Summary: She loves bread. More than anything else. So she is always searching and trying to make a perfect bread until one day, a day after she divorced her husband, she met a man. A baker who baked the tastiest bread ever. And she loves it.
Pairing: Hitsugaya Toshiro X Kurosaki Karin
Searching For the Perfect Bread:
A Bread Lover Story.
She tied up her long hair, rolled up her sleeve until it reached her elbows. Humming a soft happy tune, she washed her hand clean. Today she is going to try her luck to make a good bread. An excellent one with no such problem as the bread too soggy or too hard. She is going to make sure this time it going to be perfect!
And edible of course.
She mixed the flour with melted butter thoroughly, gradually adding flour on the mixture. Satisfied with her now soft dough, she puts the dough on a lightly floured bread board. Cracking her knuckles, she kneads her dough slowly; working with it until she satisfied. Then she placed the dough a greased bowl, turning it over to grease the entire dough ball. Covering her dough with greased plastic wrap, she smiled. Now all she needs to do is to let her dough rise for one hour or so.
Washing her hand, she started to daydream about how she is going to enjoy her bread. Maybe she can eat it just like that for dinner. Oh! Or maybe she can eat it when she is going out to the park. Hmm... Sounds nice. She will do just that!
"Who are you?" a high-pitched woman voice startled her.
Turning around, Karin's blue eyes met a pair of stunning sky blue eyes belong to a beautiful platinum blond haired woman. She raised her eyebrow at her. "I'm the one who should be asking you that. This is my home and what are you doing here?"
The blond haired woman look flabbergasted at her question. "But this is Kenji-san house! He gave me the key to his house"
Karin crossed her hand over her chest, looking as if she annoyed by that. "Who is this Kenji-san to you?" she asked after a minute of silence.
"He's my boyfriend. Who are you?" she asked her, her voice raised a pitch, and it sounds irritating to her ears.
Karin 'humm'-ed softly, ignoring the woman question. "So he keeps a mistress while I'm not here huh?" she murmured to herself, eyeing her wedding ring before she turned to look at the blond woman. "Not bad, he got the taste. I don't think I can take it if he cheats me with someone uglier than me" Still looking at her, she asked the blond haired woman a question that she needs to know. "Say miss. Can I know your name?"
The blond haired woman eyed the wedding ring on her finger. "Are you Kenji-san wife?" she questioned her with a soft tone, looking betrayed.
"Yes" Karin answered her easily, walking to the kitchen; motioning at the woman to follow her. "Sit. Now, do you want to drink anything? Tea or maybe you prefer coffee?"
"Why are you not mad? Your husband betrayed you! He cheats on you!" the blond haired woman shouted, shocked when Karin just shrugged her shoulder; looking indifferent by the fact that the woman she just offered a drink is basically her husband mistress.
"Why should I be mad at you? It will be silly of me to shout at someone who is not at fault. He cheats on me out of his own will. So I will deal with him later, but now I just want to enjoy my holiday." She replied straightforwardly, reaching for a teapot and starts to make her tea. "Sit" she ordered the woman again.
"May Lynn. That's my name." the blond haired woman introduced herself. Her sky blue eyes followed Karin's hand movement as she stirred the tea, looking comfortable as if she is her best friend not someone who her husband cheats with. She feels guilty.
"Karin Sato." Smiling, she continues, "But it won't be for long anyway. After this I will probably be known as Karin Kurosaki." Karin looked at the blond haired woman who already casting her eyes down not meeting hers. "It's not your fault. You are not the first and I think this should stop anyway. So don't think too much about this." She hands her a cup of red tea before she walked towards her dough, checking on it. Decided that it's ready to be bake, she put her dough in a square pan that she greased carefully earlier.
"You bake?" May asked her softly, her sky blue eyes met her midnight blue ones.
"Yes. But not that good. My sister could do it better, but she is always good at this sort of thing"
May Lynn smile at her lightly and Karin was a taken back by her smile. She a pretty lady. By the look of it, she will be around her age. "How old are you anyway?"
"Twenty five this year." May stopped, looking at her; curiosity in her eyes. "Kenji-san will be twenty nine this year right?"
