A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf2005 here with a brand new story! This is story number 50! I started writing back in 2004, so 50 stories in 6 years isn't too bad. Anyways, tomorrow is my birthday and I wanted to do something different. So, I wrote a Kitchen Princess. It's been awhile since I read the story though, so I hope you all will like my story. The name of the story came from a song from the series NANA. It was an ending or something. Can't quite remember, but it was sung by Olivia. I think she is Japanese-American, and that song is sung all in English. It's a beautiful song. Anyways, on to my story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kitchen Princess. It belongs to Kobayashi Miyuki and Ando Natsumi. If I owned it, Sora wouldn't have died, but Najika would have ended up with Daichi no matter what.

Winter Sleep

Snow? Why was snow falling? Then I remembered. It was February in Japan. Of course it was going to snow. I hadn't noticed that it started to snow. Not until I felt the cold flakes on my face. I had a few in my hair and on my jacket. I looked around and noticed I was still in the park. After I left Fujita's Diner, I had met up with someone who wanted to talk to me. I placed my face in my hands and remembered what had just happened.

.:Flashback:.

From the moment my alarm clock didn't go off, I knew it was going to be a terrible day. First, I woke up late, so I was late getting to work. Fujita-san didn't seem to care much, but we already had quite a few costumers, and he was looking slightly harassed.

"Nice of you to show up, Najika-chan," he said, a vein popping out.

"Sorry! My alarm clock didn't go off," I said, putting my apron on.

I took up a ticket and turned my back on the door. I heard the tinkling of the bell above the door and since I was busy cooking, I didn't greet the costumer. An unnatural hush fell over the dining area. Still, I didn't look. There were a few high school students, giggling.

"Director Kitazawa is so handsome!" one of them said.
"I know!" another said.

I had just finished the order and I turned around. My eyes roamed over the diner and I found him. Daichi Kitazawa. He looked exactly like his father. It was astonishing really. I knew it was Daichi, there was no way it couldn't be. Mr. Kitazawa was older now, and the guy that had just walked in, even though he looked so much like his father, was younger. He looked over at the place I was standing and flashed me a smile. I haven't seen that smile in five years. The feelings I had for him, the ones I had locked away came surging back to me.

After the tragedy with Sora-senpai, I found out that Daichi was my Flan Prince, and we confessed our feelings to each other. After that, we started to date. We were together all through high school. Then he told me that he was going to college abroad. Since I loved him, I accepted his decision. When he left, we broke up. While he went to a prestigious college aboard, I stayed in Japan and went to a local culinary college. I was asked out many times while there, but I always turned them down. There was a part of me that was hoping Daichi was coming back soon and we could be together again. But, he never asked me to wait for him, and I never said I would. So, when he left, I locked all my feelings deep inside my heart and wouldn't let them out for anything.

But, seeing him here, sitting in the diner we used to sit in as teens brought everything back.

"Najika-chan?" I heard a voice say next to me.

I started and looked around. Fujita-san was looking at Daichi. His eyes followed Daichi's progress as he made his way to an empty table and sat down.

"Yes, Fujita-san?" I answered.

"I think you should go take his order," he said, glancing at me sideways and flashing me a sly smile.

My heart started pounding as I took up the ticket booklet and walked around the counter. I stopped beside his table, and I could feel the eyes of every single person in the diner.

"Hi, welcome to Fujita's Diner. May I take your order?" I asked him.

He closed his eyes and chuckled a little as he looked away from me.

"Well, I am supposed to meet someone here, and that person hasn't arrived, so I guess I will take a cup of coffee."

I went back to the kitchen and I poured him a cup. As I was coming back, a pretty blond woman walked in.

"Welcome!" I said, on my back to Daichi's table.

She ignored me and looked around, she spotted Daichi and made a beeline for him, pushing me roughly aside. I stumbled and droped the cup of coffee, getting burned in the process. Fujita-san hurried over and looked at my hand. It wasn't burned badly. He wrapped it up and I brought another cup for Daichi. I placed the cup in front of him and was to walk away when the woman stopped me.

"Excuse me, I would like a cup of tea, please."

I nodded and went and got the tea. I placed the cup down, and before I could leave, Daichi grabbed my arm.

"Hold on, Kazami-san. I need to tell you something."

I froze. Kazami-san? Since when did he call me that.

"What is it, Director Kitazawa?" I asked him.

He let go of my arm and looked over at the woman he had with him.

