Halfway Valentine | Chapter IV: Come On, Come Out

Monday. First day of the week. It was Calligraphy class with Mr. Kieran MacFoeinaiugh today. All of us were given calligraphy sets and for our first lesson, we had to learn and practice the different strokes and stroke orders.

Arse, I thought. I was never good with anything that involved a writing implement. My handwriting is atrocious. I couldn’t even draw a straight line. So there I was, sitting next to Halo, devoid of ideas on how I was going to survive this class. The only compelling factors that kept me going were Kieran’s cheery, heavily Northern Irish-accented Japanese, the strikingly beautiful Naomi who was over at the next table with a nonstop-babbling JJ beside her, and the fact that this was a Japanese Traditional Arts course that’s open to all HEP students. 

I haven’t talked to Naomi since the lounge incident last night. And I practically bolted from her without a single word in the shower room this morning which made everything ten thousand times more awkward between us.

It was better if I avoid her first, I thought reasonably, as I dipped my brush in the black ink. Everything was just mortally fucked up right now. Plus, I didn’t want to end up a pitiful pawn in her silly mind-fucking game.

Ai. Love. A word that was too fucking potent. It was everywhere. Literally, everywhere. Particularly in this very room.

Professor MacFoeinaiugh instructed us to write the Kanji or Chinese character for ‘love’ which I thought was bloody ironic.

Fucking hell, I thought, a bit annoyed, as I struggled with the combination of strokes for the first radical. Is fate starting some sort of an acid trip on me? 

I didn’t want to love. I wanted to hate. Love only messes you up. Especially with this certain blonde who exists in my world who is just so fucking lovable. And she was tearing up my heart with her every silence . . . every move . . . every breath . . .

I glanced over at the girl and, in spite of me, was instantly enchanted by the incredible sight—the way her fingers moved with the paintbrush, the way her hand swayed with each stroke, the way she bit her lower lip when she was concentrating, and the way her eyes lit up with every contact of ink and rice paper. It was like she was born to paint Kanji characters . . . or rather, she was born to paint ‘love’. And Professor MacFoeinaiugh seemed to think so, too.

“That’s right. Nice and still, so the ink doesn’t run,” I heard the quirky instructor tell Naomi.   

I dipped my brush in the ink again and finished my calligraphy. Then I stole a quick look at Naomi’s finished product and, whoa, was she truly brilliant. I looked down at my own and still . . . fucking atrocious. I dropped my brush in an act of surrender and for the rest of the class just chatted with Halo who was, by the way, doing fairly well with her work. 

Professor MacFoeinaiugh’s cheery voice boomed in the room. “Alrightey then, are y’all done? I’m gonna go around an’ judge ‘em for meself, yea?” 

I watched as he wandered around the room, checking all our creations one by one and attaching bronze, silver, and gold stars on the papers of those who fared well.

I thought it was a ridiculous thing to do. Are we a bunch of four-year olds or something? I didn’t get one, as expected. But Naomi—she got a gold star and she was the only one in our class who managed to earn it. Professor MacFoeinaiugh asked for a round of applause for the brilliant young lady.

Fuck me, I sighed, dreamily watching the blonde from afar as people congratulated her. This girl was a genius and I felt much, much lamer.

“Hey, don’t fret, my favourite girls!” Panda appeared between me and Halo, giving both our backs consoling pats. “Here, I made stars for us three.” She then leant over and started sticking self-made stars onto our calligraphy works which I thought was really sweet, cute and funny. Halo and I grinned up at her.

“Hey, Naomi. Congratulations!” Halo cheerily greeted, waving over to the serious-looking blonde. Naomi responded with a stiff nod but she didn’t smile and her eyes were cold.

“Does she hate us?” Halo asked in a whisper, turning back to me and Panda with a bothered look.

Hate me, you mean. But I only gave a shrug and simply said, “I don’t know.”

“Seriously, I don’t know if the Blondie of Oz has her period all the time or if it’s just her lack of interest in making friends,” Halo said, a bit upset.

“Maybe both,” I responded whilst putting my things back into my calligraphy kit.

Panda crouched down in the space between me and Halo and started whispering gossip-style, “Do you think she likes JJ, though?”

Halo pursed her lips thoughtfully. “We don’t even know if she’s single or what. That part’s a bit hazy. All I know is that she’s always on the phone talking to some guy. Maybe it’s the boyfriend from home?”

“Or the husband?” Panda’s eyes were wide.

“Shhh. Girls, please,” I interrupted in a subdued tone, “she might hear you. Stop with all the gossiping, alright?”

“Well, excuse us, Ms. Emily Stiff,” Halo said, “for feeling compassion toward an acquaintance. But don’t you think their relationship is weird?”

“Yeah. She’s been flirting with JJ a lot.” Panda straightened up and glanced over the Aussie pair with a concerned look.

And with me.

Halo shook her head sadly. “I just feel for JJ if it’s true that Naomi’s only playing around. Poor JJ. He seems like a really sweet guy.”

I closed my eyes and sighed deeply, then snapped closed my calligraphy kit. I feel for myself, too, guys. You have no idea.

“I just hope JJ doesn’t fall for it. Or that he wakes up sooner rather than later. I think Naomi Campbell is trouble,” Panda said before turning around and walking back to her table.

The school bell rang. Halo and I got up and started walking towards the exit.

Walking past me, I saw a giggling Naomi hook her arm through JJ’s—a sight which caused an unbearable twist in my stomach. 

I pressed my lips together, determined. Keep calm and stay away from her, Emily. She’s drop dead gorgeous, but can be so maddening when she wants to be.

Yep, Naomi was trouble. Big fucking trouble.

Standing in the doorway of my room, Ayami handed me back a couple of my grocery bags. “Just let me know if you have any more questions regarding your phone or bank account, okay?” she said. “See you around, Emily-chan.”

I flashed her a grateful smile. “Thanks for everything, Ayami. You’re heaven-sent.”

Smiling back, the Japanese girl turned to leave. With my hands full of grocery bags, I kicked the door shut with my heel.

I only had two classes today and was done by lunch time so I decided to make use of my ample time to phone Katie, chat quickly with my crazy BFF Cassie online, and take care of all the things that I still need: bank account, good-for-a-week groceries, and a mobile phone. Ayami offered to assist me with all the paperwork and good thing I was able to accomplish everything in less than three hours. Gotta love the highly efficient Japanese system.

After emptying the bags of groceries and putting them in their proper place, I stretched out on the bed and inhaled the sweet-smelling fabric conditioner of the white bedding. I surveyed my surroundings.

This was actually the first time that I got to take a decent look at my room—the white wallpapered walls, the navy blue carpeted floor, the long grey curtains, the huge sliding glass windows, the spacious closet and bookshelves, the small fridge, the room telephone, the TV, the study desk, and above all, the air-conditioner. With Kyoto’s deadly heat and humidity during this season, an AC was just as valuable as breath mints during make-out sessions.

I smiled, because my bedroom was actually gorgeous. And this shall be my sanctuary for ten months.

As I relished the comfort of my room, images and thoughts of Naomi whirred inside my head. What can I say? Her confusion was indeed fucking infectious.

I was still weirded out with this thing that I felt for her. It was more than attraction, more than admiration, more than addiction—it was desire and gravity combined . . . one that was insatiable and unfathomable. And for some inexplicable reason, I had a feeling that Naomi felt the same way.

But why were we holding back? Why was she holding back? 

Fuck’s sake. I don’t even know her that much. I don’t even know if she’s single or not. Does she have a boyfriend? The thought of the possibility made me cringe. But she wouldn’t be flirting with JJ if she did have one, would she? Or was she simply a shameless flirt?

Wait. Is she even gay? No fucking clue.

And damn, the blonde was hot and cold, making it even harder to gauge her.

Well I guess Naomi Campbell would remain to be a ‘walking giant jigsaw puzzle’. The big question was: Do I still have the will and energy to crack her?

After every thought it gets harder and harder to breathe.  

I jerked up, sitting straight, deciding that I should stop with the dispiriting over-thinking and do something productive. I needed to find a way to take the edge off, something to make me forget the dark clouds of thoughts whirling around in my head.

The others already had their mobile phones with them days ago as they had arrived way ahead of me. So I took that spare time to enter their phone numbers—which I scribbled on a post-it—into my newly-bought moby.

It was only a little bit after 3 PM. I browsed my contacts and rang Freddie up. I was hoping he had something in mind. I didn’t care if that meant hours of staring at walls or watching random people or inhaling secondhand smoke and jeopardising my health. I just needed to distract myself or else I would go mad trying to process my feelings for the Arctic Ice Queen.

“Hey, Freds. It’s Emily,” I spoke into the phone. “This is my number. I just got a phone.”

“Cool, Rouge!” Freddie sounded really stoked.

“Now you’re free to bother me anytime,” I said, with hinting in my tone.

“Just my luck,” said the French bloke. “I wish . . . bother . . .  in a little while. Get . . . okay?”

“What?” I asked, speaking loudly. His words were becoming unintelligible because of the loud sound of the gusts of air in the background. “Can’t properly hear you!”

His voice suddenly sounded clear again. “Oh sorry, Rouge.”

“Where are you?” I asked. “It sounds windy.”

“Just left uni,” he answered. “I’m on my bike. And on my way back to the dorm now.”

“You just left school?”

“Yep,” he said, panting a little. “I’m cycling back with some people. We took extra History and Politics class for uni credits.”

“Oh. Nice.” I wondered why I didn’t take extra politics classes for credits. Perhaps this only validated Naomi’s claim of me lacking interest in my major.

“Where are you?” Freddie returned the question.

“Decaying in my room,” I answered with a sigh.

I heard him laugh on the other end of the line. “Great,” he said. “Let’s get some fresh air when I get back. Get ready, okay?”

“For what?” I asked, pleased that Freddie turned out to be a real lifesaver.

“We’re going downtown,” he said. “Get dressed now, Emily. I’m halfway there. See you in ten minutes.”

I instantly jumped to my feet and rummaged through my closet for a pair of tweed shorts. Anything to make this plaguing feeling subside.

“Freds, what happened?” I quietly asked my friend as soon as Halo, Sean and Naomi disappeared into a Japanese deli. “I thought it would be just the two of us?”

Blond hair and blue eyes were the last things I needed to see that day.

“I invited Sean because he wanted to get a pair of skater shoes too, and then Sean invited Halo and Halo invited Naomi,” explained Freddie. “You get the picture, right?”

“Why?” I groaned miserably.

I wasn’t really prepared for the presence of the blonde. Just when I thought I was safe, Naomi Campbell rolls up to mess with my head again.

Naomi didn’t speak much to me during the bus ride. Not a surprise. She was busy being angry at someone she was exchanging text messages with whilst I was busy making sure there was enough space between us.

Freddie threw me a puzzled look. “Why not? Do you have issues with them?”

“No, I don’t. But Naomi apparently does have issues with me,” I answered. “Did she know I’ll be going as well?”

Freddie nodded. “Yep. She knew and she still went,” he told me. “She obviously didn’t see any problem with it so you might want to set your girlie drama aside and just hang for the heck of it, alright?” Smirking, he gave my hair a little ruffle and I only answered with a tight smile.

For some moments, Freddie and I just leant against the wall outside the deli as our friends ordered at the counter. And at that short amount of time, my bag was already crammed with giveaway advertising tissue packs from the Japanese blokes roaming around the covered shopping arcade. Apparently it’s a phenomenon here in Japan—some sort of guerrilla marketing ploy.

I was arranging the heaps of tissue packets inside my tote bag when someone sang out, “Hey, useless midget!” That person was blatantly referring to me.

Naomi sidled up to me, holding out a Van Houten choco drink. “Here. This is for you.”

Straightening up, I took the carton she sweetly offered and smiled shyly. “Wow. Thanks,” I said, genuinely surprised and pleased. Love that this girl can make me grit my teeth and smile in five seconds. “How did you . . . ?”

“You were looking for it,” she reminded me, handing me the straw. “At the lobby, right? When I met you?”

“Right,” I breathed, wild butterflies fluttering in my stomach. She did take note of a lot of things about me, didn’t she? “But it was out of stock at that time. Well, thanks again. But if I plan to repay you, don’t fucking snub me again, okay?” I said, making her snort a chuckle.

Naomi leant against the wall next to me, then cocked an eye sideways. “You seem like you haven’t got a decent sleep.”

“Jetlag,” I lied, stabbing the straw into the drink. I couldn’t tell her that I was up all night stuck in the Land of Confusion and just emotionally fucked up, thinking about her.

Naomi nodded. “That’s what I thought.” She started unwrapping a croquette, her eyes twinkling with excitement.

Sipping my chocolate drink, I watched the gorgeous Aussie as she happily took her first big bite off a large cheese and vegetable croquette, amused and baffled at the same time. She seemed to be suddenly in a good mood. Was she high on drugs?

“And you, on the other hand, seem energised,” I told her.

Naomi grinned. “Finally seven good hours last night. To make up for the lack of decent sleepage since I got here. Even if I ended up being late for our first Calligraphy class.” She took another huge bite off the croquette.

“And you seem hungry,” I added.

“I woke up refreshed and famished. Good sleep does that to me. Bad sleep and I can’t look at food until a couple of hours have passed and coffee or yoghurt has made its way into my system. But good sleep—bring on the potatoes. Or bread products. Or cheese. Or—enough,” she told me, eliciting a laugh from me.

Something was making noise inside one of the decorative bushes nearby. Like a wailing sound.

“Hey, what’s that?” I asked, gesturing toward the rustling leaves.

A white kitten appeared, thin and hungry, but with bright eyes. Looking up at us, it meowed pitifully.

“Oh, gosh. You poor little thing! Where did you come from?” I took a step toward the kitten but stopped short when it suddenly recoiled, looking scared of me.

Naomi squatted and lightly snapped her fingers. “Here, sweetie,” she said, using what can be described as an “I love animals and won’t you come to me?” kind of voice. The stray kitten finally crawled forward, sniffed Naomi’s foot and then nuzzled it gently with its nose.

Naomi started petting and whispering. “You look hungry. How long have you been in the bushes?” she spoke gently to the kitten.

I couldn’t help smiling at the adorable sight and feeling a surge of affection for the blonde. There was something in her voice, something in the way she caressed the poor animal, something in her glimmering blue eyes. There was a soft and caring and vulnerable side to her that really surprised and pulled me in. As much as she drives me mad most of the time, she was probably one of the most beautiful souls I have met in a long time. Naomi Campbell isn’t perfect but she genuinely cares. Period.

Naomi sighed. “I’ve always wanted a pet,” she said, gently stroking the top of the kitten’s head. “But I just don’t have the luxury of time to look after one.”

I went over to Naomi, crouched down and joined with the petting.

“But I love dogs the most, though,” the blonde went on. “Dogs are the sweetest. Cats can be real catty sometimes, you know what I mean? They’re just preternaturally agile and have no inborn desire to please anyone or anything except themselves. They’re also clumsier and cause more damage than dogs . . .”

I barely heard her as, despite myself, I noticed again how good-looking she was. She was even hotter up close. And it annoyed me that I couldn’t get past that every time I saw her.

“Yeah, I, uh, I prefer dogs, as well,” I stammered, turning my attention back to the kitten. “I’ve been talking my dad into buying me a Westie since forever.”

“Hey, guys! Let’s go,” Sean called, chewing on a piece of mochi.

“Yeah, c’mon now, girls! I just spotted a really hip nail salon over there!” Halo impatiently added, pointing her finger at the salon.

Naomi carefully slipped her hands around the kitten and picked it up, cradling it against her chest. “I have to bring this kitten to the admin office first,” she told us. “I can’t just leave this poor little one here.”

Freddie took one last drag of his cigarette before throwing it away into a nearby trash bin. “Okay, then. Let’s go together.” 