Karin bursts out laughing, "That swine told you that he's going to be twenty nine this year? Bah, you should add another four years to his undercover age it seems. I married him after I finished my high-school. That time he just twenty five just got his first job. It had been eight years I'm married to that swine." She told the woman who now standing beside her as she put her bread in the heated oven. She smiled as she watched her bread in the oven.
"I think I should go back now Karin-san. I'm sorry for everything and I'll break off with Kenji-san. I-"
"There's no use for it. It's over between me and him anyway. But it will be better if you do break off with him. You deserve someone better than that swine" Karin stopped her apology, looking straight in her eyes. "I'm sorry for my husband behavior. You must be hurting right now."
May shook her head. "No. I'm fine and I feel great to know it now rather than later." With that she gave her a low bow, handed her the keys that Kenji gave her yesterday before she left the house through the main entrance.
Karin looked at the blond haired woman through the window at the living room as she walked at past the gate, closing the gate with shaking hand. She could see a tear dropped from her pretty sky blue eyes. Pity girl, shedding her tears for someone that worthless, but she can't really blame her. Her husband is a smooth talker after all. Karin stared at her wedding ring that she slipped off earlier before putting in her jean pocket. She will deal with her husband later, but now she's going to start packing up his belonging. She's going to kick him out from her house and preferably as soon as possible.
"Do you think I care?" she asked the dumbfound man in front her, eyebrows raised. "Now, get lost. I'm kicking you out. I had enough of your 'stupid mistake' as you put it. Man you are sure foolish for making all the stupid mistake. Now, get lost. I'll send -"
"Listen first Karin! I'm sorry. I really am!" he shouted at her, grabbing her shoulder to stop her from throwing out another box of his belonging to the road in front their house.
She turned around to glare at him before pouching him straight on his jaw not really caring if she broke a teeth or two. For the first time, she let her anger seep in her v and she lashed at him with it. "Don't touch me or I will sue you for abusing me. Now, take your thing and get lost as I said earlier. I'll send the divorce letter in this week. Don't worry I had it draft out years before. Remember what I told you after Sakura-san case? Another one and you will be out. And you know that I always keep my promise"
Karin took a look at the man who lay sprawling in front her, looking as pitiful as… well as a swine can get. She bent down at him, kissed him on his left cheek like she always did before she went to sleep, and took the car key and her house key in his slack pocket. "Today you not only broke my trust, but you broke a woman heart. One day, I really wish that you experience the same thing. So you will understand how much it hurt when someone broke your trust and heart" patting his left cheek, she smiled. "I used to be so in love with you, you know? Very, very much in love. However, it seems that you don't love me enough" She gave him a soft, sad smile before she left him there; closing the main door with a 'click'
Karin nibbled her bread slowly and pitifully, trying her hard to finish up her bread. Karin gave herself a few try, trying to swallow the dry bread. Finally giving up, she threw the rock hard bread in the garbage bin.
Oh well, there are things in this life that you cannot force yourself to take in anyway.
"The only reason why his bakery is selling is because of his look. Just look, all of his customers are girls" a soft voice muttured. Jealousy dripped from his tone.
"They just want his attention. That's why they went to the bakery. The bread there taste just like us" another voice whispered back faintly, but he could hear it just fine.
Toshiro clinched his knuckles, before he wore the mask he always wears when he's in front other. The emotionless mask. Let they say what they want. He knows his true potential, and he is damn sure it's not on his look. Even when he said that, he could feel his confident wavered. Sighing, turned back in his bakery and starts to he clean his bakery, washing all the dirty bowl and tray, wiping the kitchen top and his oven clean before sweping the floor. He collected the dust, dump it in the nearly full garbaged bin. Carefully, he tied the plastic bag, bringing the garbage outside where the garbage will be collected later.
A soft humming voice caught his attention. He knows this song somewhere. Smiling for the first time in a very long time, he continued the song himself. The humming voice before stopped, curious; he looked up. His turquoise eyes met a pair of stunning midnight blue eyes. The moment she nodded her head at his direction, he knows that this woman will probably tell him something that he really needs to know. Before he could stop himself, he asked "Looking for bread?". He smirked when she asked him, "Freshly bake?" curiosity in her voice.
"I can make one for you if you want" he answered her easily.