"This is Fujiwara Yuri. She is my fiancee. We are engaged to be married in a few months."

She smiled at me and spoke in a voice full of triumph.

"You must be Kazami Najika-san. I have heard a lot about you. It seems you and Daichi-san were rather close in your school days. He said that you could make some amazing food. I was wondering if you could make something for me."

"What would you like, Fujiwara-san?" I asked.

She narrowed her eyes and her smile got wider.

"Why don't you surprise me. I will be back for lunch. So, you have between now and lunch to come up with something to fix."

She laughed softly and I walked away. So, Daichi had a fiancee now. I guess he had really forgotten about me when he left for college. They talked for about ten more minutes, then Daichi paid the bill and left. By then, all the students had left and at last, the diner was quiet.

"Who was that woman with the Director?" Fujita-san asked.

"Her name is Fujiwara Yuri-san," I answered. "His fiancee. She wants me to make her something. I don't know what to cook."

"How about some type of soup. It is cold outside. A soup will warm them up," Fujita-san said.

"Yeah. I was thinking about that. How about onion gratin soup and some iced coffee? And I could finish it off with some flan!" I said.

I was starting to get a little excited now. Fujita-san smiled at me and said that it sounded like it would be good.

By the time Daichi and Fujiwara-san showed up, I had a table all ready for them. There were two bowls of the soup and two cups of iced coffee.

"What did you fix me?" she asked.

"It's onion gratin soup. I also made iced coffee and flan for dessert," I answered.

I didn't stay around them. It hurt too much. But, I was lucky that we were getting a lot of costumers. I took their orders then made my rounds. I stopped at the table just as they were finishing up the soup. Daichi looked up at me smiled.

"It tastes just like I remembered. It was very good."

"Yes, it was quite good. I would like the flan now," Fujiwara-san said.

I took the bowls with me and came back with some flan. I placed the plates in front of them and went to clear some nearby tables.

"Kazami-san, we are done with the flan," Fujiwara said to me.

I sighed and collected the plates from them. As the lunch hour dragged on, students were in and out. Finally, at one, Daichi paid for their lunch and left. As the door shut behind them, I let out a long sigh.

"Fujita-san, why does it hurt so much?" I asked.

"What? Are you talking about your hand? Does your hand hurt?" he asked, concerned.

"No. My heart hurts. When I see them together, it hurts. Why is that?"

"It's because you still love him," Fujita-san, smiling slightly. "He was your first love. You can't forget something like that over night."

The rest of the day and evening passed without seeing Daichi and Fujiwara-san. I was glad about that. I didn't know how much more I would be able to handle if I saw them together. After dinner, I closed up shop and started to walk home.

"Kazami-san!" I heard a voice say behind me.

I stopped and turned around. I saw Daichi walking toward me.

"Do you need something, Director?" I asked.

"I would like to speak to you. There is a park nearby. Can we go there to talk?" he said.

I nodded and I followed him to a nearby park. We sat down on a bench and we were quiet for a few minutes. I wondered why were sitting in the park. It was February and it was quite cold. Our breath rose in front of us in white clouds. I was about to speak when Daichi spoke.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Your sorry?" I repeated. "Sorry for what?"

"I'm sorry for getting married," he answered. "Her and I have been engaged for four years now. My dad introduced me to Yuri-san. At first, I didn't want to marry her. I had every intention of coming back to Japan for you. But, I was forced into this engagement. And now, I love Yuri-san. I really do. I still love you though, but the feelings I had for you aren't strong anymore. I am really sorry, Kazami-san."

"That's fine, because, I don't love you anymore," I lied.

He stood up and looked down at me, a sad smile on his face.

"Maybe it's for the best," he said. "Good-bye, Najika-chan."

I heard him say my name and I jumped up as he walked away.

"Daichi-kun!" I yelled, as I dropped to my knees.

.:End Flashback:.

So, here I was, still on my knees in the park. I didn't know how long I had been here, and I didn't realize I had been crying. I was surprised that they didn't freeze. I stood up, and wiped my eyes on the sleeve of my jacket. I took a deep breath and started to walk home. I walked slowly, and the snow deepened. My life was turning into a mess. First, I lost my parents, and then I lost Sora-senpai, and now I was losing Daichi. I loved Daichi. I only told him I didn't love him because I was angry. I stopped walking and looked around. I had passed my apartment. So, I doubled back and climbed the stairs to my unit. I opened the door and flipped the light on. I glanced at the clock to check the time. It was eleven o'clock. I had gotten off work at eight. I had stayed in the park for nearly three hours. I just hoped I didn't have a cold. After I took off my coat, I walked toward bathroom. I was going to take a nice hot bath, then I was going to drink some hot tea, and take some medicine just in case.