After handing the kitten over safely at the Administration Office of the shopping arcade, I turned to the blonde, folded my arms on my chest and raised an eyebrow. “Okay, who are you and what did you do to Naomi Campbell?” I asked.

“I am Naomi Campbell,” she replied, one corner of her mouth lifting in a half-smile. “I just softened a little.”

“More like a lot,” I said, smirking. “That was really sweet—what you did. I am a little—”

“Okay,” she interrupted, waving a dismissive hand. “Jesus. You’re turning gushy. Let’s just go and get some parfait.” She whirled and sauntered toward a family restaurant.

After sharing a jumbo matcha parfait, the five of us got all sorts of busy. Freddie and Sean vanished into a massive footwear store to look for skater shoes. Halo had gone out of control, vigorously entering every boutique in sight and befriending every Japanese person she meets along the way. Naomi and I tried to keep pace with Halo but the girl was just too abnormally hyper like Popeye high on spinach.

“Let’s check that one out!” Halo pointed excitedly at another boutique.

“I’ll pass,” announced Naomi. “I will not support child labour in Vietnam and the execution of perfectly happy minks.” She scowled at the furry tops and boots displayed by the glass windows.

“Was there ever a moment when you don’t whine about something you don’t like?” I asked the blonde as soon as Halo left.

“Well, I’m here hanging with you, and you don’t hear me complaining about you.”

I gave her a look of mock insult. “Well, if that isn’t—” Before I could finish my sentence.

“I’m only joking,” Naomi said, poking me in my cheek. Then suddenly, she grabbed my arm and pulled me over to another narrow alleyway leading to a mini-arcade centre packed with UFO Catchers.

UFO Catcher aka claw vending machine—a funny, money-eating arcade game crammed with tons of cute shit that you can grab by maneouvering a joystick. Here in Japan, it was popular with kids and geeks and addicts and old men with nothing better to do than to play this game for hours. I’ve never seen anything quite like the claw machines here in Japan. In the UK, all we seem to get are these utterly pathetic flimsy three-claw machines that cannot grasp anything. 

“So,” I gave in to small talk, whilst grabbing 100-yen coins from my pocket, “I’ve seen your work in Calligraphy class earlier and I have to ask, did you learn all that beforehand?”   

“Nah. I simply copied what Kieran did,” Naomi answered coolly as she surveyed the contents of the UFO Catcher, but I caught her cockily smiling to herself and, boy, was she cute.

“Are you shitting me?” I said, genuinely impressed.

“Nope. I did take art lessons though,” she said with a smirk, then added, “twelve years ago.” I gave a small laugh.

“Well, I’m only saying, even if you attempt painting drunk and blindfolded, your work would still look way fucking better than mine. So I guess that makes you a genius,” I said. “And I saw the way you moved your hand. You were like a natural.”

Naomi smirked smugly, then. “Well, what can I say, my fingers are magical,” she said, wiggling her fingers like a conjurer trying to cast a spell.

“Hm. Okaaaay,” I said slowly, gaping at the blonde as if she’d grown two heads, then raising a brow, I challenged her. “If that is true then let’s see what your magical fingers can do, shall we?” I moved closer to the machine.

“Sure,” she said, cracking her knuckles. “Just tell me which one you want.”

I pursed my lips and drummed my fingers against my chin as I scanned through the mountain of prizes laying inside. “Get me the blue one . . . right . . . over . . . there.” I pointed at a blue Poring plush toy sitting upright and surrounded by Super Mario Brothers mushroom plushies.

I had always wanted one of those. I found them to be very cute. I know I could just go to an anime shop and buy one but I believe that a thing will hold more value if it is earned the hard way. So, yep, nothing could stop us from going all berserk on this sinister machine.

I put in a hundred yen, allowing two goes. The machine lit up in a flash of lights and sounds, as the crane became active.

Naomi pushed me out of the way. “Watch closely, Fitch,” she said smugly. “You’re about to be schooled.”

My face was pressed against the glass as I quietly watched Naomi on the other side of the money-eating claw vending machine. The blonde eagerly grabbed the joystick again. Biting her lip, she painstakingly maneouvered the crane above Poring and pressed the red button that would cause the claw to descend and clamp around the prize.

I gulped as the crane closed around Poring and a mushroom plush toy. However, the second the crane pulled them up, Poring slipped out of its grasp and fell into the heap of prizes below, leaving only the mushroom entrapped.

“Noooo,” Naomi moaned, as the Winner! music chimed.

Her head slumped forward. “Shit. Not another ‘shroom . . .”

I cocked my head to the side and grinned at her. “Wow, you were really close.”

Fifteen minutes and twelve attempts had passed and still no blue Poring. I have to admit, though, the blonde had quite a talent at playing the claw game. Within the whole fifteen minutes, she ended up snagging five prizes and it only took her a dozen tries. Naomi had quite a respectable catch, even though almost all of them were accidental. She captured a couple of cuddly tiny mushrooms, a small Squirtle plushie, a Hello Kitty plush toy keychain and Stitch with a lazy left eye—the only one which was deliberately targeted by the blonde out of frustration.

As for me, I also had a good consolation prize: Naomi looked so irresistibly cute whenever she tried to focus; I couldn’t help but stare at her through the glass like a lovesick puppy every time she nibbled on her lip. In some fucking disturbing way, I wanted her to fail over and over again just so I have an excuse to see her in her most captivating form.

“C’mon, you can do this. You gotta keep on trying, Naomi,” I encouraged the blonde, moving toward her. “Don’t give up yet.”

Shooting me a withering glare, Naomi straightened up. “Who says I’m giving up?”

I smiled. “Determined, I like it.”

“Okay. Which one should I go for now?” she asked, still staring at the UFO Catcher fiercely.

“It doesn’t matter. You’re shit at this,” I said jokingly, eliciting a quick playful shove on the shoulder from her to which I instantly added, “I’m just kidding. I think you just need to focus more.”

Naomi only snorted and rolled her eyes at this.

“Give it another go, c’mon. Aim for Poring again, please.” I put in another hundred yen and that entitled her to a couple more goes. I stood behind the tall blonde and watched quietly. The Poring toy was a bit inaccessible as it was now turned on its side. Naomi got to pick the blue Poring up but unfortunately dropped it again.

“Dammit. I think this machine is fucking rigged. It’s not working, this,” she said bitterly, pounding on the glass.

I snorted a laugh. “It’s not the machine, hun. Let’s be honest now, you’re terrible at this game.”

With a clenched jaw, gritted teeth, and utterly concentrated eyes, Naomi seized the joystick again. “Shut up, Fitch. I still have one more chance.”

Naomi tried for the fourteenth time but failed to capture it again. Her hand let go of the joystick, then still staring intensely at the machine, she sighed audibly in frustration. Cute, I thought.

Then she turned around to face me, looking rather sheepish. “On second thought, Emily,” she said, “I think my magical fingers only work with a fucking brush.”

I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and scoff, “Yeah. I can clearly see that—Ow.”

A small mushroom plushie hit me in the face and it was the striking blonde’s doing. I could only stick my tongue out and giggle in response. Naomi was just too fucking adorable. I wanted to kiss her right then and there, but tried to contain myself.

“If you think you’re so good at it, why don’t you go try it?” Naomi challenged, seizing my hand then placing it on the joystick. “Give it a burl, c’mon. Let’s see, uhm . . .” The blonde scanned the colourful contents of the UFO Catcher, her eyes squinting then widening—like a kid at Disneyland’s entrance—as she pointed her finger and said, “I want that pig with the red firefighter hat.”

The Firefighter Pig was sitting upright against the glass. The hat of the pig was the same colour as my hair.

Hmm, I thought, smiling to myself, she does fancy red, doesn’t she? Maybe a little too much?

Tightening my grip around the joystick, I stared at the prize and frowned. “But its position, though . . . Looks like it’s gonna play hard to get.”

“It looks hard until you actually try it,” Naomi told me. “There’s no way we’re gonna lose to a fucking machine, Emily.” Keenly, she inserted a coin into the claw vending machine.

I started playing and failing six times, with Naomi constantly making fun of my lack of ability, and I just had to give up. Six times and no wins. And to make me sound even wimpier, all of my attempts were way out of target.

“Aaaargh,” I groaned after my failed sixth attempt. I shook the money-eating UFO Catcher as if something would happen but nothing. “Fuck this stupid thing.”

“Hey, easy there.” Naomi shook with laughter as she watched me pretend going berserk.

I huffed a muffled breath and started walking away, however Naomi wasn’t going to give up so easily on me.

“You stay right here.” Naomi reached for my shoulders and shoved me back to face the UFO Catcher again. “You’re not gonna go anywhere without really trying, Emily Fitch.”

I looked over my shoulder at her, cocking an eyebrow. “Um. Are you blind? I did try. You saw me try, right? Six fucking times.”

“Nah-uh. You weren’t. You weren’t really trying,” Naomi answered, folding her arms on her chest. “You just grabbed the control and lazily pressed the fucking button without even thinking. That wasn’t trying, Emily. That was lazing.”

“This is hopeless, Naomi,” I admitted with a weary sigh, turning my attention back to vending machine. I let my forehead rest against the machine in defeat, my fingers mindlessly messing around with the buttons. “I suck at all these manual things, seriously, and I’ve got no sense of navigation or estimation.” 

“C’mon, you’re not that bad,” Naomi urged. “It’s only your sixth try. You just need to relax, concentrate and practice more, and learn all the right techniques.”

“You should teach me, then. Teach me how to play and actually win one,” I told her, grabbing the joystick again. “Spare me some of your magical fingers’ magic.”

“As you wish,” I heard her answer.

Suddenly I felt Naomi behind me, pressed up against my back, and I stiffened instantly. Her hands came to rest on the machine at either side of me, effectively trapping me between the claw vending machine and her body. Her warm, taller-and-stronger-than-mine body. Her lips were dangerously close to my ear; I could hear her gentle breathing and wondered why she was so calm and I was such a bloody disaster.

My right hand was slightly shaking as I held the joystick real tight. I felt Naomi’s breath tickle the skin just behind my ear. Fuck.

“Told you to relax, Emily. You seem on edge all the time,” she said, and the vibration of her voice against my ear saying my name so intimately sent shock waves straight to my groin. I bit my bottom lip to keep me from whimpering like a puppy. “Are you ready?” 

I swallowed thickly and nodded slowly, not trusting my own voice. She had moved forward ever so slightly and her forearms are tight against my sides. I am so her prisoner right now.

“First things first,” Naomi began. “Don’t grip the joystick too tight. Just steady your hand and relax your hold. Here . . .” Her right hand curled on top of mine and adjusted my grip so that it was a bit loose. “Just like that.”

I could feel the blobs of sweat pop out on my forehead and all over my palms.

“Other objects such as those two pink plushies close to the pit can be pushed into each other to create a slide effect,” Naomi went on, sounding like a real claw game professional. “In the case of Firefighter Pig, it’s too big. Stuffed toys that are too large should be gripped by the claw at a specific point, which is often the neck. So you might want to target the neck.”

I quickly wiped the beads of sweat forming on my forehead with my free hand. “Okay, got it,” I mumbled with a stiff nod.

The blonde drew back slightly, peering at me with an intrigued and amused smirk. “Why are you so tense?” she asked. “Am I making you nervous?”

I shook my head. “No. Not at all,” I managed to rasp, keeping my gaze locked on the neck of Firefighter Pig.

“All right then, try one more time.” Naomi suddenly let go of my hand. She pulled out a couple more coins from her pocket and inserted one into the machine, palming the other one. The UFO Catcher lit up again.

Naomi pressed the Start button, moved to the side, and said, “Have a go now.”

Awkwardly, I moved the joystick abruptly to the right then backward. Naomi twisted her face as she saw the small mistake I was doing. I wasn’t letting the claw calm down every time I adjusted it.

“It’s just careful hand-eye coordination and geometry,” Naomi advised whilst watching me closely.

“I’m not familiar with both, unfortunately,” I mumbled, then impatiently asked, “Now what?”

After tut-tutting, Naomi shook her head. “Just take your time, Emily,” she instructed. “No need to hurry. Just stop whenever you can so you can perfectly position the claw. Not everything in this world is easy.”

Not everything in this world is easy, I echoed in my head, stifling a laugh. I maneouvered the claw so that it was positioned directly above Firefighter Pig. At least from my point of view, it was.

“Is that good?” I asked.

“Well, we just have to wait and see,” she answered.

I huffed at Naomi’s unhelpful response. However I pressed the red button anyway.

Naomi shook her head whilst I just watched in hope that the claw would take the toy. Unfortunately it was unsuccessful. By just a few inches, the crane dug into a patch of green and red mushrooms instead of the Firefighter Pig I was aiming for.

My mouth opened in infuriation. “The fuck! The claw was right over it! I swear this game is rigged!”

Naomi gave a lopsided sad smile. “No, it isn’t. You made a mammoth mistake while positioning.”

“What, what did I do wrong?” I asked, thoroughly annoyed.

Naomi came up behind me again and put both her hands on my shoulders. “When you’re positioning, you need to constantly stop and wait for the claw to stop moving, that way you can see if it is really in the right position or not. Since it was wiggling, you were off a few inches. You just need to relax and take your time,” she explained. “Got it?”

I nodded. “Got it. Thanks.”

“Try again,” she said. I expected her to move away, but Naomi remained behind me. “Together now,” she announced, surprising me a bit. “I’ll show you how it’s really done. Let’s target first that Kirby one.” She pointed to a pink plushie. “It’s near the pit.”

I nodded and licked my lips. “Okay, ma’am. Let’s win this.”

Naomi placed her hand around mine again. “Now, you’re targeting an object close to the pit. Instead of picking it up, you use one side of the claw to push the object sideways. Get it?”

I nodded again. We controlled the joystick together. “Just wait . . .” she murmured, focused. We waited patiently for the claw to stop moving. Once it was remotely still, we adjusted the claw so that it was in the perfect position to knock off the toy sideways.

“Now what?” I husked.

“Alright, now we’ll move the claw over . . .” she instructed as she guided my hand. “The claw is still wiggling around. Wait until it stops so that you can adjust the position . . . Now stop.” We let go of the joystick. “Check for a bit if the angles are good . . .” She quickly went over to the side of the machine to make sure the angles were good. After triple checking she went back to me.

“I think we’re good,” Naomi said, grinning confidently. “Now push.”

I pressed the red button. With much anticipation, both of us watched as the metal claw slowly went down. The crane dug deep into the ocean of stuffed toys. It landed near the toy we were going for. The claw closed and it grabbed a red mushroom on the way. The thing raised and moved over to the opening, knocking the large Kirby’s head along the way.

Both toys dropped into the slot and the Winner! music rang loud and clear. Naomi lit up like a Christmas tree. Grinning happily, I picked up the prizes.

“Alright, Emily!” She high-fived me.

“Yeees!” I did a little victory dance to which Naomi threw her head back and laughed.

“So . . . It looks like the student just outdid the master?” Naomi said, watching me as I hugged the two stuffed toys. “Hitting two birds with one stone, eh?”

I grinned up at the blonde. “That was a lot of fun! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You’re amazing!” I swept her into a hug, surprising her.

When I released her, Naomi smiled at me, her face a little red. “See? That’s the beauty of just loosening up,” she pointed out.

“Where did you learn all that?” I asked her.

The blonde gave a shrug. “I didn’t even know I had the ability to teach you since this is my first time.”

My eyes bulged. “What?! This is your first time? But how did you—I mean, you play like a pro!”

“Trial and error and powers of observation, babe.” Naomi just smirked and inserted another 100-yen coin into the machine. “Now you.”

“Alone?” I asked, pouting.

Naomi smirked. “Yep. Let’s see now if you’re a fast learner,” she challenged. “Go for Firefighter Pig now. You have last two chances, okay?”

