I sighed, gazing out the window at my school listlessly. It had been a week since the odd group had shown up at the shop and, as much as I would like to be thinking about them, I was preoccupied with other things at the moment. For one, midterms were coming up and I was trying to mentally organize my schedule in order to fit in some study-cram time. And then there was the fact that Christmas was soon approaching and I would need some new ideas in order to sell just a bit more. I had to get Hayato a gift, after all. And maybe I'll find someone better than the last guy I dated… I sighed again, before being suddenly forced forward as Hayato hugged me around the neck and leaned his weight on me.
"Aw! Kosuke needs a hug!"
"I do not!" I shouted back, trying to shove him off me with a glare.
"But you keep sighing as you look longingly out the window!" He leaned over, speaking quietly in my ear. "Did you find a new catch?~"
I flushed, successfully shoving him off this time. "No! I already told you…" A sudden feeling of emptiness filled my chest and I sighed again, pulling a hand through my hair. "No one would want me anyway."
Hayato was right back on top of me with his arms around my neck, rubbing his face against my cheek. "Aw! Now I know you need a hug."
"Hayato! Get off me!" I complained loudly, struggling to get out of his grip as some of the other students in the room chuckled at our display.
The bell rang then and Hayato jumped up cheerfully, my head still caught under his arm.
"To P.E. we go!" He shouted, dragging me away as I continued to complain.
He finally let me go when we entered the changing rooms and I stripped off my shirt to grab my jersey when I felt a sharp jab to my side.
"Ow! Hayato! I told you not to poke those!" I shouted, rubbing a bruise left over from the incident that happened a week ago.
"But they're so poke-able! How could I not cause you a little pain, hm?"
I punched him upside the head and he cradled his head in his hands as he fell into a crouch at my feet, crocodile tears streaming down his face as he looked up at me.
"Koooooosuke! That hurt!"
"So did poking my bruise!"
Another guy from our class came up then, chuckling and dropping an arm over my shoulder as I recognized him as Daisuke; the main batter for the baseball team.
"You two are funny! But hey, Saito, I didn't know you had tattoos!"
I frowned at him, brushing a hand along the tribal inking that went up the right side of my back, over my shoulder, and down my arm a bit.
"I don't make a habit of people knowing about them." I muttered quietly, rubbing the back of my foot over the Anubis tattoo on the back of my calf.
"Why not? I think they're cool! Though…" He frowned a little, stepping back and putting a hand to his chin in thought. "You don't exactly look like the type to have them."
And this is why I avoid people. I mentally complained, turning around and pulling my shirt on along with my jersey and pants, before grabbing Hayato.
"Come on. Let's go."
Hayato came along, knowing that I was like that with most people until I warmed up to them and he simply smiled cheerfully the whole way to P.E.
"Alright class!" The coach called out. "Take a few laps around the track and then I'll split you up into teams. Today we're playing basketball!"
There were groans and such from the other kids in the class, but I just got up and started running. I didn't mind P.E. at all, unlike most of my other classmates, and I actually enjoyed running. Though basketball was my personal favorite. Once everyone was done running, the coach split us up and Hayato immediately threw a fist in the air beside me.
"Alright! Time to kick some butt, neh, Kosuke?"
I stretched my arm over my chest as we both walked onto the court with the rest of our team and our opponents. "I suppose." I muttered before switching arms.
We set everyone up with their positions and once the game began, I set off. The truth is, basketball was the one other thing I really enjoyed doing other than baking. I was on the team in middle school and did pretty good, and I also played street basketball when I had the chance back then too. I still did, but only occasionally, since most people who played weren't around by the time I got off work. It still shocked my classmates every time though. Because the moment we started playing, I became a totally different person almost. And my team usually won or got very close to winning.
Today was a good day and we manage to win the game before the coach called us back and we went to change before our next class. I got pats on the back and an occasional 'good job' from the passing guys, but after a while, things cooled down again and class went on as normal. I was having issues trying to figure out some things though. It was science. There was just something about adding chemicals together with math that seemed to mess me up no matter what I did. The bell rang before I could figure it out and I groaned before packing up my things and going to head out. Hayato had gotten detention for falling asleep in class, so he wouldn't be joining me. The walk wasn't bad though and I got to the bakery at a decent time, only to find that the sign still said that it was closed. My eyes widened and I charged in angrily.
"Chiharu!"
I searched the building for her, but found her nowhere to be found, making me curse before heading back to the front and switching the sign around. Chiharu, it seemed, ditched work for today and I was less than pleased. Great. Just great. Now I've lost sales and this will definitely cut into the shop's budget because mornings are the busiest times. I began muttering curses under my breath along with the amounts that I most definitely lost because of Chiharu, and I pulled on my apron and just tied it in the back when the chime on the door went off.
