13⎜ The Sushi

As I exited the auditorium building with a mass of other freshmen that had also endured the two-hour lecture with me, the only thing on my mind was sleep. It was three in the afternoon, and all I knew was that I wanted to take a nap. My previous class was practically torture, for while the topic that had been discussed was pretty interesting, it was also boring as hell. Plus, the teacher’s voice had a lulling quality about it that made the two hours even more unbearable. I honestly couldn’t even comprehend how I had made it out of there alive.

           “Eric!” someone called sharply, possessing way more energy than should be allotted to a single human being. I looked around, facing the fact that they were probably seeking my attention, and that was when I spotted her. It was a bit surprising that she was addressing me, but I didn’t think too much into it. As girls went, she was pretty cool…in a completely weird and totally eccentric way.

           “Noa,” I greeted back with an unfortunate yawn.

           The redhead rushed over the short distance required to meet me, a large grin spread across her face. I had a hunch that rambling was about to spout from her mouth, and within seconds, my premonition was proven correct. “Okay, so Seth—who happens to be my boyfriend at the moment and your roommate—just called me to cancel our plans this afternoon, which was totally a dick move by him, because I was really excited and made the reservations and everything! If you’re not doing anything, do you want to take his place and go to sushi with me?”

           As quickly as I could, I dissected what she had said, the buzzwords in the paragraph of dialogue being “Seth,” “cancel,” and “sushi.” Seth had cancelled on going to sushi with Noa. Damn, I was smart. Hell, I had a gorgeous brain and a face—I was the whole package. Thankfully, though, I wasn’t nearly as cocky as my inner monologue made me out to be at times. I blinked a few times at Noa, making sure that I wasn’t sleep walking or something, and then made one of those big “College Decisions” that parents almost warned you about. “Sure,” I said slowly, not having to wait long for her response.

           “Ohmigosh! Yay! Let’s go!” she grinned happily, not wasting anymore time and dragging me all the way across the campus, her grip tight as she babbled away about Seth being annoying, the sun, and something having to do with her cuticles. As I had learned to do when Seth was in a particularly loquacious mood (which was essentially always), I just nodded my head politely, occasionally saying, “Yeah?” “Really?” “Oh,” “How nice,” “You don’t say?” and a few derivatives of those. It was an effective method, and since Noa and Seth generally didn’t care what I had to say, anyways, it tended to work out well.

           Once I was virtually sure we had speed-walked all the way to the opposite side of the Stanford campus where we had initially started, Noa came to an abrupt stop, halting before a restaurant of sorts. It had a sign above the front entrance that read “Yoi Sushi,” and I figured that since I was 98.4% certain Noa had mentioned something about sushi, we were finally at our destination. Noa then dragged me inside, making me 99.84% sure that we were actually done walking.

           After checking in at the hostess’ podium in the front of the restaurant, the hostess herself—who happened to have a sleek quality about her, and was probably a few years older than us—walked us to the back of the surprisingly busy place, getting us all set with our menus. Noa and I sat down in these heightened stools, our feet not being able to touch the ground. The entire restaurant had this modern vibe about it that I liked, though felt was very…West Coast. Noa seemed to be completely at home, but she was from the area (meaning state), so that was expected.

           “So, do you like sushi, Eric?” Noa questioned, setting her menu down in front of her after having elected what she wanted to eat.

           “Yeah, I guess,” I shrugged, “but what I don’t understand is why everyone else suddenly likes sushi…at three o’clock in the afternoon.”

           “It’s just a late lunch,” she explained.

           I nodded, my eyes taking in the scene before me. It wasn’t a huge place, but it wasn’t small by any means, either. There were a lot of tables just like ours, and a bar was set up towards the middle. Mirrors and these weird squiggly instillations were scattered about everywhere, and there was this redeeming attribute about it that was just calm—almost like Ari. Here, there was a happy calm, unlike with Ari, who possessed a melancholy calm.

           A few minutes passed and then a waitress came over to us with a vibrant smile on her face. A white shirt sat on her torso, and a contrastingly dark black skirt was on her bottom half. She glanced at me, and then Noa, and then back at me. “Hi, welcome to Yoi Sushi,” she said, “can I start you two off with some beverages?”

           “Actually, I think that we’re all set to order, if that’s all right with you, Eric,” Noa said politely. I nodded, indicating that it was fine by me, and then Noa kept talking, ordering her sushi. “Can I just please get a Kappa Maki roll and a Natto Maki roll? Oh, and some water.”

