Merry Christmas! Our anonymous prompt this week is: Pudding

Okay, this is really sad, but I'm busy today and about to get even busier, so I wanted something short and... well, sweet, I guess, since it involves pudding. And to run with a theme we've already beaten to death. ***** "Are you sure this is right, Onechan?" Jinpei called out from behind the door. "Just hurry up and get dressed!" Jun urged. "The kids from the orphanage will be here at any moment, and they're expecting to see Santa!" "But the costume is leaking!" Jinpei moaned. Jun frowned. If they had to return a stained costume, they wouldn't get back their deposit. "Let me see." she said, bursting into the room. Sure enough, a brow stain was seeping through the edge of the coat. "Oh, Jinpei, what is this?" Jun exclaimed, hurriedly brushing at the spot with a damp cloth. "Pudding." Jinpei replied. "In the instructions, they said to put pudding underneath the coat. I thought it was a little strange at first, but I figured that's what they mean by that song about the figgy pudding." "Let me see those instructions!" Jun sighed, after pulling out the ziploc bags of pudding strapped to Jinpei's stomach. Her eyes ran down the page, and suddenly she began to laugh. "Jinpei..." she giggled, "it says to put padding behind the coat!"

That's so "sweet", TJ! Leave it to Jinpei to mess things up when it comes to read something out well!

LOL, poor Jinpei, I think 2013 will go down as "the year Jinpei couldn't read"!

Originally posted by KT1972 LOL, poor Jinpei, I think 2013 will go down as "the year Jinpei couldn't read"!

I knew I had to do just one more of those!

Originally posted by KT1972 LOL, poor Jinpei, I think 2013 will go down as "the year Jinpei couldn't read"!

That crossed my mind, too! I think his first resolution for 2014 is going to be to make an extra effort and read more! But ... really ... how many times do we, ourselves, misread a word when reading in a hurry or when taking things for granted, speaking first for myself?!

Sounds more to me that Jinpei might have dyslexia. Here's a really short one for you: Ken sauntered over to the blonde sitting at the bar, Joe's dare ringing through his ears. All he had to do was get a dance and he'd get the money. "Hi, Pudding. Wanna dance?" he asked, giving her the full power of his baby blue eyes. The slap resounded all the way through the bar. When Ken got back to their table, the woman's handprint still on his cheek, Joe was laughing so hard he was in danger of bursting a blood vessel. "Pudding? Geez, Ken. You save that one for a few dates in!" Joe chortled, pounding his fist on the table as he laughed more. Ken sat and glared at him. That was all he could do.

"Hi, Pudding!" I didn't know Ken loved pudding so much!

Seems his big baby blues can't compensate for a lousy chat up line...

Youch! If anyone called me 'Pudding' (even my husband) I'd be squicked out! Either that, or think it was a comment on my weight. Ugh...

There is always the famously horrible 'Wanna be my luv puddin'?'