"Ah! Hello, how can I help you toda—"
"Ko-kun!"
I was tackled around the waist, nearly knocking me off balance should I have not grabbed the counter and saved both me and the little blonde who'd attacked me.
"U-Uh, hello, Honey."
He looked up wit a big grin. "I missed you, Ko-kun!"
"Me too… I guess." I said, still pretty confused as I looked to my left and saw the others smiling at my predicament. "I assume you are not here just for bread then?"
Kyoya sighed, pushing up his glasses. "You are correct. Honey-senpai wished to see you again."
I looked down at the blonde as he smiled up at me, still attached to my waist. "I can see that. Would you, um, like something to eat or drink, Honey?"
He nodded frantically and I couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
"Then you'll have to let me go. I can't write down everything you want if you're attached to my waist."
His grin managed to get even wider before he bobbed his head and released me, running around to the other side of the counter and waiting until I was ready before he began spouting off everything. The smile remained on my face as I rested my elbows on the counter, jotting down his order as he went from pie to cake to brownies and tarts; glad that he was enjoying himself so much, but also glad because this could solve my problem of my low customer count for the day. With his never ending stomach, he'll probably be able to cover the money the shop should have gotten this morning. But… I glanced over at him as he pointed at another strawberry cake on display, eyes bright with excitement. I don't think I've ever had anyone so happy over my food before. It's… nice.
"—and some strawberry milk to drink!" Honey finished as I wrote the last of his order down with a nod.
"Alrighy then. Just grab a seat with your friends and I'll bring it all over in a minute." I said, moving to grab the rolling cart, pausing and looking over my shoulder at the others. "If you guys want anything, just let me know and I'll add it."
They nodded and headed off, not really wanting anything, I suppose—though Kyoya did ask for tea and water for everyone—and I set about gathering everything onto the tray. It took a moment and, at this point, the group had begun discussing something over at their booth, when the bell chimed once more and I lifted my head out from under the counter to greet the next set of customers.
"Hello, what can I help you with today?" I asked, only to feel my heart drop into my stomach at the group of students from my school who just walked in; namely, Daisuke, his friends, and what appeared to be his girlfriend hanging off his arm.
"Oh! Kosuke, is that you?"
Just what I needed. A group of idiot jocks and their girlfriends walking in. I thought, not happy but keeping my customer smile on for now. I don't know why I got my hopes up that no one from school would come in here. It's not that far away, and even if it's someplace you wouldn't normally find… I should've known better.
"Hello, Daisuke. How can I help you?"
"Hm? You know this skinny-looking kid?" His girlfriend questioned, making me tense as his friends chuckled.
"Hm? Yeah. He's in my class. He's the one I told you guys about, remember?"
"You mean the one with that tattoos?"
"No way!" His friends laughed. "This runt?!"
Inside, I was boiling, wishing that I could take on the group of muscle heads and just beat their heads together, but I knew I couldn't. Mentally, maybe. But physically? Not a chance. Outside though, I was all calm and polite smiles, pulling out my notepad once more.
"Would you and your friends be ordering anything, Daisuke?" I asked, drawing their attention back to me.
"Huh? Oh, uh…" He turned to his girlfriend, who rolled her eyes.
"A strawberry tart."
"And a chocolate fudge brownie for me!" He piped up, though his other pals were still making fun.
"Dude, do you think he makes all this stuff?"
"Ask him! I bet you he does!"
"How gay!"
"I wouldn't put that past him!"
I grit my teeth, but gestured over towards them with my head, speaking to Daisuke. "Are your friends going to order anything?"
He glanced their way, before shaking his head. "Nah. I think they're good."
Of course. If they did want anything, I would have to struggle not to spit on it. I thought, telling Daisuke what he owed and taking the money. "For here or to go?"
"For here." He said, his friends picking another booth away from the group of guys who now had their eyes on me.
"Very well. I will bring your order over as soon as I help my other customers who are already here." I said. "Do you want water or drinks for your table?"
He shrugged. "Water's good."
I nodded and he went to join his friends as I turned away to finish putting sweets on Honey's cart, dropping my smile quickly and wishing I could just punch something in my anger. Just calm down. They're blockheads. Idiot jocks who don't give a rats ass about anyone else. Who cares what they think? One day, I'll be making a living and they'll be on the streets, drunk. So just keep your cool, Kosuke. You can do it. Just until they leave. I chanted in my mind, grabbing a pitcher of water from the back fridge and cups for both groups, snatching the tea pot on the way back out and adding that to the cart before heading over to Honey's awaiting group.
