(Why… why out of all of the girls in the world, why did he have to like her?)
It was a quiet day at café mew mew. Suzu Aoyama, (or Suzu Momomiya if you want to use Ichigo's last name, age 14), was doing her daily shift of 9 hours. Why 9 hours you ask? Well, you can blame her boss, Tomi Shirogane, (Ryou's son, age 16), who makes her work 24/7. Every day. Well, she couldn't go wrong with being paid 15 yen per hour. But, she would rather eat a basket of poisonous snakes then work with the devil from hell. Well, he didn't really work. He watched her slave around from the corner. Like he did every day. But today was different. While Suzu was saying goodbye to her friends from America, Tomi stood there, thinking to himself.
"I can't like her! She's the baka that I tease! Get it together, Shirogane!" He scolds himself. Just then, he gets a tap on his shoulder. He turns around, to see a smirking Suzu with her hands on her hips.
"Shirogane!" She says slyly. "Akasaka-san said I can help him bake for the rest of the day! Isn't that great!"
"Hm… I wonder if food made by baka strawberry here will even be edible." He says with a smirk plastered across his face.
"Hey!" She says frowning. "I'm a great cook!" The truth was, she wasn't lying. Tomi had a piece of a leftover cake she made a couple of days ago. It had good flavor and texture. But he didn't want to admit it.
"Sure. Now go on, I don't mind, but I might dock your pay!" He says flicking her nose.
"You will never! No fair!" Says, putting a fist in the air, then stomping off into the kitchen. Tomi the grinned and sighed at her.
"She's just like her mother." A voice from behind says. It's his father, Ryou. Tomi looks up at him, then looks at the kitchen. HE sighs.
"Dad, I don't know why, but I think I'm falling for baka here." He says, blushing a rosy pink. His father pats him on the back.
"Yo, It's okay. I understand." He says with a chuckle. "I would tease Ichigo, her mother, all the time when we were your age. It would annoy her as hell. But she never went along with it, so it made it harder for her."
"It's the same with her. But I don't know why, but I think she… kinda enjoys it… and to think about it, she gets cute when she is flustered. Ah, I'm loosing my mind."
"Well son, your falling for a Momomyia. And just like her mother, she can't take things seriously. But don't laugh at her, she has gone through a lot in the past. Wait, I didn't tell you what happened with her, did I?"
"No, what happened?" Tomi's voice sounded worried.
"It happened 4 years ago. Suzu was only ten, and had major emotion problems. Her father always worked, so she never saw him. And Ichigo, she always helped Suzu, but nothing worked for her. Ichigo finally gave up, and asked Keiichiro if he could take care of her for a while. He agreed, but they always visited. I also too visited, but you never came with me. You would always want to stay with Lettuce-er mom. And on one day, while Suzu played inside with the cat, all the adults were drinking tea. Suddenly, they heard a scream, and rushed in the house. There, they found Suzu on the ground, bleeding hard from her back. They found a knife next to her, and also a man with dark black hair and brown eyes. That man… was her father."
Tomi was shocked. He didn't know what to say.
"I rushed over to aid her, and I almost got stabbed myself. Luckily, Keiichiro grabbed the knife from him and stood him up. Ichigo rushed to the phone and dialed 911. The police came and arrested him, while Suzu was rushed to the hospital. She turned out okay, but suffered in depression. From that day on, she has tried to forget about Aoyama, but the memory still haunts her. But, she needs the support, Tomi."
"I never knew… I feel so bad about what happened. Should I stop teasing her?" Tomi asks, disappointment shining in his eyes.
"Tomi, are you crazy?" Ryou says, punching him lightly on the shoulder. "No! Of course you shouldn't stop. But make sure it doesn't get too out of hand.
"Thanks dad, I appreciate it a lot." Tomi says, smiling. Ryou walks away, leaving Tomi to rush to his room, or, Ryou's old room. Meanwhile, In the kitchen…
"Uncle Keiichiro, where's Ayato and Tomi?" Suzu asks curiously.
"Ayato with Aunt Zakuro. But I don't know where Tomi is, but Uncle Ryou is in the lab. You might want to ask him." Keiichiro says smiling. "If you need him now, just go. I'll put the cake in the oven."
"Thanks Keiichiro! I thank you!"