Love that you've continued the "tradition" TJ! LOL. BR: Ugh! Puddin'. LOL. One of the few things I've never been called, thank goodness! Ok here's my contribution for the week. Not great but definitely silly.... ********************************** Jinpei stirred the pot he was leaning over in the kitchen of the Snack J. Closing his eyes, he inhaled. Perfect. Jinpei thought to himself. Just perfect. Double Chocolate Fudge Pudding. He was saving it for later on that night, when the Scream Channel on TV was going to be running a horror movie marathon. Only he'd have to keep Jun from finding and devouring it, since she loved his chocolate pudding. Hell, she loved anything chocolate. It was like gold to her. Pushing some aside some half empty Chinese food cartons, and sliding out a pizza box, he made room for the bowl behind a large container of milk. Onechan would never look behind it. It was as good as his. Whistling to himself, he quickly loaded up the dishwasher and wiped the counter down with a soapy sponge. When he was finished he backed up a few steps and with a practiced flick of the wrist, tossed it in a perfect arc towards the sink, where it landed neatly in the dish-rack. "Yeah! Two points!" Jinpei hooted, flashing a "V" sign to no one in particular. It was still early in the afternoon, so he flung his apron across the back of a chair by the door and flipped up his skateboard into his hand. He had plenty of time to head to the park for awhile before his sister got home from her day at the mall. He snapped off the light, opened the door and stepped out into the sunshine, and locked it behind him. Joe walked through the front door of the Snack J and frowned. All the lights were out. It was deathly quiet. "Jun?" he called out, as he dropped a large wrinkled paper bag on top of the bar. No answer. "Squirt, are you here?" Silence. He pushed his way into the kitchen. He was starving, his stomach rumbling and complaining. There was nothing but dust in the cabinets in his tiny trailer and he didn't feel like running to the grocery store. Scratching his chest, he made his way over to the fridge. Maybe it was a good thing Jun wasn't here, she'd probably try and make him something. Like a hamburger that was more like a hockey puck. His mouth curled up in a smile at the thought. It didn't matter if he told her no, because she'd do it anyway. How he became the one she experimented on with her cooking was beyond him. Man, he really must've done something in the past to totally piss her off. Joe opened the freezer, and poked around for a minute or two, shifting boxes of frozen this, and bags of frozen that aside. But nothing really appealed to him. With a sigh he yanked open the fridge, and found some leftover sliced roast beef and some cheese. Shoving a loaf of some kind of artisan bread under his arm and snagging the beef and cheese between his fingers, he flung them towards the kitchen counter while shutting the fridge door with his foot. He made short work of it, quickly hacking off a large piece of bread and slicing it lengthwise, before stuffing it full of cheese and meat. Tearing off a hunk of the sandwich with his teeth, he leaned back against the counter and chewed. Ken and Ryu were supposed to come by the Snack later that night. Jun had begged them to teach her how to play poker, and after a few comments that poker was a "guys" game, they finally relented and gave in to her request. Besides, Ken was probably broke with no money for food or booze and he himself, had nothing at his place. Playing cards at the Snack was a good idea, Jun would supply them with beer and pizza, and Ryu always bought bags of snacks from the Mini-Mart before coming by. They'd be set for the night. Brushing crumbs off his shirt, he turned and wiped down the counter with a sponge from the dish-rack, and found he was thirsty. Peering once more into the fridge, he spied a carton of milk, way in the back. He dragged it out and he almost took a swig from it when he caught sight of something pushed behind it. Sticking his arm back inside, he hooked the bowl with his fingers, sliding it towards him. It was a huge bowl of chocolate pudding. It must've been freshly made because it hadn't set yet. Slowly, a smile worked its way across his face. Ah! Joe thought to himself, spying the large bowl of chocolate pudding in the back of the fridge. Perfect! Just perfect. Now, where were those glasses he wondered, opening cabinets above the stove and looking in the ones beneath the counter. "According to my tally, " Jun said frowning at the piece of paper in front of her. "You owe me $400 Joe." "Whhhaaat?" he exclaimed in shock. He had been