"Can you stomp with the other foot?"
"What’s there to be scared of between us? I just don’t want to make you angry or unhappy."
Jiutiao Meijie pursed her lips disdainfully, offering no retort.
By now, in their relationship, as long as there was no cheating or betrayal, she indeed wouldn’t take it out on Dubian Che.
As for other matters, like the one just now, punishment, if necessary, would be a matter behind the closed bedroom doors at night.
The green light turned on, emitting a beeping timer sound; they held hands and stepped onto the pedestrian crossing.
On the opposite side, an elderly couple supported each other, passing by the youthful pair.
Since they had listened to the "Capital City" version that mentioned "Hanami Street," they chose "Hanami Street" for lunch.
It was the oldest and most famous pleasure district in the Island Country, the filming location for "Memoirs of a Geisha," with old, natural buildings lining both sides.
On the clean street, geishas with high hair buns and beautiful kimonos, their faces painted white, walked gracefully, occasionally disappearing behind the curtains of a shop.
The dining spot was a high-end restaurant with geisha performances, reportedly inaccessible without a referral.
But for Miss Jiutiao, such a place was just commonplace.
The cuisine was light, true Kansai flavors.
During the geisha performance, Dubian Che had expected it to be like what he saw on TV, with someone playing the three-stringed instrument and singing, but it turned out to be more like a drama play.
It was called "Sister’s Back Mountain Women’s Court Training."
[..A girl escapes to the mountain, a handsome man follows her, they squabble and then get cozy...]
[Then, another girl catches up, scolds the first girl for lacking virtue. Naturally, the first girl disagrees and they start fighting.]
As Dubian Che, engrossed, thought they were going to fight, leaving his food untouched.
[The handsome man, who had been silent, steps between the two girls, holding their hands, singing, and dancing...]
Dubian Che laughed loudly, slapping his thigh, nearly losing grip of his chopsticks.
After a couple of laughs, he suddenly realized that all the patrons in the restaurant were staring at him.
Even the performers paused and stared.
Dubian Che stifled his laughter, asking Jiutiao Meijie beside him awkwardly, "Is it not okay to laugh?"
"Who would dare tell you that?" Jiutiao Meijie looked at him with a smile.
"It’s not a matter of saying yes or no..."
Before he could finish, Jiutiao Meijie fed him a piece of Hokkaido red sea urchin sushi, then putting down her chopsticks, propped her chin with her hand and asked him:
"...I don’t like raw."
"Tasty." Dubian Che gave a thumbs up.
They spent two hours over the meal, losing face big time, and around two-thirty, they headed out for Lanshan.
There, they encountered the natural scenery changing with the seasons, retro trams, and many ancient temples and shrines.
With the gold and red complementing each other, a breeze occasionally swept past, causing a few red leaves to flutter down, landing on the moss-covered ground.
The two walked among it, as if entering a painting.
That evening, returning to East Mountain Villa, they ran into Kiyono Lin.
They were taking a taxi back, and Kiyono Lin was waiting by the gate looking for Ichiki Aoi and Mayi Asuka, ready to explore the nightlife of "Sannian Slope."
"How come you’re alone?" Dubian Che initiated the conversation.
Kiyono Lin lifted his head, glanced at him, then his gaze scanned the coat on Jiutiao Meijie.
"I’m just, um...asking." Dubian Che avoided the gazes of the two misses.
Jiutiao Meijie retracted her intense gaze, smiling at Kiyono Lin, "Nice weather today, isn’t it, Kiyono?"
"I think it’s average, Jiutiao," Kiyono Lin responded coolly.
Today’s weather was sunny turning to cloudy, and it was supposed to rain tonight — according to Dubian Che, who had studied the "East Mountain Villa" sign.
As for whether he thinks the weather was nice or average was information temporarily not to be disclosed.
After three minutes of the two misses mocking each other over the weather, Ichiki Aoi and Mayi Asuka finally appeared.
"Good evening, Mr. Dubian, Jiutiao!" Ichiki Aoi seemed in good spirits.
"Good evening," Dubian Che replied.
Mayi Asuka stayed silent, staring at Dubian Che with clear eyes.
Dubian Che pretended not to notice, affectionately wrapping his arm around Jiutiao Meijie, "It’s cold outside, let’s head in early."
Jiutiao Meijie, tired from walking all day, yawned in his arms and nodded.
The two proceeded into East Mountain Villa under the watchful eyes of Kiyono Lin, Mayi Asuka, and Ichiki Aoi.
Back in their room, Jiutiao Meijie immediately lay down on the bed, too lazy to move.
But when Dubian Che gently pressed on top of her, lifting her bangs, she stretched out her arms, winding them around Dubian Che’s neck.
Dubian Che pulled her short-sleeve shirt out of her skirt, touching her skin smooth as curd and soft as silk.
Jiutiao Meijie loosened her grip on Dubian Che’s neck, signaling for him to take off her short-sleeve shirt...
"You sleep first, I’ll go fill the bathtub."
Jiutiao Meijie pulled up the messy duvet, covering her chest and waist.
Dubian Che stood up, first adjusted the room temperature to a level where they wouldn’t feel cold undressed, then went to the bathroom to run hot water.
The bathtub was large, taking ten minutes to fill.
Jiutiao Meijie had already fallen asleep, and Dubian Che didn’t wake her, simply carrying her into the bathroom.
Halfway, l, Jiutiao Meijie unconsciously stretched out her arms, expertly wrapping them around his neck, her face against his chest.