Grabbing the joystick, I focused on the pig plushie. “Okay. Let’s do this, Em,” I pep talked myself. Licking my lips, I exhaled through my nose. Concentrate.

Slowly and carefully, I moved the crane with the joystick towards the Firefighter Pig plush toy. My other hand was near the big red button. Once the claw had settled above the pig plush toy, I moved it just a few centimetres to get perfectly above the pig. I pressed the button and the claw started to lower and open.

“C’mon, c’mon.”

The claw closed around the pig’s head, and lifted it up.

My heart was pounding, and sweat had started to show again on my forehead.

The pig was trapped in the claws! I was about to win!

Suddenly, the claw jiggled as it reached the highest it can go, and the pig easily slipped and fell out.

“No!” I cried. “So close!”

“One last try . . .” Naomi said in a sing-songy voice.

My hands were a bit sweaty, but I paid it no mind. Naomi watched in anticipation as the crane started to move again.

Steadily, I moved the claw above the stuffed animal, taking extra precaution to make sure it was directly above it. That was it! It was perfectly aligned with the pig. I pushed the button and the claw went down once again. It closed around the pig’s head again.

I was about to cheer, but the pig fell out of the claw’s grasp to the mountain of prizes below. Once again, the machine had won.

Arse. Still, no Firefighter Pig.

“God, why can’t I win this? Bloody. Stupid. Machine,” I muttered, as I kicked the claw machine. Then I felt a pair of hands hold my shoulders.

“Shhh . . .” Naomi suddenly leant her chin on my shoulder, making me stiffen right away. I could feel her breath on the side of my neck. Oh, shit. Breathe, Emily. Breathe.

“Ems?” she softly called.

I felt my pulse speed up, but fought to remain calm. Am I just fantasizing or did Naomi really just call me “Ems”? Oh, God. Oh, God.

I slightly turned my head to meet her gaze. Her striking azure orbs made my knees instantly shaky. “Yes, Naomes?” I emphasised comically.

Naomi smirked then gave my cheek a teasing poke. “You’re fucking useless without me.”

It took me a few seconds to react. “I know,” I admitted, trying to hold back a big dopey grin.

“And Emily?”

“Hm?”

“You can breathe now,” she whispered, then she pulled away and started laughing.

I turned around to face her, a bit embarrassed. “I’m sorry this is all I can get you,” I said, showing her my empty hands. “And sorry I couldn’t get Firefighter Pig for you.”

“S’okay.” She smiled. “You’ll win it eventually, right? It just takes time and patience. That applies to a lot of things.”

I smiled back. “Yeah, definitely.”

Giggling softly, Naomi ruffled my hair. “Now, c’mon, you little pom, Halo’s already looking for us.”  With a bag full of stuffed toys hanging over her shoulders, she turned to head back to the shop where we left Halo. 

I watched the blonde’s retreating form. Naomi Campbell was truly the epitome of hotness. I couldn’t help but observe the way her body moved with her loose red and blue plaid top, and the way her hips swayed in her skimpy white shorts. I took a deep breath then let it out slowly. Good God, I was so fucked.

Hugging the couple of stuffed toys to my chest, I followed the blonde with a voice in my head telling me, “It would take time and patience, but you’ll win her eventually.”

“Christ, it’s cold up here.” Freddie perched on the roof deck railing and reached down to offer his open pack of cigarettes to Naomi. “Fancy a stick?”

Naomi shook her head. “Nah, thanks. Tryin’ to quit,” she said, as she squeezed a tiny mushroom plushie in her hand.

“Since when?” Freddie asked casually, lighting another cigarette.

“Since I came here,” the blonde answered. “It is fucking agonising, though.”

I decided to barge in, despite hating myself for sounding like a nosy cow, “What made you quit?” Was it wrong if I had just wanted to get to know her more?

Naomi sighed. “Dunno,” she said, stretching out her legs. “Maybe I just needed a change of . . . lifestyle, I guess.” She wrapped her arms around herself and tilted her head back as if savouring the night air.

I gazed at the blonde, feeling that there was something more behind those words. And I was willing to find out about whatever that was even if I have to bend over backwards just to tear down these walls Naomi had been meticulously building. I let her escape for now, though. I had a lot of fun with Naomi earlier as we wandered the city centre and she had been unfailingly warm towards me for almost four hours now which was already a world record. And I didn’t want to push my luck.

“Speaking of change,” Halo broke in, getting up and scrunching her nose in disgust, “I think I need to change my top. I reek of sweat. I’ll be right back.” She hurried toward the rooftop door and disappeared down the ladder.

After the shopping trip, the group, with the special participation of James Cook, decided to hang out on the rooftop deck and eat a large extra cheesy yet overly greasy, not to mention ridiculously expensive, Japanese pizza. The early fall breeze had gone a little colder around us.

Freddie was perched on the railing, puffing smoke rings and looking out the Kyoto neighbourhood night. In the space between me and Naomi, Sean was lying with his back on the floor, his arms tucked underneath his head as he happily chewed on a chunk of pizza. Cook was sitting on the floor, leaning against the parapet wall, busy drinking his can of Asahi beer and noisily chomping down pizza. Naomi was playing with a mushroom plush toy she won from the UFO Catcher arcade game in one hand and holding a can of beer in the other. And I sat here awkwardly on the floor, being a total weirdo ripping crusts off a pizza slice. Good thing, Halo was there to finish my leftovers.

“So, Emily,” Sean began, sitting up and turning to me. “What’s your real status? I mean, I know you said you’re single, but . . . is there someone you left back in England? Someone special? Someone we should all be threatened of?”

Nibbling on a pizza crust, I mumbled, “Um. No one.”

Sean’s face lit up. “Awesome.” Then his eyes slid over to Naomi, and he asked, “How ‘bout you, Naomikins?”

It took a moment before the blonde shook her head and answered, “None that I know of.”

My heart leapt inside my chest with glee. It’s guaranteed; Naomi doesn’t have a boyfriend. I did my best to hide the big dopey smile that was forming on my lips.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Sean rubbed his palms together excitedly. “So I have a couple of fine-looking single ladies here with me, eh?” He casually threw one arm around my shoulders and the other around Naomi’s then wriggled his brows at us. “How ‘bout if we—”

Naomi removed Sean’s arm and dropped it like a dead carp. “Don’t even try, Sean. It won’t work.”

Sean laughed incredulously and Cook jeered at him. Freddie and I both chuckled. If there was one thing I had learned in the first few days of my stay here . . . it was not to mess with the blonde. I thought everyone already knew that. 

“I’m sure there’s someone nice just around the corner for ye two. Around this corner, maybe?” Cook suggested as he wiggled his brows.

“No, thanks,” Naomi answered for both of us, causing the boys to laugh some more.

“Emilio,” Cook called, “why don’t ya wanna go out with Seanski if ye’re single? I don’t understand it. He’s got everything a girl could want. He’s dead-on an’ he’s got an extra-large cock.”

Laughing, Sean threw a slice of pepperoni at Cook. “Fuck you, man!”

“No, but seriously, doll,” Cook said, “don’t ya feel the chemistry?’

“Well,” I told the Irish lad, pulling my knees up, “I feel the chemistry isn’t right.”

Sean scratched his head. “What do you mean, Emily?”

“It means you just got friend-zoned, Sean.” Halo was the one who answered, reappearing on the rooftop in fresh clothes and with a disposable container of take away California Maki in her hand.

“Ohhhhh, friend-zoned!” Cook taunted, cracking up. “Shite, that’s brutal.”

Sean clutched at his chest with mock hurt. “Ouch, Emily. I actually thought we had something going on.”

Halo rolled her eyes at her fellow Canadian and snorted. “You thought. Not Emily, you tool,” she said, plopping down on the floor next to me.

Sean made a sad face. “Well, that’s a pity. I mean, Emily’s totally my type. I’ve always been into petite girls, you see.”

“That’s the problem with ya, Seanski,” Cook spoke, biting off a huge portion of his pizza and started chewing. “Look at me, I like all sorts of girls. In all shapes, bra sizes, an’ colours. So no problem, yea?”

Halo snapped her chopsticks apart and started eating her sushi. “Speaking of . . .” she said, “what are your types? I mean, do you guys have, like, a specific type?”

“Oooh, yes!” Cook beamed, straightening up. “I love this topic.” Then he looked up at the quiet French lad. “Let’s start with you, Fredsters. What sort of girls do ye fancy, mate?” he asked the guy.

“I’m into mysterious women,” Freddie  answered.

Cook grimaced. “A bit of a masochist, aren’t ya? Ya love headaches, huh?” Then he looked over to me. “What about ya, Emilio?”

“I think I like the walking wounded,” I replied, surprised that I actually have an answer ready. I glanced sideways at Naomi to see her reaction, but the blonde seemed unperturbed. 

“Nice,” Sean said, smirking. “I think you won’t have a problem looking for one here. Personally I think everyone is fucked up in some way.” Then he turned to the Aussie blonde. “And you, Naomi? What exactly are you looking for here?”

Naomi straightened up. “Well,” she said, “on the whole I prefer life’s losers. But I’m not looking for anything here. I’d rather stay single.”

I looked down and bit my lip. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. Shit. Naomi just made anything that can happen between her and me virtually impossible, blatantly pointing out that she doesn’t intend to be with anyone anytime soon. Shit, shit, shit. The remaining tinge of hope in me had evaporated.

Sean drew back, his eyes wide. “What are you talking about, Naomi? We’re in Japan. Having the time of our lives,” he argued. “It’s just right to let go of all our inhibitions, you know what I mean? It’s an excuse to go wild.”

“Yea, that’s right!” Cook piped up. “Preach to ‘em, Seanski.”

Naomi was quick to counter-attack. “Just because you’re in Japan and about to have the time of your life doesn’t mean you have to throw all sense and your underwear out of the fucking window. I am no slut and I intend to stay this way. Thank you very much,” she said, then added, “Plus, there’s a lot of factors that are gonna play into it, you know what I mean?”

“Like what?” Sean asked.

“Like,” Naomi gestured around vaguely, “like there’s the distance thing—I mean, what’s gonna happen after this sem or two sems. After ten months or, even worse, a semester, you both are bound to be doomed. It’s like having a fucking expiration date. And I don’t want that.”

Halo chimed in, chewing a bite of sushi, “Yeah. It’s just hard to allow yourself to get attached to a person that you’re not really sure of or what if it comes to the point where you’re like this is not gonna work out anymore and you want different things out of life. That’s just tragic.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m saying,” Naomi agreed. “Like, how are you gonna be happy in love without the person you need the most beside you? That’s impossible to deal with. It will never work for me. So why bother starting one, yea?”

I had to agree with these girls, though. See, I’d always been a realist. I didn’t really believe in long distance relationships. For the longest time, I just didn’t reckon I could handle it.

But Freddie, being the hopeless romantic that he was, had a different view. “I think it works,” he joined in, sliding down the railing. “I think if, mutually, both of you really want to make it work, it’ll work. That’s why there’s this thing we call ‘compromise’. And I don’t think you can seriously say for sure that you aren’t going to fall for someone here. I mean, you never know. Perhaps tomorrow you’ll find yourself accidentally in love. Can you really fight against your feelings? Can you deny what your heart tells you? I don’t think so. Then again, that’s just my two cents worth.”

Everyone grew quiet after the French bloke’s comment. Well, to be honest, Freddie had made an impressive point as well. There’s a decent chance of survival for couples who are in a long distance relationship. I mean, I did consider it. But Naomi Campbell’s the only one for me here. And I just don’t see that happening anytime soon . . . or ever. She just made that fact clear earlier.

“What about GayJay, then, Naomikins?” Cook asked, cocking a teasing brow. “What about yer most loved ‘loser’?”

“What about him?” Naomi said tonelessly, sipping her beer.

“You two seem to really be hitting it off,” Sean filled in.

“I’m only being a good friend since we both are from the same uni and all. I’m only trying to be nice. That’s all there is to it.” Naomi’s tone clearly indicated that the conversation was over.

“Okay, if ya say so, love.” Cook snickered, clearly not buying it.

“What about you, Rouge?” Freddie handed me another can of cold beer. “I want to hear what you think.”

“About what?” I asked.

“About finding love here,” he replied.

I tucked a lock of my red hair behind my ear. “I don’t know.” I gave a half-shrug. “It’s too early to close my doors. But like what the girls said, getting into a relationship here . . . it’s going to have a lot of consequences.” I pulled the tab on the beer can and pensively took a gulp. “I mean . . . ten months. A lot can happen, I know. But I’m not sure if it’s worth the heartache for me.”

“I don’t know about you, Emily,” Halo said, smirking. “But I’m pretty sure a lot of people are out to make you believe otherwise. I just happen to know a certain someone.”

My forehead wrinkled. “What are you on about, Halo?” 

“You’ll see,” Halo said with a meaningful wink. Then he turned to Freddie. “Anyways, Freds, your sister said something about a surprise in her room, right? I wonder what that is . . .” She drummed her fingers against her chin, pondering.

“Je ne sais pas,” Freddie answered with a shrug. “But all I know is . . . what happens in Karen’s room, stays in Karen’s room.”

Standing hesitantly in front of the door to Karen’s room, I cocked an eye sideways at Halo. “Should we be scared?”

Halo stared at the door she had just knocked on. “Well, we can only wait and see, right?” She knocked again. Then she put her ear against the door. “Sounds like no one’s in here, though. Weird.”

I looked down at my watch, a bit worried. It was already past 10 PM. “Seriously, though, has Karen gone mad? We have school tomorrow. And it’s only Monday night, for Pete’s sake. It’s not too late to say I’m not feeling well, is it?”

Halo shot me an unserious scolding look. “Emily Stiff, stop being such a spoilsport.”

“I haven’t got a decent sleep since I got here. I still have to shower at 3 AM,” I protested. “Now tell me, Heaven Lopez, am I not being reasonable for wanting a single night that is alcohol-free and sleep-privileged? Or has everyone here lost their marbles?”

“I don’t know. I think you just have to get used to it,” Halo told me, straightening up. “Because I’m telling you now, here in the dorm, the madness never ends.”

I smirked as I mentally pictured those words on a banner. “I love that. That could be like a slogan. ‘Here in Casa Gaijin, the madness never ends—’”

Suddenly the door opened and springing out of nowhere, a couple of huge inflatable sumo wrestlers came charging toward us. Our breaths hitched. “Banzaaaaai!” the sumo-costumed blokes yelled as a battle cry as they hurtled toward us.

“Shit!” I yelled, barely able to dive out of their path to avoid getting trampled. Halo was screaming so loud as she ran for her life.

As they hit the wall across the hallway, the sumo wrestlers bounced off and fell to the floor on their backs, laughing hysterically. It was Cook and Thomas. Bloody hell.

Halo, acting like the typical feisty girl she was, rushed forward to confront the cackling sumo wrestlers. “You soulless bastards!” She kicked the suits, half-pissed off and half-amused.

“Relax there, love!” Cook laughing said, holding his hands up as he tried to stop Halo from further kicking him. “We’re just foolin’ about.”

Thomas was breathless with laughter. “That’s right, Halo. Chill out. Just good fun.”

Halo just rolled her eyes at the two as they cackled on manically. Jake, the Taiwanese lad, was equally breathless with laughter as he filmed on with his video cam. “Nice one, guys!” he cheered the two lads who were now struggling from sitting upright in the hallway.

Karen emerged proudly from her room and walked up to me, smirking, and drawled, “There you are, Baby Fitch.” With natural poise, she wrapped her arm around my shoulders. “You ready for a friendly evening?”

I gave a hollow little laugh. “Well, Cook almost killed me in a sumo wrestler costume. Can’t get any friendlier than that.”

Karen laughed, as she played with a lock of my hair. “Sorry, that was part of the surprise.”

