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The sun had not even risen when Kazuichi's alarm went off. He shot awake at the first sound, but he groaned and rubbed his eyes anyway. It's not as if he wasn't used to waking up at 5am, but Monday mornings were consistently the worst. But before his alarm could sound off again, he rolled out of bed, grabbed his phone from his desk ten feet away, and disabled his long train of alarms. His dad had made him place the phone across the room after too many mornings of him running late. He flicked on his desk lamp to bring a blinding light into the room. His own image, a chaotic flare of frizzy pink hair, a white tank top and neon pink and blue trunks, now showed clearly in his mirror.
The boy slowly made his way to his closet, slipped a yellow jumpsuit over his underwear and tank top and a grey beanie over his messy hair, then slunk out of his bedroom.
The apartment was quiet and dark. His father was already awake, likely setting up the bike shop they operated across the street. His mother was asleep by now, having just returned from her night shift a few hours ago. His father would need help setting up shop, and that fell to Kazuichi.
With a yawn, the mechanic began making his way toward the front door when he was stopped by a sawmill-volume snore coming from the living room ahead. He peeked inside and saw a sight that wasn't surprising, but still pretty new: Mondo was asleep on his couch.
--
It'd been about a month since Mondo's brother, Daiya, had died in a motorcycle accident. Mondo had been living with his mother, his father long-since estranged, but Daiya's death was the final straw for her. Two jobs and grief had taken their toll, and she began using some manner of drugs. Mondo never told Kazuichi what exactly. When she was arrested for possession, Mondo couldn't manage the house alone, and left. The boys had already been friends for almost 5 months when Kazuichi found Mondo sleeping overnight in a school lounge, and brought him home to his apartment. The first weekend was spent collecting Mondo's things and convincing Kazuichi's parents. Despite it all, they eventually agreed, with Mondo's promise that the Crazy Diamonds would patronize the bike shop.
--
And so, there Mondo laid, a blanket haphazardly draped across his body. It covered a good deal of his legs, but plenty of Mondo's thin white tank and tiger-print boxer-briefs were on display as he dangled one muscular arm off the couch. His pompadour was gone; his hair was instead pulled back into a tight bun. It was a strange thing, to see a friend in such a vulnerable position for the first time. But Kazuichi had chores to do and had no time to worry about how loud Mondo’s snoring was. But still, his sprawled-out pose stuck in the mechanic’s mind as he left.
When did he get so comfortable?
Mr. Soda was enthusiastic when Kazuichi finally made it over to the garage. Several members of the Crazy Diamonds were already waiting a respectful distance outside, smoking cigarettes. This was not Kazuichi’s favorite thing. They rarely had customers waiting to be helped right when the store opened. He now had more chores and less time to do them. An hour later, the shop opened, and his father finally sent him back to the apartment. Kazuichi had maybe ten minutes to clean himself up, maybe eat breakfast, and start walking to catch the neighborhood bus into the city.
Now rushing, Kazuichi made his way into the quiet apartment, walked past the empty couch, and slipped into the bathroom where-
“Aaaah!” Kazuichi screamed as he walked in to see a damp Mondo standing in the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist. His clothes were lying in a loose pile on the floor. Kazuichi reached behind him for the doorknob, his eyes locked with horror on Mondo’s face. He seemed a little surprised, but...unbothered.
Before Kazuichi’s hand found the way out, Mondo’s surprise faded into a bright smile. “Hey, good morning man! Was I taking too long or something? Sorry. Water’s still warm though, if you need it. Wasn’t sure if you were a morning bath guy or not,” Mondo said with an earnest look in his eyes.
“S-since when are you awake?! My bad! I really needed to wash this grease off my hands and face,” Kazuichi chattered nervously with no breaths or pauses.
Mondo just laughed and scooped his pile of clothes off the floor. “Your face is fucking hilarious man! Go ahead and wash, you fucking grease monkey. You don’t care if I change in your room, do ya?” And without waiting for Kazuichi to answer with a “yes” or “no,” Mondo left the bathroom in his towel, all of his clothes in his hand.
The door behind him closed, and Kazuichi Soda took a deep breath, then made for the sink with a panicked fervor. He didn’t have time for this. He didn’t have time for extra chores, or shirtless roommates, or the fact his greasy hands took three tries to turn on the sink’s faucet as he scrambled. He had five minutes to get some food in him and get out the door.
God, how is he that comfortable?
When Kazuichi finally made it out of the bathroom and into the kitchen, he was almost late. He stuffed two pieces of bread in the toaster, and went back to his room to grab his school bag. Fearing a second awkward run-in, Kazuichi knocked on his door before opening it.
"Come on in, it's open," Mondo called out from inside. Nevertheless, Kazuichi still kept his eyes mostly toward the floor as he opened the door. Mondo was standing by the boy's mirror, dressed in his normal school uniform. He was combing his hair up into its usual pompadour, staring intently at his work in the mirror. As the agitated Kazuichi walked across the room and grabbed his bag, Mondo said, “Damn grease monkey, you sure scurry around a lot in the morning. Who lit a fire under your ass?"
"We need to leave in, like, two minutes, man! I'm grabbing my toast and then we'd better leave!"
"Toast? I'm making us some miso soup and rice. Cool your fucking jets, Jesus."
"Cool my jets?! Come on, man! We need to get walking or we'll be late!"