As I walked by the calender, I glanced at it and I stopped dead in my tracks. Valentine's Day was only a few days away. I wasn't looking forward to it. As I was looking at the calender, I decided I would make chocolate only for Fujita-san. Before, I would always make it for Daichi and Fujita-san, but I didn't feel right giving any to Daichi. After all, he was engaged. I sighed as I walked to the bathroom.

Valentine's Day

As I walked to work, I groaned inwardly. It was Valentine's Day. I wasn't looking forward to my walk home, or for the work day I was faced with. I knew couples were going to be in and out of the diner all day. I had Fujita-san's chocolate in my bag, and I made some more to munch on if I got hungry. When I got to the diner, I saw a few couples waiting for us to open. I went in put my bag down under the counter and I pulled on my apron. As the first group came in, I realized how annoyed I was with the holiday. Over the past five years, after Daichi left, I had become increasingly annoyed with Valentine's Day. But, this year I downright hated it. I kept up a happy and cheerful face all day, after all, I was the only other employee working here.

After it settled down a little, I reached into my bag and took out the chocolate I had made for Fujita-san.

"Here, Fujita-san," I said, holding out the small box.

He took and thanked me. He opened it and took a bit.

"Najika-chan," he started, "this doesn't taste like your chocolate."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"It tastes like something is missing. Here, have a piece," he said, holding it out.

I took the piece and tasted it. He was right. Something was missing.

"Love. That's the missing ingredient," I said.

"Yes. Every year since Director Kitazawa had left, I could tell that your chocolate lost the love you put into making it little by little. Now, that you had lost him to that Fujiwara, you just make it out of obligation. There is no love in it now."

All day, I thought about what we talked about. I didn't know how I was going to continue cooking. I remember all the love I had into a dish, and now it seemed like I had no love at all. My heart felt like it was made out of ice. I was half-way home when I stopped and looked up at the sky. Dark clouds were obscuring the stars and fluffy white snow started to fall. I took a deep breath of the frosty air and let it out. I sighed and continued on home.

When I got home, I saw a car parked in front of my apartment. It kinda looked like Daichi's car, but, I didn't know why he would be here. I suspected he would have been out with Fujiwara-san. As I drew closer, the door opened and Daichi stepped out.

"Good evening, Kazami-san. May I come in for a few minutes? I would like to talk to you."

I was quiet for a few minutes. I really didn't want him to see my apartment.

"I'm sorry, Director, but I would prefer to talk out here," I said, crossing my arms.

He nodded and we were quiet.

"There is something I need to tell you," he said, sounding less formal. "I broke off the engagement to Yuri-san."

"What? Why?" I asked.

"Remember that day we talked in the park? Well, I couldn't get it out of my head. I looked back once and saw you drop to your knees when you called out my name. That image had been burned into my mind. When you said you didn't love me anymore, I knew you had lied. It was then that I realized I loved you. I must have been lying to myself as well."

He walked toward me and he hugged me. He was so warm. And he smelled nice, too.

"But, isn't this going to cause problems for your family?" I asked.

"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," he said. "I just wanted to say I love you, Najika-chan."

My eyes filled with tears when I heard that.

"I love you, too, Daichi-kun," I said.

Little by little, it felt like I was waking from a winter sleep.

The End

A/N: So, what did you think of my birthday story? I made it take place in February because I am hot and it makes me cooler to think about winter, even though I HATE winter. I hate driving in the snow. I have gotten stuck in the snow more than once. Damn black ice and snow drifts... Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed this story. The food Najika made for Yuri and Daichi was actually mentioned in the manga. I was wondering if anyone picked up on that. And Yuri was a character I made up for this story. I am working on another story, but that is a secret. You will find out soon enough what my story is about. On a different note, tomorrow is my 24th birthday. I can't believe I am going to be so old! I am already starting to get wrinkles, which is a little odd. I already got my birthday gifts from my boyfriend. He got me Hourglass of Summer (which is a dating sim game), an L plushie and a necklace. He he. Well, it's 3:30 am, so I better wrap this up. Please read and review. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no flames.