"I apologize for the wait." I said, bowing slightly and starting to put all of Honey's order on the table.
"Do you know them, Kosuke?" Haruhi asked, and I nodded.
"Yes, in a way. They are classmates of mine… Some of them, anyway. Daisuke is the lead batter of my school's baseball team."
"They're mean." Honey said, making me glance up from what I was doing and feeling something clench in my stomach at the angry look he was trying to hide behind his bangs.
"They… are not kind." I murmured, lowering my head again.
"Then why put up with that?" The twins asked.
"Couldn't you just…"
"…refuse to service them or something?"
"Bad for business." I replied, passing out the cups of water now. "I was taught not to turn down a customer, no matter what the reasons. Putting aside my personal feelings for the shop, is something I'm more than willing to do if it keeps it running."
"But isn't that a bit… sad?"
I set the tea in front of Kyoya and looked over at Tamaki. "Not as sad as it would be if I lost this shop… Now, you'll have to excuse me. I have other customers to serve." I replied, bowing again and turning the cart away.
Once I'd returned the cart to it's place, I brought over the cups, pitcher, and the two things Daisuke ordered and headed over to the jock's table. I set the plates down in front of him and his girlfriend, keeping my eyes focused on what I was doing and trying not to look into the sneering faces of his friends. Just as I was nearly finished though, one of the guys purposely pushed over his glass of water that I'd just filled, spilling it on the table and the floor.
"Look what you did!" He said, loudly. "Clumsy idiot!"
"My apologies." I said, even though I knew it wasn't my fault.
I pulled out a rag from my apron pocket and began cleaning up the spill, excusing myself to grab another from the kitchen and returning. As I cleaned the table though, I noticed that some had dripped off onto the booth beside the man, and went to clean it up before it could potentially ruin the upholstery, but the moment I did, the man shouted and smacked me hard across the face; knocking me back.
"What the hell, man?!" Daisuke shouted, not looking pleased about what just happened, but his friend easily covered it up.
"He touched my lap! The guy's freaking gay! I don't want that sort of crap pulled on me!"
Bull! I mentally shouted. I didn't even touch him! I was wiping the booth! I tasted iron and ran my tongue along the inside of my cheek, wincing when I felt the cut there, before someone touched my arm.
"Are you okay, Ko-kun?"
I looked over to see Honey, looking worried, his other friends coming over as well and standing around me.
"I think it's about time you leave." Kyoya said, arms crossed over his chest as Tamaki pointed at the group of shocked guys dramatically.
"That's right! I will not tolerate this behavior in a wonderful shop such as this!"
"Buzz off, losers!" The twins countered, pulling down their eyelids and sticking out their tongues.
"Oh yeah?" One of the guys stepped up. "And who's gonna make us?"
Mori stepped forward, towering over the guys and they immediately seemed to shrink as Daisuke herded them out, sending me a glance before leaving as well. Once they were gone though, all eyes turned to me as I stood up on my own and gently placed a hand on my cheek.
"Sorry about that." I said, not having meant for something like that to happen and to ruin their meal.
"What are you saying, Kosuke?" Tamaki questioned, looking confused.
"Yeah. It's not like…"
"…you wanted to get punched."
Haruhi nodded. "That's right. We were watching too. You didn't even touch that guy."
"While not serving customers may impact your business..." Kyoya said, pushing up his glasses. "...serving people such as that could make the image even worse."
"They're right, Ko-kun." Honey said, a hand hanging onto my apron. "You shouldn't be nice to bad people or they're going to take advantage of that."
"You'll get hurt." Mori spoke afterwards, eyeing me in what I assumed was worry.
They're right. I know they are. I silently mused, sighing and lowering my hand from my face. "Yeah, okay. I'll try to be more careful next time… Sorry."
The group smiled—or in Kyoya's case, rolled his eyes—before they began fussing over me.
"You should probably put some ice on that or it's going to swell."
"I'll get it, Ko-kun! It's in the freezer, right?"
I nodded and Honey dashed off, before Mori pushed me back into a chair that the twins pulled up and Haruhi began making me some tea.
"You guys seriously don't have to do this." I muttered, accepting the ice from Honey. "I barely know you."
"But you're still really nice!" He chirped, making me let out a bitter chuckle as I shook my head; a hand holding the ice to my face.
"I'm not that nice. I just put on a smile for customers." I said, feeling tired now that the adrenaline was wearing off.
"But to be able to do that even with the worst of customers…"
"…Doesn't that just show that you're nice?"
