Chapter 40: Cooking Time
Me, Kaede, Shinji and Otsuki-san were in the middle of making scones. Kaede was smiling happily as she kneaded the dough for the scones in the apron she had been given.
“Yuya, you can admire it, but you have to knead the dough, okay?”
“… Shut up, Shinji. You’re not someone who’s allowed to say this.”
Shinji and I often tended to pause what we were doing. At any rate, it warms my heart just to see the two of them working together in front of me, looking so friendly. I want to look at them forever.
“(In English) You boys! Move your hands!“
I was in a daze when I received a reprimand from my teacher. But the tone of his voice was rather cheerful and it sounded more of a teasing, like, ‘Don’t fancy her, concentrate on making scones!’ Shinji and I tried to hide our embarrassment by looking down at the ball and doing our best to make the dough.
“Fufu. Yuya-kun, were you fawning over me?”
“Shin-kun, were you fawning over me?”
Sure enough, the two girls pursued us with smirking faces. In this kind of situation, Kaede was very troublesome. She would stare at me until I answered, and if I didn’t answer because I was embarrassed, she would get teary-eyed and sulk. And if this happened, I would immediately raise the white flag.
“Ah, yes. Kaede and her friends were having so much fun, we were both admiring them. Is it bad?”
“Wait, Yuya! What are you talking about? I’m not—”
Shut up, Shinji! You should just nod your head and let me handle this! It was better to be honest and tell the truth rather than to be pursued further and have Kaede and the others make fun of you for it.
“Oh, I see… that’s not bad at all…, yes.”
“Shi, Shin-kun, so you have that kind of thing going on too! Ahahaha… I didn’t know that!”
What kind of boy wouldn’t be thrilled to see a smile that was different from the ones he saw every day, a look that was only possible in this place? If he didn’t, his eyes must be blind!
“Kaede-chan… when I was listening to you talking about him on the bus, I had been thinking, does Yoshi always say this to you? Isn’t it dangerous?”
“Akiho-chan, so you finally understand… That’s right. Yuya-kun is natural at it. I think I heard him on the bus, and he says things that I would normally be too embarrassed to say. Thanks to that, I’m always in trouble.”
Kaede, what do you mean by that? What’s wrong with being honest about my admiration? Then, was it correct to say that I’m not admiring you? No, no, no, I couldn’t help it. It was a fact that I was admiring Kaede’s smile. You think the same about Otsuki-san, right, Shinji?
And there was one more thing that had been bothering me. What were you listening to on the bus, you two?
“Yuya. Isn’t it time to shut up?”
Shinji gave me an angry smile; his face was smiling, but his eyes were not. And I’m scared to death, so can you please stop slamming the dough into the bowl?
“If Yuya would just shut up and do the work, I’d stop, okay?”
“What did I do at all to deserve this…”
I don’t know what was going on, but I didn’t want to upset Shinji any more than I already have, so I kept my mouth shut and concentrated on my work.
But I could hear the sighs and murmurs of admiration from the girls in the classroom.
“I admire that about you, Hitotsuba-san. I’d so like to be able to express my feelings in a straightforward manner like that.”
“Yoshizumi-kun is really handsome because he says it as a matter of fact without being pretentious…”
In the meantime, the few boys have declared their defeat.
“I can’t do this… I would be dying of embarrassment…”
“So this is the skill of the man who ensnared Japan’s prettiest high school girl, Hitotsuba-san… I can’t do it!”
“(In English) Ah, in the middle of your youth. I see you are enjoying it.”
After a final blow from my teacher, I decided to remain silent until the scones were finished.
＊＊＊＊＊
The scones came out fine, but to be honest, the taste was a bit bland. They didn’t taste good and left my mouth a bit dry. No matter how much sweet milk tea one drank, it was difficult to enjoy them.
“It’s not sweetened, because that’s how it’s supposed to taste. It would be nice to have jam or something, but we don’t have that.”
Kaede, as expected, was eating her scones with a wry smile.