leaning back in his chair, and legs suddenly came smacking down onto the floor with a thump. "Ssss'right..." Ken slurred, knocking back another beer. "You owe 'er big time...." He punctuated each word with a tip of his beer bottle in Joe's direction, and almost slid out of his chair. "Easy there lightweight...."Ryu laughed, shoving Ken upright once more. "I think you've had enough..." "I owe her big time?" Joe remarked, fixing their leader with a stare. "How big is your tab again...?" The confused look that crossed Ken's face was comical. "Oh stop...!" Jun chuckled, tossing her pencil and pad onto the table. She looked over at Ken and gently smacked him on the forehead. "Don't think too hard Ken, you'll hurt yourself." Ryu got up from his chair, and went over to the jukebox, to select a new round of songs. Joe frowned at her, eyeing her suspiciously. "You're a ringer. Aren't you?" he drawled, grey eyes appraising her. "You knew how to play poker already...." Her eyebrows shot up and her green eyes grew wide with the accusation. "Me?" she said innocently, batting her eyelashes at him. Joe groaned, his hands on his head as he stared up at the ceiling. "So," Jun quipped. "Pay me." "Pay you?" he repeated hollowly. "Jun...I..." He paused, and then pointed a finger at her. "Wait right there." he told her, pushing away from the table. "I've got something better than money. Something all girls like...." A short bark of laughter escaped her lips as Jun watched him walk into the kitchen, wondering just what he was doing. He wasn't gone long, but when he returned, he was frowning again. "Jun, where did the rest of the glasses from the fridge go?" "What glasses Joe?" she asked, not sure what he was talking about. "You know, the pudding filled ones. "he said, jerking his thumb towards the kitchen. "What are you talking about?" "Well, there are empty shot glasses all over the counter Jun." "What!?" she cried, bolting up from her seat."There are empty shot glasses on the kitchen counter?" "Yeah, I made pudding shots for tonight, when I came by earlier." he laughed at her expression. "Didn't you see them in the fridge?" "Pudding shots?" she said numbly, walking towards the kitchen door. "Yeah, you know. Pudding mixed with kahlua and vodka." "Joe, that's gross...." she remarked, shoving past him. Joe followed her into the kitchen, and sure enough there were quite a few empty shot glasses on the counter. Some of them were laying on their sides, others lined up neatly. "Geez!" Ryu laughed, having pushed open the door behind them. "Wow many did you have Jun?" "I didn't have any!" she cried, hand pressed flat against her chest. "I didn't know Joe made them, or that they were in the fridge....." "Well then, who did?" Joe asked her. "Got a ghost in the Snack that we don't know about, Jun?" "Ummm, guys, where's Jinpei?" Ryu asked, eyes growing wary. "He wanted to watch a movie marathon upstairs..." Jun said mind racing . "Why..." Jinpei. Joe groaned, as Jun sprinted up the stairs to the apartment above the Snack. Ryu followed her, trudging up the stairs and trying to stifle a snicker behind one hand. And there they found Jinpei, passed out in front of the TV in his bedroom, while Godzilla stomped on Tokyo in all his technicolor glory, breathing fire. His face was smeared with chocolate, and a few spots of it streaked his pajama top. "Jinpei!" Jun cried, shaking him. "Jinpei wake up." A moan escaped from between his lips, and chocolate laced alcohol breath hit her right in the face. "Ugh! Jinpei!" she grimaced. "How many of those things did you eat?" "I don't know..." he murmured. "They were in such small glasses...but they were sooo good..." Sighing, she stood up. "Joe, how much alcohol did you put into those things." He shrugged, and dug into the one he suddenly had in his hand, with a spoon from the table in front of the TV. "Probably enough to knock out Godzilla." Ryu commented, sinking down into the chair next to Jinpei's bed, eyes glued to the TV screen. Jun shook her head, staring at Joe. He held out the spoon to her, eyes laughing, offering a taste. Reluctantly, she reached out and took it from him. She carefully inspected the blob of pudding on the spoon, before tentatively tasting it with her tongue. It was then that Joe found himself trying to fend her off, trying to stop her from grabbing the shot glass from his hand. He held the glass high above his head, and out of her reach. "Come on Joe!" she pouted. "Ah-ah! You thought the idea of pudding shots were...how did you put it? 'Gross'." "I changed my mind...!" And the battle for the pudding shot began in earnest. After all, the proof of the pudding was in the eating.

