Love & Cherry Blossoms

by Amara Kent

  No Kerri!

  I can’t fall into the same routine I used to. I can’t continue to get attached to guys I shouldn’t. It’s the very reason it took me so long to end my relationship with Garrett.

  “Kon’nichiwa!” (Hello) Sara calls out from the living area.

  “I gotta go, Tay. I’ll speak to you soon.”

  With a beat she says, “Okay. Talk later. Tell Sara I said hi.”

  “Will do,” I rush out as I end the ConneKT call and walk out of the room.

  Sara places her bag on the sofa and smiles at me. “You don’t have any plans this evening, do you?” she asks. I shake my head. “Excellent! I want to give you a wonderful Japanese experience.”

  “Color me intrigued. Where are you going to take me?”

  “First, we are going to the Kawaii Monster Café and then we’re hitting Izakaya Alley.”

  A wide smile creeps up on my face. “Well, it’s about time you took me out.”

  She rolls her eyes playfully at me. “Start getting ready, tonight is going to be one to remember.”

  Our taxi pulls up outside a building and I wonder if maybe they have the wrong location. It really doesn’t live up to its name. When Sara said we would be going to the Kawaii Monster Café, I had expected something quirky. I’d seen various videos of this place and I thought I would see the outrageously obnoxious—in a good way—design I’ve seen viewed, but it’s nothing. It’s an ordinary building with regular people walking about. This is why people come to the Harajuku area. This is a place where people are free to express themselves in the truest form.

  “You going to get out?” Sara asks.

  “This is it?” I scrunch up my nose.

  “Yes, what were you expecting?”

  “Flamboyance.”

  “Looks are deceiving. Very deceiving. Just wait until you get inside.”

  “It’s not just the building. I was… um.”

  “You’ll see Harajuku fashion, it just doesn’t take over the place like everyone thinks it does.”

  “So the café is in that mall?” I point to the entrance.

  “Yep. On level four. We just take the escalators up and there we are.”

  I follow Sara as she leads the way. We get stopped a few times as people rush up to take photos with her. She’s so patient with them as they surround her. I’m only the designated photographer for all this, and I have grown tired and annoyed with the many snaps they want me to take. Eventually, we make it to the fourth level and are greeted by a set of brightly painted doors with a pink background and the name of the café. Now, this is exactly what I was hoping for.

  Pushing the door open, we are met with girls wearing some cute dresses.

  “Welcome to Kawaii Monster Café!” the hostesses all greet us.

  “Hello,” Sara and I say in unison.

  “Have you been here before?” the hostess behind the desk asks us.

  “I’ve been here before, but this is my friend’s first time,” Sara explains.

  “You are going to love it,” the hostess states cheerfully.

  “Oh, I’m sure of it,” I return their smile.

  “It’s five hundred yen to enter, and you will need to order a drink and food as well. Would you like a booth or bar seating?”

  Sara looks at me. “Booth. Definitely booth,” I answer.

  “Excellent. Please select a room.”

  “Which one do you recommend?” I ask Sara.

  “I quite like the Mel-Tea room. Seeing as though you have seen this place in videos, I would go to the Mushroom Disco. It’s the one most people go to for their first time.”

  “Excellent. Mushroom Disco it is then.” I clap.

  I go to take my wallet out, but Sara stops me. “What are you doing?” she asks, seemingly offended.

  “I thought I’d bring my wallet out to experience the show as well. She gets so lonely in my bag sometimes,” I retort sarcastically. She shoots me a look. “Well, what do you think I’m doing? Paying, of course.”

  “No. I brought you here, I’m paying.”

  “Bu—”

  “No buts, Kerr. My treat.”

  I swear under my breath, and by the satisfied grin on her face, I can tell she’s heard me. Good, so she should. I’m not one to allow people to pay for me. I don’t like debt hanging over my head. Knowing that eventually one day I have to pay them back because of that one time they paid for something. I have money and am perfectly able to pay for my things, but seriously, there’s sometimes no fighting with this woman. Normally, she relents and listens to me. Other times, she plants her foot down and there is no budging. She’s like a tree.