“I think it would taste better if you put chocolate chips or something to add sweetness. But for now, let’s just be patient. Shall we have our revenge at home?”
“No, thanks, I’ll pass…”
I’d rather have the chocolate cake you made the other day than make scones at home. That cake was so good. This comparison showed how difficult it was to make, compared to those scones.
Making the scones themselves was very easy. You just make the dough as instructed, knead it, shape it and bake it in the oven. There wasn’t a single complicated step. But the chocolate cake that Kaede made for me for Valentine’s Day was nothing like this. She must have dedicated a lot of time and effort to make it. It makes me painfully aware of it, but also very happy.
“I wish you could make it because I’d love to eat it again…”
“Of course, if Yuya-kun wants, I can always make it for you. But if I do, why don’t you make it together with me? I’m sure it’s more fun that way.”
That’s right. It’s not a bad idea for two people to sit in the kitchen and bake together. I’m sure I’ll make a mistake with the measurements, or the shape won’t be perfect, or something will happen. And yet, I’m sure—
“I don’t know if I can do it well, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy the time I spend cooking with you, Kaede. I have a feeling it will be fun.”
“Mou. You are a really good talker, Yuya-kun. But I’m glad you said that. I’m looking forward to making it with you.”
Kaede’s smile warmed my heart. Oh, I can’t wait to go home and make a cake.
“… Akiho. I know what you’re thinking, but don’t say anything, okay? If you poke into it, you’ll lose, alright?”
“Shin-kun… but isn’t this way too cruel!? Isn’t it a hard struggle not to say anything in front of this strawberry space!?”
“If you can’t stand it, you won’t be able to stand it in the future, so let’s get used to it while we still can, okay?”
Could you two please shut up? You can’t enter our world… and Shinji! Don’t say anything you don’t have to!
And tomorrow night. I’ve got a big game coming up for me. What if they find out…?
“What’s the matter, Yuya-kun? Your face is red, you know?”
‘I was thinking about how to tell you how I feel about you, Kaede.’ How could I say that? I laughed and pretended that it was nothing.
Chapter 40: Cooking Time
Me, Kaede, Shinji and Otsuki-san were in the middle of making scones. Kaede was smiling happily as she kneaded the dough for the scones in the apron she had been given.
“Yuya, you can admire it, but you have to knead the dough, okay?”
“… Shut up, Shinji. You’re not someone who’s allowed to say this.”
Shinji and I often tended to pause what we were doing. At any rate, it warms my heart just to see the two of them working together in front of me, looking so friendly. I want to look at them forever.
“(In English) You boys! Move your hands!“
I was in a daze when I received a reprimand from my teacher. But the tone of his voice was rather cheerful and it sounded more of a teasing, like, ‘Don’t fancy her, concentrate on making scones!’ Shinji and I tried to hide our embarrassment by looking down at the ball and doing our best to make the dough.
“Fufu. Yuya-kun, were you fawning over me?”
“Shin-kun, were you fawning over me?”
Sure enough, the two girls pursued us with smirking faces. In this kind of situation, Kaede was very troublesome. She would stare at me until I answered, and if I didn’t answer because I was embarrassed, she would get teary-eyed and sulk. And if this happened, I would immediately raise the white flag.
“Ah, yes. Kaede and her friends were having so much fun, we were both admiring them. Is it bad?”
“Wait, Yuya! What are you talking about? I’m not—”
Shut up, Shinji! You should just nod your head and let me handle this! It was better to be honest and tell the truth rather than to be pursued further and have Kaede and the others make fun of you for it.
“Oh, I see… that’s not bad at all…, yes.”
“Shi, Shin-kun, so you have that kind of thing going on too! Ahahaha… I didn’t know that!”
What kind of boy wouldn’t be thrilled to see a smile that was different from the ones he saw every day, a look that was only possible in this place? If he didn’t, his eyes must be blind!
“Kaede-chan… when I was listening to you talking about him on the bus, I had been thinking, does Yoshi always say this to you? Isn’t it dangerous?”