           “Of course,” the waitress nodded, scribbling down Noa’s order in a black notebook, “and you, sir?”

           “Um, can I have a California roll, please?” I requested, completely aware of how American I was being. California rolls weren’t exactly the most adventurous of choices when it came to sushi, but they were safe. They consisted of cucumber, crab, and avocado—all of which I felt relatively comfortable eating separately, so when put together felt the same way. I had no idea what Noa had ordered, and though I was pretty sure that Seth had mentioned on more than one account that she was a vegetarian who didn’t eat fish, she still could’ve gone down the audacious side…unlike me.

           “Uh huh,” the girl muttered, writing down what I had said. “And to drink?”

           “Water’s fine, please,” I said.

           “Okay. Coming right up,” she said, collecting both of our menus and disappearing.

           “You don’t like sushi, do you?” Noa questioned.

           “It’s not my favorite food,” I admitted.

           “Then what is?”

           “Honestly, I have no idea.” Though it felt dumb to say, it was true. I wasn’t a picky eater and had avoided showing favor to certain foods over others. There were things that I liked to consume more than others, and particular things I blatantly didn’t like (Starbucks’ blueberry muffins, for example), but there wasn’t anything in my mind that could really qualify as being my favorite. Water was pretty good—a staple to most individuals’ diets, too.

           “Mhmmm,” Noa mumbled. “So, Eric, my roommate—Princess Kay Rodgers—is absolutely in love with you. I wasn’t really sure how to break it to you, but she loves you. Legit.”

           I laughed, shaking my head at her words. “Kay loves me? Really, Noa?”

           “Yeah,” she persisted on the bold assertion. “Well, kinda. She talks about you practically nonstop when she’s not talking about her boyfriend and it is so annoying!”

           “Uh, I’m scared to ask, but why does Kay talk about me?” I bit the bottom of my lip, truly not knowing whether or not the answer was all that vital to life.

           “I don’t know. She’s obsessed with you or something. But, like, it’s only after she runs into you. Or if Ari runs into you. Okay, so maybe she’s not obsessed with you. She’s always blabbing on and on about you and Ari. Apparently you two are ‘friends’ now?” Noa chatted away, forcing me to dissect what she had said, searching for phrases of importance. After replaying her words back in my head, all I came up with was “Ari.”

           “Yeah,” I said slowly, hoping that it was the correct form of answer to whatever she had just asked.

           “Uh huh. How is it having Seth as a roommate?” she then switched the topic from her roommate over to mine.

           “Fine,” I replied casually, just as the waitress reappeared with two thin glasses of water. We both muttered a quick, “Thanks,” and after nodding, the girl linked to the service sector of the sushi restaurant left us yet again.

           “No, but actually, Eric,” Noa laughed, “I’m sorry you have to be stuck with such a jackass! And he really is a jackass. Really. I made our reservations here weeks ago, told him that we were coming, and about fifty minutes ago, he just called me out of the blue and said that he couldn’t come because—get this—he was ‘studying.’ Like, what the hell? What’s there to even study at three in the afternoon?” Noa stopped ranting just in time to take a deep breath, and stare pointedly at me, waiting for whatever it was I felt the need to say in response.

           “Seth does do a lot of studying,” I commented, only recognizing how ferociously lame of a thing it was to say after it had exited my mouth. Sometimes I wasn’t really good at comforting people in the best of ways.

           “Yeah, well, he does a lot of blowing off his girlfriend, too,” she huffed, her arms intersecting themselves across her chest. Noa was an interesting a girl. I didn’t know her too well, and I didn’t really want to, for that matter, either. Nonetheless, I couldn’t deny that she was intriguing. She was a ball of energy with an opinion on everything, and even though the two were so different, she reminded me of Kay, in a way. They both had this inner conviction to do as they pleased, while being relatively high-maintenance about it all.

           It suddenly occurred to me that I had willingly gone to sushi with Noa, for no other reason than that she had asked, and I had said yes. I always said yes. It was a flaw of mine, and if I had been a tragic hero in a novel or movie, it would be the one thing that led to my ultimate demise. There was just something within me that was wired so that couldn’t say no, being the voice of rejection—normally, at least. When it came to football and drugs, I was all for saying no, but with the majority of other things, I found it challenging to do so. And that was how I ended up going to sushi with Noa, my roommate’s girlfriend, who I happened to not really like all too much.

