The streets and sidewalks of Honnouji were swarmed with tourists, shoppers and students, who had just been released. Among the crowd was a high schooler with shoulder length jet black hair, with a red streak in her side swept bangs, who squeezed and dodged her way passed the lines of people. As she reached the end of the inner city, and began making her way into the outer ring, the path was only occupied by a few families and students, allowing her to walk at a more comfortable pace.
She approached a small two-story complex, and stopped to look at the sign. In letters that looked like it was written in light blue cake frosting was "Mankanshokakery". The outer edges of the words would occasionally light up various colors. The girls dark blue eyes drifted towards the sign right of the door. there was a pug with a hoodie sketched in chalk, a speak bubble near its mouth with the message '10% off crepes!'
"This is it, eh? Looks easy 'nough." She took her hands out of her black and white sports jacket pockets and opened the door, instantly being met with a breeze, a chime and the overwhelming smell of all things sweet. She looked around.
The inside of the bakery had off-white walls and small, circular light-blue tables and chairs strategically plotted. the floor, like the walls, were an off-white with occasional light blue dots. Perhaps it was the distracting interior design, or the intoxicating smell of the place, but regardless of the reason she had failed to notice the short brunette standing by her side, adorning a big smile.
"Welcome! How may I help you?"
"Gah! Uh," she cleared her throat, regaining her composure, "Yea, I'd like a place t' work that /doesn't/ clash with my image." The smaller girl ignored the sassy remark and possible insult to the shop's design.
"Ooooh! You're the new employee? I'm your co-worker, and the daughter of the owner, Mako Mankanshoku! Let's get along and have fun working together!" Mako put her hand out for a handshake, her pink lips pulled into a friendly smile that gave her dimples, making her rosy cheeks pop. Her big brown, filled with excitement and expectance, locked with the others blue eyes that diverted its gaze to the attire the brunette wore.
The, presumed, uniform consisted of a white blouse, with short puffed sleeves, tucked into a gold waist band with a bow in the front. An apron with frills at the edges extended from it, and underneath it was a light blue skirt, the same color as the words on the sign out front. The skirt stopped before her knees, but more frills peaked out under, so if Ryuuko had to guess Mako was wearing bloomers underneath. Additionally, Mako wore white knee high socks, with lace and gold ribbon and gold mary outfit was out there, but it at least looked cute on Mako. Regardless of how it looked on the latter, Ryuuko dreaded the thought of being caught wearing something that clashed with her tough image.
"Oh, daughter of the owner, eh? Not like I have a choice but t' get 'long with ya," She put her hands in her pockets, "Name's Ryuuko." As if to cover up for the fact that Ryuuko had rejected to shake hands with her, Mako brought her other hand to meet the one close to Ryuuko in a clap, then brought them up to her hands.
"Really? Wow, that's such a cool name," Ryuuko shrugged, and the other eyed her school uniform, "So you—"
"Oh! Is this the new worker?" A new voice interrupted from the back room behind the counter. Soon, a women with golden brown hair tied in a tight bun found herself next to Ryuuko. The woman studied Ryuuko closely, then nodded to herself. She stayed like that for a while.
"You, uh, need somethin' ma'am? Ya aren't sayin' anythin'." Ryuuko cautioned.
"Mom, isn't the new worker perfect? She just needs the uniform and then you'll have yourself a killer baker duo!" Mako out her hands on Ryuuko's shoulders and stood on her tip toes, leaning some of her weight onto the other. The woman, Mako's mother and therefore owner of the shop, nodded joyfully, clapping her hands together in a way that paralleled how Mako had done the same only moments earlier.
"Mhm! Go ahead and get her uniform while I give her the lay down, Mako! It should be hanging over the dryer."
"Got it Mom!" Mako saluted, before scurrying off upstairs, presumably to the house area. the two watched as she nearly tripped on the stairs in silence. Once Mako had disappeared, her mother began speaking, drawing Ryuuko's attention away from the stairs and to her new boss.
"The application said Ryuuko, didn't it?"
"Yup."
"Great! Well I'm glad you applied, and Mako and I are happy to have another hand around here! I'm Sukuyo Mankanshoku, by the way." She stuck out her hand, and this time around Ryuuko took her hands out of her pocket and shook her new boss' hand.
