He nodded fervently. “There were sooo many carrots and onions. And now, they smell real nice while they’re bubbling away…” Kon paused. “By the way, Mikura, you mentioned that you’re gonna remake the leftover sauce yesterday into curry or stew, but…what are you gonna do with the leftover sauce today? You’ve got loads more than yesterday… With this much, even Techi and I won’t be able to finish it off.”
“That’s a good question…” I sighed. “I’ll transfer the leftover sauce today into zipper bags and store them in the freezer. Since they are cooked and frozen, they should preserve well for quite a long time, so I can just gradually chip away at my reserves.”
“Ohhh! So you can just freeze it!”
“Yep,” I said. “That doesn’t just apply to sauces like this. You can do the same with vegetables and meat as long as you make the necessary preparations beforehand. They become convenient preserves that you can use at any time.” I shrugged. “But well, your freezer is only so big. You’ve got to make sure to use your supplies as you go, or else you’ll be in big trouble later on. That’s the one thing you have to be careful with.”
Kon hummed. “Gotcha… Oh yeah, I think Mommy buys lots of food from the supermarket before the New Year holidays and stores them in the freezer. She said it’s because supermarkets don’t open during the first few days of the New Year.”
I nodded. “That’s probably how preserves came to be in the first place. You preserve food during the period when you can get your hands on food, then eat your preserves during the period when you can’t get your hands on food. It was a wisdom we polished for survival. But I guess it was likely also invented so that you can preserve food when you’ve got an abundant harvest you can’t finish. That way, you can store it in case your food ever runs out.
“In that sense, frozen ingredients and frozen food fit the definition of preserves…” I scratched my cheek sheepishly. “But honestly, I still can’t say I’m all that interested in frozen stuff. To me, preserves are the type that you can put up on warehouse shelves—like the ones Gramps used to make.”
“They’re both tasty, so I don’t mind either way!” Kon chirped.
I smiled warmly. “Well, there’s nothing wrong with that. I think that’s a great way of thinking.”
It was then that I hesitated. We’d finished most of the cooking and had a good chat, so it was probably all right to address the elephant in the room by now. Finding my resolve, I asked, “Now, could you tell me what happened during the interview, Kon?”
I couldn’t really read Kon’s expression because of his mask, but it seemed like a difficult topic to him for some reason. I could sense his conflicted feelings from the minute shifts on his face.
For a while, there was only silence.
It lasted until I heard the energetic pitter-patter of feet—someone was sprinting here. It was followed by the spirited greeting of “Hello! I’m coming in!”
I recognized the voice that echoed out. It was Sayori. Like Kon, she dashed to the bathroom, washed her hands, then joined us.
I greeted her with a smile. “Welcome to my humble abode, Sayori. We just so happened to be talking about your marriage interview with Kon. And well, since you’re here to hang out with him…I assume it went well?”
Contrary to my expectations, Sayori’s expression was also a bizarre mix of emotions I couldn’t describe. She replied, “Yes, it went very well! Since our betrothal is official, it was a big success! But…” She furrowed her eyebrows slightly. “Halfway through, Kon was much more interested in talking to Dad than me, and he even got Dad to teach him how to wield his staff… Kon pretty much said yes to the betrothal because of that!”
She huffed. “It’s meant to be a marriage interview, a very important part of your life, but I didn’t get to talk to my partner at all! I’m happy that we are going forward with this, but something just doesn’t sit right with me!”
Without thinking, I let out a noncommittal “Oh…”
Sayori’s father was a police officer—an occupation that young boys like Kon looked up to. Naturally, as a police officer, he was physically fit and must be active in martial arts training as well. Therefore, it makes sense that he was remarkably skilled with wielding a staff. Perhaps I should have expected that he and Kon would hit it off from the very beginning, especially considering how Kon was at an age when he still didn’t really understand or think about romantic love.
In my opinion, Kon wasn’t the one to blame. The system was at fault for making children go to marriage interviews at such a young age. Or maybe the one to blame was Sayori’s father, who’d forgotten his role as a parent and failed to restrain himself in front of her future partner.
Sayori puffed out her chest with determination. “Because of that, pardon my intrusion, but I shall visit your house and the orchard for a while starting from now! I will work very hard for my happy marriage life! I will do all I can to get along better with Kon! Mr. Mikura, please take care of me!”
Now that they were betrothed to each other, it was better for them to get along and understand each other. And of course, I would be elated if I could help them out in any way I can. Thinking that, I nodded with a warm smile and welcomed a new petite frequenter to our cozy home.