A huffy Halo appeared at the brunette’s other side and piped up, “Yeah, and a freaking surprise attack, to be exact. I almost had a heart attack. Jeez.” She made a face at Karen. “How sending out sumo wrestlers highlights the surprise night is lost on me, Karen.”

“Who says that was the highlight?” Karen smirked devilishly. She put her other arm around Halo’s shoulders and then led us into her very dark room.

Before my eyes had fully adjusted to the darkness of the room, a click was heard and some faint lights that ranged between the shades of blue and purple turned on. Another click and suddenly we were facing a huge white tarpaulin taped to one wall with The Goonies being projected on the makeshift screen. Halo gasped, as usual. A lemon yellow leather couple sofa-bed was in front of the screen. There was also a large, low circular table in the middle of the room with about thirty empty shot glasses and more or less fifteen old-fashioned glasses arranged at the centre. A bunch of bottles of various seemingly deadly alcoholic drinks stood, waiting to be consumed. Good God Almighty.

“You guys feelin’ it?” the French girl asked, gesturing at the whole setup, and all of us nodded our heads. “Apparently, some party-pooping neighbours marched into the dorm this morning, complaining about the noise last night. And Yoshida-san sort of gave me a warning and since the old fart will, according to him, be stricter with imposing the rule of no noise in the lounge after 10 PM, I took the liberty of bringing the lounge to my room. I am happy to announce that from now on, our intimate movie nights shall be held here in my den.”

With this announcement, loud cheering and clapping ensued.

“Now, are you all set for the Green Fairy?” Karen held up two big bottles of 1.5-litre Czech Sebor the Beautiful Absinthe. All set for Death, you mean? How she got a hold of those bottles, I will never figure out. I guess I should just be grateful that I’ve crossed paths with this extraordinarily skillful lady.

“Ab-fockin’-sinthe, Boss? Will ya marry me?” Cook exclaimed, now free of his stupid sumo body suit, eagerly seizing one bottle of the deadly emerald green alcohol from Karen’s hand.

“Yes and, um, no,” Karen dryly answered.

“Oh, my God! Where did you get this?” Panda gasped, appearing suddenly in the room wearing a monkey hood, snatching the bottle from Cook. “I thought this is, you know, forbidden here in Japan?”

“Like I always say, I’m Karen McClair, hunny, and I don’t have ‘forbidden’ in my vocabulary.” Karen punctuated her words with a little smug smirk. “I have lots of other ‘forbidden’ stuff around here, but let’s save those for later.”

I looked around me. Karen’s room was alcohol nirvana. It was like a party girl’s den. How she fit everything in this tiny space was beyond me. There’s a mini-disco ball in one corner. Posters and pictures of booze and booze-fuelled wild nights covered her walls. There was a dresser-turned-mini bar with all sorts of alcohol—from beer to tequila. Shot glasses and lime wedges everywhere. Her school books thrown into a pile with French gossip tabloids and Cosmopolitan. Her drawer was open from overwhelming lingerie. No wonder she took bartending as part-time work. This was her life.

“You may now take your seats,” announced the alluring French host. “Brace yourselves as for starter, you’re about to be served the World’s Greatest Jack and Coke.” And she got busy right away at the table, mixing liquids with such ease and finesse.

Halo and I sat down cross-legged next to each other on the cushions on the floor. Panda plopped down beside Halo, and Thomas took his seat next to the quirky Swede. Jake and Cook sat down across us. For a few minutes, we got busy watching the film being shown.

Soon, the rest of the invited people arrived and the room was suddenly crowded. Freddie came with Sean. Effy arrived alone and she sat next to her good friend Thomas. Grunwald turned up with Ayami.

Then finally, Naomi walked in with JJ. Her hair was swept up into some kind of makeshift messy bun, with a few strands of blonde hair curling around framing her face. She made her way to the low table and seeing me, she smiled. And with that one smile, Naomi Campbell had easily set free the ever-present butterflies in my stomach once again.

Surprising me, the Aussie blonde walked around the table and sat down on the empty floor cushion next to me, and JJ settled next to her. “Here we go again, huh?” Her eyes traveled around the huddled bottles of liquor and she grimaced. “Seems like we’ve got a one-way ticket to Hangover Over Land.”

I couldn’t stop staring at the blonde, I was almost afraid my voice wouldn’t work. “I know, right,” I managed to get out.

Good thing, Karen started distributing old-fashioned glasses of “The World’s Greatest” Jack and Coke to each one of us as an appetiser. As if the couple of beers I had on the rooftop a few hours earlier didn’t count as my actual starter. Karen’s Jack and Coke garnered a lot of praises from our very first sip. It was just so ridiculously good, everyone had gone apeshit for it. According to Karen, the cola was not actually Coke but a homemade recipe she invented out of a bunch of spices. Damn, the Frenchie’s seriously got legit mad skills and she’s out to show off again by telling us that she’ll be making a special shooter using Absinthe next.

“So, anyways,” Sean began, getting everyone’s attention, “we had a mature ass convo on the rooftop earlier. And the three lovely ladies over there,” he gestured toward me, Halo and Naomi, “declared that they plan to stay single for the rest of their days here in Japan. What do you guys think of that?”

“What? For real, ladies?” Thomas asked, genuinely baffled. “Are you sure you’re not gonna see anyone here?” 

“Yep,” I found myself answering with Naomi and Halo which immediately made the blonde look at me, a bit questioningly.

“Naomi, care to explain more?” Ayami asked curiously with an innocent tilt of her head.

Naomi finished off her Jack and Coke before answering. “Relationships here in Japan will just fuck you up,” she rationalised. “Actually, no. Relationships, in general, will only fuck you up.”

Listening to Naomi talk about love bothered me a lot. She sounded so disgusted, so jaded, so sick of it. And I can only imagine how much pain she had understandably gone through for her to talk about love in such a negative way.

Thomas shook his head mournfully. “That’s just . . . I don’t even know what to say. But I respect your decision, ladies. Although, I am telling you now that we may have the last laugh. Thou shall not speak too soon.”

“Yeah, but has anyone actually met anyone they like?” Karen asked, as she started uncapping some never-before-seen green and brown bottles for her much-awaited special shooter.

We all looked blankly at each other. I was faking it, of course. But faking it was better than looking like a fool in front of these people.

“Not . . . yet?” answered an uncertain Jake at length. Panda shook her head, and said nothing, though I could see that she was blushing.

“Well, to be honest,” Cook admitted, grinning toothily, “I’ve had fantasies of some of the ladies here. But that’s about it.”

Karen only shot a disgusted look at the Irish lad. “What about you, Halo?” she asked the girl who was busy filing her fingernails. “I’m sure you have met plenty of cute Japanese guys already.”

“No luck,” Halo said with a shrug. “Perhaps I’ll meet someone in the school clubs I’m still planning to join. Some prince here in Japan or something. I probably will be going out on friendly dates. But still, it’s never gonna get further than a little crush. It’s social death to be committed here.”

“You’re right. I often envy you single girls,” said Ayami darkly. “I’d love to be single again.”

“Well, I’d love to be you, Ayami-chan,” Panda told the Japanese girl, “with such a nice boyfriend.”

“I’m interested in someone,” announced Sean, going back to the topic. He just wouldn’t let it go, this poor lad. “But we’ve established that she doesn’t feel the same way.” He glanced pointedly at me.

“That’s really sad, bro,” Grunwald empathised, giving his back consoling pats.

Sean leant forward, resting his elbows on the table and lacing his fingers together. Then he rested his chin on his hands. “But for real, though, I’d love to have someone here. Being single in autumn is horrible,” he said ruefully, “because there’s, like, no one to kick through the leaves with in the park or hold hands with at fireworks displays . . .”

Thomas hummed a little, contemplating as well. “You know, man, it’s worse being single in the summer,” he said. “All those happy people necking in the park, or playing Frisbee or strolling hand in hand through the pounding surf . . .”

Quietly sipping my drink, I couldn’t believe my ears. What just happened to the boys in here? Was it the effect of Karen’s Jack and Coke? I glanced sideways at Naomi and I could tell that she had been resisting to blurt out some snarky comment or roll her eyes. Good thing she managed not to.

“Personally I think it’s much worse in the winter,” Jake chimed in, “having no one to snuggle up to in front of an open fire on some romantic weekend break.”

But Freddie had another view. He finished off his Jack and Coke and placed the glass down on the table. “No, you guys, I think being single in the spring is the worst,” he said. “When everything’s growing and thrusting and the sun’s shining, and it’s all so horribly happy. Spring is the cruelest season, in my opinion.”

Karen stood up, holding an invisible microphone. “Okaaaay. Ladies and ladies,” she emphasised, “enough with the sappy gibberish. Seriously. Where did the men go?” She shot the blokes a priceless ‘what the fuck’ face as the girls laughed. “What happened to your testosterones? Seriously!”

The boys just waved dismissive hands at her and joined the rest in laughter.

Karen clasped her hands together. “Okay. I just finished concocting my special Absinthe recipe. We can now proceed to the main event,” she announced. “The catastrophic game of Never Have I Ever. Shit’s about to get real—!”

“No way, Karen! No, no, no, no.” Jake was quick to react, shaking his head and waving his hands in protest. “Not that game.”

“Why not?” Karen said, arching a brow. “It’s a brilliant way to get to know everyone better. Plus we get to discover everyone’s deepest, darkest secrets. Who would pass up this chance?” she asked us and nobody objected so she spoke again. “Okay, awesome. Y’all should know how to play the game, you tell us something you’ve never done,” she explained. “And anyone who has done that thing has to take a drink. Counter-clockwise starting from Cook.” She started pouring shots for everybody.

With trepidation, I eyed the shot glasses now brimming with some deadly-looking Absinthe-based mixture. “Five stations ‘till Hangover Over Land,” I gulped, and Naomi smirked, adding, “Make that two.”

“Awrite, fellas! Y’all ready? I’ll start.” Cook straightened up, with a mischievous grin on his face. “Never have I ever thought about someone in this room while masturbating,” he said. He waited and waited, and he ended up being the only one to actually take the shot, making him groan. Of course, who would admit such a thing? This game sure was awkward enough and too salacious for my own good.

It was Grunwald’s turn. “Never have I ever tried Ranch dressing.”

There was a momentary pause.

“What the hell, Grunwald!” Laughing, we all downed a shot except for him.

Up next was Jake. “Never have I ever been sexually attracted to somebody I was related to,” the Taiwanese bloke said and Cook was the only one to take a shot.

“What the fuck, Cook? That’s sick!” exclaimed Halo with utter disgust, as we all cringed and showed our violent reactions. The two guys beside the Irish lad, Sean and Grunwald, lightly punched his shoulder.

Cook shrugged. “She’s focking fiiiiiiit!” he said as if that was the sell out point, which it probably was for him.

Next was Ayami. “Never have I ever driven over the speed limit on the highway.”

Ayami, JJ, and I were the only ones who did not take a shot. Like I said, I was never a fan of breaking rules.

“Never have I ever,” Effy took her turn, “peed in a fucking sink.”

To my surprise, there was only one person who did it—Panda.

Freddie raised his brows pointedly at his sister and faked a cough. And Karen was quick to retaliate, “What? Why are you looking at me like that? I have thrown up in the sink and slept on it many fucking times, yes. But I have never peed in it.” We all laughed at this.

Then it was Thomas’s turn. “Never have I ever covered for a cheating friend.”

As I knocked back my second shot with the rest, I realised how lame I was. I’ve only got two fingers down. Even the monkey-loving Pandora Moon had more experience than me.

“Eurgh, seriously, Karen, what the fuck is this stuff?” Effy shivered as she hit her shot glass down onto the table.

“Karen’s French Kiss.” Karen laughed and began refilling everyone’s glasses up again for God knows how many times that night. “It has white crème de cacao, green crème de menthe, and a special syrup which is the secret ingredient. My very own recipe.”

“Don’t get me wrong, it tastes good, Karen, and there’s no doubt you’re a brilliant mixologist,” Jake said. “But I just worry about its proof.”

“You can set it on fire,” Karen simply replied.

“Dear mother of God.” Jake looked heavenward with clasped hands like he was praying.

“You know, Karen, there’s just this little thing missing,” Naomi spoke. “If you sprinkle shaved bittersweet chocolate in it, it would be fucking perfect. It’s just a suggestion.” She gave a shrug.

Karen thought about it, then her eyes lit up. “You know what? You’re absolutely correct. I might try that next time. Thanks for the tip, Naomi. You’re a genius.”

What, now she’s an alcohol expert? Sometimes I’m just amazed at how skillful this Aussie woman is. I bet she still has some more tricks up her sleeve.

            

I searched for something to lean against and ended up resting my head on Halo’s shoulder. I was so fuzzy all of a sudden and I had only two shots. Naomi was looking over her lashes at me, obviously amused by my current state. It was safe to say, though, everyone was a little giddy now.

Panda was up next, and after a fit of tipsy giggles as Karen refilled the shot glasses, she pretended to think of something very daring.

“Never have I ever,” Panda began. “Kissed another girl.”

Karen snickered and downed her shot, as did Effy, Halo, and all the boys, while Panda’s stayed resolutely on the floor. As did Ayami’s.

“Um, Emily?” Halo nudged me with her elbow, making me sit up straight again. “You can cheat all you want, but I don’t think you can escape from this one. There are a lot of people on the witness stand.”

“What?” I said, feigning innocence. “I don’t plan on cheating. I’m just sticking to my pace. My throat hurts.” Halo only rolled her eyes at me. I finally grabbed the shot glass and took a shot. And after a few heartbeats, so did Naomi—which completely caught me off guard.

I raised an eyebrow at the blonde beside me and she just shrugged it off, I saw JJ look at Naomi but she just mouthed ‘another story for another time’ to him.

“Oh, I got a brilliant follow-up to that!” Halo wrapped an arm around my shoulders with nonchalance. “It’s my turn now, right?”

I caught the wicked glint in Halo’s eye and knew in that moment that I was screwed. Nobody in this room will look at me the same way after tonight, it’s a dead loss. Thank God there are plenty of Absinthe shooters still to go around.

“Never have I ever,” Halo started, and I closed my eyes in anticipation. “Had sex with another girl.”

Oh. Dear. God. I felt like the world suddenly stopped spinning. Oh. Dear. God. I wanted to melt into the floor.

“Good one, Halo!” Cook instantly gulped on the shot glass and waggled his tongue, smirking. Freddie, Grunwald, Thomas and Sean took shots as well. Amongst the men, JJ and Jake were the only ones who didn’t take a shot which made me respect the lads. They both reasoned that they’d been keeping their virginity until marriage.

As for me, I just froze on my butt, feeling the heat radiating from my cheeks, uncertain if this was the perfect time to finally come out to the gang.

But these wonderful people are already your friends and you trust them, right? my conscience urged me. The voice in my head was telling the truth. I don’t think I could hide the ‘real’ Emily from them forever, could I? And if these people are genuine mates, I reckon they’ll just have to hear it then put up with it.

They were all pretty plastered, anyway, and I could only pray that they would wake up not remembering any-fucking-thing from tonight. It was now or never. I gulped, feeling the beads of sweat pop out of my forehead. So here goes . . .

I reached for the shot glass and drank its contents pretending to be unaffected by the number of eyes that had bulged in surprise and jaws that had dropped to the floor in shock. I felt like I was a human spotlight all of a sudden.

“Holy Jaysus fock, Emilio!” Cook exclaimed, his face bright and incredulous. “Fair play, redhead. Fair play!” He grinned wickedly and proudly gave me a double “A-ok!” hand gesture.

Smiling awkwardly, I placed the shot glass back down and blinked a lot to clear my head. I was actually surprised that I had not received any gay-bashing of some sort. They all looked like they were willing to deal with it. At least for now, I guess.

Panda’s hand flew to her mouth, then she let out a little squeal. “Oh, Emily! We love you! Let’s find you a girlfriend here!” And she and Halo squeezed me in a tight twin hug as they both giggled.