With a beaming smile from her, he invites her inside his bakery.
Karin walked pass the rows of bakery, walking straight without stopping and not even sparing a glance at the bakery. She continued her stroll, humming a favorite tune of hers before a soft voice continued it for her. She turned around only to see a white haired man with a pair of rare turquoise color eyes putting out the garbage. His turquoise eyes met her midnight blue ones. Not sure what to do, she nodded her head at his direction.
"Looking for bread?" he asked her suddenly.
She simply stared at him before she smiled. "Freshly bake?"
He smirked, "I can make one for you if you want"
And before she knows it, she already there in his bakery making herself at home – well not really at home since she in a bakery kitchen but the point is she making herself very, very comfortable. Ah, she loves it here. The smell of freshly baked bread, the colorful cakes placed in a glass refrigerator along with the sweet pies and pudding that look so mouth watering. The bakery is painted in bright beige color, the kitchen top in dark wood brown color but what caught her attention is the owner himself. He's a tall man, tall for a Japanese man and his white hair is definitely eye catching. She watched him with interest as he kneads the dough making the bread she asked. "Raisin?" he asked her, taking a hand full of raisins ready to mix with her bread.
"Yes! Maybe a bit of cinnamon" she quickly replied, grinning like a three years old girl as she watched him intensely as he mixed the raisin that she asked for. "You are good" she praised him softly. He just shrugged his shoulder, putting the now finished bread on a bow; covering it with greased plastic wrap. Her eyes widen when she saw him placing the bow on top of a warm oven. "Will it make the dough raised faster if you did that?" she asked him curiously.
He didn't answer her, washing his hand thoroughly before turning around to look at her. "Yes. But it won't really taste that good as the one I sell here. The dough need time to raise you see. The slower it takes to raise the better." He glanced at the watch hanging on the wall and gave a tired sighed. "You should leave now miss. The peak time is almost here. It will be uncomfortable for you during that time."
Karin raised her left eyebrow, as if she didn't believe him. "Why?"
He smirked, "Do you want to wait and see?" he inquired her, for the first time taking in her face. She looks young, around twenty five. With a pair of bright midnight blue eye and long black hair which are a contrast to her milky white skin, she quite a sight to see. Very original and a timeless beauty trait of a Japanese woman all in her. His eyes land on her pink lips before he quickly moved back to her eyes, staring straight at her.
Before she could stop herself, she gave him a full scale beaming smile. "Can I? I'll help you. By the way, my name is Karin Sato. Well it not going to be Karin Sato anymore but you can call me Sato just for today."
The white haired man stared at her for a long time before he asked, "You are getting married? Congratulations". He waits for the black haired woman reply, assessing her face for a flick of emotion. Happiness maybe?
Karin gave him a small frown before she quickly smiled. "Nope, getting a divorce but congrats anyway. For finally getting rid of that man" She answered him cheekily, walking to the sink and washed her hand. "So what should I do?"
"Tie up your hair and we shall wait" he replied, smirking.
"You didn't tell me it will be that bad" Karin whispered to the equally tired man who already slumped against a chair in the bakery kitchen.
He chuckled, the sound sounds alien even to his own ears. "I did ask you to leave right?"
She laughed, walking towards him before taking a seat on an empty chair beside him. "Why are all your customers are high-school students?" The moment she utter those words, she could see that she made a mistake. A mistake that she fails to comprehend the reason why it's a mistake. She watched in dismay as the light in his turquoise eyes vanished, the humor evaporated to the thin air. He stood from his chair, walking towards her bow of dough that he kept earlier, waiting to rise. With care, he braided the bread before putting it on a greased tray. He open the hot oven, put the tray in the oven and closing it softly.
"Now what left is just wait" he told her lightly, his eyes on her.
She nodded her head, for the first time after a very long time she has nothing to say. Not knowing what to do, she stood up and start stretching her ached back and shoulder. Humming the song she hummed earlier, she began washing the dirty tray and bowl in the sink before lazily wiping it dry with a clean towel she found in one of the drawer.
"That song – "
Karin turned around at the sound of his voice, looking at him before she "Hmm?" quietly, her eyebrow raised; asking him to continue.
