PAJAMA NIGHT
A ring of the doorbell. I heard my mom get up in the room nearby, her padded footsteps walking past my door. I straightened up, listening. Hearing the door open, I slouched back down over my papers, quickly finishing up as I blocked out the voices in the hallway. I was sitting on the floor today.
“Rose! Akiho-san is here!” my mother called, not quite yelling. I didn’t get up. I knew I didn’t need to. My door was already open.
“Haah? You’re in your pajamas already?”
I looked up. Akiho was in a yellow summer dress, carrying her school sports bag. She came to lean on the doorway with one hand. I smirked a little.
“Already? Do you have any idea what time it is?” I could see the waning sun touchdown on the walls of my room.
“Yes, yes, I’m a little late, but I have a good reason, I promise!”
As she came into my room and set down her bag, mom walked past the door. “In just a moment, dinner will be ready.”
“Okay.”
“Right! Thanks, Mrs. Sasaki!” Akiho chimed over top of me. She turned around and stretched her arms to the side. “What do you think?”
I looked at the dress a little closer. “Is that the one you bought on our night out?”
“Right!” she giggled a little. “It’s the one you chose!”
“Me? I hope you’re not blaming me.”
“No, no. Not at all! I didn’t mean it that way.” She walked over to the kotatsu and crouched down next to me, staring. “Still, pajamas?”
“They’re not paja—”
“And long pants as well?!” Her gaze dropped to my crossed legs.
“I wear these year-round.”
“Oh. You don’t have any other pants?”
“I do. But they’re not as comfortable.”
“Ah, I see.” She sat back and brought her feet together, grabbing them with both hands as she subtly waved her legs like a butterfly. “Still… pajamas.”
I could tell she was teasing at this point. Her wavering voice gave away the fact she was trying not to laugh.
“Fine, do you want me to change, then?” I teased back.
“No, no! You look cute in your pajamas!”
Now I wanted to change clothes.
“I don’t usually wear mine until bedtime.”
I looked back down at my papers. “You wear your uniform at home?”
“No, I change into normal clothes.”
Although I was staring at them, I couldn’t really focus on writing while I was talking. “Normal?”
“Like…” She waved her hands at herself, top to bottom. “You know, casual clothes you wear outside of school.”
“Oh. You wear your dresses too, or…?”
She waited this time. “Hm? No, not at home.”
“Ah.” I finally put down my pencil. There was no point in pretending, and it felt rude.
“What are you studying?” Akiho looked over, tilting her head.
“I’m—”
“Wait, why are you studying?! It’s summer!”
“I’m not. I’m writing.”
“Oh. Well, looks all the same to me.” She leaned back, head still tilted. “All I see is kanji.”
I silently stared past her, bringing my hands together beneath the table. I never had friends come over, so I had no idea what we could do to interest her. Akiho knows this, and told me to leave it to her.
She got up from the floor and went to her bag. “Well, then! Time to change!”
“I thought you didn’t change until bedtime.”
“Yeah, but…”
Hearing her voice muffle, I looked over, but quickly glanced away once I realized she was pulling off her dress already.
“… if you’re already changed, I should change too.”
“Hey, now… The curtains are open.” I got up to pull the sheers shut.
“Hm? Oh,” she dismissively murmured. “You don’t need to. I’m not naked. And what are the chances someone will look inside right this moment?”
“Still…” I closed them anyway, still only vaguely staring in her general direction, even though I knew she didn’t mind. She was wearing some kind of tight shirt underneath at least.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, looking up as she crouched down to her bag. “That’s cool! Those curtains are see-through!”
“I still like some sort of privacy.”
“How do you change in the changing rooms at school then?”
“At least we’re all girls. And I still face the wall.”
She folded up her dress before putting it away. She glanced up again. “I hope I’m not being rude, then.”
“No. If you’re comfortable with it.”
“Yeah. Sorry, I don’t really think when there aren’t any boys around,” she shrugged, continuing.
“I guess this is normal for you.” She was in a martial arts club after all.
“Yeah, I really don’t like thinking.”
“Sorry, I mean, changing clothes.”
“Oh. Yeah, that too.” She pulled out more yellow particles of clothing. “I mean, yeah, changing is normal. Not that I don’t like changing.”
“I know what you mean.”
I sat back down and watched her pull on a pair of yellow shorts, then a yellow shirt with short sleeves. There was a red, fake ribbon bow at the neckline of her shirt.
“Tada!” Akiho turned towards me and hopped a little, spreading her arms out. They certainly looked more like western pajamas, if at all. I could have mistaken her pants as running shorts. Although, the clothes were too loose-fitting for running. I could easily see her collar bones.
“I didn’t know yellow was your color.”
“It isn’t. But it matched so perfectly that I had to.”
“Oh, you have other ones.”
“Yeah, I have a pink, a pastel green, and a light teal set, I think.”
“I just wear the same ones the whole week.”
“Really?!”
I straightened, surprised by her exclamation.
“You don’t feel disgusting by the end of the week?”
“No…”
“I certainly would.”
“Although you go outside more than I do.”
“Oh, that’s true.” She leaned over her bag and took out a box. “But it’s hot in here, too. You don’t sweat in your room?”
“Ehh…” I thought for a moment. “I guess I do.”
“Doesn’t bother you, I suppose?”
“We all get used to our own smell. So we don’t notice it as easily as other people would.”
“Oh…” She paused. “That’s… interesting.”
By the tone of her voice, I wondered if I said something strange. Or maybe she was simply confused or disinterested. In the room next door, I heard my mom call us over for dinner.
“Yes, be right there!” I replied. Gathering my papers together, I moved them to the desk behind me. “Let’s go.”
Akiho jumped to a stand. “Right!”