"Nice t' meet ya," After shaking Sukuyo's hand, Ryuuko put her hands back in her pockets, "So what's the dealio with my schedule and what not. It'll work with school, right? Not that I'd mind missin' school, but gimme the lay down."ts
"Well your school ends around 3:00, so your shift will begin at 3:30. We really need the help right after school to prepare as many sweets as possible because we start to get a good batch of customers around 4. We close at 9, but you can leave at 7:00, since that's when things slow down. Let us now if you have a big exam coming up, we may be able to call in some other help to replace you for the day so you can focus on your studies."
"Sweet! That sounds easy 'nough." Sukuyo chuckled to herself.
"Well sweet is what we aim for here!" Ryuuko awkwardly laughed at the tasteless joke, then looked to the staircase just as Mako was running down, holding something against her chest. She jumped off the last few steps, then scurried over to her mom and Ryuuko,
"Here you go Ryuuko-chan!" Mako handed Ryuuko a folded uniform, similar to the former's. Ryuuko mumbled a thanks as she picked up the dress from the top of the sleeves, keeping it a good distance away from her as she critically looked at what she would be wearing every weekday for 3 and a half hours.
"Well I'm glad you two are acquainted, but it's almost 4 and I'd like to have a few more crepes ready for when the students start coming around! Mako sweetie, could you show Ryuuko how we make them? Hopefully it won't take too long so we can start producing them at max speed!" Mako's face lit up when the responsibility was bestowed upon her.
"Gotcha mom! You and Mataro will take care of the customers then?" Sukuyo nodded in response, rolling up her sleeves.
"Mhm! Leave it to us!" After saying this, Sukuyo jogged behind the counter and began helping, who Ryuuko guessed was Mataro, to take orders and hand the current customers their orders. She felt a tugging on her jacket sleeve and turned around to see Mako pointing to the back room.
"You can change in the back and just put your folded stuff in the closet in the corner. But try to hurry so we can get started! You have a lot of recipes to learn, but we just have to make due with teaching you crepes for today!"
"Woah, woah, wait. I got all that, 'Cept the changin' in the corner part. There ain't a bathroom I could use?"
"Eh? Well there's one upstairs in the house part of this place, but we really should get working. If it helps I'll close the windows and I promise I won't look!
"Guess I have no choice," Ryuuko complained under her breathe, "Jus' be sure not t' look. I hate changin' 'n front of people." Mako straightened her back and saluted Ryuuko.
"Roger that, Ryuuko-chan!" Mako jumped up and down a bit, before grabbing Ryuuko's wrist and dragging her to the back room, which consisted off a huge kitchen, a long island and multiple fridges and freezers. As Mako had previously said, there was one empty corner, and at the opposite corner was a small wooden closet that stood out like a sore thumb against the modern theme of the kitchen. Mako pushed Ryuuko forward a bit, starling the latter, who turned around and snapped.
"Hey what's the big idea?" The new baker saw the other covering her eyes with her hands.
"Hurry Ryuuko-chan! You don't want to see a long line of hungry teenagers on your first day of work, do you?" Ryuuko sighed, then walked to the corner to change.
"Sounds pretty terrifying. Sorry for yelling, I guess," She received no response from the other, but didn't feel like there was any real tension, so she took it as a good sign. She looked at the uniform once again and cringed at the thought of just wearing it. Realizing that she had no choice in the matter, Ryuko changed, only getting stuck when there where buttons in the back of the blouse out of her reach. She grunted, then peaked over her shoulder to see Mako still standing in the same place she was before, her hands still over her face. Ryuuko cleared her throat, "Hey, uh, could ya come over here and help me button the rest of this top?"
Mako walked over in Ryuuko's general direction, still covering her face. She only stopped once she bumped into Ryuuko, who was trying her best to not lose her cool.
"You can stop covering your face,"
"Ooh, good," Mako took her hands off her face, "Could you hold your hair up?" Ryuuko nodded and bundled her hair together, holding it up with one hand. Mako carefully began to button up the rest of Ryuuko's shirt. Ryuuko looked down and noticed the lack of frills and the bottom of her skirt, and remembered how Mako wore bloomers. Feeling awkward standing in silence, Ryuuko spoke up.