"Do you know the lyrics?" he finished, his eyes not on her as its stared at the busy pavement, crowded with people buzzing in and out of the bakery beside his through the glass front of his bakery.
Karin shook her head, "No. I don't know the lyrics. The song was so long ago, taught to me by my childhood friend. He just hummed the song, not really singing it." she pause, deep in thought. "Now when I think about it, I can't even remember his face anymore. I never get to know his name. It always you and hey with him" she said, smiling. "What your name anyway?"
The white haired man's turquoise eyes found her blue ones. "Toshiro Hitsugaya"
Upon hearing his name, she grinned as she arranged the dry tray and bow on the empty space on top the kitchen top.. "Elegance name Shiro-chan!" She teased him lightly.
He just glared at her before went to check on the bread. Satisfied with it, he pulled the tray out from the hot oven. "Your bread"
She dried her hand before she hurriedly moved beside him. The smell of the freshly baked bread make her mouth water and she had a hard time from stopping herself from grabbing the hot bread and start munching it there and then, "That look good" she whispered breathlessly, looking at him. "You are really good at this. My bread always look as if it was made from brick. It even taste like one you know" Her breath nearly stopped when she took another swift of freshly baked bread. Ah, this is what we called a perfect bread. "Can… Can I eat this?" she asked him, her cheek scarlet as she asked him. Man, he must think she a pig.
He just stared at her with a raised eyebrow. "Of course"
Before she could stop herself, she beam, tearing the bread to half; handing the other half to him. Without waiting for another words from him, she start munching on her warm bread nearly sighing in pleasure as she ate it. In between her munching the bread she said, "The only good thing about my ex-husband is that he could actually made a good bread. Nowhere to your standard but he's good. Better than me and my sister. I think that's one of the reason I married him. He a good man you know. He always there for me even if I kicked and punched him aside. Quite patient and a determine guy. He start as a clerk at his workplace but after some persuasion from me he stopped his job few years back and opened his own company. I think that was when everything fall apart. I guess was I'm too busy with my job and so do he. So before I know it, he started to find another woman to replace me." her mussing fade off with a shrugged as she clapped her hand together to clean it from the remaining bread crumbled.
"So I threw him away. Couldn't take it I guess" she finished it with a soft tone, her eyes have the faraway look on it. "If you have a wife of someone you treasure, you should never betrayed them. If they were gone, it will be forever. Maybe they can tolerate it once or twice but it won't be the same anymore. The trust is gone"
Toshiro stared the woman beside him who look as if she is lost in her thought. He was startled by her when she suddenly smiled at him, "I know now why your bakery is selling. The bread you make here really taste good. I'm glad that I found your bakery. Next time I'll surely come here again."
He found himself smiling back at her. He knew it. He just knows that she will give him the answer that he had long search for. "Of course you should be glad that you found this bakery"
Karin chuckled before her eyes land on the watch hanging in the bakery wall. "Oh no! I'm late! How much is it?" she asked him hurriedly, her hand in the pocket of her jean prying for her money.
Toshiro shook his head, "Nah, just think this as a thank you gift for helping me today"
The black haired woman beam, waving at him before she quickly turned around and ran through the bakery main entrance. A soft sound of a metal hitting the wood floor rang in the now silence bakery. He look down and saw a white gold ring on the floor. Picking it up, he examined the ring wondering where did it came from. The ring is just a simple white gold with a round, brilliant cut; dark blue diamond set on it. In the inner circle of the ring, carved a small letter 'K&K'. So this ring belong to that woman. Karin Kurosaki. Twirling it around his fingers, he stared at the ring. The ring is quite small just about the size of his pinky finger. Sighing, he put the ring in the cash machine. If she come back here, he will return it back to her, until then, it seems that he will be keeping it.
Three weeks had passed and yet every time the door of his bakery chimed, signaling him about the new costumer, he felt the thinness bit of disappointment when it turned out to be just another customer. After the forth week, he stopped hoping that she will come back to this bakery. Maybe she already moved to another place, since she just divorced. Sighing, he switched on the television to catch the news. He was surprised when he saw her on the news, smiling and waving her hand to the reporters.