  After Sara pays, one of the hostesses leads us to another set of double doors to our Mushroom Disco room and, holy motherfucking lord. Have you ever wondered what it’s like in a little girl’s imaginary world? Yeah, this… this is what is floating through their mind. It’s as if Rainbow Brite got drunk and ran around, throwing her star crystals all over the place. There’s a giant cake with ponies on the bottom tier with a set of giant lips on the top tier. People dressed in colorful costumes await and greet us as we enter.

  This. Is. The. Best. Thing. I. Have. Ever. Seen!

  There’s one thing seeing it in videos, but to physically be here is a whole different experience altogether. You always run that risk of it not being as amazing as you imagined it. Some people can hype it up to be more than it is. This was not one of those things. This is so sickly sweet but so damn awesome, I just want to throw up from it all.

  We’re taken to our little booth seat. I marvel at everything. From the cute, colorful seating to the giant animal heads hanging from the ceiling. The waitress hands us a tablet with some cool cover that reminds me of melting ice cream. This is our electronic menu. And I shit you not, it looks as if it came straight out of a damn cartoon.

  “It’s pretty amazing, huh?” Sara asks.

  “Amazing is not exactly the word I would use for it… Fucking spectacular, more like it. This… what… who even comes up with stuff like this? Were they high? Because honestly, I’d be very willing to have some of what they were smoking at the time of creating this madness.”

  Sara lets out a loud laugh. “You say the strangest and funniest things.”

  “It’s what makes me so loveable though, right?” I say with a cheeky smile, sticking my tongue out.

  “Definitely.”

  “They serve cereal? Are they for real?” I point to the bowl of what looks to be an assortment of different cereals in a bowl with something placed on top.

  “Yep. It comes with some fairy floss on top and on the bottom, ice cream.”

  To match the equally kooky atmosphere and design of this restaurant is the food. You can find rainbow pasta, some dish that is plated to kind of resemble space, and some of the best-looking drinks I’ve ever seen.

  It doesn’t take too long to get our meals. I look down at my pasta, which has some diced bacon in it. It looks marvelous, and even if I come to not like it, I’m here for the experience. The waitress rattles off the various sauces I’ve been given and I thank her for the explanation. There is no way I would have guessed that I was getting whipped butter—which is blue—cheese, basil, mustard, and ketchup. Looking at it, it looks like it would be plain and flavorless. When you take a bite, even without the sauces, it’s covered in garlic that dances with the saltiness of the bacon.

  “I take it, it’s good?” Sara asks.

  “That was, funnily enough, one of the best pasta dishes I’ve ever had. How is your chocolate chicken?” I ask, scrunching my nose up.

  “Delicious. Are you sure you don’t want a taste?” She lifts a bit of chicken on a fork in front of my face.

  I wave my hands in front of me. “No, thank you. I love food, but you know I’m not that adventurous. And I’m sorry, chocolate and chicken are not a combination that should ever be tried together.”

  “Come on. When in Rome,” she states.

  “We’re
in Japan,” I deadpan.

  “Fine. When in Japan then. Hmm?”

  “You’re going to keep pestering me until I try it, aren’t you?”

  “Did you really need to ask me that question?” she asks, allowing her head to drop to the side.

  I hesitantly inch closer to the fork with the offending chocolate chicken on it. Oh God, this is going to be the most revolting thing. Closing my eyes, I quickly take the chicken from the fork, into my mouth, and…

  Wrong. It’s the only apropos word.

  Wrong was my initial assessment of this chocolate chicken dish.

  You get a hint of chocolate, but not a whole lot of it. It’s just enough to give it its name, but overall, it has a flavor I can’t put my finger on. There is nothing like this in the world.

  “Okay, I take back everything I ever said about it. That is really good. How, I have no idea, but it’s something I could see listed in restaurants all over America.”

