Chapter One
Nicky Devore woke with a snort. He lay face down on the small mat that did little to allow him a comfortable night's sleep. He peeled his face off of the small pillow that was all but saturated with his drool. That, combined with the massive jet lag from the almost fifteen hour flight from New York to Tokyo and the added four hour drive and boat ride to get to his friend's house, made him feel like a dog toy chewed up and left to rot on a rug by a Pitt Bull.
He went to the bathroom to wash his face and make himself presentable before taking in the sights of the small Japanese village he was visiting. At six foot two inches tall, he towered over a majority of the Japanese population like a mega-tower over a sea of low-rise buildings. The ceiling in his friend's house was so short that he kept bumping his head on things as he walked around, making him feel like a giant in a dollhouse. He had a slightly curly mop of short, dirty blonde hair, piercing blue eyes above a ski-slope of a nose, and a wide mouth. He had a chiseled jaw above an average size neck, which sat atop his wide, muscular shoulders and lean torso.
Looking at his watch to check the time, he realized he was going to be late meeting his friend for lunch if he didn't hurry up. He quickly pulled on a loose t-shirt and blue jeans, grabbed his phone, and made his way to the shoji that led to the backyard. He pulled on his pre-tied shoes and took off at a jog. His head and stomach protested the sudden violence inflicted on them but soon settled down with the added blood pumping through his veins. He didn't take the time to take in the sights on the ten-minute jog to the eatery they were meeting at. There'd be plenty of time for sightseeing in the coming weeks he was here in Japan.
His buddy, Kiyoshi Saito, a Japanese native, spent his high school years as a foreign exchange student in New York. He was a small man compared to Nicky, only topping out at five foot eight on a good day. He had short, black hair and angular facial features typical of the majority of the Japanese. While he may have appeared thin, the slightly too-large clothes he wore hid a rigidly muscular physique on his small frame.
Nicky made it to the small cafe in town just as Kai, that's what Nicky called him, was sitting down at a table. Kai waived him over.
"Glad you could make it," Kai said in his slightly Japanese-accented English.
"Yeah," Nicky said in his thick New Yorker accent. "I only just woke up. The time difference is fucking with my head something fierce. Not only that, jet lag has my stomach roiling like a tsunami on steroids."
"You will get used to it, my friend," Kai replied. "It's only your first day."
"Sure," Nicky agreed. "What are we having?"
"I ordered the Bento for you, and the Teishoku for me," Kai said. "But I don't mind sharing if there is something you want on my plate."
"Thanks, man," Nicky replied. "And I know I've said this already, but I'm extremely grateful to your parents for bringing me out here. I've always wanted to come to Japan, but with my financial background, it was always a pipe dream."
"Our meeting was fortuitous indeed," Kai said. "So, what do you want to do today?"
Nicky shrugged. "I don't know. Just show me around, I guess. Maybe teach me a little Japanese?"
Kai laughed. "I have tried to teach you basic Japanese, Nicky, but it's as if you are incapable of learning the language."
"Areegayto," Nicky replied with a wink, knowing the improper pronunciation grated good-naturedly on his friend's nerves.
Kai rolled his eyes. "Maybe I can sign you up for some classes. A few are starting later this week."
"Sure," Nicky said with a grin. "Sounds like fun."
Nicky eyed the petite server as she delivered their food. She wasn't tall, but neither was she short. He guessed that she was only about five-foot-six. She had short, spiky black hair over a heart-shaped face. Her eyes were dark brown and she had smooth, creamy, yet porcelain-white skin. A small sloping nose sat just above her thin, yet puffy pink lips. She had a slender neck that sat atop a small torso with modest breasts. Despite her stature, she sported wide hips and long, thick-thighed legs.
She was wearing a black tank top over a black sports bra with matching tight, black denim shorts that ended just below her luscious round butt. She had a single, large, gold hoop in her left ear and a dark purple septum stud ring in her nose. Completing the stunning look, for Nicky anyway, she was rocking a pair of solid black Chuck Taylor All-Star boots. She had an unidentifiable small tattoo on the inside of her left wrist and when she turned around, Nicky caught sight of some more ink along her lower back.
He gave her a toothy smile as she placed his food in front of him. She smiled shyly at him, meeting his gaze for slightly longer than was proper, before heading back to the kitchen. Kai eyed him from across the table.