" – the defendant lawyer Miss Kurosaki said that she was glad and happy that the judge had refused to accept the plaintiff appeal to re-open the case regarding –"
"It's a boring case I'm telling you. Quite stupid actually" a soft feminine voice from beside him startled him. It took all of his willpower not to actually jump up from his chair in surprise. He turned around and his turquoise eyes immediately met her midnight blue ones. He took in her smiling face, her long black haired that she tied in a simple pony tail; half impressed by her casual attire. Wearing a long sleeved light blue shirt and a pair of white jeans that fit just right on her slim legs, she looks as if she just a collage student who came in the shop to buy a loft of bread. "No fresh bread for me?" she asked him, grinning.
Ignoring her question he questioned her, a small smile started to curve on his lips, "When did you come in?"
"Just now." She answered him shortly. "And here I was, hoping to see you baking or what and can you imagine my disappointment to see you here, relaxing and watching television like nobody business." Karin teased him, smirking with satisfaction when he glared at her. She sat at the empty chair beside him, her eyes glued on the television, grinning as she watched the television. "Until today I can't believe this stupid case took me one whole month to prepare for. However, I'm still glad that I won the case. The plaintiff always likes to make it difficult for me. What a pain"
"Like you're going to make it easy for them" he remarked back lightly, earning a series of laughter from her. He reached in his pocket for her ring, taking a last look at it before he threw it at her direction. "Yours truly"
Acting on reflect, she catches the ring with ease. A soft smile on her lips as she stared at the ring. "I thought I lost this ring. The diamond is expensive you know. That stupid ex-husband of mine bought it using a year of his salary. At first it just a simple white gold ring, nothing, not even a ruby on it but after his company started to do well, he re-made it for me." she said softly, her eyes look fondly at the ring as she told him that. "I'm keeping this" she said determinately. "He did ask back for this ring, and I just told him to get loss. I can't really bring myself to tell him that I lost it." She paused, "Anyway I can sell it, whenever I'm in need for quick cash" she added with a cheeky grin on her face.
The thirty years old man stood from his chair, running his right hand through his white hair before switching off the television despite her protest. "If you still paining for him, you should go and tell him that" he said lightly, his eyes not meeting hers as he told her that. Truth to be said, he hates giving her the slightest suggestion to go back to her ex-husband. He knows that she could probably do better without a man who will cheat on her. More suited with a better man.
Karin looked at him, "Should I? However, I'm not paining over him. Never actually. I'm paining for this ring not the person who gave me this." With that she slipped the ring on her right hand forth finger easily, admiring the ring as it sat on her ring finger. "Where are you going?" she asked him when she saw him started to walk out from the bakery.
"Out. Want to go with me? I'm going to close this shop anyway." He replied back, looking over his shoulder to look at her.
That moment, just for a split moment, she feels warm and happy for no reason. "Can I?" even as she asked him that, she is already making her way towards him.
"I did invite you right?"
She nodded her head, "Then I'm going with you. Where are we going anyway?"
He switched off all the lights and air-conditioners before locking the door. "Just walk along. Maybe if we were lucky we can find a good bread somewhere. Then maybe I can try making it myself." He finally replied, shrugging his shoulder, looking at the woman beside him who already grinning when she heard the word 'bread'.
"Yeah. Let's go! I can't wait for it. Maybe I can eat some fresh bread. That would be nice" she replied back with enthusiasm.
Walking side by side, he smiled faintly as she told him all about her dream to eat the perfect bread and once in a while he will tell her about his dream to invent a new bread that no one ever thought before. He don't really know where he will be heading after this but for a reason that he cannot explain, he could still see himself at his bakery baking, and somehow he sees her munching her bread happily beside him. And weirdly, the idea didn't really repulse or scared him.
As for Karin, last month was the worst time in her life with her losing her husband after knowing that he cheated her for the second time in their short eight years of marriage and the busiest week at her office preparing her text for a stupid case. Nevertheless, last month also brought her here. Looking at the white haired man beside her, she smiled at him. It's childish, but she really wishes that she could eat the bread he made every day for her whole life. Even so, that will surely cost her a lot of her money. Maybe she should start saving now. His bread is not that cheep anyway.
A/N: Sorry if there's any grammatical or spelling error in this story (English is my second language so please excuse me for my mistake.) And Review. Please! I'm begging you .