“Emily, how could you? You just broke my heart,” Sean jokingly and dramatically gasped with both of his palms pressed on his chest. “I thought . . . man.” He could only sigh and scratch the back of his head miserably.

“Well, most of the boys here in the dorm are hopeless and repulsive. Wish I was a lesbian,” said Halo with a snort. “The girls are much better-looking than the guys!” Then she playfully nudged me. “Right, Emily?”

“Exactly,” a slightly drunk Karen chimed in. “Now, Baby Fitch, drink up. You get a penalty shot for trying to cheat.” She reached across the table and set down another full shot glass in front of me.

“What? Cheat? When?” I protested.

“Pssssssshhh!” Karen said, pushing her forefinger to my mouth. “Yesterday during the game in the lounge, you cheated on Effy. You were supposed to kiss longer. So it’s either you take a shot or you kiss her again now.”

I thought about arguing, but then Effy did something that completely caught me and everyone else off guard. She reached out for my face. And kissed me. In spite of me, my body reacted in an instant, and I was breathless when Effy let me go. “That’s what you get for fucking me over, Emily,” she said with a smirk, and I immediately turned crimson.

“But I was—” I protested, but it was drowned out by the laughing and cat calls. Halo reached out to slap Effy a high-five.

“Christ, you two are hot,” Karen said, refilling the emptied glasses, as I felt the heat of my blush all over my body. I looked sideways at Naomi and she had a put on a stoic face which was really hard to read.

“Now this is what I call a truly ‘friendly’ evening,” Halo commented, whilst the boys were just staring back and forth at me and Effy, either open-mouthed or wearing huge grins on their faces.

“Come on, Emily—your turn!” they all chorused.

I pinched the bridge of my nose as my head spun. “Uhmm . . . let’s see . . . uhhh . . .” It actually took me a while to say it. “Never have I ever been cheated on with another person,” I said, and surprisingly, I saw quite a few people take a shot. Karen, Sean, Cook, and Grunwald downed their shots.

I stole a quick glance sideways at Naomi and got a little worried. Her gaze was down, her jaw was set and she looked a bit . . . hurt. Biting her lip, she tinkered with the shot glass and finally decided to down it.

That validated it. Naomi was truly a walking wounded.

I knew there had to be a reason why Naomi was putting up all these walls. That’s because she had been played with. The Great Miss Stonem was right after all.

“Naomi? Naomi,” JJ said softly, waving his hand in front of the blonde’s face causing her to suddenly look up.

“Huh?” she said, completely oblivious and lost in her own mind.

JJ smiled. “It’s your turn.”

“Oh.” Naomi then straightened up and we continued with the game. Naomi’s behaviour was a little intriguing. Before JJ pulled her back to Earth, she looked completely dazed. I’m not so sure. But I think I hit a very raw nerve.

More shocking exposures came and finally the game ended. I looked around me. Everyone appeared to be dealing well with all the revelations bar Naomi who was acting rather discomfited. Effy, specifically, looked like she enjoyed my dirty little secret the most. She was eyeing me with that smirk of hers. This time, though, it was like her curved mouth had intensified with another sensation. I didn’t know what it was and I wasn’t so sure if I wanted to find out.

“Baby Fitch, drink some more,” Karen slurred as she reached across the table to fill my shot glass up again.

“Nope, I can’t do another one,” I said as I put my hand over the top of my glass to prevent her from refilling it with that putrid stuff. “Seriously.”

My throat was burning and I was already feeling a little too drunk for my liking, although I was nowhere near as bad as the rest of them. It seemed that these people were immune to hangover as they all seem to be quite happy to drown themselves in liquor.

“Fine, Baby Fitch,” Karen said, her voice catching on the last word. She got up to walk to her bed, swaying as she went, then plopped face down onto it.

“She’s out,” Freddie commented, making a slicing motion across his neck. And we laughed at this. Typical Karen. Always the first one to take a bow.

For a while, we all got preoccupied talking and laughing and dealing with our drunken state. Panda and Thomas were getting real friendly on the yellow sofa-bed in front of the makeshift movie screen. Grunwald was playing his guitar as Halo and Ayami sang along. Jake was busy taking videos of everyone with his video cam. Effy and Freddie were smoking in one corner, together but not really talking to each other.

Getting a little annoyed by the loud and nonsensical debate going on amongst Cook, Sean and JJ behind me, I looked around the room for Naomi and realised that she had moved to sit on the windowsill on her own, looking out at the sky above with a blank expression on her face and clutching a bottle of water between her hands. I guessed that she must have had a bit too much to drink as well and was trying to sober up. I glanced over at her and she saw me looking, catching my eye. I left the three hammered lads to their argument about what was the best beer on earth and went over to sit with Naomi.

“You look like you’re having a dead good time,” I said sarcastically, shifting on the windowsill to face her.

Naomi let out a hollow little laugh. Her face had fairly a dormant expression on it as if she were in a daze, except for when I had walked over her expression had awakened and her bright blue eyes seemed to radiate with a bit of warmth.

“You okay?” I tilted my head, an easy smile etched onto my lips.

“Yep,” she replied, her lips ever so slightly curling up at one corner.

“Well, I’m not,” I told her. “I mean, what the fuck was that vile green liquid Karen was forcing down our throats?”

That elicited a soft laugh from her, but she didn’t reply. I felt a bit lighter now that I had broken the ice. Time to make a move.

“Listen,” I said, my tone now sober, “I’m sorry about earlier if that upset you. I didn’t know . . .”

Naomi shook her head and snorted. “Christ. Let’s not talk about that, please.” She turned her gaze away to look out at the sky again, indicating that the conversation was over.

“Okay,” I said quietly, looking down and biting my lip. Epic fail, Emily. Wrong move.

I sat there awkwardly next to the blonde, racking my brains for a proper topic. But I just chose to shut my mouth and let my eyes wander around the room.

Good thing it was a little dim in the room as I didn’t want to see the bloodshot eyes of my well shitfaced friends. The rest of the group were obviously pissed and beyond normal except for the slightly sensible ones including me and Naomi. Everybody else was just slurring about random things to one another and not making any sense.

Next thing I knew, a hand was crawling up my back.

“Effy, you’re smashed,” I said firmly, trying to pry the brunette’s fingers off my neck.

“Am not,” she said stubbornly, a smirk on her face.

I couldn’t deny, though, Effy still looked gorgeous, even like this, with her eyelids half-closed and her cheeks flushed. She leant in and touched her lips to my ear. My stomach churned.

“Take me to bed,” she rasped against my ear, quiet but loud enough for Naomi to hear. And true enough, the blonde’s head jerked toward us, her blue eyes widened and mouth dropped slightly open, upon hearing the brunette’s indecent proposal.

I stifled a laugh. “You don’t mean that,” I tried to object, but Effy was so intent on holding onto me.

“I do.” Then Effy moved her face dangerously close to mine and I craned my neck to evade her beseeching mouth.

“Effy. Stop,” I said, pulling back a bit and wincing. “What the fuck are you doing?”

Okay. Seriously. What the hell is Effy doing? I know I just told everyone in this room that I’m gay but the brunette didn’t have to worm her way in to blatantly confirm that.

Effy suddenly laughed a throaty laugh and released me, straightening up. “I was totally trippin’. I’m okay and sane. Just pleasantly tipsy.”

“You’re smashed,” I repeated.

“Okay. Maybe I’m a little ‘smashed,’” Effy finally admitted, making air quotes and grinning a bit.

“Not cool, Elizabeth,” I told her with an unserious glower, gathering myself. Then I slid off the windowsill to stand on unstable knees, my hands against my temples. I was getting nauseous and was afraid I might lose balance and fall out the window if I stayed perched on the windowsill. “My head is spinning. Don’t make it any worse, Effy.”

Effy sidled a little closer to me, leaning one hip ever so nonchalantly against the windowsill, making Naomi look at her a bit oddly. “So . . .” she began again in a muffled raspy tone. “Emily, would you mind giving away some details?”

My eyebrows shot up not in puzzlement but in skepticism and I stared at the brunette for a moment. I knew exactly what Effy was asking about but I wasn’t so sure why she’d bother asking. I mean, this might possibly be our first civilised chat and I just wasn’t certain if talking about my sexuality or sexual experiences that were akin to that of a newborn baby’s was the best way to start off.

“C’mon,” the brunette egged on quietly. “I would love to hear your spicy story.” Whoa. She did give a shit. The Great Miss Stonem wasn’t that stony, after all. Or perhaps that was only the effect of the alcohol.

Peripherally, I noticed that Naomi was spying on us as she pretended to continue gazing up at the night sky. I was sure she was planning to eavesdrop. Perhaps this is a way to let her know that I’m gay as a window and this is certainly not just a “phase” like what Mum insists it to be. Naomi has to deal with it. They all just have to deal with it.

“Er, I, uh—” I paused, looking down and scratching the tip of my nose, seeking for a confirmation to continue. Effy nodded her head. She was waiting.

I cleared my throat, and then went on, “I sort of knew I was gay since I was eleven. It started with a pathetic school crush on a girl six years older than me. Her name was Lauren and she was the Head Girl . . .”

Effy just nodded in response, letting me continue, “Anyway, nothing happened between us but from then on I had been finding girls increasingly attractive. I freaked out. And tried to hide it for years . . .”

“And then?” Effy urged me to go on, resting her elbow on the windowsill and focused her attention on me.

“And then when I was sixteen, this fit new girl, Taylor, came to our boarding school, being super cool and smart and all, and we just hit it off. She was my very first girlfriend and everything was coming up roses ‘til she became the Head Girl—”

“Emily Fitch, you have a thing for Head Girls, huh?” Effy lifted her perfect eyebrows teasingly.

I chuckled as I unconsciously toyed with my watch. “What can I say?” I smirked. “I like a girl on top.”

Her lips crimped in amusement. “What went wrong then?”

“She became the Head Girl . . . and then one day she just told me that she didn’t want people to say nasty things behind her back and that she had a great reputation to maintain that she didn’t want to be sullied by underlings so she fucking dumped me. Just like that. Got rid of me like I didn’t matter at all.”

The brunette’s lips curved down. “Wow. That’s just so wrong.”

“It really was. What a fucking coward, eh?” I shook my head whilst recalling the bygone disappointment. “I always fall for the wrong people,” I murmured, tracing the line of wood grain on the windowsill as if to trace my thought with the same fingertip. “It’s kind of tragic. But true.”

Effy straightened up. “See, the thing is, Emily . . . it’s nice people like you who always finish last and get walked over.”

“I’m okay with that. I’m not the competitive type.”

“Yes, but this is a dangerous and harsh world, Emily. Life doesn’t offer people like you such good terms.” She offered a sad smile.

I returned the sad smile to the brunette, and felt Naomi’s eyes watching me. But I feigned being completely fixated on Effy. I also noticed Freddie standing by the makeshift mini-bar, still smoking a cigarette, and eyeing me and Effy with uneasiness which I found to be very intriguing.

“Well, I don’t really expect much,” I replied at length.

“That’s the thing. Maybe you should start expecting more,” Effy told me like she had known me all her life. “Sometimes it’s okay to be selfish, you know. You should be more selfish.”

I drew imaginary circles on the wood with my fingertip, deep in thought despite feeling a bit of grogginess. “Selfish like how?”

“For instance, you should look for someone who will fucking blow your mind and rock your world and go to the ends of the earth for you. You should not settle for anything less than what you deserve. Find someone who is amazing and has gorgeous blue eyes . . . and dark brown hair . . . who comes from North America—Florida, to be specific . . . and—”

“Someone who’s demented, you mean,” I interrupted, my lips twitching precariously from struggling not to burst out laughing.

“I’m just sayin’ you should give me this one night.” Effy shrugged with nonchalance.

I let out a laugh. God, this girl had a perplexing yet tasty sense of humour—especially with liquid courage. “You must be joking, Effy. I’m not that kind of girl.”

Effy was now laughing as well. “No, but seriously. Why settle for crusts when you can have the whole fucking pizza pie?”

I blinked as I straightened, and smiled sheepishly at her. “Well,” I spread my hands over the smooth surface of the windowsill and added quietly. “I actually like crusts.”

“Suit yourself, then,” the brunette said. “All I’m saying is that . . . you’re a beautiful girl, Emily. Inside out. You’re not some underling. You’re awesome. You deserve to be pampered and worshipped and respected.”

I opened my mouth only to close it again, a faint flush rising in my face. “Mm.”

“So,” Effy said, “that heartless bitch was, you know, the first girl you’ve . . . ?” The brunette looked at me tentatively. 

I smirked at her. “Way to chop up words, huh?” Then I nodded. “Yep, the one and only.”

Effy’s mouth opened slightly for a muted “Oh.”

“But are you, like, only attracted to women or you swing both ways?” she asked.

“Just women. All the way.”

Effy grinned. “Good going.”

“What about you? Have you ever been with a girl?” I finally dared to ask with practised casualness.

“Nope. But you’re giving me ideas, Emily. Tons of ideas.” She embellished those words with a seductive wink, and I blushed some more. Christ. This woman and her sexual innuendos were really making my body temperature dangerously shoot up.

“Hey, Naomi! Naomi! Hey!” JJ called, laughing like a maniac, his noise making my head hurt even more. “Hey, Naomikins!” He stood up and reeled toward the blonde, tripping over something along the way. “It’s spinny in here, spinny and neon green and—oh, bobbins!—is there an earthquake?” He stretched out his arms as if trying to balance himself.

Naomi looked behind her, alarmed, but when she absorbed JJ’s state, her face became a mixture of amusement and displeasure and concern. I tried to hide a smile behind my hand.

“JJ. Calm down. You’re fucking drunk,” the blonde told him in a serious voice.

“I like your hair, Naomi!” JJ gushed, hoisting himself up onto the windowsill to settle on the space between me and Naomi. We had to stick out our arms behind the curly-haired lad to support him in case he loses his balance. The last thing we’d all want to happen was JJ falling out the window and landing right into the bushes below. Yoshida-san treats his azalea bushes like his own children and I’m sure if JJ were in his right state of mind, he didn’t want to mess. Or he’ll have to face Yoshida-san’s wrath and massive garden shears.

JJ ran his hand through Naomi’s blonde locks and stuck his tongue out when he got an eyeroll in return. “Has your hair always been green?”

“Are you okay, JJ?” I managed to ask, moving to put a gentle hand on his shoulder. It was an uncomfortable struggle to keep the contents of my stomach firmly in the right direction even as I fought to maintain my footing.

“I might be glowing!” JJ answered animatedly, snickering like an idiot. “Love is a truly magical thing. Love. Oh bobbins. This love thing is flaming awesome! My insides feel like they’re filling up in the best flaming way possible! It’s like gummy bears and bubbles and the glow of a lamp in a dark room! Am I glowing, girls?”

“No, you’re not glowing; you’re creeping us out,” Effy answered dryly, waving him away.

JJ giggled. “I know!” He nodded and nodded and oh, he couldn’t stop nodding until his nods became languid. Naomi reached out and cupped his chin, studying his half-asleep bloodshot eyes.

“Okay, that’s it.” The blonde suddenly stood up and seized JJ by the hand into a vaguely upright position in front of her. “You are going to bed. You are not a quiet drunk, JJ. It’s annoying.” JJ responded with nonstop lethargic nodding.

For some reason, the two Aussies looked more like brother-sister sweet but still the green-eyed monster in me was making an appearance. It was quite obvious that Naomi had a soft spot for her fellow Aussie. So Batshit Freaky JJ might be in love with Naomi. She might be the source of the gummy bears and bubbles and the glow of a lamp in a dark room that JJ had gushed about. They might have a casual thing going on. And even though I heard it with my own ears that Naomi swore on staying single here, I still couldn’t help myself from feeling jealous.

