586/Ramental Health

Ramental Health
Date of Scene:	11 October 2023
Location:	Cafeteria Plaza
Synopsis:	Koji and Kazuo catch up, and in the process, discover they have a few unexpected things in common. (Making sure Darien actually eats regularly may not be unexpected in this context.)
Cast of Characters:	Kazuo Saitou, Koji Silvia

---

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
It's not that Kazuo has been invisible. After all, that height and that hair make it pretty easy to spot him down the hall - and Koji may have caught him in a couple of instances doing homework alongside Koji's roommate. Quiet parallel study. It's more that he's not been where he could usually be expected to be. Not in detention, not getting kicked out of class to go be Spoken To by someone in authority over falling asleep in his chair, et cetera.

It is, thus, almost suspicious when there's a casual wave to Koji across the cafeteria one afternoon, and someone that tall and with that hair crossing in his direction. Of course there's ramen on his tray. Whether this is because ramen or because Koji mentioned it the last time they talked here ... who knows, and maybe it depends on whether Kazuo spotted him before the wave or not.

Koji Silvia has posed:
One of the wonderful things about when ramen is served at the school? It is... A THING.

You can choose from ramen noodles, soba, noodles, udon, rice noodles... the choice of well-made stocks, the grilled meats, the add-ons, a plate of perfectly cooked ramen-eggs. It's like a buffet, but everyone knows what it's for.

So the huge bowl in front of Koji is his own design. Heavy on the scallions, soba noodles over grilled fish and some dark broth, and TWO half-eggs floating on each side of it. He looks up as the wave comes, and almost immediately shifts his tray over and leave his current seat open for him, one that's not with their back to the main entrance, "Been a while, Kazuo-san. How have things been for you?"

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
"I haven't been set on fire," Kazuo replies, setting his own tray - clear, dark broth, leaning toward bean sprouts and with a comparative dearth of eggs - down with a little bow and taking the offered seat. "And I'm finally out from 'be a parent's spare set of hands and feet' duty, now that she's back to work. Quiet is never as priceless as when you've been subjected to absolutely inane media every minute you're home for the last three months. How has your term been going? Classes boring you to tears, or just slowly slaughtering brain cells?"

Koji Silvia has posed:
Strangely, Koji has to shake his head to clear something out of there after staring at Kazuo for a long moment, and then as if to cover this minor gaffe, he has his chopsticks up and is slurping away at those nicely thick noodles and a nicely stuck bit of green onion. And the spicy-sweet scents of teriyaki sauce and gojuchang come wafting up from it.

A bite, a swallow, and the gulp is almost palpable as he replies, "Actually... I missed the first week and a half of class. I had something stupid happen and I almost hospitalized myself. Anyways... classes are easy work, especially now that I'm caught up. But I'm hearing some ugly rumors of my class wanting to start up one of those classroom cafes."

Sighing once, he puts down his chopsticks and sips some soda, "If it comes, I'm going to volunteer for cooking before ANYONE tries that stupid 'boy in a maid outfit' thing on me."

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Kazuo's eyebrows twitch upward - but at the mention of classroom cafes, not at the rest of it. "Is there even anyone else in your class who can cook? Without poisoning their victims by accident? - okay, given a couple of the people in this school, possibly on purpose. But I think you've got a good chance of claiming safety just in the name of, well, food safety."

One of his hands settles beside his bowl, as if to soak heat up from it through his fingers; the idea of actually eating may not have made its way to the top of his to-do list, yet. "Almost hospitalized yourself, though. Recovered from whatever it was? Or still finishing the healing up?"

Koji Silvia has posed:
Leaning onto the table with his elbows, Koji takes a moment, hands crossed as he looks almost like a cat posing for someone looking at them. However, a moment later, he sits back and says, "My back got in an argument with something sharp... the sharp thing won the argument. Thankfully a friend here from school was close enough by that she could help get me some care. Amazingly... no stitches and only a minor scar. That might even fade with time."

As for the other part, he goes for some more of his food, popping one of the egg-halves in his maw and chewing it down before making a pleased face, "Kazuo-san... Yes, I can cook decently, but I have also not seen a single guy here who could not make a side job at least in modeling. I mean... look at M... Darien-San. Why he's not on the front of a magazine, I do not know. But if the girls are smart, they'll flip the idea of a maid cafe and make us all do butler cafe for the Cultural Festival."

Shrugging, he cannot help but grin a bit, "I think it's easier for you... that bad boy thing you have going is great for stopping someone from approaching you for help. I am almost envious. But..." And he says this with a finger up in pause, "I think it's good you went home to care for your mom. Even though I've been sort of having a fight with mine... I'd have done the same. Even with all the talk."

