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“Sorry you got dragged into that mess yesterday,” Asahi muttered, apologizing to Fuyuka immediately after he’d opened the door.
It was the next day. Kazuaki and Toko had already left just as quickly as they’d come storming in like a hurricane.
“Hehe. There’s no need for an apology. It wasn’t your fault.”
“I appreciate you saying that, but I’m sure the noise drove you crazy.”
“I wouldn’t say they were noisy, per se... just a bit excited.”
“Same thing when you look at it. They’re still ridiculously loud.”
“Well, either way, I enjoyed myself. The time I spent with them was just as wonderful as their cooking,” Fuyuka remarked as she reached for the brilliantly-colored ratatouille.
Asahi took a bite himself. The concentrated tang of the ingredients spread throughout his mouth and breathed warmth into his very core.
The table was loaded with a plethora of other... unique dishes. There were boiled eggs, spinach gratin, and pork rillette, just to name a few. Needless to say, each and every one of them had been meticulously prepared by his parents.
They wanted to cook for me from time to time. At least, that’s what they told me, Asahi reflected. He felt like it had been a declaration of sorts. They would also be saddened if he forgot what a family-prepared meal tasted like. My dad wouldn’t stop pestering me to share the food with Fuyuka when he was leaving. I mean, I think it’s a bit over the top, but hey. I’m not the kind of guy to defy his parents’ good intentions just because. Besides, I was gonna call her over anyways.
“It’s amazing,” he remarked.
“And makes you feel warm and snug on the inside, too,” Fuyuka noted with a grin. She conveyed her rather abstract impressions with a cup of corn soup in her hands.
Asahi took another mouthful of the ratatouille and indulged its sentimental taste.
I’ve heard that French cuisine retains its original flavor, even when it’s a few days old. It definitely lives up to that claim. Hell, it tastes two times better. But I guess that’s what happens when you’ve got a master chef in the kitchen.
Yesterday had proved to be an exhausting start to the New Year, but that wasn’t to say it hadn’t come with some perks. Asahi’s parents had prepared a few dinners’ worth of marvelous food for him aside from the New Year’s osechi.
Even Fuyuka doesn’t seem to be bothered at all with what happened, so I’m not complaining.
“You, your father, and your mother... all of the Kagamis prepare exquisite food,” Fuyuka said.
“I don’t think I come even remotely close to their ability, to be honest.”
“Well, from where I stand, that puts them on a whole different planet.”
“You kinda have to be when you’re cooking at that level.”
“That makes it all the more important to cherish any advice they give you.”
“Advice?”
“Yes, advice.”
Fuyuka simply parroted what Asahi had said back to him, but it didn’t help to enlighten him at all.
Wait a second... I think I remember her speaking to my mom in the kitchen yesterday. Was she teaching her or something? Nah, wouldn’t make sense. They didn’t talk for long, and to be honest, that dish was stages above Fuyuka’s current level.
As he was absorbed in his thoughts, Fuyuka brought out her phone—seldomly used, but the latest model nevertheless—from her pocket and opened up the messaging app. Asahi recalled that she’d once told him that her contacts list consisted only of relatives and him.
In the end, cooking isn’t just about how good it tastes—it’s about how much love you put into it.
Fuyuka held out the phone screen for him, which featured a familiar-looking message alongside an even more familiar-looking name. Asahi rubbed his eyes a few times in disbelief, but the name remained the same. Toko Kagami.
“You’re telling me you got my mom’s number?”
“She told me she’ll make time in her busy schedule to teach me the basics of cooking.”
“Good for you,” Asahi said. You don’t get the chance to be tutored by an elite pro every day. Fuyuka’s ability will be elevated to the next level. I’m happy for her.
Contrary to his sugary thoughts, however, his cheeks twitched and spasmed. He was genuinely afraid that his mother would offer some... unsolicited comments about other subjects that didn’t necessarily fall under the scope of cooking.
“Speaking of, seems like you had no problems hitting it off with my parents,” Asahi noted. Fuyuka tilted her head in puzzlement. “Uh, I mean... You know. You’re not exactly the talkative type.”
“I’m aware. That’s how I received my ‘Ice Queen’ nickname to begin with.”
“You shouldn’t speak about yourself like that.”
“You don’t need to worry. I brought that onto myself.”
It feels like we’ve had this conversation before, but the Fuyuka in front of me is completely different from the coldhearted one from before, Asahi thought.
Although she’d told him that her nickname didn’t irritate back then, her permanently-frigid mood, coupled with the icy, no-nonsense glare she wore had done very little for her credibility.
“But you know,” her clear, gorgeous voice tickled his ears. Her expression, gentle as it was, exhibited an unyielding determination indicative of the fundamental change in Fuyuka’s mindset. “I’ve been thinking of changing my ways recently. I know it won’t be easy at first, but if I take small steps... Besides, your parents are very much like you.”
“What do you mean?”
“They were the ones who made an effort to approach me, and they wouldn’t take no for an answer. How could I have possibly turned them down?”
“Oh, so that’s what you meant.”
“You were very pushy when we first met too, remember?”
“I was, now that I think back to it,” he agreed. And I’m only just beginning to realize how much of a hassle it must’ve been for her. Probably more than my parents made her go through. Well, it wasn’t all that bad, in retrospect. It was thanks to my overbearing nature back then that I get to be with Fuyuka right now.
And if the time they spent together brought along gradual change in her character, then Asahi was happy to be the catalyst, for better or for worse. That gave him all the more incentive to impose himself upon her one more time.
“Say, Fuyuka. Remember that time you met the rowdy duo at my apartment?” he asked.
“I do. What about them?”
“I’m going to visit the shrine with them tomorrow. They’re equally—if not more—annoying than my parents, and they love to cause a ruckus. They’re particularly obnoxious and hell-bent on bringing up romance at every opportunity, but they’re great people. I think you’d get along fine with them.”
It took her a second to understand what he was trying to tell her. Fuyuka, who had isolated herself within a glacial wall detached from people, was now considering taking the first steps toward constructing a relationship with others. Asahi wondered if the decision to change her attitude had anything to do with the rumor that was currently circulating about the “Ice Queen’s” icy façade melting away.
There were only two people that sprung to mind who would be a perfect fit for the job.
“So, you wanna come with? Those two really want to become friends with you,” he proposed. Chiaki and Hinami will finally be able to befriend the real Fuyuka Himuro, not “The Ice Queen” front she kept for so long.
Fuyuka’s head drooped. She paused for a moment to steel her resolve before muttering, “If they’re your friends... then yes, I want to go with you.”
She shot a piercing gaze at Asahi. Although her eyes carried a tinge of distress, they also projected her firm will to move forward.
“Got it. I’ll let them know,” he said. Man, how will Chiaki and Hinami react when they find out? Never mind, they’re already going crazy just from the messages I’m seeing.
Now that Fuyuka would actually meet “The Obnoxious Couple,” Asahi felt the need to protect her from their regular antics. They had a bad habit of sticking their noses in where they didn’t belong, for example.
Still, it would also be the start of a new chapter in Asahi and Fuyuka’s relationship, and the mere thought made him smile.