Chapter Fourteen - Quarters

“I heard that for every drink of alcohol you kill one million brain cellsh!” Mizuki slurred, finishing off yet another cup of sake. The initial bottle Aria had produced had already been drained and Aria had deftly produced a second from the same bag. You could say what you want, but she definitely came prepared. “I have killed…a lot of brain cellsh. I’m a massh murderer!”

“That’s a total myth!” Aria replied with a scowl. “That was debunked like 50 years ago or something.”

“No, no, no, no,” Mizuki shook her head slowly. “Shaki-chan, you’re a doctor. Is it a myth?”

“Uh,” Saki squirmed uncomfortably as Mizuki and Aria’s gazes turned to her. “I’m, uh, I’m not a doctor but, yes, it is a myth. Alcohol is a neurotoxin that studies show can lead to shrinkage of the hippocampus in moderate to heavy drinkers over time.” The two looked at each other and shrugged.

“Doesn’t sound bad to me,” Aria said.

“Ash long ash I’m not killing brain cellsh!” Mizuki enthused. “I’m shure my hippo…hippo…hippopotamush will be fine.”

“My cheeks are numb,” Emi muttered as I finished serving the Mizumono, the final meal of the evening. “See? I can pull them all the way out to here and I can’t feel it.” Emi demonstrated her assertion by pulling her cheeks as wide as she could. I finally sat down at the table and began to eat the ice cream. Saki gratefully slipped out of the conversation and began partaking as well. The other three took no notice.

“We should play a game!” Aria exclaimed. For some reason, that did not seem like a good idea to me.

“Yesh!” Mizuki raised her fist skyward in enthusiastic agreement.

“You in, Emi?” Aria asked.

“I think my chin’s numb, too,” Emi rubbed her chin experimentally. “Yeah. It’s numb. Is this normal? Is this a normal thing?”

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Aria turned to me. “How about you, K-chan?” Her eyes were drooping slightly but other than that, she showed virtually none of the effects Mizuki and Emi were suffering from, despite drinking easily twice what they had.

“I suppose,” I shrugged, taking a spoonful of ice cream.

“Care to join us, Saki?” Aria turned to Saki, the look in her eyes nearly daring the girl to say no. Saki paused for a moment before nodding reluctantly. Aria took a drinking glass and set it in middle of the table, pushing some of the plates away to separate it. “Anyone ever play quarters?”

All of us stared at each other blankly. Except Emi who was still mumbling about the rubber quality her face seemed to have taken on. Having never even drank before I knew nothing about the game, and I couldn’t imagine Mizuki or Saki knew any more than I did.

“Perfect! I’ll take your quarters virginity!” Aria giggled, filling a sake glass. She hoisted her backpack and rummaged around for a moment before pulling a shiny silvery coin from one of the pockets. “This is my lucky quarter, so if anyone throws up on it, I’ll be mad.”

“What’s a quarter and why is that one lucky?” Emi stopped poking her cheeks for a moment to ask.

“A quarter is American money and it’s lucky because if you use it right you get to use your lucky panties,” Aria grinned salaciously. “I brought both tonight!” Our blank stares seemed to take some of the wind out of her sails, however.

“What do you ushe pantiesh for beshidesh pantie thingsh?” Mizuki’s slurring was more pronounced by the drink.

“And what makes them lucky?” Emi chimed in.

“It doesn’t matter.” Aria shook her head in disappointment. “We’ll play the way my friends and I would back in California. There’s all sorts of different ways to play but this is how we played. Everyone ready for the rules?” Saki nodded with a hint of discomfort on her face while Mizuki was significantly more enthusiastic, and Emi seemed to be emerging from her self-imposed numb face coma and was perking up at the prospect of a new pleasure.

“So, the idea is to bounce the quarter off the table and into the cup. Or, in this case, glass. If the shooter makes it, she can tell someone else to drink. If she misses, she has to drink and the next person shoots. If she makes it three times in a row, she can make a rule. The rule can be anything she wants, and no one’s allowed to say no. It goes like that until we run out of sake. Unless Emi has more squirreled away.”

“Pfft!” Emi replied forcefully. “Of course I have more sake. I have more sake than I know what to do with!”

“Perfect!” Aria enthused. “Then we can play a few rounds without worrying about running dry on booze and then hit the baths. Sound good?”

“Saki and I aren’t drinking,” I pointed out. “How do we fit?”

“Hmmm,” Aria frowned for a second. “I totally forgot. I never had a situation where no one drank before, so this is kind of new.”