Oh, poor Jinpei! He really is getting the short end of he stick this week, isn't he?

RB, but that's what happens when adult products look appealing to kids....

[unrecoverable text]

RB ... LOL ... I don't wish to be in Jinpei's place the next morning with what would surely must have been a huge hangover after all those shots ... and he's only a kid! Jun must have soon started to curse the puddings, too, after having to clean after all the puking!! KT ... I loved this piece, but I really think that I must find some time to go back through the previous Bradbury's Jar threads I've left unread in order to catch up with the story! The ending of this piece truly seems like a Christmas miracle, and the best gift Jun could have received!

Marie, no worries, I will be posting my whole years's prompts on Gatchafanfic in the new year, so everyone who might have missed some will be able to follow the story.

Great, KT!

Very sweet, KT! I am really looking forward to Ken and Jun's reunion! But... What *is* the story of Jinpei and the Christmas pudding???

RB- Can't say I've ever had loaded pudding before, but I bet it was good. KT- yeah, Ken's getting better! A great Christmas present.

[unrecoverable text]

TJ: LOL, still, it's funny and cute. Becky: LOL poor Ken, all that tactical training and so little attention paid to pick-up lines and pet names. Hopefully Joe will use some of his winnings to buy Ken a sympathy beer. Redbird: Very cute! Drunk Ken is adorable, and so is drunk Jinpei. I'm sure Jinpei's hangover is gonna be epic. He's gonna want to know why there's pudding all over his room, too. KT: This is so very sweet. Nice to see that Ken's recovering and it sounds like Jun's gonna get her Christmas wish. For once Ken won't be picking up an awful or lame Christmas gift, at least, hehe.

Chris - Looks like Nambu is actually taking Joe's opinion seriously. that should give him some confidence for what he's going to have to do. Love the kitchen scene... About time someone was Kind about Jun's cooking!

Originally posted by ChrisW KT: This is so very sweet. Nice to see that Ken's recovering and it sounds like Jun's gonna get her Christmas wish. For once Ken won't be picking up an awful or lame Christmas gift, at least, hehe.

I think he's got the perfect "get out" clause this year, eh? Lol

That was my Christmas present to Jun. Her pudding came out right!

It's interesting to see Nambu taking such a young Joe seriously. But of course. knowing RI, he might be inclined to agree that bringing him in could complicate things!

[unrecoverable text]

I get the impression the team hasn't met RI yet to have any opinions of him. Lord help him when Joe does meet him. Is Joe's sympathy for Ken due to his own horrible experience, or is Joe falling for him? Would Joe really be able to kill Ken's mother?

[unrecoverable text]

LOL, I can see how that would be memorable! Thanks, KT!!!

KT: LOL Joe, you can be a real bastard! I'm thinking that Joe kinda told Nambu what he wanted to hear. After all, Kentaro lied to him all these years, and Nambu's been churning in guilt all this time. Calling Kentaro in means having to confront the elephant in the room. Plus, Nambu feels he failed Ken and his mother already, he doesn't want to do it again.

Originally posted by ChrisW I'm thinking that Joe kinda told Nambu what he wanted to hear. After all, Kentaro lied to him all these years, and Nambu's been churning in guilt all this time. Calling Kentaro in means having to confront the elephant in the room. Plus, Nambu feels he failed Ken and his mother already, he doesn't want to do it again.

That really makes sense! My mind is taking me there, too! Due to the circumstances, and to how much Joe has already gotten so close to Ken on an emotional level, it's not surprising how Nambu is thinking at Joe's same level. Plus, only God knows how much more complicated is the whole story! I can already sense a great bond growing between Joe and Ken! Can't wait to read more and very well done, CW! I've finally managed to catch up with the Bradbury's Jar threads, till now! What a lovely Christmas Eve, yesterday! Before spending precious, comfy time with my family in the evening, I've had the most longed for chance to spend some lovely time for myself, reading what I like to read most ... all of your contributions! To speed up things, and in order to make it in time, I couldn't leave individual comments to everyone, but I hereby congratulate all of you for your lovely stories and ideas! EW, KT and CW ... your stories, which continue from thread to thread, are really hooking me up! You're doing such a great job of using the prompts so adequately in order to produce an ongoing plot! KT ... so that's Jinpei's pudding story! Many thanks for sharing it with us! It has put a smile on my face!

Thank you for the extra "treat" this morning KT! Loved the Christmas Pudding Story! I did think that Jinpei was going to somehow set fire to the kitchen, but I'm glad that didn't happen! LOL.

Sounds like Jinpei may be taking a page from Jun's cook book. Maybe that's her problem - she skips some of the steps as she cooks.