"So did ya forget to get the bloomers for my uniform or is that just your kinda thing?"
"Eh? You saw my bloomers?"
"Well, uh, it's not like they were hard to see? I mean you can see the frills of them clear as day, They aren't hidden by your skirt or anything." At this point Mako was done buttoning up Ryuuko's shirt and stepped back, putting her hands in her hips proudly.
"Really? Well I guess that's a good thing!"
"Huh?" Ryuuko asked, tying the hair she was holding onto for the past few minutes into a ponytail with an old elastic she kept around her wrist.
"If I trip it'll cover my panties, but also leave an air of mystery," Mako began talking in a deep voice, "'What do her panties look like? Is she even wearing panties?'" She stopped and Ryuuko raised an eyebrow. In her normal voice, Mako continued.
"Things like that! Besides, it'd be totally embarrassing if people saw my panties and they weren't cute or anything! When I wear bloomers, I don't have to worry about that. Also, bloomers are cute and sexy, aren't they?"
"Maybe if you were born hundreds of years ago. 'Sides you don't strike me as the sexy type, but maybe you're just a late bloomer. Not that it'd matter anyway. People would be payin' attention to your tits before your underwear."
"Ryuuko-chan!"
"Jus' tellin' it how it is," Ryuuko shrugged, "How old are you anyway?"
"Your application said you were 17, so I'm a few months younger than you!" Mako began wandering over to the fridge and took out various ingredients, closing the door with her foot since her hands were full and put them on the long island in the middle of the room.
"Figured you were near my age," Ryuuko commented, walking up next to Mako, "So how is this done?" Mako pulled up the clear plastic rap from two big metal bowls, pushing one of them, and a ladle
, in front of Ryuuko.
"Well first you want to make sure that the mixture is fluid. If it isn't, add just a little bit more water. After it's all fluid, ladle some of it onto a pan and quickly swirl it around," Mako talked fast, preforming the task herself with one of the bowls as she narrated, "Once it's golden brown flip it—make sure it doesn't break—and let it heat up for just, like, two to three seconds. Then take it off and put it on the table—it's super clean and made for this kinda stuff—and repeat until you have no more mixture."
"Piece of cake."
"No, Ryuuko-chan. It's a crepe!" Mako said defensively, already done with her fourth crepe.
"I was—nevermind." Ryuuko picked up some of the mixture with the ladle and played with it. She inwardly cursed herself for picking this job, though it wasn't entirely her choice in the first place. Unsure of whether it was truly ready, Ryuuko turned on the device, which she guessed what specifically for crepes, in front of her and put some mix on it. After a few minutes passed, Ryuuko noted that the crepe was golden brown and flipped it over for a few seconds, before proudly setting it down on the counter. She grinned, and thought: 'I'm gettin' paid t' do this? Easy! I feel more like I'm bein' paid to wear this god awful uniform and talk t' Lil' Miss Talks-Too-Much ov'r there.'
"Ryuuko-chan, what did you do?" Mako shouted from over Ryuuko's shoulder, sounding nearly frightened yet genuinely concerned.
"Makin' crepes, duh," Mako crossed her arms and shook her head; Ryuuko scowled, "What?"
"Ryuuko-chan, Ryuuko-chan. The crepe is too thick, and one side is almost burned, while the other is side is barely browned! Have you ever even eaten a crepe before?"
"I have! jus not all the time 'cause I like it savory is all. Not a lot of places really make it how I like it, and I also don't wanna eat that shit all the time." Mako's eyes widened in shock.
"Are you trying to say you don't like sweets?"
"Bravo! You understand how to read between the lines. Go on and apply to Harvard, I'm sure you'll get in no problem." Mako frowned, making Ryuuko realize just how badly she messed up, "Fuck. I'm sorry alright? I'm jus' new to this whole thing an' I hate the idea that somethin' that seems so easy is actually pretty hard. So if ya wouldn't ind could ya please jus' show me how it's done again?" Mako's frown instantly turned into a wide smile, and she was laughing to herself.
"Of course! What are friends for?" Mako stood close by Ryuuko's side, and for the next hour the two prepared well-made crepes. Once they were done, they put the now empty bowls in the sink. Ryuuko wiped her forehead.
