AAAHHH! I know! A whole month and two weeks without updates! I'm sooooooooo INCREDIBLEY SORRY:(
REASONS:
1) My computer BROKE DOWN COMPLETELY from two virus' simulataneously--the next chapter was saved on it and i couldn't retrieve it
2) WRITER's BLOCK--i didn't feel like rewriting the chapter i'd worked so hard on so that set me back a lot
3) HUMONGOUS english project--my friends and i worked 10 hours every weekend for a month and still i had to stay up the night before to finish it--it was AWFUL!
4) TENNIS--3 matches a week; home at 6-7; tired; homework--over now thank god!

That's it. but it's a lot. it was awful. april was such a stressful month; it was crazy. im sorry! I really am! You'll get one more update before school's over...only after school's over will I be able to start updating regularly. STUPID SCHOOL!
-grumbles- i have two finals every day of the week, the last week of school. gotta start studying for those soon. ARGH! STUPID SCHOOL! ahem. right. er. i bet most of you didn't bother to read all the way through this. so for those of you who did. thank you for listening to my ranting. ah...reading. i appreciate it. very much so. right.
ON WITH THE CHAPTER:

oh...it's really short because i literally FORCED myself to write it. sorry about that. hehe..he...he? -smiles sheepishly-

Chapter 9 (Day 7) Saturday Night

Yuki took a deep breath and started to peel the tomato. But every few seconds, the knife would slip and stab the tomato and make all the juice run out. Yuki's hand was very sticky in a matter of minutes.

It was at times like this that Yuki wished he was the type who cursed.

Ten Minutes Later

"AHA!" Yuki yelled.

Tohru turned around from her stew, slightly afraid of what she was going to find.

There stood Yuki with his arm punched into the air and a look of utmost triumph on his face.

"Did you finish the salad, Yuki-kun?" Tohru asked.

"No, Honda-san….but guess what!" Yuki pulled his fist down and started to open it. "I FINISHED PEELING THE TOMATO!" Sitting on top of Yuki's open palm now, was a peeled "tomato" that was smaller than it had originally been and very, very squishy-looking."

Tohru blinked once. Then twice. Then a third time. The amount of time it took to blink three times slowly was how long it took for Tohru's brain to comprehend what she was seeing.

Tohru sweat-dropped. (A/N: -sweatdrop-)

"Um…Yuki-kun…tomatoes…well, see…people don't usually peel tomatoes. They usually just cut them intobite-size pieces. Here, I'll show you."

Tohru grabbed the knife from Yuki's hand and another tomato. Swiftly, she cut it into four pieces and then eight.

Taking the pieces off the cutting board, she dumped them in the salad bowl with a small smile on her face. It was nice teaching Yuki-kun for once, instead of the other way around when he was helping her with her schoolwork. Not that she minded his help of course, it was just that she always felt a bit incompetent around Yuki at school. Here, in the kitchen, she felt more confident and liked that.

"See? That's how you cut a tomato."

"Oh. Honda-san. Could you please show me how to cut the other vegetables too? So I know how to do it, and won't disturb you? I really do want to help and I'm a fast learner." Yuki asked pleadingly. (A/N: Imagine a 10-year-old Yuki clasping his hands together in front of him with big, soulful eyes…that's what I did and he looks soooooooooo cute! Sigh. –Hearts float around-)

"Sure, Yuki-kun!" Turning back to the counter, Tohru showed Yuki how to slice the lettuce, peel and cut the radish, slice the cucumbers, and how to aristically cut the onions into circular pieces.

Yuki made sure to take good notes so he could do it all when Tohru finished showing him. And when he didn't understand something (A/N: which was all the time ;P) he asked her to show him again.

Unfortunately, when Tohru was done showing him, there weren't anymore vegetables to be peeled and sliced.

The two sweat-dropped when they saw that.

"Sorry, Honda-san. I didn't mean for this to happen. I just wanted to help; instead, I just wasted time." Yuki said, rubbing the back of his head with his hand.

"Oh no, Yuki-kun!You didn't waste my time at all!Now that you know how to do it, you can just help me tomorrow! Right now though...um...if you don't mind...do you think you could set the table? The food will be finished soon." Tohru said, smiling happily.

Tohru's new-found confidence increased when Yuki said yes.

The rat set the table and they all sat down to eat dinner.

That night, before going to bed, Yuki sketched Tohru's birthday cake. He wanted it to be simple, like Tohru, and not overly decorated like most store-bought cakes.

Unfortunately, he just couldn't take the picture in his mind's eye and put it on paper. It would always come out wrong. He spent an hour more, working on his drawing, until it was as close to the one in his mind as it could be. Only then did he turn off the light and go to bed.

Hi! Shout-outs!

Angela Dawne-- Awww...do you really mean that?

Serena Clearwater-- It's cool that you have such high standards for your reading. I'm honored that you even read my work. Thanks for understanding about updates!

mochii-- SUCH HIGH PRAISE! -blush- im red as a tomato aren't i? just like Yuki and Tohru. LOL. thanks so much. i love your reviews!

o.oxanimefreakxo.o-- Yeah. that's why his cooking is so bad. it's cause he doesn't know what he's adding to the pot. mystery stew! LOL :D Thanks and hope you got a good grade on your project!

Dark Inu Fan-- YES! the mission impossible song! LOL that made me laugh. thanks for the compliment!

Joyce-- I have to remember to return your email. im sorry. im swamped right now. thanks for liking the story so much:D

Willowcrickett-- REALLY? You really think so? Sorry about the insecurities, ff. net is the first time i've ever showed my writing to anyone...the whole anonymity thing really helps. Your review made ME smile:D I had this huge grin on my face. What does LL&P stand for btw?

Karen-- i didn't mean for that! i just meant he grabbed a knife to chop the vegetables! aahh...i hope no one else got confused...im glad you like it though!

hatori obsesser-- thanks again! and i will, don't worry! i fully plan on finishing this fic!

OkonomiyakeUcchan--Uo's my favourite too! YAY! And a YUKIRU buddy! I LUB YOU! YAYNESS! more fluff coming up, promise!

nightgodess-- ooooh...a new fan...have you seen the anime or read the manga? or both? both are good! read the manga though...it continues the story past the anime! THANKS so much for liking my work! I always thought my sense of humour was strange and that nobody would ever get it...thanks for proving me wrong! lub ya!

Suriana Amaya-- ah. where to start? your review just made me happy all over again! YAY! my brother is an amazing cook, im so jealous of him! and he's younger than me! my two best friends and i are like that...that's what i was basing their day together on...one of our own days! i can't believe my writing made you jealous! i swear...my face is forever going to be red...ill be known as The Girl Who Had A Tomato For A Face ;P LOL keep reading my story please! I love your feedback!

THAT's IT!

REVIEW PEOPLE! You know you wanna click that button and make me happy! YOU KNOW YOU DO!

BIG IMPORTANT NOTE: this chapter was supposed to include Snday in it but i was too mentally-blocked to write it.im not starting another fic until this one is done andthat's frustrating me cuz i have this really cool idea for a one-shot for CCS. so. from nowon, each chapter is going to be a DAY. that means -does some calculations- SIX chapters left. hopefully. thanks for reading! REVIEW! 5 before i even think about updating!

-RiceBallPlum

Enjoy.
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Otherwise you lose.