By this point, Mondo's pompadour was done, and his shoulder brushed against Kazuichi as he walked out of the room. The biker's voice called back into the room as he approached the kitchen, "So we won't walk."
"What do you mean, 'we won't walk?' You think I'm just going to run all the way to school?"
Mondo had begun scooping rice into the cooker and assembling the soup. "No dumbass, we'll ride bikes. I've got three of my best guys down there, and they owe me. Take your pick, and you can ride one of their bikes over. We'll be there in fifteen minutes. Less if you're feeling fucking ambitious."
"What are you, crazy? I can't ride one of those things! I've...never driven a motorcycle before."
"How the hell do you run a bike shop without knowing how to ride a bike?" Mondo shouted, both bafflement and amusement running through the air.
"I get motion sickness, okay?!"
The shouting from Mondo continued, but with a slight stutter, "J-just ride with me then! You can just…you know, close your eyes or some shit, and I'll take care of it!"
Kazuichi's eyes got wider at the boy's nervous suggestion. "Yeah...Yeah! then I'd get to finally ride on a bike without getting si-WAIT A SECOND! You want me to hug your back, and close my eyes all the way to school? What would you do if I ended up dreaming about that or something?"
Mondo shot Kazuichi a confused squint as he stirred the soup on the stove. "I'd..thank? You? What the fuck are you talking about, man? It's just a goddamn bike ride."
"But...people might see us. Don't you think that'd be...weird?"
"Who gives a fuck about that? You think I let people bad-mouth me or the people I care about? People start talking, and I'll kick their asses."
“Why are you willing to get into a fight over a bike ride? It’s not a big deal man, I’ll walk.” Kazuichi’s toast finally jumped up and the mechanic scooped them gingerly onto a plate.
“I'm making soup for two, alright?!” Mondo’s words had a pang of desperation that made Kazuichi pause. “I always make soup for two…” Mondo gave the soup another stir before sitting at the table with a heavy sigh. Kazuichi set his plate aside and silently joined him. He just watched the taller boy as he stared down into the grain of the wood table between them. Eventually, Mondo spoke again. “Our mom was always out working late so I started making breakfast for Daiya and me, you know? Sort of became our thing. It’s just...I’m grateful you put me up, man. Don’t get me wrong. But it’s still weird being here, like, by myself. I’ve slept in a lotta places way weirder than your place. But it was always the two of us, ‘til now.”
Kazuichi looked at his toast lying there, rapidly cooling as the seconds ticked down. He was already late to get to school his way. “Alright man, alright. Geez, getting heavy on me first thing on a Monday…” he said with a chuckle. The mechanic stood up and retrieved his toast. He then grabbed the bowls for Mondo’s cooking and another plate. “You know, your way is a lot more trouble, but I’m starving. Soup and rice sounds...kinda good right now.” Mondo looked up from the table and smiled at the mechanic, embarrassment flushing his face ever so slightly.
“Thanks man, a lot.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kazuichi said, spreading jelly on one of the slices of bread, sliding it to a new plate, then handing it back to the biker. “But next time we ride to school, we’re going earlier, before everyone gets there. I’ll admit, I really wanna know what a bike ride feels like, but I can’t just be remembered as the guy who rides on the back of his roommate’s motorcycle…”
“Alright fine, you weasel. Guess I can help you out in the garage. Then we’ll be on the road in no time.”
“No way I’d say no to that,” Kazuichi said, beaming.
The conversation and joking continued as Kazuichi relaxed into his newfound time before school. Eventually, the boys made their way to Mondo’s bike and with a loud rev of the Kawasaki’s engine, the two tore down the street.
At first, Kazuichi was screaming, hanging on for dear life. He’d never been in something moving so fast, where he could feel the motion all around him. Taking Mondo's suggestion, he kept his eyes shut to fend off the twists and warnings of his stomach. But as the bike came to a stop, Kazuichi peeked out of the darkness to see...a stop light. Mondo turned his head slightly to shout over his shoulder, “You holding up back there, bro?”
“Y-yeah I’m fine! Just...feels weird, moving so fast with my eyes closed.”
“You’ll enjoy it more if you take that beanie off. Feel the wind in your hair, just let loose man.” And with a twist and lean of his back, Mondo reached behind him and scooped Kazuichi’s beanie off his head and into his hands, holding it there until he felt the other boy’s hands grip the hat as well. As Mondo turned back around to drive, the light turned green. With another wild rev of the engine, Mondo took off again. Kazuichi scrambled to grip the taller boy around his stomach with a yelp, the sound consumed by the wind. But as he held his eyes shut tight, he could feel his messy, layered hair flying behind him. The wind felt less like a wind tunnel sweeping all around him, and more like something carrying him, lifting him as he soared through the dark. The soft smell of Mondo’s body wash filled Kazuichi’s nostrils as he held himself close. All other sounds, feelings, and smells faded away in the dark as Kazuichi let the wind and Mondo carry him.
When they finally did arrive at school, Kazuichi didn't say or think anything until Mondo’s sudden dismount from the bike snapped him to attention. He nearly fell to the ground from the abrupt change in his awareness. Mondo laughed to himself as he helped Kazuichi off of the bike, and the two boys made their way into school. All the while, Mondo’s words faded into the background. Kazuichi blushed a little as he looked on at his taller friend’s jokes and rants, one thought running through his head:
Why is Mondo so...comfortable?