"We do it all the time." The twins shrugged as I raised a brow in confusion.
"Huh?"
Tamaki quickly stepped forward, posing with a hand on his chin. "We are the Ouran high School Host Club! It is our duty to entertain woman and make them happy!"
I blinked, eyes wide and getting pale at what he was insinuating. "I-I didn't know they allowed that in… school…"
Haruhi shoved Tamaki aside, waving her hands about. "Oh no. Not like that. We just talk to them. Give them tea and snacks. Things like that."
"So… like a book club, but without the books." I said, feeling slightly better now that I knew they weren't selling their bodies for money.
"Sounds accurate." Kyoya said, looking down at a familiar folder. "Your sales are particularly down today. Only us and that other group?"
"Hey! That's my sales report!" I yelled, taking it back from him with a frown. "And yes. I know my sales are down. It's because Chiharu—the girl you guys met before—decided not to show up today, so there was no one to open the shop until I came home from school… Ah! That reminds me!"
I hurriedly got up, squeezing past the group and hurrying to the phone, starting up the list of missed calls and putting down the ice pack as I began jotting down orders. Someone was having a birthday party for their ten year old and wanted a strawberry marble cake with butter cream frosting and an edible—
"—princess and a castle on top? You've got to be kidding me." I muttered, though the hosts seemed to have heard me.
"That sounds cute!"
"If you're not the one making it."
"They're right. It sounds rather complicated."
"What are you going to do, Ko-kun?" Honey asked, looking up at me with worried eyes.
I pulled a hand through my hair with a sigh, picking up my ice pack and putting it back on my cheek.
"I'll have to do some research first and then see what I can come up with. What works and what doesn't… but I only have a week?" I turned away from the phone and leaned back up against the counter.
"You can do it, Ko-kun!" Honey reassured.
Haruhi nodded. "Yeah. How hard can it be?"
I deadpanned, looking at her and making her flinch.
"T-That bad?"
"I need a picture for reference. I have to figure out which material works best to make it. I have to find a way to stabilize it and still keep it edible. I have to make sure it doesn't cause the cake itself to sink in. It can't be too heavy, but if it's too light, it'll fall apart. Not to mention detailing it and the princess, which also has to be edible. Heck, I don't even know what kind of princess or castle they're asking for, so I'll have to call them. Western? German? Japanese? Korean? There's an endless number of things I could do with it, but I only have a week. Things like this should usually take at least two to three weeks. Not to mention I've never done this before." I listed off, feeling myself starting to frown.
"You've never done this before?!"
I shook my head. "No. The only edible creations I've made are miniature people and roses. Nothing on the scale of a whole castle."
"T-Then why can't you reference them to someone else?! If you've never done this before then—"
I cut Haruhi off with a look, making her freeze as I explained. "I will never turn down a customer because I haven't done something before."
Just then, the door opened and an older woman walked in, spotting me as I put a smile on my face. Oh great. Her again.
"Good afternoon, Miss Harada. What can I help you with today?" I asked, moving away from the group and back over to the register.
"What happened to you?" She questioned rather bluntly.
"A mishap, is all. How was the bread?"
She frowned, and I knew what was coming. "The sourdough crust was too hard and it hurt my mouth."
"I apologize, I'll have to try and make the crust softer then." I said back, jotting the note down on a notepad. "And the others?"
"The croissant was delicious, just the right texture on the inside. Nice and fluffy. As was the raisin bread, but isn't there something you can do about it? My grandkids kept picking out the raisins!"
"A… raisin bread without raisins?" I questioned, raising a brow.
"That's right! Make it taste like raisin bread, but leave out those wrinkled old grapes." She said, nodding with her arms over her chest, making me smile and shake my head.
"Of course, Miss Harada. I'll come up with something. What would you like for today though?"
"Hm… Another batch of croissants, a loaf of French bread, and some banana bread for the grandkids. And make sure the French bread crust isn't hard! And the banana bread less fattening! My grandson has already started to look like a little piglet."
"I'll see what I can do." I said, bowing and walking out to the back kitchen where I knew the French bread I made for her would be, along with all of my less fattening sweet breads. She always comes up with something new to give me. Though I wonder… raisin-less raisin bread?
Once Kosuke had gone into the back, Tamaki took a chance and went over to the older woman.
"Excuse me, Miss?"
She turned and smiled a bit. "Well, aren't you a handsome bunch."
Tamaki smiled in return. "Thank you, but we actually had a question for you. What do you know about Kosuke?"
