Yugo was awakened by warm air and rays of sunlight streaming through the cracks in the blinds. He winced as his consciousness fled his dream and carried him to reality. He blinked awake, quickly shut his eyes against the light, and opened them a few seconds later.
Morning. He slowly sat up, yawning and stretching his arms in the air as the covers pooled around his waist. He pushed them aside and slid to the edge of his bed, touching his feet to the floor and pausing.
Oh yeah, Yuzu is here. She had been staying at his sensei's house for three days now. This would be her fourth. His sensei, Akane, didn't mind her presence. She filled the void that had been left behind when Rin…disappeared.
Yugo sighed. I can't start a single morning without thinking of her… He got to his feet and made for the door, running a hand through his bangs to distract himself from his thoughts. I guess I'll wake up Yuzu again. It had become a sort of morning ritual for him. She didn't have an alarm clock in her room, and Yugo had always awakened before her.
He walked down the hallway toward Rin's room, where Yuzu was staying. First he ducked into the bathroom to take a glass of water and rinse away his morning breath. He glanced at his reflection and frowned, doing his best to smooth down his blue spikes, which were sticking more straight up than to the side like they were supposed to. Then he proceeded to Rin's room.
The door was slightly ajar, and Yugo gently pushed it open. He was surprised to see the bed made up and Yuzu absent from the room.
She must be downstairs already. That's a first. Yugo left the room and moved on to the top of the stairs.
It was then that Yugo smelled a familiar scent in the air. He paused at the first step and smiled, drinking it in. The smell of bacon, eggs, and something sweet wafted from the first floor and up the stairs to curl around him.
Breakfast! He hurried down the steps, a smile spreading over his cheeks. He slid into the kitchen on his socks and looked toward the counter expectantly. His smile changed to a look of surprise as he saw her standing at the stovetop with her back to him.
It was her. Rin. Her short green hair was slightly messy from sleeping on it. She was dressed in her short yellow running shorts and pink tanktop. She was humming a classical music piece that Yugo couldn't name as she pulled open a drawer to sift through the cooking utensils.
"R-Rin!" Yugo's mouth fell open into a joyous smile, and he laughed as he rushed toward her. "How did you—"
He halted as she turned to face him. As she did, her figure blurred, confusing Yugo's sight as short green hair changed to pink locks falling past her shoulders, her bangs changing position and her eyes flashing from amber to blue. Yugo's smile fell as his eyesight sharpened and left him staring at Yuzu, who looked equally confused.
"I—…S-sorry, Yuzu," Yugo stammered, fidgeting with his wrist and looking away. His heart sank, and he fought back tears.
Yuzu gave him an understanding gaze. "I'm sorry, Yugo."
He shook his head, and his disappointment away with it. "No, it's alright!" He looked Yuzu in the eyes and flashed her a smile. "I just wasn't thinking straight. Morning fog, you know?"
He tried to look convincing, but he knew his smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
Its okay, he told himself. Rin is okay. I'll find her soon. Everything will be okay.
For all he knew, he could be lying to himself. He didn't know how Rin was or if he would ever find her. But those words kept him going. They kept him from falling apart.
In her three days with him, Yuzu knew Yugo well enough to understand that he'd want her to change the subject. So she smiled back and chirped, "Well, good morning! I'm making us breakfast, so I hope you're hungry!"
She took a spatula from the drawer and turned to flip the pancakes on the griddle. Yugo looked to see several bacon strips in a frying pan and scrambled eggs in another. He smiled a little, his spirits lifting.
"I thought it would be Akane cooking, honestly," Yugo admitted. "This is the first day you've been awake before me!"
"I can be a morning person if I need to be," Yuzu said with a shrug. "But there's no need for me to be here, so why bother?" She glanced at Yugo with a teasing smile. "We both slept so long that Akane already took the kids with her on her errands in town!"
"Huh?" Yugo's gaze flicked to the time displayed on the stove. It read 10:12. "Whoa! Yuzu, I'm so sorry I slept so long!"
"Don't be." Yuzu stepped to her right to distribute the eggs between two plates setting on the countertop. "There's nothing wrong with a late breakfast!"
She put three bacon strips and two pancakes on each plate and slipped past Yugo to take them to the table. "Grab the orange juice, would you?"
Just a few minutes later, Yuzu and Yugo were sitting beside each other and well into their breakfast. Yuzu was taking bites of her pancakes while Yugo worked on the last of his eggs and saved the best for last.
"This is really good, Yuzu," he said, cutting a piece of pancake and stabbing it with his fork. He smiled at her and popped it into his mouth.
Yuzu excitedly waited for him to comment on the pancakes. She had always been proud of how she made them with a few tweaks of her own. Her dad loved them.
Yugo froze, and his face went blank. He got a faraway look in his eyes, and Yuzu couldn't read his expression.
Yugo savored the bite, stunned. The flavor took his mind to memories of better days not so long ago. Days with Rin. He didn't realize how distant he was until Yuzu spoke.
"Yugo? Is…something wrong?"
Yugo swallowed and turned to look at her. Yuzu looked in his eyes. She thought she saw hope and even excitement there.
"What recipe did you use on these pancakes?" he asked quickly.
Maybe she wrote it down for some reason. Yuzu must have found it!
"Eh?" Yuzu frowned a bit. "I made them from scratch. I have it memorized. I make them at home this way too. I just add some vanilla, a bit more salt, some cream…"
Yuzu trailed off as Yugo looked away and hung his head, closing his eyes. "Y-Yugo?"
His shoulders shook, and his breaths turned quick and uneven. Yuzu was startled to see a tear rush down one of his cheeks, followed by another. He started to cry.
"Oh my gosh, Yugo!" Yuzu grabbed his shoulder with one hand and set her other over his own hand on the table. "Are you alright? Did I say something wrong?"
He shook his head with a small, sad smile. He looked back to her, tears still pooling in and falling from his eyes. His sight blurred by the tears, he could see a hazy image of Rin's countenance over Yuzu's.
She's so much like Rin.
"Rin…she used to make me pancakes almost every day." Yugo fought to keep from sobbing. "She made them her own way, too. With the same extra ingredients as you… Your pancakes…" His small smile turned goofy as he held it there. "Rin's taste just like yours."
Yuzu's eyes were wide, her expression full of sympathy, sadness, and guilt. "Yugo…"
"It's okay." He pulled his hand out from under hers and moved to give hers a quick, caring squeeze. "You just remind me of her, that's all." He swiped a finger under each eye, wiping away his tears and willing himself to stop crying. "But that's okay. I like being reminded of her. I want to remember her. It…makes me feel closer to her."
Yuzu didn't know what to say, so there was a moment of silence as she allowed Yugo to continue.
"I know she's out there somewhere, Yuzu." His voice was firm, no longer shaky. "I know she's okay. And I know she'll come home. Because I'll find her." His smile grew larger, strong and determined with a glint in his eyes to match. "I'm going to bring her back."
He focused on his plate again and took another bite of pancake. Yuzu slipped her hand off his shoulder with a gentle smile.
"You're such a softie sometimes," she teased, knowing it would further lift his spirits. "A sweet, awesome, dramatic softie."
"You know it!" He grinned and proceeded to nudge her with his elbow. "Now go on and eat. And don't look at me like that."
Hey readers! :) Please give this story a review! It would really make my day. :) You're also welcome to check out my Arc-V blog on tumblr under the name of the-10th-lancer. I post everything Arc-V, plus I'm a Yuto roleplayer. Thank you for reading!