"Damn, that gets tiring after a while. It's jus' so repetitive. You have to do that everyday?" Mako nodded, then flexed her arm.
"Yup! And a lot of other things that help me build these muscles!"
"Never expected you to be pretty muscular," Mako smiled at the praise, "Let's arm wrestle."
"Eh? But Ryuuko-chan we have to make some of the mixes for tomorrow since they gotta refrigerate for a day!"
"C'mon, it'll take a minute tops," Something in Mako's brown eyes sparked and she quickly brought two chairs to the kitchen island and sat in one. Ryuuko took her place in the other chair and put her elbow on the table, smirking, "Isn't this table supposed to be clean?"
"We're done putting things on the table itself, we just gotta make a few mixes after this. Besides, I'll clean it after I win!" Ryuuko's smirked grew, and she grabbed Mako's hand, which was surprisingly soft.
"I wouldn't get so ahead of your—Woah," Mako's strength had caught Ryuuko off guard and Ryuuko quickly began to actually try and get Mako's arm down in the table. They were tied for a bit, before Ryuuko pulled through and won. She smiled, "You're def stronger than ya look. Other arm?" Mako nodded and switched arms, as did Ryuuko. They clasped hands and within seconds of starting Mako's arm was slammed on the table,
"Ouch!"1-
"Shit! You okay," Mako held her arm and nodded, "You've just used your dominant hand the whole time you've worked here, haven't you?" A second nod.
"Figures," Ryuuko got up out of her chair, and walked closer to Mako, "It doesn't hurt too bad, does it?" Mako shook her head.
"Nope! Nothing a Mankanshoku can't handle!" She shoot up from her seat and ran over to the fridge, pulling out multiple ingredients.
"Need any help?" Ryuuko followed Mako to the fridge, and in a flash all the ingredients Mako was holding were now in Ryuuko's arms. She got the hint and went and placed them carefully on the table. Mako joined her a minute later, not being as cautious when placing the ingredients down. Ryuuko was just grateful Mako wasn't holding the eggs.
"Okay, Ryuuko-chan! I'm gonna teach you how to make the mix for our cakes, our bread, our crepes and our cookies!" Ryuuko looked at the myriad variety of ingredients in front of her, suddenly overwhelmed by the long island, the utensils she didn't even know the name of, and the 2 hours ticking down on the clock to the end of her shift.
"All that? It's 5:30 are you even sure we'll have enough time?"
"Well we'll get whatever we can get done accomplished! No more slacking off, okay? Let's do this!" Mako grabbed a whisk, and raised it in the air like a warrior their sword before delivering the finishing blow. Ryuuko took a deep breathe, realizing just how much she overestimated the amount of effort she'd have to put into this job. She grabbed the nearest kitchen utensil and raised it in the air half-heartedly.
"Let's do this."
When the clock hit 7, Ryuuko quickly changed back into her street clothes and slung her bag over her shoulder. She left her uniform on the floor, too tired to care about folding it and putting it in the closet so it wouldn't wrinkle. Mako and Sukuyo had said goodbye to her, but Ryuuko could only summon the energy to raise one hand and wave it just a little. She dragged her weight home, and opened up the door. Immediately, she threw her bag on the couch.
Satsuki, who was sitting in a massage chair next to the couch, glanced up from the book she was reading. She watched Ryuuko go into the kitchen and pour herself a glass of water, Once Ryuuko was about to leave the kitchen, she stopped her, placing a sheet up paper in her book, closing it and placing it on her lap.
"So Ryuuko, how was your first day of work?" Satsuki watched her little sister lean her weight on the wall and noticed how intense Ryuuko's glare was, despite being mentally and physically exhausted. Everything about Satsuki let Ryuuko know that she expected a long chat and detailed story about her first day on the job, but Ryuuko wasn't about to budge and give Satsuki what she wanted. She finished off her water, then put the empty class on the wood bookshelf next to her, without a coaster. She put her hands in her pockets and said one thing before walking upstairs to her room:
"Complete and utter crepe."
(Peri: Im so sorry its unedited but i wrote it on mobile since Im on VK rn. I should be posting Chapter 1 of Teacher AU soon. Once I have, you guys can vote on which one you would like to see continued after Gaydar and FMWR is over! Thank you and have a nice day!