“I’m sorry, senpai,” Saki murmured, looking crestfallen.

“It’s fine, Saki” I interjected quickly, patting her on the shoulder comfortingly. “I’m not drinking either, remember?”

“Well, for our teetotalers I guess they’re drinking tea instead of the good stuff,” Aria grinned. “But since they don’t have any handicaps, they don’t get to tell anyone else to drink or make any rules. The idea is that the more you drink the less likely you are to make it into the glass.”

“Fair enough,” I quickly agreed. It felt like Saki, and I were being deliberately singled out by Aria. I didn’t want to think that, but it seemed like the only reasonable excuse for wanting to play a game that was wholly designed around making other people and yourself drink to the point of vomiting. Honestly, I didn’t particularly care. I had no interest in drinking and certainly didn’t think this was a good way to spend the evening but since I was in the minority, I kept my opinions to myself. “That means we don’t have to abide by the rules, then.”

“Oh the rules are binding!” Aria declared with a chuckle. “Since you two aren’t drinking you are more bound by the rules than us, even!”

“That makes no sense,” I protested. “Maybe we should play something else we can all equally participate in.” I suggested.

“Don’ be a shtick in the mud,” Mizuki giggled as she took another drink of sake, seemingly surprised when her exhalation of breath spilled the liquid all over her face. Oh, I decided, she was going to be a complete lush when she got older. I could see her now whisking her kids off to school, and then going back home to burn through the bottles she’d hid all over the house. Then she’d call up all the people in the conservative women’s coalition and complain about how the youth of today didn’t appreciate anything.

“Let’s play strip monopoly!” Emi chimed in suddenly, bouncing excitedly.

“What?” All four of us asked simultaneously, turning our gaze to Emi.

“Just hear me out! Hear me out, ok? Hear me out!” Emi repeated drunkenly, holding her hands a few centimeters over the table. “So it’s like normal monopoly only when you land on someone’s hotel you have to strip.”

“That doeshn’t make any shenshe,” Mizuki shook her head. “Why would you even shuggest that?”

“I think my vagina might be numb, but I don’t want to just stick my hand down my pants to find out,” Emi admitted.

“Why don’t we just go to the bath?” I asked. “Emi’s bath is huge. We can play Marco Polo or something.”

“Then I could check if my vagina is numb, and no one would think I was masturbating!” Emi enthused.

“Oooh! The bath!” Mizuki cooed.

“No, no, no,” Aria shook her head. “Let’s play first, then go to the bath.” Sensing she’d just about lost her enthusiastic majority she turned to Mizuki. “Besides, you and Emi already agreed to play, and we still have alcohol to drink which will only make the bath that much more fun.”

“What about my vagina?” Emi whined.

“Just feel it out if you want,” Aria sighed. “No one cares if you feel yourself up.”

“Really?” Emi looked hopeful.

“Seriously, just grab your pussy and see if you can feel it. We’ll wait.” Aria shook her head.

“Ok!” Emi proceeded to do so. I sighed and shook my head. Saki turned bright red and averted her eyes while Mizuki blinked dumbly as Emi shoved her hand down the front of her skirt clumsily and began to feel about. “Hmmm…Ow!” Emi jumped slightly before grinning. “It’s fine, it’s just the right side that’s numb. The rest is ok.”

“That’s…good,” Aria finally replied, standing, and taking her place at the side of the table. “I’ll shoot first.”

Aria eyed the cup and then bounced the quarter off the shiny wood surface. It arced gracefully before bouncing over the lip of the cup and the glass. Aria grinned triumphantly. Mizuki oohed appreciatively while Emi, still with her hand down her skirt, barely noticed. “Ok! Emi! Stop touching yourself and drink!”

“Huh?” Emi glanced up. “Oh. Damn. Ok.” She eyed the glass of sake warily before tossing it back in one gulp, shuddering as she did.

“You are going to have such a massive hangover tomorrow,” I shook my head. “I feel sorry for you already.”

“Whassa hangover?” Emi cocked her head to the side.

“It’s what happens when you drink too much,” Aria laughed. “It’ll be the first time you’ll be able to actually hear sunlight.”

“That sounds fun!”

“Trust me,” Aria grinned. “It’s not. It’s fine, though, everyone needs to have a hangover from time to time. Except the princesses over there, of course.” Aria turned to me and winked. I scowled in response. Was Aria one of those mean drunks? Or was she just being mean to be mean at this point? She certainly didn’t seem that drunk.

