Kengo let out a long sigh as he brought out a medium sized tray from his oven. He placed the tray on top of the stove then proceeded to take off his oven mitts.
"Will... this even work, I wonder?" Kengo asked, his head quickly drooping to the side as he quietly questioned his actions.
He continued to stare at the contents on the tray. A variety of cookies sat there, smoke slowly dancing off each of them, carrying the sweet smell of chocolate and peanut butter throughout the room and into Kengo's nostrils.
"Well, I guess this will just have to-,"
"VALENTINES DAY~ Hoo~ What a nice day for happy romantic couples to go out and have a good time with each other~!" Kengo's eyes slightly drooped as his sister walked into the room, throwing herself onto him. "Mou, all these girls getting to share their precious chocolates with hot guys~"
"Don't word it so weirdly, sis." Kengo spoke scratching the back of his head.
"And I don't even have any chocolates to share with hot guys! Unless...," Kengo gave his older sister a cautious look. She had a very suspicious expression, and he wasn't exactly sure he liked where her thoughts were probably going. "Mmm, now that I think about it, what are all these cookies for?" She asked, leaning over his shoulder to get a better look at the tiny treats.
Kengo screeched and firmly began to push her away.
"It's nothing!" He yelled, "Nothing at all!" She grinned.
"Huh? You say that and yet you seem so suspicious~ Perhaps, are you breaking the rules and giving these to a girl?! No way! There's a girl you like?" Kengo grabbed at his hair.
"No sis! You're going to be late for work and I have to get to school!" He yelled, frowning at her.
"But now i'm curious, who are these cookies for?" Kengo began to rub his head. Suddenly, his head shot up and he looked at her with a grin, he had come up with an idea to get out of this!
"I'm selling them!" He said, inside he was laughing, what a brilliant thought!
"Eh? People would actually buy your cookies?" She put a hand up to her mouth and snickered a bit. "I honestly feel bad for the guys that those poor, naive girls are going to give them to!" She snickered a bit more. Kengo frowned at that.
"I'm a pretty good cook," He smirked and looked up at the ceiling in a moment of arrogance.
"Well," taking a look at her watch she let out a small scream, "No way! I'm going to be late!"
"I told you!" Kengo yelled.
At that moment, Mayu turned to run to the front door.
"Bye-bye!" She yelled, followed by the sound of the door shutting.
Kengo sighed.
"Ah, I have to go too." He whispered, and quickly went to retrieve the box he planned to put the chocolates in.
00-00-00
It was the middle of second period, and at the moment Kengo was standing right behind the door of the rooftop. He knew Akira was sitting out there like always. Kengo was about to go out to greet him, he just had to get his nerves together first.
He let out a breath and continued to squeeze the small box of chocolates in his hand.
"You can do it Kengo! You can do it! Just go out there, it will all be like normal!" He firmly spoke, continuing to squeeze the box. "Just go! Turn and open the door!" He took in another breath, "All I have to say is something like, 'Akira, I made chocolates and.. you can have them.'" Kengo blinked for a moment, "Wait... isn't that kind of awkward?" Kengo began to rub his head and twist his body in a distressed fashion.
He leaned against the door, then closed his eyes, the flame that was once in his body slowly beginning to dim.
"What am I kidding," he continued, "I can't do it! I just can't!" He screamed, "It's too! ... It's too!" He sighed. Any other time he would just run out there and proceed to jump onto Akira in his way of greeting. It was all so normal, but now this time, he was holding chocolates! That Kengo made himself! Isn't that a little weird?
"It's not weird! Can't a friend give another friend chocolates on Valentines day and it not be considered we- AH!" Kengo's sentence was interrupted by the door he was leaning against suddenly opening.
"You're being noisy, what are you doing?" Kengo blinked, then blinked again, then finally, he broke into laughter.
"Ah, n-nothing! Nothing at all!" He laughed some more, "I'm just talking to myself that's all; a-about nothing important, though!" Akira stared at him, giving him a look that someone would give to an idiot.
"Really?" Akira asked, his tone full of unbelief.
"Ye-yeah!" Akira hummed and shrugged, walking back to his spot at the wall, but not before stopping to pick up a box. Kengo's eyes widened, his box of chocolates had flown out of his hand when he fell!
Akira looked down at it with unemotional eyes, then continued to his spot.
"A-Ah, what's that, Akira?" Kengo asked, his voice shaking slightly. Akira shrugged.
"I don't know, I just found it." Kengo laughed slightly awkwardly as a reply before shakily following after him. After the two sat down, Kengo taking a seat right next to him, Akira shook the box, they both could hear the contents inside flying against the inner walls of the box. He then smelt it. "Hm, chocolate." He spoke.
Kengo's smile became forced and he suddenly leaned back away from his friend.
"Ah, i-i-is that so?" He asked, once again awkwardly laughing.
"I don't know where it came from though, it wasn't up here before, i'm sure." Akira proclaimed. Kengo shrugged.
"Well uh, who knows you know? Maybe, maybe someone left it up here while you were sleeping or something, and you just didn't notice it." He continued to laugh.
"Hm, you think so?" Kengo quickly nodded, more times that he probably should have. Akira then, opened the small box and peered inside. "Huh, look, it's the same kind of box you usually use for birthday presents, Kengo."
Kengo's body seemed to stiffen at what his friend had said.
"I-Is that so? Really now?" Kengo once again laughed, "what a coincidence!"
"Yep, what a coincidence huh?" Akira spoke, grinning slightly.
"Ah, well, it's kind of hot today don't you think?" Kengo said, his tone a little louder than usual, "I think i'll go inside now." Kengo stood up, "I'll see you later Aki-,"
"Isn't it hotter inside?" Akira mumbled, still examining the box.
