way down to my navel, and my underpants I have underneath are visible to Azrael.
His face gets so red, I'm worried that something may be wrong, and also am aware that I have this influence over him.
"What're you two doing?" asks James drunkenly as he lands on my back.
Completely caught off-guard, I initially fall forward. I do catch myself though with my arms, just a breath away from Azrael's face, and both our eyes widen.
"Sorry," I say, and turning my body James drunkenly slips off while I sit back on my feet, between Azrael's legs.
"It's alright," says Azrael as he also sits up, and fixes his yukata, "it happens I suppose in these types of fun instances."
"I suppose," I say with a smile, which he does as well.
"I'm tired," says James as he sits up, "I think I'm going to call it a night."
"Me too," says Azrael as he stands up and smiles at both of us, "I'm going to brush my teeth, and then hit the hay."
"I'll too," I say as I stand up, "what about you, James?"
"I'm too tired," says James, "I'm going to bed now."
"Alright then," says Azrael, and moves to turn off a few lights and then walking to the bathroom connected to this room with me.
Inside the bathroom, Azrael and I brush out teeth. There's only one sink, but we take turns at it wetting out toothbrushes and squeezing toothpaste out. I purposefully only fix my yukata slightly, and almost grin when I notice Azrael's eyes trail over to look at it in the mirror more than once. His cheeks also are red after his eyes dart away.
I need to tell him my feelings.
But again, he slips away as he spits out the bubbly, white, soap from his mouth, and then nods to me with a soft sleep smile as he goes out to the bedroom to sleep. I follow after him a few moments later, and see him laying down in his futon. His black hair is splayed down on his pillow, and beautiful as the rest of him covered in shadows of the room and his blanket.
"Good night," I say.
"Good night, Hogarth," replies Azrael sleepily.