“Well, since I made it, I go again!” Aria retrieved the quarter from the glass and lined up her second shot. “I’m warning you, ladies, your girl Aria’s a master at this. I used to play it all the time back in Cali. You’d better get me super drunk quick, or you’ll be crawling into the bath!” Once more the quarter arced off the table and into the glass and Aria raised her fist in triumph. “Mizuki! Drink!” Mizuki finished her drink quickly, swaying a bit as she did. Was I going to need to call an ambulance for them? Aria collected the quarter and once again sent it skittering into the glass.

“That’s three times! Mizuki drink again and I’m making a rule!” Aria crowed. She tapped her finger on her chin. “What rule should I make? Ok! I know! For the rest of the night it’s truth or dare! If anyone asks a question you have to tell the truth or take a dare!”

“Isn’t that a separate game?” Emi asked. “I’m not sure we should mix games. That could be confusing.”

“My rule! Agreed?” Mizuki nodded while I shrugged, and Saki blanched a bit but agreed. Only Emi held out.

“How do we know when to ask questions?” Emi persisted. “Like, is it any question or do you have to say, ‘do you want truth or dare’?”

“Uh…” Aria plainly hadn’t thought that aspect of the game out properly. “I guess you have to ask whether you want truth or dare first. It’s like Simon says or something.”

“Who’sh Shinom? Er…Shinom…grrr…Shimon,” Mizuki was getting worse as the alcohol slowly pickled her brain.

“You don’t play that here?” Aria seemed shocked. “I thought everyone played Simon says.”

“I don’t know Shimon!” Mizuki shook her head slowly.

“Ok, well, Emi’s got it right. You have to ask first,” Aria said. “I’ll go again!” Aria bounced the quarter off the table and, for the first time it veered just enough to the left to bounce off the rim harmlessly and fall to the table. “Gah! I missed! Ok, I’ll drink.” She finished off her glass of sake and poured herself another. “Emi’s next!” Emi staggered slightly as she got to her feet and strode unsteadily to where the glass and coin lay.

“How do I…um…how do I do this?” Emi picked up the coin and stared at it blankly. Aria finished her next glass without being prompted before speaking up.

“Hold the quarter by the edges and just bounce the flat part of it off the table so it pops into the glass. Easy!”

“Ok…” Emi maneuvered the quarter in her thin fingers until she had it the way Aria said. “Hiyaaa!” She cried and flung the coin at the table. It struck the edge and bounced wildly off target and into a half-finished bowl of Miso soup. “I made it in the soup bowl! Does that get me anything?”

“Of course! You get to fish it out of the bowl and drink,” Aria giggled.

“Well, shit,” Emi pouted, dragging the coin from the bowl, and drying it off with a towel.

“Your turn, K-chan!” Aria called as Emi wandered back to her seat.

“I’m not sure we should keep going,” I shook my head.

“Why not?” Aria demanded, a look of anger passing over her face.

“You need to read the room,” I retorted. “Mizuki’ll be passed out in no time at this point and Emi’s getting there. If we don’t call the drinking here both will be fast asleep before they can get any bath time.”

“They’re fine,” Aria waved her hand dismissively.

“No,” I gestured to the two sloppy drunk girls at the table. “They most certainly are not fine.” Aria glanced over at the two and shrugged.

“They look fine to me,” Aria replied.

“Do you two want to keep drinking or go to the bath?” I asked.

“Shinom shaysh?” Mizuki chuckled. “Errr…Shimon shaysh?”

“No,” I scowled. “This isn’t a truth or dare thing. Do you want to keep drinking or go to the bath?”

“Bath! I love the bath!” Mizuki demanded. “I wanna drink in the bath!”

“I wanna bath and get naked. Let me get my book!” Emi perked up. I glanced meaningfully at Aria.

“Fine, fine,” She pouted.

“Let me get you two a cup of coffee before we go to the bath,” I said, getting to my feet and making my way toward the kitchen.

“You’ll make a good mother someday, K-chan,” Aria teased.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded.

“Nothing! Nothing! Don’t get so defensive! I was kidding!” Aria held her hands up, a smirk on her face I found unpleasant.

“Fine,” I spun on my heel and stalked toward the kitchen, fuming as I went.

“Someone doesn’t know how to have fun,” Aria complained.

“Maybe my fun’s not the same as yours,” I snapped angrily, not turning back.

“I’m kidding! I’m joking! Jeez!” Aria declared loudly. She most definitely was not kidding, I decided. “My truth or dare rule still applies, though!”