"Friends of his?" She questioned, tilting her head and placing a finger to her chin. "Well, he's always been pleasant and kind, especially to his customers. If you ever want anything, he'll make it just the way you want it. Very compliant. His grandfather taught him well, though you're the first friends I've seen him with other than that one boy from his school who used to come here often. It's a shame he hasn't been around. Kosuke was always happiest when he was here. That other boy always gave me a bad feeling though." She frowned, before lightning up and sighing. "It's a shame his parents can't look past what happened."
"What do you mean?"
She went to answer, but Kosuke came out then holding a bag with what she asked for, smiling as he placed it on the counter, telling the woman how much she owed.
"And I'll do my best to come up with a raisin-less raisin bread." He smiled as she wagged her finger at him.
"You better." She teased, leaving the shop with a wink at the hosts, who were even more confused than before.
I noticed that the hosts were looking at me strangely after Miss Harada left and I sighed, assuming it was due to her more… demanding attitude.
"You shouldn't mind her. She's a regular customer of mine who likes to make things difficult."
"You don't seem to mind it." Kyoya commented.
I felt a smile tug at my lips. "Yeah, well. What can you do? I like the challenge of trying to figure out new things and the customer is always right, as the saying goes. It's all worth it at the end of the day."
"But Ko-kun, how are you going to get everything done?" Honey asked. "You have to make that castle cake too, don't you?"
His words kind of dampened my mood as reality kicked back in and I realized that Miss Harada had only added to my plate. Aw man. I'm going to be extremely busy. I sighed, bringing the ice pack back up to my face and leaning back against the counter.
"I suppose I just have to make time." I told him. "There's different things I can do; get up earlier, sleep later, all-nighters, skip a day of school—"
"You can't do that!" Haruhi shouted, as the others agreed.
"There's no way!"
"Think about your health, mon ami!"
"Ko-kun! That's too much!"
"Can't you just tell the woman who just came in that you will be too busy to do what she wished right away?"
I shook my head, removing the ice pack and moving to drop it off in the kitchen freezer as the group followed me.
"You guys don't get it. This is my life. Baking is what I do because it makes people happy and I enjoy knowing that something I did helped someone. If I can't do that or if what I did isn't what they were looking for, then why bother? I don't mind not getting a full nights rest or missing class, because when I end up going to give that kid their birthday cake with a castle and princess on it, everything else will be meaningless other than that kid's happiness… as cheesy as that sounds." I said, shrugging as I turned around, keeping my eyes closed. "Besides, it'd mean that I was letting my grandfather down and after everything he's done for me, it wouldn't exactly be very nice to not do something for him."
When I opened my eyes, I didn't expect to see the majority of the hosts in tears, nor did I expect the sudden barrage of hugs once I'd finished.
"That's so sad!"
"You're so dedicated!"
"Wah, Ko-kun! You care so much!"
"T-Thank you?" I stuttered out, cheeks tinted a slight pink in my embarrassment. "But I really should get started. Especially since Miss Harada just added more to my workload."
They pulled away from me with nods and sad faces, before Honey tugged on my shirt, making me look down at his tearful eyes.
"But we can come back, right? I want to see Ko-kun's cake."
"Uh… sure, I guess you can come at the end of the week. I need to deliver it on Saturday so Friday would wor—Ah!"
Honey tackled me in a hug once more, causing me to slip and tumble to the floor; a hand gripping the side of the counter as he buried his face in my chest happily.
"Yay! I get to see Ko-kun's cake! Thanks a lot, Ko-kun!" He pulled back with a grin, one so happy that I could feel the tips of my ears heat up as a blush threatened to travel up my face.
Why is he so cute when he smiles? I felt my stomach drop at that thought, quickly shaking it off as Honey got off me and held out a hand to help me up. Stop it, Kosuke. You know better. Keep it to yourself. I hesitantly took his hand, not expecting him to be strong enough to pull me to my feet, but I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of strength he had once I was tugging into a standing position.
"You're… stronger than you look." I muttered, but he only chuckled with a grin before turning back to the others.
"Neh, you hear that, Takashi? We get to see Ko-kun on Friday!"
"Ah."
Kyoya then pulled out his phone as we all headed back into the main room. "We should be going then. Tamaki, we still need to come up with tomorrow's club ideas."
"Right!" Tamaki said loudly, marching towards the door. "Onwards, men!"
The twins rolled their eyes and followed him out as Honey climbed up to Mori's shoulders and turned to wave at me.
"Bye, Ko-kun!"
I waved back and once they were gone, I went into the back room and brought a hand to my mouth as my face turned a bright red. O-Oh man. He's just so… I buried my face in my hands. …cute.