“Akiho-chan, so you finally understand… That’s right. Yuya-kun is natural at it. I think I heard him on the bus, and he says things that I would normally be too embarrassed to say. Thanks to that, I’m always in trouble.”
Kaede, what do you mean by that? What’s wrong with being honest about my admiration? Then, was it correct to say that I’m not admiring you? No, no, no, I couldn’t help it. It was a fact that I was admiring Kaede’s smile. You think the same about Otsuki-san, right, Shinji?
And there was one more thing that had been bothering me. What were you listening to on the bus, you two?
“Yuya. Isn’t it time to shut up?”
Shinji gave me an angry smile; his face was smiling, but his eyes were not. And I’m scared to death, so can you please stop slamming the dough into the bowl?
“If Yuya would just shut up and do the work, I’d stop, okay?”
“What did I do at all to deserve this…”
I don’t know what was going on, but I didn’t want to upset Shinji any more than I already have, so I kept my mouth shut and concentrated on my work.
But I could hear the sighs and murmurs of admiration from the girls in the classroom.
“I admire that about you, Hitotsuba-san. I’d so like to be able to express my feelings in a straightforward manner like that.”
“Yoshizumi-kun is really handsome because he says it as a matter of fact without being pretentious…”
In the meantime, the few boys have declared their defeat.
“I can’t do this… I would be dying of embarrassment…”
“So this is the skill of the man who ensnared Japan’s prettiest high school girl, Hitotsuba-san… I can’t do it!”
“(In English) Ah, in the middle of your youth. I see you are enjoying it.”
After a final blow from my teacher, I decided to remain silent until the scones were finished.
＊＊＊＊＊
The scones came out fine, but to be honest, the taste was a bit bland. They didn’t taste good and left my mouth a bit dry. No matter how much sweet milk tea one drank, it was difficult to enjoy them.
“It’s not sweetened, because that’s how it’s supposed to taste. It would be nice to have jam or something, but we don’t have that.”
Kaede, as expected, was eating her scones with a wry smile.
“I think it would taste better if you put chocolate chips or something to add sweetness. But for now, let’s just be patient. Shall we have our revenge at home?”
“No, thanks, I’ll pass…”
I’d rather have the chocolate cake you made the other day than make scones at home. That cake was so good. This comparison showed how difficult it was to make, compared to those scones.
Making the scones themselves was very easy. You just make the dough as instructed, knead it, shape it and bake it in the oven. There wasn’t a single complicated step. But the chocolate cake that Kaede made for me for Valentine’s Day was nothing like this. She must have dedicated a lot of time and effort to make it. It makes me painfully aware of it, but also very happy.
“I wish you could make it because I’d love to eat it again…”
“Of course, if Yuya-kun wants, I can always make it for you. But if I do, why don’t you make it together with me? I’m sure it’s more fun that way.”
That’s right. It’s not a bad idea for two people to sit in the kitchen and bake together. I’m sure I’ll make a mistake with the measurements, or the shape won’t be perfect, or something will happen. And yet, I’m sure—
“I don’t know if I can do it well, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy the time I spend cooking with you, Kaede. I have a feeling it will be fun.”
“Mou. You are a really good talker, Yuya-kun. But I’m glad you said that. I’m looking forward to making it with you.”
Kaede’s smile warmed my heart. Oh, I can’t wait to go home and make a cake.
“… Akiho. I know what you’re thinking, but don’t say anything, okay? If you poke into it, you’ll lose, alright?”
“Shin-kun… but isn’t this way too cruel!? Isn’t it a hard struggle not to say anything in front of this strawberry space!?”
“If you can’t stand it, you won’t be able to stand it in the future, so let’s get used to it while we still can, okay?”
Could you two please shut up? You can’t enter our world… and Shinji! Don’t say anything you don’t have to!
And tomorrow night. I’ve got a big game coming up for me. What if they find out…?
“What’s the matter, Yuya-kun? Your face is red, you know?”
‘I was thinking about how to tell you how I feel about you, Kaede.’ How could I say that? I laughed and pretended that it was nothing.
