by Kayla Morgan
Shit. Shit. Shit. Did I just say—?
Emily practically fell backwards on the sidewalk as she tumbled back. But Akio's eyes didn't give away that he understood what she said. In fact, he looked more confused than terrified.
“Gomen, but what did you say? My English isn't very good.”
She had spoken in English. She thanked the kami-sama above for her mistake and started again in Japanese. “Sumimasen, what I said was that I love it!” she lied. “This place looks awesome!” She smiled, but for once, Akio didn’t smile back.
“Is that normal?” he asked. His serious tone was something she had never experienced before, and it was freaking her out. His stare trapped her with its intensity.
Emily bit her lip and forced her traitor mouth to open again. “Is what normal?” she asked. Her voice was trembling. Damn it.
Is it normal for a girl to scream her undying love for you and throw herself into your arms at the sight of the store of her dreams? No, only mentally unstable people such as myself are privy to such pleasures.
Oh my Osamu, she wanted to die of embarrassment.
“Is it normal for people to switch back to their native language when they have strong emotions? Maybe if they were scared or something?” he added.
The red flag was flapping so violently in her mind that she feared it might jump out of her brain and bitch-slap her across the face in broad daylight for being such an idiot.
He remembered that night. Back before she was “Johnson-san”.
She had to throw him off the scent.
“Oh sure!” she said with forced nonchalant ease. “Happens all the time! I had a friend back home who spoke Spanish, and she did it all the time as well. Super-duper normal. Completely normal!” She even let out a jolly laugh to put his mind at ease. Hopefully he didn’t remember that she hadn’t had any friends back home. It was such a lousy lie. She was certain he would see right through it.
But by some miracle, it seemed to work. Akio’s frown dissolved into an easy smile again. “Really? Well, that's good to know. I always thought being bilingual was pretty cool. I wish I had paid attention better in my English classes in school. But language has never really been my best subject.”
“Well,” she replied, in her weird fake enthusiasm voice, “if you have any other questions, let me know! I’m your Bilingual Question Girl!” She even put her arms out on her hips like a model superhero.
Akio burst out laughing. “You sure are weird. But, you know, that’s what I like so much about you, Emily-chan.”
Emily-chan? Did he just say-?
Now it was her turn for her eyes to almost shoot off her face. “You…you called me by my first name!”
It wasn’t a big deal in America, but in Japan someone calling you by your first name was a sign that you were close. Akio going by his first name with everyone right from the start was really unusual. Sometimes people went years or lifetimes without ever calling each other by their first names. She knew how big of a deal this was.
“Yeah well, you just threw yourself at me in front of this building, so I figured I could start calling you by your first name,” he replied with a smirk. Emily’s jaw practically hit the ground and her whole body slowly turned red, from her hidden toes right up to the edges of her fake hair. He said that he hadn’t understood! Oh my Osamu, if he had understood her….
“Come on, Emily-chan,” he said again. “Let’s get going.”
chapter eight
Emily had been hoping that things would go well when she came to Tokyo. She had hoped against hope that she'd actually make some real friends. That she'd enjoy her classes. But she never expected that she would find heaven in the middle of a Tokyo bookstore. But it wasn't just a bookstore! It was filled to the brim with, not just manga, but anime on DVD, keychains and figurines of different characters, kawaii pillows and plushies. They even had drawing supplies! Everywhere she turned, she was greeted by another swoon-worthy item.
It was her own personal paradise. Her own little snippet of nirvana. It was...it was…
“It’s perfect,” she breathed.
“Yes, you’ve mentioned that before,” Akio joked behind her. “I think about 3 or 4 times on every single one of these levels.”
“Shut up!” she protested. “I can’t help it. Fangirls gonna fangirl.”
He dropped one of the multiple shopping baskets she had filled to the brim as gently as he could onto the floor. He shifted the other two in his arms. “So Miss Otaku, I know your parents sell whatever-it-is over in America...but do they even have enough money to afford all this?”
Both of Emily’s arms were also bogged down by overflowing shopping baskets. She looked at all the merchandise she had subconsciously bulldozed into them.
She had her parents’ family credit card, but she didn't dare use it for this purchase. If the purchase came up in English, it would be obvious she was buying art supplies. Which meant that she'd have to listen to another detailed lecture from her father about how ‘The Johnsons may appreciate art but are far too busy with more important matters to participate in it themselves.’
She'd have to use Grandma Margaret's “emergencies only” card. After all, having the right supplies to become the best mangaka she could be was an emergency...kind of.
But this much might make her lose her spot as “favorite grandchild”. And then she'd get the “disappointed” lecture from Grandma. Which was far worse than her father’s making-art-is-for-lesser-people lecture.
She would have to prioritize.
She shuffled self-consciously into a corner and began sorting through all of her findings. After more time than she cared to admit, she had reduced everything she wanted down to two baskets. She shoved the other three baskets over into a corner, feeling immensely guilty about the mess she was leaving behind. She hated being that customer.