JJ, who was still giggling like a lunatic, staggered back—good thing, Naomi was still holding onto him.

“Hey, guys, we’re gonna bounce. We got first period classes later,” a slightly sober Jake told us, speaking for him and a super red-faced Ayami.

“Can you take JJ with you?” Naomi asked, concern for her mate in her tone. “He needs to go to bed. He looks like he’s about to pass out.”

Jake nodded. “Sure, Naomi.” Together, he and Ayami took the zombie-like Aussie lad. “Come, JJ,” Ayami grunted as they manhandled him toward the door.

As I watched the retreating Aussie lad, I felt a spinning sensation again. I hated feeling nauseous. For a while I was being preoccupied with the unholy rumbling in my stomach and the building disorientation also made it increasingly impossible to think straight.

“Oh, God.” Groaning, I clutched at my head with my hand. Shit, my head hurt like a bitch. It felt like my brain was hammering against my skull, demanding to be let out. I breathed through my nose, hoping to it will recede, but it got worse instead.

“Emily?” Effy sounded worried now. “Hey, Emily, are you okay?”

I shuddered violently. “I’m . . . I’mma throw up . . .” I rasped out before managing to brace myself against the windowsill and retch violently out the open window. Not in one neat, theatrical disgorgement, no, but instead in a series of bad hics and heaves, each one accompanied by bursts of foul, awful-smelling chunky wetness.

“Shit.” Surprisingly, it was Naomi who held me steady. My body convulsed and my back arched as I vomited again. I coughed and took breaths.

“Breathe, Emily,” Naomi softly told me, gently rubbing my back. “Come on, you’ll be ‘right.”

I leant out to puke out of the window again.

“Throw up some more if you need to, Emily. Don’t resist it, yes that’s it, the sooner you expel the rest of the alcohol in your stomach, the less time you will feel like shit,” Naomi continued to soothe me as I helplessly threw up. “Careful now, Ems, don’t lean over too much. You might fall into the bushes.”

“God, this is awful,” I whined at the back of my throat when Naomi ran a soothing hand down my back. “You give great back rubs, by the way.”

“Are we seriously gonna talk about that now?” Naomi groaned and when I used a great deal of effort to raise my head, I saw the smile on Naomi’s face.

“Seriously, though,” I said, dropping my head down again.

Naomi handed me her bottle of water. I rinsed my mouth out with water then wiped it with the back of my hand. “What a fucking traitor—that drink,” I moaned softly, sliding down the wall and sat down on the floor, curling up my legs to my chest. The muscles in my abdomen painfully protested the throwing up; my head still felt like it was going to explode any second now. “Shit,” I whined softly. “I’m going to kill Karen later.”

Good thing, my head stopped spinning and the heaving ceased.

“Finished for now?” Naomi towered over me with raised brows. Effy stood beside her, also looking down at me with obvious concern despite her inebriated state.

“Yeah, think so,” I weakly replied handing back the now-empty bottle of water to Naomi. “What the fuck just happened? I was fine one minute and then suddenly the whole world was spinning. Hell, I swear I’m never going to touch that stuff again, ever.”

“C’mon, Emily, let me put you to bed.” Effy shakily pulled me up to my feet. “You are so drunk.”

“I’m not drunk,” I stated with mock indignation, pulling my hands from Effy’s. The world immediately began to sway again.

“Whoa, hold on, everything is still spinning.” I grabbed and held onto Effy to steady myself. “Okay. I think I might be a little drunk.”

With a knowing smirk, Effy put her arm around my shoulders. “C’mere, let’s get you to your room—”

“Wait,” Naomi called, reaching for Effy’s shoulder. “I’ll take her upstairs. She’s from my floor. And you don’t look so stable yourself.”

“Oookay.” Effy drew back, her hands up in submission, and muttered, “Suit yourself, then.”

Naomi then moved around to stabilise me. “C’mon, Emily. Just hold onto me.” With her arms hooked underneath mine as support, she started to lead me towards the door.

I was giggling for no apparent reason as we stumbled down the hallway in the direction of the stairs. I stopped short when we arrived at the foot of the stairs.

I turned around to face Naomi. “Okay. You can let me go now, thank you.”

Naomi arched an amused brow, still not letting go of her hold of me. “You couldn’t walk in a straight line, but you think you can make it up three flights of stairs?”

“I just don’t want to hassle you any more than I already have,” I slurred huskily, my eyes droopy.

“Don’t worry, I can manage to lead your skinny arse up a few flights of stairs,” she explained before beginning our trek up the staircase. “But you know,” she said, the carpeted floorboards squeaking with every slow, heavy step. “I’m not sure you could do the same.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Means I’m stronger than you,” she grunted. “And that you’re useless.” I started to hear her breath labour as we turned the corner for the next flight.

I snorted. “Piss off. I’ve got semi-athletic legs. You said so yourself. I could totally carry you across town and up these fucking stairs; in fact, I can even do it running.”

Naomi smirked teasingly and muttered under her breath, “Right. In your dreams, midget.”

I let my eyes fall shut as Naomi steered me up the steps and mumbled, “Are we there yet?” I wrapped my arms around her waist, steadying myself, as we successfully reached another landing.

“Almost.”

“Can I ask you a personal question?” I asked the huffing blonde, lazily opening one eye.

“Yep?” Naomi grunted as she struggled to keep me in a vertical position.

“I’m just curious about you and JJ. Are you two, like, friends or, like, friendly friends?”

“It’s none of your business, Emily.” Naomi clasped another stabilising arm around me as she pushed me upward onto another step.

I shook my head. “No. It’s just that—” I stopped moving suddenly when I felt my stomach go aggro again. Naomi stepped inward to keep from falling, wrapping me into a one-armed hug. I rested my head against the tall girl’s shoulder as we ascended together. “Fuck, Naomi. I still feel sick.”

“We’re almost there,” Naomi grunted as she led me, one wobbly step after another.

“Okay,” I groaned like a zombie.

“Just stop talking.”

I nodded like a puppet. “Okay.”

When we made it to the third floor, I stopped moving again and turned to face her. “We should—” I pantomimed drinking “—more water.”

“Right. Let’s go to the kitchen and hydrate.” Naomi wrapped her arm around me again, but cautiously, and guided me through the rest of the walk to the nearby kitchen. When we reached the third floor kitchen, Naomi pulled two water bottles from the fridge.

Naomi groaned and rolled her shoulders a bit whilst I leant my forehead against the wall with a dull thud. “Oh shit, I need to sit down.”

I turned around and sat down on the floor, tilting my head back against the hard wall.

“Here.” Naomi offered me one of the bottles and then plopped down beside me, panting. “Drink up.”

“Who owns those?” I asked, refusing to accept the bottle.

She waved a hand. “Doesn’t matter. Just take it.”

“Not gonna happen.” I clutched one side of my throbbing head and grimaced at the water bottle. “I hate being drunk because it gives me guts to break rules and I’m really tempted. It’s horrible. I feel so bad.”

Naomi snorted a chuckle. “It’s okay. Jesus, it’s only water. I’ll replace them later, don’t worry.”

“I still feel a bit woozy,” I mumbled incoherently.

Naomi’s warm hand touched my back again, and I relaxed. “Trust me,” she whispered. “Just don’t look down. Just sit there and let your stomach settle.”

“I’m okay,” I said, and I regretted it as soon as I said it because this was glorious. The contact, the sensation—this was glorious. “Do you think we’re gonna make it to the fourth floor alive?”

Naomi made a non-committal noise under her breath. “Uh-huh,” she said, her voice still gentle. Her hand shifted from my eyes to my forehead. “Keep your eyes closed.” Her fingers stroked over my hair, over my cheek, rubbing at the nape of my neck. “Don’t puke on me, alright?”

I choked on a laugh. “Not going to throw up, Naomi.” But my stomach was rolling again, a sour taste burning in the back of my throat. I turned my head, took a deep breath and immediately regretted it when my stomach turned over.

Naomi rubbed the back of my neck, massaging at the tense muscles there. “Feel better?” She shifted against me, and then she pressed the open water bottle into my hand. “Drink a little water, don’t chug it, just take a couple of sips. Don’t be stubborn now.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Obediently, I brought the bottle to my mouth and drank slowly.

Naomi took a sip off her bottle, too. Then she pinched the bridge of her nose and groaned, “I am seriously never taking shots from Karen again. Fuck.”

“Tell me about it,” I agreed, and we both laughed quietly, equally tired and just lightheaded.

Both of us drank our waters, slowly sobering, and stared at the doorway sleepily, contemplating the long journey to our rooms, neither willing to move. Naomi let out a tired yawn. I, then, yawned as well.

A few hours later, I woke to the noise of the street-roving advertising van. The windows were still dark with dawn. We were still in the kitchen. Naomi lay curled on my side next to me, her hoodie sweater off and bunched beneath her head like a sad pillow. Our knees touched.

I moved my hand over her beautiful face and gently brushed away a loose piece of golden hair. I couldn’t help but revel in the sight. That rare moment. She looked so peaceful and vulnerable for the time being. A complete one eighty of what she was most of the time when she had the chance to hoist up her defences and put on her many masks.

A small smile graced my face, as I studied the blond beauty’s features. Her eyelids were closed, her lips partly opened as she breathed in and out; a serene look in her face as she slept. I sat there in silence and watched her face. She was really so fucking beautiful. I couldn’t help but stare, feeling a tad bit creepy, yet I couldn’t seem to look away.

My whole left arm had gone numb and I didn’t have the heart to move, well aware that any sudden movement would wake her up and I didn’t want that. I loved this. I loved that the day didn’t end with Naomi walking away from me. I just savoured the moment that she chose to stay. For the first time.

A moment later, I sighed and slowly closed my eyes, allowing myself to drift off into a peaceful sleep once again.

Business. Keep your mind on business, I thought, as I stood with Naomi by one of the cafeteria outdoor tables that Tuesday noon. Naomi had made it clear she wasn’t interested in meeting anyone here in Japan.

Yeah, well someone needed to get that message through to my body. Because it sure as hell was thinking I still got a chance.

I pulled a sheaf of papers from my bag and spread them over the wood surface of the table. “I was up all morning—”

“You didn’t go back to sleep?” Naomi asked, interrupting me.

“I couldn’t. I had to throw up a couple more times and, you know, I’m still jetlagged. How long does it usually take to adjust?”

Naomi scooped up the last bit of her pudding before replying, “Give it a couple of weeks max.”

I pressed a thumb against a throbbing temple. “Oh, dear.”

“How’s your head?” she asked, studying me.

“It has tamed a bit,” I replied. “For now, at least. I took Tylenol.”

“I left tomato juice in the kitchen fridge. I taped a post-it with your name on it. Did you see it?”

“You . . . you did?” I had to blink and put a hand to my chest, because this girl in front of me was making my heart do some pretty crazy things. “Um, not yet. But I will cleanse myself with it when I get back to the dorm. Thank you. So much,” I said, smiling my most appreciative smile. “And thanks for looking after me earlier. I’m sorry that you ended up sleeping on the floor.”

“S’okay,” she said with a snort. “Not the first time I did such a thing.”

“Rough sleeper, huh?”

“Well, I had no choice. I had to hop from town to town like a nomad for . . . stuff,” Naomi said, and my brow furrowed with interest. “So what’ve you got?” She leant in expectantly.

“Oh, right. I, uh . . . So here’s what I have so far,” I pressed on, pointing to the first drawing. “I’m no Picasso and I don’t have magical fingers like you, so ignore the stick figures.”

Naomi leant forward further, her nice and good-smelling blond hair swooping past her shoulders. “I take it I’m the happy face with the wavy line hair?”

“Hey, I put you in a pair of denim shorts. And gave you long legs.” Long, long legs, nowhere near as sexy as the ones a few feet away.

The blonde paused, studying the drawings—the sketch I made of her and me, beaming in front of a pathetically-drawn Ferris wheel. “I like this,” she simply stated.

“You do?” I said, sounding as surprised as I actually felt.

“What, you think I’m going to fight you at every turn?” Naomi raised a brow, her blue eyes twinkling with amusement.

I grinned a little, pleased with her uncharacteristic positive response. “Thought it might be a pastime of yours.”

“Well, I like it,” she said. “The whole idea is really neat. Different.” She gave me an “A-ok” sign with another one of her rare knock-you-in-the gut smiles.

I smiled, self-satisfied. “Well, thanks. Glad you finally said something good about . . . well, something.”

Naomi let out a little laugh. “That sounded like an insult, but you’re welcome.” Her attention went to my smiling lips, and I could swear a long, heated second passed before she looked away and cleared her throat. “So, ah, we’re doing this convo for our class later?”

“Yep. I promise you, we’re gonna kick some butt. Again,” I told her with another grin, pretending I didn’t notice that brief moment of awkwardness.

“Okay. I guess I’ll just leave everything to you, then,” she finally said. “Anyway, how’s your paper going?”

I took a large notebook out of my bag and flipped through it, revealing blank pages. “Zero percent progress, as you can see.”

Naomi shook her head and tut-tutted in disappointment. “You know, you can ask for my help anytime. But I’m telling you, Ems, I really find it ridiculous. Do you have any plans of telling your parents about shifting?”

I drew back, blinking. “Shifting? Who gave you that idea? I don’t plan to—”

“Cut the crap, Emily,” Naomi cut me off with a knowing smirk. “It’s inevitable.”

I plopped down heavily on the bench, inhaled a deep breath then let it out quickly. “I have attempted to ring my dad a few times,” I said at length, looking down at the fallen crunchy maple leaves near my white ballet flats, “I’ve been meaning to tell him about, you know, my love for literature and writing—but then I feel stupid.”

“Stupid?”

“You know,” I gestured around vaguely, “it’s like one of those announcements a little girl might say to her imaginary friends at a tea party. ‘I’m going to be a princess’ or something.”

The blonde laughed at this.

“See? That’s the thing about life goals, Naomi,” I went on, “if you talk about them too much and then change your mind, you just look foolish. And I don’t want to do that, to be a punch line.”

Naomi crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. “You seriously don’t know what to do with your life, do you?”

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair that I had arranged in a half-up do. “I told you, I’m in the process of figuring it out. You could say I’m still standing at the crossroads. It’s just that it’s tough to follow our hearts without our heads—or our bloody intrusive mothers—getting in the way most of the fucking time.”

Naomi sat down on the bench next to me, and crossed her legs. “Well, I said it to you before and I’ll say it again, just go after what makes you happy, go hard with it, and everything will just fall into place eventually.”

Then Naomi talked very briefly and very vaguely about how happy travelling and experiencing different cultures made her. She made that sort of life appear so easy, but I’m learning from her that things look easy when they’re fun or you’re good at it or you just have a goal to succeed. Where do I find that in my own life?

“As a matter of fact, there is no set blueprint or correct way to go about achieving anything, Emily. You can think of that as fucking terrifying or you can embrace it and find thrill in the fact that your way or your choices may be risky or frowned upon—it may be completely out of your comfort zone, but it could still pan out a complete success,” Naomi said wisely. “Just remember the three simple rules in life: 1. If you do not go after what you want, you will never have it; 2. If you don’t ask, the answer will always be no; and 3. If you do not step forward, you’ll always be in the same place.”

I stared at the blonde, smiling in awe and appreciation. “Thank you. I seriously needed that boost of motivation. I want to write that down on a post-it and read it every day like a bible.”

Naomi smirked. “I’m just sayin’ that it’s okay to go off-script, Emily,” she said. “But yep, glad to have imparted some Naomi Campbell wisdom unto you.”

“Naomi! There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you!” A lively JJ—very far from the zombie version of him I witnessed just this morning—hurried over to us. “I need help. Can you come with me to the International Centre office?” Then he turned to me and beamed. “Hi, Emily!”