  We exit the building and I’m still floored at what I experienced in there. Sara snakes her arm through mine as we walk down the busy street of Harajuku.

  “Are you okay? You still have a bewildered look on your face.”

  “I’m still trying to process what all that was back there. I can’t believe a place like that exists in this country. You guys are some crazy motherfuckers.”

  “Only in a place like this can you see some extreme forms of self-expression. I love that nobody bats an eye at it. Like over there. There are some Harajuku girls. All around them is a sea of plain dreary shades of black, white, and gray. They are a refreshing splash of color in such a mundane and lackluster sea. This is what I love about my country,” she explains.

  I look over to the girls she pointed out and smile at how bubbly and vibrant they are. Such obnoxious resplendence that seems so out of place and out of touch with this country, is perfectly at home. Many people even stop them to take photos. This is the kind of life worth living. Free from everything that holds you back in the world. To say, fuck you, and let your real self out of that cage to roam the streets.

  “It’s pretty damn amazing. You know, in America, you would be considered a freak by many if you dressed how they are. Here, there is no feeling of displacement. It’s as if they are just like everyone else.”

  “Exactly. Are you ready to go on the best drink tour?” Sara asks.

  “Drink tour?”

  “Sorry, it’s what you would call a bar hop?”

  “Ahh, fuck yes! Let’s go!” I exclaim.

  Chapter Eight

  Ren

  She looks down at me with hooded eyes, the color of the most beautiful gemstone. How the fuck did I get lucky enough to have this beautiful vixen? I could stare into those sparkling orbs all day and night and never grow tired of them.

  “You gonna keep on staring at me all day like a creep, or are you going to work me with that skilled tongue of yours as you promised?” Fuck, I love her dirty mouth. How words of sex just fall so easily from her lips.

  With a hard yank, she squeals a little, balancing herself on the edge of the seat to allow me full access to her delectable pussy. I’ve had a taste of it, and now I need my main fucking meal. Staring straight at her, I lower my head. Without having to be told, she spreads her legs wider for me. I appreciate a girl that takes the initiative. My tongue sticks out and my dick twitches in response at the taste of her. The feel of her swollen clit that begs to be sucked. I secure a nice firm suction on it and suck. She lets out a scream, throwing her head back against the seat.

  “You’re going to have to be quiet. We don’t need anybody thinking you’re in pain and rushing in to find my head buried in your cunt, now do we? That would only ruin the moment.”

  “Mm-hmm,” she murmurs, grabbing her travel pillow and covering her face with it.

  “Good girl,” I coo.

  Running my hands up her tanned legs, I take the time to appreciate how well she takes care of herself. Not just her body, but her pussy. Shaved smooth, I love it when a woman takes the time to ensure I don’t have to weed whack my way through a dense hedge to get to the gold. I chuckle when she squirms in my grasp and I slap her lightly to be patient.

  She grips the back of my head and pushes it against her pussy, muffling my groan of ecstasy. I do love a woman who can take charge and isn’t shy about telling a guy what she wants and how she wants it. I do as I’m told and return to feasting on her, running my tongue up and down her slit, intermittently nibbling lightly on her clit before sucking it. Her breathing becomes heavy and she wriggles more. Muffled cries indicate she’s close to coming.

  I easily push two fingers inside of her, loving how tight she feels. Her hips move to assist in the friction against her G-spot and I insert another finger, curling them and pumping in and out. It’s the middle of the night, with the only sound coming from the engine of the plane and me fingering and sucking her. She lets out another strangled cry, and I nip on the inside of her thigh to keep quiet. It’s not that I care if people know we’re doing this. I just don’t want anybody to interrupt us, ’cause God knows what I’ll do if someone cockblocks me right now. I have a feeling that she is not the type of woman to get back to business after experiencing coitus interruptus.

  Three more thrusts and she’s done for. A scream falls on me, and she grips my hair tighter. It stings, but I’m too damn turned on to care. She jerks for a few moments before relaxing. Slow and heavy…

  “Hey, are you even paying attention?” Takashi asks, slapping me across the back of the head.