Emily stood up triumphantly, hoisting her two baskets up above her head. “And the winner of the award for ‘Most Willpower Ever Seen in an Otaku’ goes to Johnson Emily!”
Akio grabbed his camera and snapped a quick and also illegal (based off the sign on the wall) photo of her.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?” she snapped, and her arms dropped back down to her sides.
“Just taking a picture.” He shrugged as if this wasn’t a big deal.
She placed her baskets down on the floor and marched over to him. “That doesn’t mean you can take my picture! Delete it! Now!” Her hands shot towards his camera, but he quickly yanked it out of her reach (which wasn’t difficult considering the size difference between them was almost laughable).
“Not gonna happen.”
“Please, Akio-kun,” she pleaded, “I look terrible in photos!”
Akio, still holding the camera out of her reach, viewed the photo for himself. “Agree to disagree on that.” She continued glaring shuriken, ninja throwing stars, at him. “Look, Emily-chan, it’s just the price of being friends with a photographer. I take pictures of everything because I find that the best inspiration for my work is in everyday things and the lives of everyday people. It’s just an artist thing. You should be able to understand that, right? After all, I’m sure you’ve used our friends or adventures as inspiration for your drawings, right?”
Her mind wandered to her private sketchbook, the one she now kept exclusively hidden in her sock drawer at school, that was plastered with drawings of him. “I guess I understand,” she mumbled under her breath.
“Good, now, are you still going to buy that much stuff?” That smirking lopsided grin was back, judging her once again.
“Hey! This is...research!” she retorted. “I’m trying to become a mangaka after all! I need to study from the best. This is my source of ‘inspiration’.”
He smiled, turned, and started heading for the elevator. “Hai, hai, whatever you say.” She could hear him laughing from where he had left her.
Emily stuck her tongue out at him, even though she knew it was incredibly
childish. Then she picked up her baskets full of treasure and followed after him.
The rest of the day was just as interesting. Akio took her around to second-hand electronic stores. She was pretty sure it was just so he could lose himself in the half-price cameras and accessories, but she didn’t mind. Even she found some amazing items, although she didn’t dare spend any money after that last excursion. Besides, she had already had her moment; she enjoyed watching him have his.
When the sky began to fade into a red, glowing sunset, Akio finally noticed his growling stomach more than the latest camera model from Nikon. They left the store, and Akio hopped into the nearest 7-11 to grab them both an onigiri.
Across the street, two Japanese girls were posing in elaborate cosplay costumes. Even from where she was standing, Emily could tell the costumes were above and beyond what she had ever used in back in America. They made her old costumes look like a child’s cheap Halloween costume, homemade by an exhausted mother.
She leaned back against the nearby lamppost and continued to watch in awe. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled up. Was someone watching her?
Emily surreptitiously scanned the sidewalk around her, but she didn’t see anyone out of the ordinary. Just Akio walking towards her with a strangely guilty look on his face.
“What’s wrong?” she questioned him.
Akio brushed her off. “Nothing. Here.” He handed her an onigiri, and they sat down on a nearby bench.
He joined in her deliberate staring. “They’re pretty good, huh?” He gestured at the girls across the street.
“Their costumes are amazing,” she murmured in awe between bites. Akio nodded in agreement.
“You know,” she added, despite her brain’s subtle warnings, “I actually did quite a bit of cosplay back in my high school days.”
“Oh yeah?” He swallowed his last bite. “Were you any good?”
The truth was that she had won quite a few local contests back home and even placed third her senior year at the Chicago con. But she couldn’t tell him that. That sort of stuff was traceable.
Instead, she replied with a partial truth. “Eh, I was alright. But never as talented as those girls.”
“Well then, let’s go.” He took her arm and started leading her towards the cosplayers.
“W-what? Wait a minute!” she protested and tugged him back to a stop.
“Listen Emily-chan, these ladies are professionals! Maybe you can learn something from them. Here’s some more inspiration for your portfolio!”
She sighed, knowing he was right. But these girls felt like celebrities. Her brain didn’t want anything to do with that high-stress situation.
“Besides,” he continued with that stupid grin, “I need more pieces for my portfolio.” He held up his camera. She sighed and allowed herself to be dragged across the street, deciding she’d just stand back and watch.
Can’t mess anything up if you don’t say anything, she told herself.
She really couldn’t understand why Akio felt the need to drag her into this kind of stuff. She was used to being the background character in her own life. And she was perfectly fine with it, thank you very much. It was how Emily had always made her way through life. These “outside experiences” weren’t going to change that.
The cosplayers were even more captivating up close. Their long, colored lashes and perfectly-polished dresses stuck out precisely where they were supposed to be. They could have walked right out of the pages of the manga they were cosplaying for.
Although their photographer seemed annoyed, the girls were more than happy to let Akio join their session, once he explained it was for school. Although, from the girls’ incessant giggling, she also assumed that Akio’s charming smile had something to do with it as well. Emily rolled her eyes and stepped back to watch.