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Kojiluna. Kazuo does not inquire if Koji is about to facepaw. Or say 'meow.' He winces instead at the explanation of the injury, and the frown and the glance at the way Koji holds his shoulders suggests that he's thinking of the number of complications that being stabbed in the back can incur. Most of which involve vital functions, or the usage of limbs. What he says out loud is, "Good for your friend. Sounds like she's a very good person to know."

That, or Koji used up ten years' worth of luck, or both. That, too, doesn't get said out loud.

And then Kazuo laughs out loud, at what Kazuo says next. "'Cook decently,' he says. There's such a thing as taking humility too far, Silvia-san." A twitch of his hand, a shake of his head, and he glances down at the bowl he nudged with that hand-twitch as if mildly surprised to be reminded it's there.

Then back to Koji again, eyes laughing still. "Fights with mothers are inevitable, my mother claims. Also being embarrassed by mothers. These are her excuses for intentionally annoying me at every opportunity; she seems to think that if she embraces the inevitable, she can control it. Somehow. I don't know what's going on between you and your family. But --" There's nearly no transition between amusement and seriousness. "You know you can approach me for help, if you need it. Right? Can't necessarily do something about family arguments. But everyone could use somebody to keep sharp things off their back, sometimes."

Koji Silvia has posed:
Those almost cultured eyebrows go up, and as Koji sits back in thought, the gulp that comes from him has nothing to do with the wonderful ramen that is still before him.

"I... I'm not sure if you could help with that part. I mean... it's kind of hard to explain. But thank you."

The topic of moms does seem to distract him from everything else and as he twists and picks up some noodles from his broth, and watches the droplets stream down back into the bowl, he goes on, "Have you ever found out your mother was lying to you about something, Kazuo-san?"

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
The thank-you is answered by a tilt of Kazuo's head, as if to dismiss both doubts and difficulty of explanation as irrelevant. Offer's made; whether Koji ever has reason to take him up on it is a different topic altogether. And he probably should eat something. 'Something' at least consists of more noodle than bean sprouts, for the moment. Hello, carbohydrates, nice to meet you. It covers Koji fussing with his own noodles handily, means that any moments of quiet between aren't worth remarking upon.

And then there's not quiet.

"Yes," Kazuo answers. "Parents do that. They want to pretend the world's safe, or they want to pretend things are simple. But I get the feeling it wasn't something as big as this one."

Koji Silvia has posed:
Yes. Carbs. Carbs don't have magical devices that empower them, or the looming threat of darkness enveloping 'the world'. They wait patiently to be eaten, so patiently they go bad if they wait too long.

Thankfully, these carbs do not have to wait. Spicy-sweet and a little sour, they are swallowed down with gusto before Koji then just shakes his head, "It's... well... Mom told me she's not Japanese." Artfully acknowledging that Elephant-san has sat down at the table with them, "The long and the short is... I got mad at her for not telling me, even though... I get why she wouldn't say for so long. But now... it's hard to not be mad at her. I'll get over it, eventually. For now... it's still a sore spot. Especially with everything else in my life."

He sighs, and picks up his drink, "Same here. If you ever need my help, just ask. You're a friend, and besides Chrono, and Darien... you're the only other guy here I actually KNOW. Well... am getting to know, at least. Schoolwork, not-schoolwork... whatever. I'll do what I can. Okay?"

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
"I get part of that." Kazuo's voice is quieter. "Not all of that. I mean, Mom never lied to me about it. But after Dad died, when she tried to get the lease in her name ... they figured out she was half Persian and kicked us out the second it was legal. So there's being mad at her for not telling you. And there's not being sure where you stand. And not having a lot of people to bounce things off of to figure that out. And there's mad at just not being the same as everybody else, and not being sure how they'll react, and that means that it's not just you that's off balance, it's the whole damn world around you, and no way to tell which things will hold you up if you lean on them and which will turn into a house of cards. And probably twice as much more to be mad about, things you're seeing and I don't. That sucks."

The 'okay' is left pending for the moment. He'll get around to that. Presumably.

Koji Silvia has posed:
There's a look of surprise at the talk about the mother and background, and then Koji says in an almost-squeak, "Wait..." He blinks, "You're... half-Persian?"

The young asian-looking young man doesn't have the typical 'OH' expression that comes from most native-born Japanese after hearing that. Instead it's more of an expression of... gladness...