"What?" Nicky said as he took a bite of food.
"Will you never change?" Kai asked with a grin.
"God, I hope not."
They ate the rest of their meal in relative silence, only exchanging words here and there about the food. When they were done, the waitress came back and began to clear their table. She eyed Nicky with a smile before leaning in and whispering something into Kai's ear. He spluttered and nearly choked on the drink he had just taken.
Nicky looked at the dark-haired cutie. "You speak English?" he asked.
She shook her head. "No enough," she said in broken English.
Kai managed to compose himself enough to act as a translator for her. Despite his efforts, his face was flushed with embarrassment, and Nicky suspected that it wasn't just from the near choking incident. Knowing Kai's shyness about sexual matters, Nicky anticipated that the topic of discussion was likely to be related to that particular sensitive subject.
"She said she's never seen an American cock before and wants to know if they're as big as they say," Kai translated, his face beet red.
Nicky grinned and winked at the cute waitress. "Tell her I don't mind showing her if she wants. You know where we live."
"No," Kai said. "It would be disrespectful to my parents."
"Okay, her place then," Nicky said.
Kai relayed the message and the goth girl blushed scarlet. She mumbled something then darted to the back room again. Kai chuckled to himself.
"She changed her mind," Kai said.
"Pity," Nicky said. "She's cute."
"But also deadly," Kai said with a grin. "Come on. I'll show you around town, as you Americans like to call it."
"Deadly, huh?" Nicky said. "Now I'm intrigued."
"Leave it, Nick," Kai said. "I saw the tattoo on the inside of her left wrist. Trust me. She's more trouble than your raging libido can handle."
"Fine, fine," Nicky replied. "So, you all done with school?"
"For today," Kai said as they got up and headed out the door.
"I still can't believe you guys go to school all year round," Nicky said. "That's nuts."
"Imagine my surprise when I learned that you don't," Kai replied with a grin. "It's a wonder you learn anything at all."
"So, what? Because you didn't go to school throughout the summer in America you have to make up for a year's worth of playing hooky?"
"It's not as bad as you might think."
"Tell that to my mother," Nicky said with a grumble.
"Your mother struggles through life because she works all day, every day, literally, and barely gets any sleep," Kai explained. "We don't do that here."
"Oh, yeah?" Nicky asked. "How so?"
"I will see if my father can take you to work with him one day this week," Kai said. "That way, you can get an idea of why it is so different here. But every day my dad goes to work, the first thing they do is exercise."
"You're shitting me," Nicky said.
"I am not," Kai replied. "The whole company exercises together. Exercise in the morning gets the blood flowing, wakes the body up, and gets those creative juices flowing, as Mr. Collins is so fond of saying. Then, after lunch, if they are tired, they take a short nap."
"What??" Nicky protested. "Now you're pulling my leg. They let you sleep at work?"
"Yes," Kai said. "If you are tired and forced to work, your productivity falters. So you take a short nap and wake up refreshed enough to be productive through to the end of the day."
"Dude, I like you," Nicky said. "But I don't believe you."
"You will see," Kai said. "Come. Let me get you signed up to learn Japanese."
They walked through the door of a place that looked, for lack of a better term, like somebody's house. Kai spoke in rapid-fire Japanese to the proprietor for a moment. He was a squat, older man, with wrinkly skin, but bright, knowing eyes. Nicky got the feeling this was a man you couldn't bullshit.
"Ah," the old man said, looking Nicky up and down. "So, you want to learn Japanese?"
"Uh," Nicky said. "Yes, sir. Kiyoshi has tried to teach me over the last four years when he was in America, but I just can't pick it up."
"Do you know any words?" the old man asked and it startled Nicky that the old man spoke perfect English as if he were raised in America.
Nicky nodded. "Hai, Arigato, and Kon'nichiwa."
"Well, your pronunciation is surprisingly well," the old man said. "But we have an old tried and true method here I think will help you learn."
"Oh yeah?" Nicky asked, curious. "What method is that?"
The man rattled something off in Japanese. When Nicky didn't reply, he just looked at Kai dumbfounded. The old man grabbed a sturdy-looking stick and popped him upside the head with it.