He was totally in his element. Saying exactly the right thing to get the girls to laugh or blush. He had them strike tough poses and extra-cutesy ones. He moved all over to get the exact angle for each photo. It was mesmerizing. Instead of staring at the way his butt fit into those jeans as he angled himself once again, Emily tried to focus on how she could use these shots for her portfolio. She was definitely going to have to have Akio print out these photos for her reference. She had started mentally sketching out how she could use the one girl’s black and pink checkered skirt in her next piece when she caught an evil spark coming from Akio’s side-glance.
Damn. Now what is he up to?
“You know ladies,” he started while still snapping pictures, “my friend here was a cosplayer too. In America.”
The girls squealed and skittered over to Emily’s side.
It made her skin crawl.
New people. So close, her brain shrieked.
“The Anime Expo?” the first girl asked.
“In Los Angeles?” the second one continued.
Emily laughed awkwardly. “Oh no. I was never that good. I just cosplayed around my hometown.”
“Nonsense!” Akio interrupted. “I bet you were a hit! Wouldn’t she be lovely in these photos, ladies?”
The girls squealed again, much to Emily’s chagrin, and beckoned her back over to where they had been with a “kochi kochi”. She shook her head vigorously, but the girls pouted and pleaded more. As with most awkward social situations, she didn’t know how to escape. So she forced her body to walk forward and join them. But not before glaring at Akio first. His eyes glittered with mischief back at her.
Black-and-pink girl forced her headband into Emily’s hands, and she had to remove her beret in order to wear it herself. Green-and-silver girl even took off her boots and handed them to Emily. She obliged, even though her face was tingling with embarrassment. But with the clothes on, she instantly started feeling better. This was just another cosplay contest. She didn’t have to be herself. And if that idiot friend of hers over there thought that this was a funny way to try and embarrass her, then there was no way in hell she was going to let it show.
She adjusted her boots one more time and threw her hands on her hips. “Well then, Mr. Photographer. Let’s do this.”
Akio laughed and began shouting out poses. Emily owned every single one, mimicking the other two girls.
The magic girl power stance. The over-the-shoulder kiss. The sexy bad girl pout.
When Emily followed the girls in the bad girl pout, she noticed a shift in Akio’s eyes. They grew wide and a small, almost hidden, blush crept up his neck. He threw his camera in front of his face, but not before Emily caught on.
So he had weaknesses too. And she had just found one.
There was something empowering in finding that she could make him squirm like that. A vixen-like smile spread across her face. This was cosplay. Nothing counted. She wasn’t really herself, right? The adrenaline of it all made her take two steps forward and her traitorous mouth opened:
“What’s wrong, Akio-kun?” she purred. “Were you hoping for a close-up?” Then she pulled the camera out of his face and winked at him.
As if he had been touched by a red-hot pan, Akio jumped backwards and landed on the cement, shock and embarrassment written all over his face. The girls burst out into even louder giggles.
Emily took off the borrowed boots and gently smacked him across the back of the head.
“That’s what you get for trying to embarrass me, baka,” she growled.
“I swear I wasn’t!” Akio protested while laughing.
“Yeah, right.”
He gave her a funny stare, like he wanted to say something. There was calculation behind those eyes. But whatever it was, he must have decided against it. She could see the light change in his eyes change back to his normal child-like spark when he finally responded. “Fine, you got me. Embarrassment over.”
“Good! Now let’s go! It’s almost dark, and I’d really like to check in on my weirdo of a roommate.”
They both thanked the girls for their time and the photographer for allowing them to butt in on
his session. The latter seemed less than pleased but said nothing.
The ride back home was much less awkward, since most people were heading out for the night instead of coming in. Emily pulled one of her new drawing reference books out of her shopping bag to peruse on the train. The problem was that she couldn’t put it down as they walked back to her dorm. She was only navigating through the busy streets without breaking anything because Akio kept pulling her away from the objects in her way, such as lampposts or the hordes of people walking in the other direction.
He was the only reason she was concussion-free by the time her dorm finally towered above them.
“Emily-chan.”
“Hmm,” she replied. Nose still completely buried.
“You know what I can’t seem to understand?”
She still didn’t look up. “What’s that, Akio-kun?”
“How can a person who claims to be such an introvert also be the same person who can show up a bunch of professional cosplay models? It feels like there’s this whole new side of you that you’ve kept hidden from us.”
That caught Emily’s attention.
Her head snapped back to reality, and her attention back on him. Akio had no idea how closely he was treading on a line that Emily wanted nothing to do with. She thought her words through carefully. “It’s easy being outgoing,” she replied with slow deliberation, “when you’re pretending to be someone else.”
Akio eyed her. “What do you mean?”
She let out a pained sigh. “What I mean is, if you’re pretending to be someone else, then it doesn’t matter what you do. You can act like a complete idiot or flirt or whatever you want to be, because the things you say or the actions you take aren’t actually you but the person you’re cosplaying.” She focused back down on her book again. “And if you’re just being the person you’re cosplaying, then no one can judge who you really are. It’s the perfect safety net.”
Emily made a point of still looking engrossed in her book, but it didn’t stop Akio’s prying.
“I’m guessing you’ve had some experience with that?”