Disclaimer: The entire series for Harukanaru Toki no Naka de (including the games, various animations, and manga) is owned by Mizuno Tooko and Koei. I merely borrow the characters for a short time.
Pie
The temperature in the Arikawa's kitchen fell a few degrees after Kurou slid the window open to let out the smoke, though with the added bulk of his apron he didn't notice the difference. He really had no idea what had gone wrong, but as he stared forlornly at the charred remains of what should have been a flaky crust with apple filling Kurou gave a heavy sigh and conceeded defeat on his first attempt.
"What the heck?" Masaomi entered the kitchen and immediately started to cough. "Are you trying to burn the place down?" he asked good-naturedly as he took in the burned pastry.
Yuzuru appeared through the doorway behind his brother and looked around, concerned. He too caught sight of the burned pie and nodded his understanding. "Is everything okay?"
Kurou poked at the failure with a fork and shook his head. "I don't know what happened. I think I followed the directions correctly..." Frustrated, he tossed the utensil into the sink. "How can something like a pie be so hard to make?"
"Sometimes things just don't work out," Yuzuru admitted with a slight grimace as he remembered his own past mistakes. Surveying the oven and cookware to make sure nothing had been permanently damaged, he asked, "What was it you needed to bake a pie for so badly?"
"White Day," Kurou answered as he turned back to the two brothers, his expression serious. "It's a very important day in your world. I read about it in the newspaper, and I decided to accept the challenge."
"Challenge?" Yuzuru's brow furrowed in confusion.
Nodding soberly, Kurou crossed his arms. "Yes. It is a day that separates the men from the children. Those unable to return the gifts they received a month before with something at least three times better are not worthy of their women."
Masaomi gave the redhead an incredulous look for a second and then burst out laughing. "You... actually believed..." He doubled over against the counter with his arms around his stomach, unable to speak further.
"Nii-san, you don't need to laugh so hard," Yuzuru chided then turned back to Kurou. "And so you decided to return the homemade chocolate Kasuga-senpai gave you on Valentine's Day with a pie. It's a good idea in theory..." He trailed off as his gaze took in the mess of flour and apple peels on the counter.
"No matter," Kurou said brusquely as he turned back to the dough that remained and wiped his hands on his apron as he muttered, "It's a good thing I tripled the recipe..."
A fresh bout of laughter shook Masaomi's shoulders. "That's my cue to leave. Good luck, Kurou, hope it works out!" He waved as he beat a hasty retreat from the kitchen.
"Would you like some help?" Yuzuru asked tentatively while adjusting his glasses. "I have a little bit of experience with baking."
Kurou shook his head decisively. "No. In this battle it's every man for himself." He didn't want to take the chance that Yuzuru, though helpful in general, might use the opportunity to sabatoge his gift to Nozomi.
Casting an unsure, worried look around the kitchen once more, Yuzuru headed slowly for the doorway. "All right. But I'll be in the living room if you have any questions or want any advice."
Already wrist deep in dough once more, Kurou didn't even hear the offer as he rolled out his next crust and wondered aloud, "Maybe I should have gone with a cake instead..."
