Hey again, peepsicles! Just so ya's knows, I wrote this story for one of my friends, one of THE BEST people in the WHOLE ENTIRE COUNTRY STATE WORLD GALAXY EXISTENCE LIMBO UNIVERSE THINGY! :D
I hope I see you soon! We all love you and miss you!
And yes, she is more awesome than Prussia.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy! And I don't own Hetalia at all! ~3
"Wow! Kiku, this is amazing!" You exclaim, your eyes shining at the array of different foods spread before you. You turn to the Japanese man beside you, smiling excitedly. Japan merely smiles lightly back at you.
"Ah, I am so glad that you are pleased. It was a bit hard to make, so I wasn't sure how it would taste. It's been a while since I have tried to make China-san's food."
"Well, thank you so much! I think you did great!"
"You are very welcome, [Name]-chan. I suppose that you are probably hungry now, aren't you?"
You nod, somewhat embarrassed, and once again Japan aims his beautiful smile at you.
"Well, then, please do not be shy. Feel free to take as much as you like."
Nodding gratefully, you take a bowl from the table before you and eagerly reach for the spread, before abruptly stopping. You turn back to Japan with a sheepish blush. "Uh...Japan...um...h-how do I pick it up?"
The older nation gives a start before exclaiming, "Oh, that's right! I can't believe I forgot!" He hastily left back into the kitchen, returning moments later with two pairs of shiny, ornately decorated pairs of tapered wooden sticks. Handing one of the sets to you, he keeps the other for himself and says, "Here you go, [Name]-chan. I sincerely apologize for my forgetfulness."
Blinking, you examine the pristine utensils in your hand. They are glossy black and shiny, with an intricately inlaid pattern of glimmering pink cherry blossoms surrounded by slim boughs covered in small, ornate leaves. Shaking your head, you look back up at the Asian nation with a puzzled look. "Um...they're beautiful, Kiku, but...what are they for?"
Your companion blinks at you before he shaking his head, rubbing his hair in an apologetic manner. "Ah, please forgive me. I had assumed you had used chopsticks before, in some situation or another. Here, this is how you hold them..." He raises his own set, held in a pen-like grip, as an example. You try your best to copy the skilled pose, to no avail. Japan smiles at you fondly before reaching over and placing his hand atop your own, so that his palm is resting on the back of your knuckles.
"Here, why don't I help you?" he offers. You smile and nod gratefully. And he intertwines his fingers with your own, gently guiding your hand into the perfect position.
"See? There you go!" he exclaims encouragingly, removing his hand from yours, and you are reluctant to release the contact for more reasons than just the loss of heat. Nevertheless, you beam at him and attempt to make him proud by picking up a rather delicious-looking bamboo shoot from your bowl. You make a valiant effort, but sadly your endeavors are in vain as you successfully drop the tasty stalk back onto the bed of rice, your chopsticks following suit, tumbling from your hand to the floor, clattering loudly with the impact.
"Oh! I-I'm so sorry, Kiku! I'll go wash them off-" You bend down to retrieve the slippery utensils, picking them up to examine them. Sighing heavily with relief that the ornate sticks were undamaged, you make to go rinse them off in the kitchen, when a hand on your shoulder stops you.
"It is alright, [Name]-chan. Here, take mine," Japan says, gently removing the dirty pair from your grasp and replacing them with his own set.
You look at them, releasing a small gasp at the sight. They were even more gorgeous than your previous set, a gleaming, polished white with ribbons of gold inlay dancing and intertwining around the ends, and images of small yen coins expertly painted in a glimmering mix of gold and silver. At the base of where decoration ceased and simple white began, sat two small cats, tossing a shining gold ball to one another, frozen in time. You turn back to the older nation, your eyes wide.
"K-Kiku, I could possibly use these. Th-they're so beautiful, and-"
"[Name]-chan, I gave them to you, did I not?"
You nod, eyes still wide, and he smiles again.
"Then go ahead and use them. They are my very own, personal pair, so very rarely to I let other people use them."
"B-But what if I damage them, or- Oh, I'd hate to chip them or harm them in some way! Besides, I barely know how to-" You are cut off again by his hand, this time stroking your cheek.
"I will help you. I promise. Besides, I...would really appreciate it if you would use them..."
You blink, then smile softly at him, bringing your hand up to lightly touch the back of his fingers as a small pink blush finds its way onto your face. He was not shying away from the contact; that much contented you.
"A-Alright, Kiku. But I will need your help."
About 40 minutes and two bowls later, you finally finish your meal, and you have to admit that it was amazing. You beam at your friend, placing the now-empty bowl you hold in your hands back on the table.
"That was amazing, Kiku! I can't believe you were worried about it!"
Japan gives a start, surprised, before looking at you, smiling in shy happiness. "Ah, thank you very much, [Name]-chan. I 'm so glad that it turned out well."
You smile back at him, before noticing a single, untouched dish in the center of the table. You reach over to it and pull it over to you, peering down at its contents. Inside it sat two fold-like cookies, wrapped neatly in plastic.
"Wow, fortune cookies!" you exclaim happily, gingerly removing one from the small bowl. Your companion looks up at you from his also-empty dish.
"Oh, yes. I was saving those until after the meal. Go ahead and open it, if you like," he says, noticing what has caught your attention. Then he looks to the side and, surprisingly monotone, adds, "But don't let them get your hopes up."
Confused, you cock your head to the side and look at him, curiosity in your green eyes. "What do you mean by that, Kiku?"
He looks back at you. "I just mean that fortune cookies are for entertainment, not for real fortune telling. I never trust them, that is all."
You are genuinely surprised by this almost bitter side of him, as if he himself had been disappointed many times by the harmless treats. You simply nod, stating curtly, "Well, I'll keep that in mind, but I'm still opening one." He nods in return.
You pull apart the packaging, the plastic giving a small, synthetic squeak as you open it, careful not to crack the cookie inside. Gently, you pick it up, and look at it for a moment before placing your thumbs at the middle of it, snapping the brittle pastry. You remove the small paper slip that lay hidden there, and read it aloud.
"'An admirer is concealing affection for you.'" You feel a small pang in your heart as your mind replays his words. You wanted to so badly to believe it, yet you knew what he said was true: fortune cookies were for entertainment. It was foolish to trust them.
Suddenly, you notice Japan give a start. You look up at him curiously, and as you catch his eye he begins to appear flustered, his face becoming slightly red. He says something softly to himself, looking away.
"Hm? What is it, Kiku?" you ask.
He looks back at you, and there is a very apparent blush across his countenance as he says quietly, "Ah, well, perhaps I was wrong. There was a truth in that one."
You are still confused, before your mind begins to realize what he just said. You gape as he looks away, blushing. "Ah- forgive me, [Name]-chan. I-I had meant to keep that to-"
You cut him off by pushing a small piece of the cookie into his mouth. You eat another piece yourself, swallowing it as you say, "It's not a problem, Kiku-kun. In fact-" you move your face closer to his, "-it's makes me very happy. Because now I don't have to conceal my feelings either!"
With that, you smiled broadly, boldly melding your lips to his own as you threw your arms around him. You heard him utter a cry of surprise at the sudden contact, before returning your affections just as strongly.
This really was such a fortunate occurance.