I gave a little wave and forced a smile in response. Arse. Why did Batshit Freaky JJ have to ruin my moment with Naomi?

JJ must have noticed my weird smile as he suddenly turned awkward.

As JJ quickly grabbed her hands and pulled her up, Naomi turned to me with an apologetic smile. “I’ve to go, sorry.”

Feeling a weird twist in my tummy, I watched as Naomi hooked her arm around JJ’s and they walked together through the crunchy leaf litter toward the International Centre building. Why is it that seeing the Aussie bloke annoys me to no end when he’s actually one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met?

I faced the table, dropped my head and muttered, “Just shoot me now.”

Grabbing my pen and nibbling on the end of it, I looked again at the pages of my open notebook in front of me. Blank. All pearly white. The whiteness of the sheets mocking me. I glared at it with such intensity that I wouldn’t be surprised if it spontaneously combusted into ashes.

Yep, maybe that way it would be better than the rest of the wrinkled ones laying in my room trash bin and floor.

After a long while of uselessness, I sighed, tossing my pen aside, giving up. I had a deadline and made a timeline for myself but sitting here and hating the sheets wouldn’t take me anywhere.

I stood up to head for the inside of the cafeteria. I needed ice cream. Normally that was enough to get me in the mood.

After getting a mini cup of mint chocolate ice cream, I walked out of the cafeteria and back to my spot on the outdoor bench to finally begin brainstorming for my academic paper.

I was just beginning to enjoy drawing circles around related topics with my yellow highlighter pen when I saw them again. I stopped writing.

Not far away, Naomi stood, leaning against a wall, talking seriously to JJ. I saw her eyes dart at me for a second but then she quickly turned her attention back to JJ and carried on talking. I tried to ignore the way my stomach twisted with something I might call jealousy, but I couldn’t stop my jaw from clenching. To pacify myself, I refocused on the girl instead.

Good Lord, Naomi really had gorgeous hair, I noticed as I watched her. The ends fell just past her shoulders and I felt that old, familiar urge to dig my fingers into it and grab a handful. Today’s outfit consisted of a vintage light brown leather bomber jacket with a stand up collar and a mouthwatering white crop top underneath, and a pair of high-waisted denim shorts. Earlier during Grammar class, the air-conditioning crapped out in the classroom. Everybody was cranky and sweating. Naomi took off her jacket, tossed it onto her chair, and my voice had stuck in my throat as soon as I got a glimpse of her. The sudden desire I’d had to touch her bare skin was almost overwhelming.

Then I saw something that seriously made my chest hurt. JJ sweetly wrapped his arms around Naomi, looking over the moon, and I just had to jerk my gaze away.

Christ, I should get back to work, I scolded myself. Just do anything to keep me from the girl who alternately drove me crazy and made me crazy with want and from the wimpy lad who was inadvertently tempting me to become a murderer.

“Take a deep breath, Emily,” someone suddenly said behind me. “I don’t think JJ is exactly going to steal her heart.”

“Take a deep breath, Emily,” a familiar voice sounded from behind me. “I don’t think JJ is exactly going to steal her heart.”

I looked over my shoulder and saw a smirking Freddie. I smiled sheepishly, my face flushed.

I knew it would be a waste of time to lie to Freddie. He just seemed omniscient. “Is it that obvious?” I asked.

Smirking, he plopped down beside me on the bench and put down his can of Mountain Dew on the table. “Don’t worry, Rouge. Just like how I lied to Yoshida-san about not knowing who threw up all over his azalea bushes this morning, your secret’s safe with me.”

I sighed and groaned, “God, I don’t know why I’m so attracted to her, Freds. She’s been giving me nothing but headaches—Well, okay, she has given me tons of other sweet things, as well, like one time in the lounge she got me ice cream—my favourite flavour, and then when we were downtown she bought me a chocolate drink, then she gave me tomato juice twice for my hangover. And finally, she gave me a glorious back rub.”

“That’s really uncharacteristically sweet of her,” Freddie said, gazing at Naomi pensively. “But she’s obviously not in a relationship mode now. My advice is that you need to just let her be for a while.”

I sighed again. “I know. It just sucks to have all these feelings and you can’t do anything about them. It’s maddening and fucking exhausting.”

“This is just too dramatic, Rouge. I wish Halo would hurry up with my crepe so I’d have entertainment treats while you spill some more.”

“I’m not spilling anything,” I mumbled, doodling random shapes on my notebook with the highlighter pen. “There is nothing left to spill. I fancy her and she’s not interested and never will be. End of story.”

“Alright. Fair enough,” the French lad said, shifting on the bench to cross his legs. “Anyway, about your big reveal last night . . . I just want to say that I’m proud of you, Emily. That must’ve been real tough for you.”

“Not at all,” I told him honestly. “You guys made it easy.”

“But, seriously, I commend you for your bravery.” He put a hand on my shoulder, his tone sincere. “Not everyone can be out and proud like you.”

I smiled at him. “I trust you, guys. And I truly believe in that clichéd saying that the truth shall set you free,” I told him, and Freddie responded with an agreeing nod.

I spotted Halo walking toward us with a loaded tray. She spun around to wave at a group of cool-looking Japanese students. “Bye, guys! I’ll see you later at the clock tower!”

Cook and Sean parked themselves at the table next to ours, happily chewing gum, making cat calls, and loudly talking about the Japanese girls passing by their lines of sight.

“Hey, Emily Vomit Fitch! I got you a crepe as well,” Halo said in a sing-songy voice. She placed a plate of strawberry cream crepe in front of me and sat across me at the table. “Thought you might need something to cheer you up. You looked like someone just shat all over your head.”

“Thanks, Halo. I love your energy, really,” I told my friend. “And I don’t know anyone who has more friends than you.”

Halo grinned. “I’m half-Filipino which means I was born to win people’s hearts. It’s the Asian charm, you see. And our zest for making friends and merry-making.”

“Who are those guys, anyway?” I asked, gesturing toward the group she just greeted.

“They look so bad-ass in a good way,” Freddie observed.

“Just met them a minute ago,” Halo answered, slicing her crepe. “They’re from this really kickass hip-hop dance troupe. I might try out later.” She forked up a creamy slice of crepe and chewed. “Anyway, you should’ve guessed from those baggy clothes, cool hairstyles, and oversized beanies.”

And suddenly my attention was caught by another group clustered near Naomi and JJ. Well, not really the whole group, but just one of them, to be specific—a tall, incredibly gorgeous and fashionable Japanese girl who was daintily sipping her can of Coca-Cola. She looked like she just walked out of a fashion show. Her long black hair was straight and smooth-looking. She had an unbelievably pretty face that smiled easily. Too bad she was wearing sunglasses as that made it impossible for me to see her eyes. Together with her equally stylish friends, they looked cautiously over our area on the university quad and then went on with the coy chattering.

Halo reached out across the table for my hand and tugged at it to pull me out of my dreamy thoughts. “Hey, you haven’t touched your crepe.”

“I’m not really hungry,” I mumbled.

She smirked. “Oh yeah, because I’m sure you’re feasting on the sight around here. How’s the chickspottin’?” She wiggled her eyebrows meaningfully.

I let out a little laugh and shifted on the bench. “Stop being silly, Halo.”

Halo grinned. “You know, I totally called it, Emily. Sorry if I put you on the spot accidentally last night. But I’m really glad you came out. I knew it all along but I think I just wanted to wait it out. Wait for you to come out of the closet of your own free will.”

“How did you know?” I asked, a little surprised.

“Well, the looks you were giving me were a dead giveaway—Ow!”

I reached across the table to give her shoulder a light shove. “Don’t flatter yourself, Lopez.”

“I’m just joking,” Halo said, laughing. “Well, I don’t know,” she shrugged, “Call it girl friend instinct, I guess. I just sensed it. But I want you to know that nothing changed. I still see you as the sweet, gorgeous red-haired Emily Stiff. And I love that Emily. We all love that Emily. Although, I’m hoping now that you’re ‘free’, you’d be less stiff.”

I smiled, touched by my friend’s sweetness. “Thank you, Halo. You have no idea the lightness I feel right now. It’s as if—”

“I know,” Halo interrupted, smiling softly in understanding. “It’s tough to hold back, to not feel free and hide your real self. But we are your friends, Emily. We are your family here in Japan. We accept you for who you are with no judgment,” she told me with a sincere tone, as Freddie hummed his agreement. “And anyway, I’d love to be your bezzie. Lesbians are full of win. So that definitely is sixty-six levels up for you . . .”

My attention strayed to the Aussie blonde again. I was smiling to myself, amused by her expressions. She just looked so cute when she gets all fired up and grumpy.

“Hello? Earth to Emily!” Halo was waving a hand in front of my face.

“Huh?” I jerked my gaze back to her, blinking.

“Were you even listening to me?” Halo then followed where my gaze had been. “Oh . . . Be still, my fangirling heart. She’s totally into you.”

“What? Who?” I feigned unawareness, lowering my head. Fuck. Don’t tell me she saw my pathetic dreamy staring at Nao—

“The gorgeous and not to mention highly fashionable Japanese chick,” Halo told me, and I let out a breath of relief. Thought I would be busted. “The one with the Chanel sunglasses on—My, those are hella expensive. Anyway, you should go say Hi.”

I rolled my eyes at my perky friend. Now that I have come out of the closet, it seemed like people made it their duty to find me a girl here even though I already told them that I was not interested. Especially Halo. I don’t know what came over the girl and her anti-relationship principle, but she seemed to suddenly just ship me with anyone who has a vagina.

“You’re delusional, sweetheart,” I said, snorting. “No chance. She’s totally out of my league. And she’s never even looked my way.”

“Well, she’s looking your way now. C’mon, check her out.”

“No.” I stabbed my fork into the crepe, ducking my head and pretending to be busy eating. “If this is your twisted definition of ‘merry-making’, then I must say—”

Halo suddenly seized my free hand and shook it. “Emily, she’s seriously looking at you. Go look,” she urged. “I’m not kidding—”

“Halo, shut up,” I ground out, still hiding myself. “I don’t want to. It’s awkward enough that you and Sean and Cook are looking at her. She might think we’re creepsters.”

She shook my hand again. “I swear, Emily. Go see for yourself—” She abruptly threw her hands up, frowning. “Oh, crap! Pretty Girl’s leaving now.”

“Good.” I finally lifted my head and saw the Japanese girl’s retreating figure.

Halo turned to face me again, her face serious. “Trust me. I saw it, Emily. Pretty Girl even quickly flipped her sunnies up just to take a good look at you. She’s fascinated by you.”

“You think so?”

“Hunny, if I was gay, I’d do a lot more than you think.” Halo shot one last look over her shoulder. “Mmm.” Her eyes squinted as if she was liking what she was seeing.

Chuckling, I gave my friend another shove on the shoulder. “Get a hold of yourself, Heaven Lopez.”

“Fantasies are harmless, Emsy, I’m telling you,” Halo told me. “And if Pretty Girl had been looking at me that way she was looking at you, I’d have been a puddle of hormones at her feet.”

I combated the jitters in my stomach with a brisk gulp of autumn air. “I don’t melt easily.”

Right.

Today was a busy day for me. I took a 3 AM shower again so my eyes were a bit puffy from the measly four-hour sleep. My first class starts at nine o’clock and school is a 20-minute bike ride away so I had to rush with eating breakfast and throwing on some clothes.

My classes with Naomi were so-so. We didn’t get to talk much unlike when we had our Listening/Speaking class with Nishikawa Sensei which obviously necessitated interaction between us. The blonde was sort of back to her old Arctic Ice Queen self again. But the upside was that her anger wasn’t directed to me or to anyone around her. She wasn’t being hostile or throwing bitchfits or anything; she just stayed quiet and was plain blasé the whole day. I couldn’t help but think the blonde beauty was actually bipolar.

Lunch was spent at the outdoor benches with the gang as usual—this time, with Cook secretly nagging me to be his ‘wing-woman’. As if I would really be interested in becoming a guest judge on his very own Search for Shaggable Babes. I already felt nauseous simply at the thought.

I’ve had the first-hand experience of being around the boys during one of their hunts yesterday and I still ended up feeling gutted. Although I wouldn’t deny my eyes were caught by a few fashionable and pretty Japanese girls who strut the campus grounds like it was a big runway, I knew they were just a temporary distraction for me and a futile way to work a certain girl off my system.

As soon as I got back to the dormitory, I locked myself up in my room. And when I say “lock up,” I really mean it. Usually, I’d just leave my door unlocked as Halo would sometimes just barge into my room and jabber for hours. I would actually listen. But that Wednesday, I felt like being undisturbed. Luckily for me, I had things to busy myself with. But unluckily for me, they came in loads.

We were given heaps and heaps of strenuous homework by the dirtball of a teacher, Sugiyama Sensei, prompting all of us to be stuck in our rooms trying to function as normal students. For a change. We were sent here to study, after all.

For a long while I was seated at my study desk, consumed with the Grammar workbook. When I lifted my head and rubbed at my eyes, I realised that the sky had gotten darker and my stomach started to grumble. I reached for the receiver of my room telephone and rang Freddie’s room phone.

“Hey, Freds. Wanna grab dinner?” I asked the French lad as soon as he picked up.

“Sorry, Rouge, I can’t,” he regretfully answered from the other end of the line. “I have all these bloody Japanese essays that I have to write.”

“The perks of being in Class 1, huh?” I sniggered at my own sarcasm.

“Tell me about it,” Freddie sighed, weariness noticeable in his tone. “So which one is it? Unspent energy? Restrained jealousy? Unproclaimed love?”

I bit my lip and admitted to myself that my mate was right. “All of the above.”

“Well, why don’t you barge into Naomi’s room and profess your undying love for her already?” he suggested.

I snorted a laugh at that. “Yeah, right.”

“Or you can march into JJ’s room and challenge him to a duel.”

I thought about it. A short moment passed.

“You do know that was a joke, right?” Freddie said when I didn’t respond.

“Oh I know.” I let out a laugh. Then with a serious tone, I added, “I don’t mean to throw a pity party or sound clingy, but I seriously need a distraction, Freddie. And some really nice food.”

“I wish I could help you with that, Emily. But tonight, it’s just impossible,” he told me sadly. “Karen’s at Keith’s Pub, though, if you . . .”

I couldn’t help the snort that came out of my nose. “Thanks, but no, thanks,” I told him. “I haven’t fully recovered yet from the ruthless VomitFest I went through.” He laughed at this. “Anyway, I believe you need to spend some quality time with your essays, I won’t hold you long now.”

“Alright, Rouge. Bye.”

“Bye.” I replaced the receiver, reached for the remote control, and spun in my swivel chair to face the TV.

Freddie, where are you when I need you? I mentally groaned, listlessly clicking on the remote control for a decent channel on the telly. I stopped on a Japanese game show and instantly thought about Naomi and how she loved these ridiculous shows.

I mean, for real? Their definition of “funny” was either (a) smacking a person’s head-slash-giving someone brain damage, (b) whacking someone’s butt with a baseball bat, or (c) throwing some poor bloke below-the-belt insults. Slapstick humour at its most insane and brutal! How could people tolerate that? Seriously. I grimaced at the TV screen. I guess that’s culture shock for me.

Then again, I thought, perhaps that’s how Naomi Campbell preferred it. She wanted it brutal and excruciating and just bloody maddening. Bordering on sadism, if you ask me. Maybe this was why she takes pleasure in torturing people, particularly me.

After a plentiful amount of shuddering and muttering disapproving remarks, I finally turned the TV off and chucked the remote control onto the bed. My attention came back to the open book on my study desk. I stared glumly at it. A sigh escaped my lips.

Suddenly, there was a knock on my door. I jumped to my feet, walked toward the door and opened it.

“Emily babes! Wanna have dinner at MOS Burger?” Cook asked with his usual boyish grin, wiggling his brows. His brows seemed to have a life of their own, I swear.