           “Uh, I’m sorry,” I finally apologized for her misfortune.

           “It’s not your fault, Eric. It’s Seth’s. I mean, he’s so annoying all of the time and I absolutely can’t stand him! Ya know?” she exclaimed. Noa was a bit overly passionate, in contrast to the serene atmosphere of the restaurant. She always was, from what I could tell. Which was odd, taking into account how dark her sense of humor and beliefs tended to be. As deducted previously, Noa was definitely an interesting girl.

           “Not really,” I said, for I didn’t know.

           She let out a stream of air from her mouth in the form of a sigh, and then tapped her finger on the table. “Sorry I’m ranting about Seth. I kinda hate him at the moment. Like, a lot. Anyways! Tell me about you, Eric. I know that’s a really awkward thing to do,” and she was right, it was, “but we don’t really know each other,” yet again, Noa was right on point with distinguishing facts, “so, like, if you tell me about yourself, then I’ll tell you about me,” and that was when she lost me. “Sound good?”

           Not expressing how I truly felt about what she was asking me to do, I merely nodded curtly, probing my mind for appropriate things to say. I wasn’t that intriguing of a person, despite the common misconception that I was. If I were told to write an “About Me” section for an application of something, it would probably look like this: “Ex-quarterback. Ex-drug addict. Ex-boyfriend of two. Workoutaholic. Enjoys sleeping. Doesn’t date. Likes school. Is boring.” Thus, that was essentially what I ended up telling Noa.

           “Well, I’m an ex-quarterback, and I like working-out, sleeping, and school.” I glanced over to Noa once I was done making myself out to sound like a complete loser, and she just stared at me blankly. I concluded with a concise, “Uh…I’m from New York, and that’s it,” and was rewarded by an even blanker expression from the girl sitting directly across from me.

           She bit the bottom of her lip, as if thinking over something, and then shook her head slowly. “I’m a writer who also happens to be a pessimist, vegan, and an atheist. My boyfriend is a jackass, I currently live with a southern princess, and my favorite color is anything neon. I discovered long ago that I wasn’t exactly ‘athletic,’ and I absolutely suck at giving an overview of who I am, but in comparison to you, I sound like I’m writing a fricken’ autobiography.” With that, Noa let out a laugh, but I remained unresponsive.

           “Sorry,” I said, “I’m not really good at giving summaries about Eric Wilson. He’s not that interesting of a guy, and there’s not really much to say.”

           “I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I’ve definitely noticed that your summary was crap,” she replied with a teasing roll of her eyes.

           “California roll?” interrupted a guy in a white T-shirt and jeans, his hands possessing two porcelain dishes of sushi.

           “Uh, that’s mine,” I said, awkwardly waving up two fingers because I was Eric Wilson—conversationalist extraordinaire. He put the plate down in front of me, and utilized some deductive reasoning skills as he placed the other platter of sushi before Noa, sending her a polite smile before going off.

           “I love sushi!” Noa expressed, taking the chopsticks that were located on the table into her hands and picking up a piece of her sushi with such ease.

           “It’s okay,” I shrugged, placing my napkin on my lap as I stared down at my own plate of seaweed and rice encased food.

           “Sorry to burst your bubble, but sushi is the most amazing thing on the planet—environmentally-friendly water bottles included. It’s the best thing ever. Like, actually,” she informed me rigidly, using the two wooden sticks to transfer a piece of sushi into her mouth. After chomping down for a few seconds, she let out a blissful moan, enjoying every second of whatever her taste buds were capturing.

           I looked down at my own plate of untouched sushi, and cautiously stabbed a piece with a single chopstick, purposely not glimpsing up at Noa, only to have her comment on my extreme whiteness in how I didn’t know how to properly use chopsticks. It was pretty pathetic, really, that after eighteen years of existence, I still hadn’t figured out how to correctly use the Asian utensils. Nevertheless, with as much pride as I could conjure, I inserted my speared sushi into my mouth, and then bit down, not as elated as Noa.

           “You can’t use chopsticks,” she determined with a smug smile once I finally allowed myself to look at her.

           “Nope,” I confirmed, swallowing the sushi. It was all right, though if I had the option between eating sushi and eating almost anything else in the world, I’d probably opt for the route that didn’t involve sushi.