"Ah, well I mean," Kengo grabbed the back of his head, "I think there was someone in my class that wanted me to do something important for them... probably."
"Really? Who asks someone like you for important favors?" At that Kengo frowned.
"Hey, i'm very reliable!" Kengo said, pointing to himself in a proud manner.
"If you're bribed, where are those hamburger coupons?" Kengo's eye twitched.
"I'm a reliable friend who doesn't need to be bribed to do something nice for someone else!" He yelled, "I'm not Aya-chan!"
Suddenly, there was a loud bang as the door to the rooftop was swung open. Kengo's soul seemed to escape from his body as he jumped from shock.
"What was that, Kengo-kun?" And of course, there stood Aya at the door with a tightened grip on her sword.
"I, I, I didn't say that!" Kengo screamed, ducking behind Akira for safety.
"Huh? Do you think i'm going to save you? Sorry, i'm busy, trying to figure out who the sender of this box is." Sudden sweat beads appeared on Kengo's face as he realized he was being betrayed by his own best friend.
"Kengo-kun!" Aya yelled, running after him with the sword held above her head.
"Wa-wait i'm sorry!" He screamed running away.
"Wait, Aya. Let's make a deal." Akira called out. Aya stopped, her sword still held in the air.
"What kind of deal?" She asked.
"In exchange for you spearing Kengo's pathetic life,"
"It's not pathetic!" Kengo broke in.
"I want Kengo to help me figure out who the sender of this box is." At that moment, Aya blinked, finally noticing the small rectangle in his hands.
"Wah! Akira, you got chocolates? There's a poor girl who actually has feelings for you?!" She screamed in disbelief. Akira's eye twitched slightly, but other than that, he ignored her question. "That can't be true though, are you sure it's yours?" She asked, her mind completely taken off of Kengo for the time being.
"It has my name in the box, 'For Akira,' is what is says." He spoke. She screamed.
"A mystery!" She screamed, "Who could it be?" She asked, she tapped the top of her head, "but this is difficult when you think about it, I don't think there's actually a girl here who calls you Akira is there?" She asked, now tapping her cheek.
He smirked.
"Well.. there's one." Aya blinked and stared at him.
"Ah, who's that?" Akira stood, and slowly began walking towards her. Kengo watched, his eyes following Akira's every move. "Eh... what are you doing, exactly?"
"You are actually the one who always comes up to get me off the rooftop, right? You must have left these up here, hoping that I would see them, and realize that they were from you, Right?" She was frozen.
"Wa-wait Akira-kun! I- I never made you chocolates! I swear!" No time was wasted before Akira had pushed her up against the walls of the rooftop's entrance.
"Hn, I guess it's normal for you to suddenly back out of something." At that moment, Aya's frightened eyes completely changed.
"Back out? I never back out!" She yelled.
"So, then it was you who left the chocolates?"
"It, it,"
"No...," The two didn't hear the whisper that emerged from the male sitting away from them.
"I don't know! Now that I think about it, i'm not quite sure, I might have," Akira smiled slightly, and Aya continued to stare at him, a frown etched deep onto her face.
"NO!" The two froze and looked over at Kengo. His head was faced down, and his hair completely covered his eyes.
"It... it wasn't Aya-chan.." he spoke. Akira smiled.
"Then who could it be? Aya is the only girl who calls me Akira-,"
"That doesn't matter!" Kengo yelled, standing up, his hands balled into fists. "Have you ever thought, that maybe the sender wasn't a girl?" Aya blinked.
"The sender being a boy? Isn't that a little..." Aya spoke.
"Weird? I know... I already know that, I don't need you to tell me that too! I know it's weird but.. I can't help it!" He screamed, his face turning a deep shade of red.
"Huh... what do you mean?" Aya asked.
"I can't help that... I...a.t...lp... at I ..ike..ki..a," Akira seemed to lean into Kengo's direction.
"What was that? I couldn't hear you?" Akira spoke, his grin becoming deeper. Kengo let out a sigh, his body began to shake slightly.
"I can't... I can't help that I like you!" He finally screamed, clenching his hands into fists again. He began to pant as his face was an even deeper shade of red than before.
The two were silent. But finally, Akira backed away from Aya.
"There, was that so hard?" He asked, stuffing his hands into his pockets and giving Kengo a bored look. Kengo's eyes turned into circles as confusion hit.
"Huh? What do you mean?" He asked, Akira shook his head.
"Are you that much of an idiot? It was pretty obvious from the start, I told you that you were noisy didn't I?" Kengo stared, and finally, he fell backwards, as the heat in his face finally took over.
"Whaaa? And here I thought I was going to be in the clear! But you figured it out! It's so like you Akira!" He cried out. Akira sighed and threw his head back.
Meanwhile, still by the wall, Aya stood there, shocked out of her mind.
"Kengo... Akira-kun... they... like... chocolates..." Akira looked at her, and then seemed to remember the sweets in the box.
He opened the box back up and took a cookie out and took a bite out of it. A grunt emerged from him.
"Bad taste." He said, his face making an expression of disgust.
"What? But I spent all morning making them! You can't be serious!" Kengo yelled running over.
"No, this is seriously bad, Kengo." And yet, he took another bite. Kengo watched as he began eating the cookies, that was said to have such a bad taste. "Seriously bad." He took out another cookie, and once again put it in his mouth.
"Akira..." Kengo spoke, a sudden feeling of happiness welled up inside of himself. Kengo smiled. "It is bad, isn't it?" He said, laughing a bit.
"Seriously bad." He took another bite. "... Yet, somehow... there's a good aftertaste." At that Kengo began to laugh harder. Akira smiled slightly as he licked a crumb off of his lip. "Idiot." Kengo simply continued to laugh.