I bit my lip, ready to decline, but then Cook added, “Halo, Panda and Naomi are already in the lobby. So . . . you keen?” He looked at me in anticipation.

He sold me then and there.

I grinned up at him and finally nodded. “Yeah, sure. Just wait up.” I hurried to my closet and opened a door.

“Can I watch ya change?” the Irish lad called from the doorway.

“Um. No,” I answered dryly, reaching for a new shirt. What a creep.

Cook let out a laugh. “Ya know, Emilio, I had the greatest dream last night. It was fockin’ A. Threesome, y’know. But I was just watching from outside through the window,” he blurted out. “You. Effy. An’ Naomikins doing it. How d’ye feel about that?”

The mental image caused a little sensation between my legs but I settled for an “Ew, Cook. Please shut up.”

“D’ye think that could be brought to life, though?” he asked, sounding thrilled. “Please tell me yes ‘cos, you know, that’d be a mind-blowing one an’ I wanna be in the front row.”

“Um. No.” I slipped the T-shirt on. “And never.”

“So who’ll it be, Emilio?” I sensed meaning behind his mirthful tone.

I poked my head out from the closet door. “I’m sorry, but what are you on about?”

Cook had that stupid-looking grin on. “Well, y’know, whose salivating gee is Emily Fitch gonna stick her pretty little tongue into.” He did a little demo by waggling his tongue in a very repulsive, offensive way, and making such weird licking and filthy slurping sounds in the process. “Who’s the lucky lady, ey?”

I scowled at him. “No one, Cook. Can you please stop talking? And never do that thing with your tongue again. It’s disturbing.” I took a skirt and quickly tugged it on. Cook had a way to make a person feel uncomfortable in record-time.

“Oh, c’mon, Emilio!” He laughed loudly. “Take yer pick. Lots of babes with nice tits ‘round here, amirite?” He started enumerating with his fingers. “Karen, Halo, Sofia, Chelsea, Vera, Naomi, Flaviana . . . Oh, wait. I might be forgetting the feckin’ fairest of ‘em all—” he paused for effect, “Effy. Effy, yea? The enigmatic Elizabeth Stonem.” I could hear the teasing in his tone. 

“Emily and Effy,” Cook went on wistfully, his eyes lighting up, like there was an imagined lesbian hardcore porn film flashing in front of him. “Holy Jaysus fuck. It’d be so earth-shattering; ye two will spontaneously combust!”

Spontaneously combust? Does that really happen to two people? That one made me roll my eyes. After closing my closet door, I walked back to the door and gave the Irish boy a level stare. “Cook, you’ve got a bloody mouth full of shite. Please tell me you do realise that.”

The Irish bloke burst out into roars of laughter. “I say whatever pops into my brain. It’s as simple as that, Emily babes. People just have to take the shit whether they like it or not, yea?”

I took my purse. “Whatever. Let’s just go.” I pushed him out of the doorway.

Cook managed to move to the side to offer a gentlemanly bow. “After you, Princess Wing-woman.”

“Shut up. I’m not your wing-woman,” I muttered, as we started down the hallway.

Really, though, where was Freddie when I needed him?

“You know, in Grammar class earlier,” Halo began, putting down her tray on the table and plopping down on the chair beside me, “Christ! I almost spit my gum out when Cook scratched his balls in front of Sugiyama Sensei! I mean, did you guys see his face? It was priceless.” The crowded fast food restaurant boomed with our laughter.

“Yea, that was Strike 2 for Cook, if I’m not mistaken,” I said, chuckling softly, then groaned, “God, I hate that crabby professor so much. And the nerve to give us craploads of homework.”

“Fecking gobshite deserved the scare of his life,” Cook said, laughing. “What a scumbag harvesting an acre of shit!”

“You don’t mince words, do you, Cook?” Naomi spoke with an amused arched brow. Surprisingly, she was in a better mood now.

Cook sniggered, stuffing his mouth with fries, two at a time. “Nah, babes. That’s what them chicks dig about me.” He then turned to me, wriggling his brows. “Anyways, Emsykins, how ‘bout that offer, ey?”

Halo, Panda, and Naomi exchanged glances then, all at once, stared at the two of us with curiosity.

“Um. No, Cook. And never,” I replied dryly. “Try asking me again and I swear to God I’ll run off with your plums.” I waved a table knife at him in warning.

“Whoa. Careful there, Emilio man!” Cook exclaimed, drawing back with held up hands and snickering. “I don’t think yer girlfriend Effy would like the idea of you touching my balls.”

I just rolled my eyes at him and continued munching on my curry-flavoured Croquette burger. Bloody Cook and his bloody yap.

“Yeah, Emsy,” Panda chimed in. “What’s going on between the two of you? Are you, like, making magic together?” asked the Swedish girl, blithely.

“Truth?” I mumbled dryly through a chunk of curried patty, “Nothing and absolutely not, Pandora.”

“Yeah, right.” Halo snorted, a large chunk of burger in her mouth. “But, dear, newsflash: Elizabeth Stonem has been asking a lot about you lately,” she suddenly let slip. “What’s up with that?” She sent a teasing grin my way, as Cook’s eyes bulged.

“What’s wrong with that?” mumbled Panda. “I ask Karen stuff about you guys, too.”

“Um. Only because Effy’s room is on the first floor,” Halo coolly explained. “Who on God’s green earth would go all the freaking way up to the fourth floor just to ask random things about a girl almost every night, yeah? We even talked about you just earlier and let’s just say she loved your lips, but Pretty Girl? Not so much.”

I choked on a bite of fries and washed it down with my chocolate milkshake. Whoa. Okay. I didn’t know about this one. Effy’s gone all Sherlock Holmes on me? For real? I don’t know if I should be freaked out or flattered by this news.

“Ooooh,” Panda said, smirking teasingly at me and waving a fry in my face. “Effy might be a little interested in you, Emily.”

Halo smirked. “By the looks of it, Effy’s more than just a little interested in Emily. In fact, it seems as if she’s completely smitten.” Then she turned to me. “So you can totally forget about Pretty Girl and—”

“Pretty Girl?” Panda’s brows knitted with curiosity.

“Probably the hottest girl we’ve seen on campus,” Halo answered. “Anyway, as I was saying, Emily . . . you can forget about Pretty Girl or those other girls and, you know, give Effy a try. You might be surprised.”

I gave her an arch look. “Um. Whatever happened to your ‘No relationship’ rule? Did you get kicked in the head by a train?”

“Rules? You don’t get anything you want by subscribing to rules, to be honest. They’re bullshit,” Halo said evocatively. “We seriously need to move away from that. Why do we have to control our feelings? Why do we have to be scared and be pretentious?” Then she started to sound more impassioned like a preacher giving a sermon with matching dramatic hand movements. “Being open, being messy, being raw, being unfiltered, having lots of feelings—these come naturally to us. Why should we have to suppress our true nature? Let’s go after the things we want, let’s love each other brutally and honestly, and not worry about the freaking consequences. Let’s unleash the feelings inside of us and let them land somewhere special—”

“And by somewhere special, she means Effy’s open arms,” Panda murmured into my ear.

“—Otherwise, we might have a lifetime of longing in front of us,” Halo went on. “You need to spread your wings and fly here, Emily—”

“Yes, fly straight into Effy’s open arms specifically,” Panda chipped in again.

“—Or imagine yourself being surrounded with ‘what if’s and ‘how come’s and not being able to do anything about it because it’s too late. So let it out, guys. Let the love out!”

We all fell silent for a while, digesting Halo’s overemotional monologue. I pressed my lips together, trying not to laugh. I looked at the faces of my friends, who were all struggling to hold their laughter as well. We were unsuccessful, and everyone burst out laughing at the same time—including Halo herself. Everyone in the restaurant turned their heads to look at us.

I sneaked a glance at Naomi and she caught my gaze, held it. And we both froze, staring at each other, the intensity of my attraction to the blonde frightening me. Then her lips curved up so slightly, followed by mine. Something created that beautiful flush again on her face, and all I could think was . . . I am so fucked. I couldn’t tell for sure what that exchange between us meant. But I guess it’s safe to say that we all knew everything Halo said was true regardless of the exaggerated way she delivered it.

Cook, laughing maniacally, called to me, “I love you, Emilio, for three epic reasons,” he uttered through a chunk of burger. “First, ye’ve got a twin. Second, ye’ve gone down on a girl. And finally, focking mint Effy’s stalking ya! How much hotter can you still focking get, ey?”

I simply ignored him and just took another bite of my burger. My head was whirring with thoughts already.

Cook then turned to Naomi. “What about ye, Blondie?” he said. “Is Virgin GayJay de-gaying already? I saw you enter his room last night. Has he gotten any luck?” He polished his words off with a loud laugh.

He also got no reply.

Popping a handful of fries into my mouth, I feigned impassiveness as a pang of jealousy twisted again in my stomach. Damn you, JJ. Damn you and your loser-ness.

Cook was grinning toothily as he messily bit off his burger. “You girls are so gonna eat yer own words. Effy and JJ will make ye eat ‘em, I’m tellin’ ya. Amirite? Amirite?” He held up his hands and Halo and Panda readily slapped him a high-five.

My shoulders tightened. And so did Naomi’s.

And we both bit off a large chunk of our burgers to avoid having to answer.

Bloody Cook and his bloody yap.

Halo zipped up the back of my sumo costume then stepped around and peered at me, smirking. “You ready to kick JJ’s wimpy ass?”

Definitely. JJ’s wimpy ass shall definitely be kicked by me, I mused silently and tore my eyes off the curly-haired lad who was struggling to get his sumo suit to fit properly. Aloud I answered with a tight smile and gave her a thumbs-up, “Let’s get it on.”

Noticeably, JJ swallowed around the lump that seemed to be wedged in his throat. He forced a light smile and swung around to face me. “Let’s do this.” 

Halo moved so that she could position a wooden fan between me and JJ. “Alright, then. Not exactly how I expected to spend my Friday night, but I’m all set to referee. Ready, rikishis?”

JJ and I both nodded tensely and struggled to squat. We clapped our hands then spread them wide like a legit sumo wrestler would do. I pressed my lips together to stop laughter from bursting out of my mouth. This was just utterly preposterous. We both look preposterous.

“Alright! Let’s get ready to ruuuuuum—oh no! Wait. That’s not it,” Halo said, smiling sheepishly. Then she composed herself again and shouted, “Mattanashi kamaete (Time’s up, prepare yourselves)!” She raised her fan that signalled the start of the match.

For a moment, JJ and I only stood there awkwardly facing each other whilst squatting in the middle of the tatami room of the dormitory, not really knowing how to start.

“Erm . . . Emily, do you have some sort of problem with me?” JJ finally broke the silence.

I breathed deeply, trying to calm the flutter of nerves in my stomach. When I had seen JJ walking by the hallway I had blurted out my sumo challenge to the curly-haired Aussie lad without a thought. Now suddenly my head was catching up with my mouth, and I was suddenly tongue-tied.

Really, though, why had I taken Freddie’s advice seriously? Now I feel so idiotic and rather evil. Fuck.

“Nope,” I finally managed to mumble, my face flushed with embarrassment. “I don’t.”

Halo scowled at the two of us. “Hey, this is not a talk show. We want to see some action.” She gestured toward a snickering Jake who was holding his video camera up, ready to record us as we act like bloody loons.

Leaning forward slightly, the Aussie lad whispered to me, “Erm, should we start b-bumping into each another now?”

I nodded. “Right.” I took a step and couldn’t suppress a giggle. “Oh my god, this is really ridiculous.”

“I know, right? I feel like the Michelin Man.” JJ jumped on the balls of his feet lightly and laughed as the suit jiggled around him. With a suddenly serious look, he continued, “This is really weird.”   

I looked down at the sumo costume that coated my own thin body. “Well, I’m not sure, but I think you kind of—ooof!” With no warning I was suddenly thrown off balance when JJ charged into me. The unexpected attack left me unharmed, thanks to the suit, but breathless as I landed on my back, him on top of me.

Looking into my eyes with the same serious expression, JJ explained, “Er, I don’t mean the suit, Emily. I, uh, I mean this. Us.” He waited a beat then finished quietly. “It’s weird.”

“Oh.” I lay there for a few seconds, at a loss for words. I finally nodded, “Really?” With a sudden spin I rolled, and reversed our positions so that a shocked JJ was pinned to the ground with me on top. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, JJ,” I grunted as I restrained him from moving for a very long agonising moment. “But you better surrender now because I have no mercy—”

“I give, I give! Tap out!” JJ cried, gasping for air as I struggled to lock him in. “Taaaap oooout!” He held his hands up in mock defeat.

With Halo and Jake laughing hysterically in the background, I finally pushed myself up on my knees and struggled to stand in the suit. Once up, I straddled JJ’s legs and tried to grab the boy’s outstretched hand.

“We, uh, we should talk,” JJ suggested, in between heavy breaths, as soon as we properly got to our feet.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” I told him, smiling. “You’re imagining things.”

“For real, though, Emily,” he said, a worried look on his face as he took his sumo hairstyle helmet off. “Am I getting in your hair?”

I gave him a sincere look and hoped it was convincing enough. “I told you, there’s nothing you should be worried about, okay? We’re good. Stop being so paranoid, yea?”

JJ looked down, then nodded. “Okay.”

“Keen for another round?” I asked him.

JJ shook his head. “Nope. I’m good,” he answered right away and rushed over to Jake to have his costume removed. “Anyway, f-fun bout, Emily,” he told me with an odd smile. “We should do this again—erm—maybe some time that is not too soon.” He laughed nervously. “I kind of don’t want to end up in a hospital anytime soon.”

That made me laugh, as Halo helped me out of my uncomfortable sumo suit. “Sure. Don’t try to choke next time.”

After watching JJ, Halo and Jake’s retreating backs as they made their way out of the room, I collapsed on the tatami floor, still raggedly breathing from the intense match I just had.

“A bit harsh with the poor guy, don’t you think?” Effy suddenly appeared, towering above me, tugging JJ’s abandoned sumo costume with one hand.

“Yeah, well, I was, you know, a bit sugar-rushed.” I managed a little grin and sat up.

Effy smirked, arching a brow. “Still up for another bout?”

Before I could open my mouth for a response, a cold, brusque voice beat me to it. “Why don’t you and I get it on, Effy?”

It was Naomi—fresh from shower, with a body that begged to be caressed—staring sternly at the brunette with challenging brows. God, why was she so irritatingly attractive all the fucking time?

For a moment Effy only looked behind her over her shoulder at the blonde. The brunette’s smirk was becoming more intriguing and intimidating, I had noticed, whilst Naomi’s defiant—or more like cocky—expression didn’t change. 

I was sure I had gulped audibly and felt as though I was having a mild indigestion as I sensed the tension between the two ladies. What is going on here? Am I inspiring a catfight or something? Yes, catfight was the appropriate operative word.

Then Effy turned around and faced the blonde with a provocative smirk. A standoff brewing between them. “Bring it on, Campbell,” she told her, zipping open the costume in her hands.

“Oh, it is so fucking on, Stonem,” Naomi shot back, reaching for the other sumo suit.

Thinking that I wouldn’t be able to bear the tension in the room, I pushed myself up to leave, but Naomi reached for my arm, stopping me short. “Emily, you’re not going anywhere. You’ll be the referee.”

I had no choice but to stay. So I stood there, cautiously staring at the couple of girls who were now face to face. Shit was going to hit the fan any second now. I could see Naomi’s vein throbbing at her temple. I could see the intensity in Effy’s blue eyes.

One thing was running through my mind: JJ vs Emily? Forget that.

I foresee another much more severe rivalry from twenty miles. I just crossed my fingers that it doesn’t end in a worse bloodbath judging from this.

I had to gulp thickly once more. Oh God, no.

Word Count: 25,401