"I'm actually half-Brazilian. Well... technically American, but my abuela has threatened my father more than once that she wants him to take us all there to meet her before she dies. Which she has threatened to never die until he brings us. So... it's an evil cycle."

The grin is almost infectious, if allowed to spread, "If your mom ever needs a place, let me know. My dad's hooked up with a lot of the immigrant side of the community. The new condo they have in Juuban has a lot of non-Japanese staying there, and the owner of the building is a very nice old lady who thinks that people are people and a lot of people are stupid."

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
"Quarter," Kazuo admits. "Mom's mom. That's where the baking comes from - she babysat for a while and figured five was old enough to start learning." This time, for once, the smile's a rueful grin in turn.

"... so as long as you don't actually visit Brazil, your grandmother's immortal? That's kind of impressive." ... okay, now the grin's less rueful. Allowed to spread. "Your dad made a stop in America? Or something? - and thanks. We've got a place now, but if Mom ever gets a raise, the idea of not sleeping on the couch would be pretty tempting. Probably tempting for her, too, she keeps claiming I'm too tall for her to not trip over me in the mornings."

Koji Silvia has posed:
Koji lays it out, in a much more laid back fashion than his usual speak, "So...this is how it was told to me. Abuela met Grandpapi when he was on a business trip, apparently she slapped him for being rude and then got drunk with him. Again, this is all anecdotal. She got pregnant, pulled together the money, flew to the States, and tore him a new one... and then married him. Three sons, four daughters, and a couple decades later, she went home to take care of her parents while they were ill, and just never bothered to come back."

Food is mostly forgotten, and he takes a drink, "And I fully believe she's immortal from all the stories Dad told about her. She could throw a shoe around two corners and hit him in the back of the head, always had food to feed twenty people ready immediately, and had no fear of any cop."

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
"..."

After a moment, Kazuo applies himself to noodles, in lieu of any drink to take in respect. And in a few moments more, he says, "There is now officially one thing in the world I am afraid of. And that's our grandmothers being in the same room. Thank God for the Pacific Ocean."

Koji Silvia has posed:
There's a small chuckle from Koji, and strangely... it sounds like something that has not only been needed, but is very much the bubbling cap on top of a bunch of contained emotion under that failing pressure valve. It's not manic, at least. Just very very amused, "You could guarantee one thing... there would be food enough to feed the whole school. I learned how to cook steak from my dad. As much as he's a pain in the backside when it comes to keeping a job, you put him at a grill and you get heaven."

Picking up his bowl, there is a long slurp, and then a soft burp, "We should do something not school-ish. Just... I don't want Naru to feel like I'm stealing you away from her."

He evidently missed THAT part of things...

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Kazuo puts down chopsticks to gesture one-handed, not actually at anything in particular. "Osaka and I do runs in the mornings, and I lend her a hand with projects sometimes, or give her practice tips in the self-defense class. Not exactly stealing material. Most of what I do that's not school-ish is get in trouble." He flashes a grin again, then shakes his head. "No, that's not even true anymore. Most of what I do that's not school-ish these days is make sure your roommate's hellion boss is actually letting him go home from work. Which is pretty redundant in some ways; I mean, you're his roommate."

Koji Silvia has posed:
Tilting his head, Koji listens, and then he exhales a nod, "Oh. Sorry... I guess I assumed there. I mean... Naru just seems to draw everyone in, and you two were getting along so well at the get-together..."

Waving it off, he reaches back and adjusts his glasses a moment, "Trouble sometimes is fun. I mean...I must be boring. I do part-time jobs, or I go dumpster-shopping. Electronics shops that sell partly-broken stuff in bargain bins. A lot of it's fixable if you know what you need. Sometimes it's texting Darien and finding out he's going to be home late... which means he didn't eat... so it's off to the conbini and putting together a quick din-"

Suddenly, he just plants his face on the table and mumbles out, "I sound like a housewife... PLEASE PLEASE do not tell him you heard all that..."

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
As long as it's the table, and not in the bowl, all is well.

Kazuo's laugh is easy, unworried. Not mocking, either. "You are talking to the guy who, while you were gone, got called to stop over and just automatically picked up three pastries and three drinks on the way because obviously Darien didn't eat, and obviously his girlfiend was going to look in, and obviously Darien would want one for her and then would try to hand off the other one so it had to be three to get him to eat one." Yes, he said 'girlfiend.' "Osaka draws everyone in. Shields ... generates housewives, or something, I don't even know."

Koji Silvia has posed:
Looking up, Koji says in a relieved tone, "So it's not just me?"

And again, comes the giggles!