           I gouged another piece of the sushi with my chopstick, sticking it into my mouth with as much dignity as I could muster. Noa was silently watching me, an all too amused gleam in her eyes. “I find it fascinating to watch you eat sushi,” she told me, practically bragging as she used both of her chopsticks to correctly hold up a segment of the seaweed, rice, and everything else roll.

           “I’m glad,” I muttered.

           “No offense, Eric, but you’re kinda boring,” Noa suddenly expressed, “and that’s coming from a girl who is dating Seth Freaking Newman, The World’s Most Boring Jackass.”

           “Yeah, I am pretty boring,” I agreed with her, for it was the truth. My life wasn’t anything spectacular, I didn’t have the inclination to constantly tell war stories from high school or rehab (the two places possessed only few differences), and I honestly just wasn’t that interesting of a human being…on the surface.

           The thoughts that generally ran through my mind were average and dull, though what truly made me unique was my past—something I wasn’t too keen to share with anyone, or even ponder myself. All I had was a pretty face, a workout schedule fit for a body-builder, and an active brain. I had always been a pretty boring person, never doing anything exceptional with my life, but when I got rid of the two things that mattered most in my life, I became really boring to the common observer. Like, watching a snail make its way across America boring. I, Eric Wilson, was boring, and I was okay with that.

           “Seth is also pretty boring,” Noa then went on to muse aloud. “You two make a nice, boring set of roommates.”

           “Thanks,” I returned, the word stretched out slowly, for I wasn’t sure if what she had said was meant as a compliment or not. I looked down at the sushi on my plate, and just let out a sigh. If only I had been given a fork, everything would’ve turned out so much easier. Because it was really my only option, I picked up a single chopstick yet again, pressing it through the side of a piece of sushi. I brought it up to my mouth, and then proceeded to consume the chilled savory food.

           “Noa!” someone called loudly, causing quite the commotion. People all throughout the tranquil little restaurant stared at the ragingly furious guy—who happened to be my roommate—as he stormed in, his eyes locked on one sole target, that being his girlfriend, and the girl with whom I was eating sushi: Noa.

           “Sethy!” Noa called in a mockingly sweet manner, not moving from her chair. I remained quiet, just observing the interaction of ferocity and sarcasm.

           When Seth reached our table, he simply nodded at me in acknowledgment of my presence, and to show that none of his anger was directed towards me. His gaze then shifted over to Noa, who had utilized her chopsticks to properly put a piece of sushi in her mouth. As she chewed, the angrier Seth grew. I had never seen him like this. Normally, he was talkative and high-strung and (though it was somewhat of a contradictory from the previous adjective) relaxed. Seth didn’t tend to lose his temper, which was why seeing him like this now was odd.

           “You!” Seth yelled at Noa, pointing an accusatory finger in her direction.

           “What about me, babe?” she questioned, smiling at him.

           “I cannot believe that you changed the password on my computer!” Seth shouted, informing just about everyone in and out of earshot as to the exact dilemma the couple was now facing. As I heard the words come out of his mouth, I tried not to laugh as I figured out what the fight was about. Noa had changed the password on Seth’s computer, and now Seth was pissed. Well, beyond pissed.

           There were only two things of Seth’s that I wasn’t allowed to touch, and he made that very apparent on day one: Noa and his computer. He was possessive as hell of both of them, and I made sure that he knew how uninterested in tampering with either I truly was. Apparently, Noa hadn’t really got the memo that touching Seth’s computer was a big no-no. Or maybe she had, which was why she had done it.

           “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Noa denied the bold accusation.

           “Bullshit!” Seth swore.

           “Yeah, well maybe it is!” Noa screamed back, hopping down from her chair so that she was face to face with Seth.

           “Why’d you do it?” Seth demanded ardently. As discretely as I could, I pulled my wallet out of my back pocket, and then extracted a twenty, placing it on the table. Just as Noa began to tell Seth how much of a jackass she thought he was for cancelling (which was why she had changed his computer password, in the first place), I made a quick getaway before either could notice or stop me. They were too wrapped up in their own relationship drama to have even a care in the world about me, of which, I was very glad.

           As I headed towards the exit, Noa and Seth’s PDA (Public Display of Anger) still capturing all the volume in the small sushi bar, I exhaled a bit. Arguing was probably on the top of the list of things that persuaded me to not jump right back into a relationship, for as displayed by my roommate and his girlfriend, it wasn’t all that enjoyable. I thanked the hostess in the front, my mind a blur, my stomach full of the sushi, and only one objective in mind that I intended on following through with this time: taking a nap.