To My Sunflower 37 Bathtime

They decided to soak in a bath before leaving the inn. Kei grumbled when he and Eiji were left with the task of carrying their bags like German servant boys.

"Can't we ditch this suitcase in the pond." Kei moaned, feeling his arms sore from lugging the heavy radio suitcase.

"Don't test my patience with stupid chatter." Sean lectured Kei with a perfect German tone that made his scolding sound like slapstick comedy.

Kei peered at Sean through eyes oozing bitter sarcasm.

"Be wary the wind doesn't change." Tyne joked over his shoulder.

Kei dropped his expressions and kept his complaints to himself when they walked along a floorboard hallway, pa.s.sing shoji doors and lots of loud moaning, repeated thumping, devious laughter, sweet talk, oohs and aahs coming from behind them.

"Why didn't we keep the Geisha in our rooms?" Kei asked, feeling flushed and aroused by the wanton noises.

He ogled at a couple of pa.s.sing young Geisha who teased him for a bit before giggling and resuming their way down the hall for their intended customers. His face lapsed into a dreamy expression as his senses relished the sweet floral scent they had left behind.

"You complained about getting a good nights sleep?" Sean instantly answered. "If you wanted a good time, you should've just said so."

"I was being sarcastic, you p.r.i.c.k!" Kei hissed

"To wake up in the arms of a beautiful Geisha is bliss." He sighed wistfully.

"I promise you next time." Sean guaranteed with a cheeky wink.

Kei gave him a funny look, worried that the promise would lead to something unexpected and unpleasant.
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"Nah, keep your promise."

Eiji slid open the doors of the bath's change rooms, his face hit with heavy clouds of steam gathering within the large all-wood area.

There were some men washing themselves at the troughs along one side of the change area or entering an oblong bath as big as pond. No women were in sight. By the calm reactions from the men, it seemed a place for them to control their urges and cleanse both their body and minds before stepping back out into the inn's heady atmosphere.

The four of them placed their clothes and items on the wall shelves near the door way. They grabbed a wooden pale, scooped clean water from the in-ground well nearby and washed each other's bodies. Sean found his face slapped a couple of times by Kei when his washing had invaded too much of Kei's manliness.

"You're terrible." Eiji stated matter-of-factually to Sean when they climbed into the large in-ground bath to soak.

They moved around the edges until they found a spot near the gold-marble lion head at the end, which had warm water streaming out of its open mouth.

"Hey, Eiji, I'm going to ask you a sensitive question." Sean whispered to Eiji as he sidled up close.

He cupped his ear over Eiji's, so the others couldn't hear his question.

Eiji's eyes widened with outrage. His hands instinctively curled into fists and slammed into the man's gut under the water. It wouldn't have been enough force to damage, but would've given the man a quick taste of pain.

"You really are..." Eiji shook off his name-calling and shuffled to the other side of the lion's head to be next to Kei.

"It's true right?" Sean said once he had recovered. "I've suspected for a while, and then that man said something on it."

"If it was? What's it to you?" Eiji growled back, feeling his injustice trigger flipped.

He hated these bias att.i.tudes. Being in love with a man was no different to loving a woman. In the navy he had been able to disguise the fact his lover was a man. No one thought of him as anyone else other than Eiji Takaki. Now he was at risk of being labelled with a poor taste stereotype that would overshadow his being. He forgot these foreigners were p.r.o.ne for the dramatics.

"Nothing. Just curious." Sean heaved a weary sigh. He deliberated before he added on very quietly, so only the four of them could hear. "I'm the same."

Eiji felt his blood rush to his head and not from being in the hot water for too long.

"Eh? What was that?" Kei innocently asked, missing the point.

"Nothing." Eiji and Sean answered nonchalantly.

"Your wound healed well. Cute scar." Tyne pointed the raised scratchy scar lines on the left side of Eiji's waist; his souvenir from Iwo Jima.

This sparked a conversation about everyone's wars scars that were on their backs, fronts, legs and arms.

"What's those scars on your back from Kei?" Sean soberly asked Kei when he saw raised criss-cross scar lines on the man's back.

"None of you f*king business." Kei snapped.

Tyne sighed and said he was getting out. Everyone soon followed.