  I return the gesture, and he winces in pain. He’s lucky he’s my stepbrother. Were he any other guy, he’d be lying on the ground in a puddle of his drool right about now.

  “Don’t hit me again. You’re not too old to get a beating,” I warn.

  “Yes, old man,” he mocks. “Seriously, where were you just now? You weren’t even listening to a word I was saying,” he whines, crossing his arms.

  “Blah, blah, blah, what are you going to do about Katie. Blah, blah, blah, you can’t tell Lee. Yeah, I heard you, like I’ve heard you all the other times.” Takashi sinks deeper in his chair and sulks. I let out a sigh. “Look, little brother, you can pine over her forever, or you can be a man and tell her how you feel. It’s your choice, but if sulking is the one you make, please do it quietly. I don’t think I can endure an annoying rotation of the same song from you.”

  “You know I can’t do that. Lee would kill me.”

  “Would he? Has he specifically said to you, Tashi, if you dare touch my sister I will take this knife and ram it into your heart?” I ask.

  His face crinkles up at my colorful question. “Ren, that was… what is wrong with you? And of course not, but there’s a line you don’t cross when it comes to friends, and I would much prefer not to lose him as my best friend.”

  “I’ve met Lee and I like him. He is sensible and a very strong person emotionally. He has to be to deal with all you lot. I don’t think he would think irrationally about your friendship were you to tell him you had feelings for his sister.”

  “I just can’t risk ruining what we have.” Takashi looks off to the side with a yearning look in his eyes.

  “Are you sure it’s not Lee you want?” I snigger.

  “Don’t give me that bullshit,” he retorts gruffly.

  “I’ve seen some of those YouTube clips. I believe they’ve coined your deep friendship with him, Minashi, after your real first names? It’s cute, really. And then there’s you and Nam Il—or as you two are better known as—Namashi. I’m not entirely sure who I ‘ship’ you more with. The leader or the maknae (youngest). Hmm.” I tap my finger on my bottom lip, feigning deep thought, stopping when I see the unimpressed expression on his face. “I’m being facetious,” I assure him.

  “No shit,” he hisses.

  “What’s the worst thing that could happen, Takashi?”

  “He could hate me forever and never want to speak to me again. We live and work together so
it would throw the whole balance of the group off,” he explains.

  “And what’s the alternative? You continue to wonder if something could have happened between you and Katie?”

  “I don’t expect you to understand,” he grumbles.

  “What does that mean?” I frown.

  “You don’t know what love is. True love, anyway. You’ve never been in a relationship and you bounce from one girl to the next. Sometimes not even after each other. What would you know about it?”

  Oh, the little you know little brother. The little you know. “It’s the same in business. You think I’ve gotten to where I have because of my skills?” I ask.

  “What does business got to do with it?”

  “It has everything to do with it. Just like love, in business, you need to take risks. If I had sat on my ass and dreamed of living out my dreams, I would be living in a shitty studio apartment in a shitty job I hated. Instead, I took a risk, and I got to be the self-made man I am today because of it. In life, success is forty percent talent, fifty percent risk-taking, and one hundred percent being business-minded.”

  “Without the skills, you aren’t going to get far,” he retorts.

  “No, without the business acumen and the ability to learn how to take risks you won’t get far. There are millions of people out there with talent. Do you think all of them are going to get noticed? No. Unless you’re willing to put in the work to prove your talent, you’re going to get nowhere. It’s the same with love. What is the point in having love if you can’t go out there and show it.”

  “And what if it doesn’t work?”

  “Then you move onto the next. Does she like you?” I ask, which should have been the first thing I inquired about. This whole speech is useless if she doesn’t even feel the same way about him.

  “Yes, but neither of us want to do anything because of Lee.”

  “Then both of you need to get your shit together and talk to him. I’d say she should, but you’re the one that is in less of a compromising position than she is.”