AN: Well, here's the next one. I was watching some episode of TeniPuri, and I got this idea. :D I hope you like it!

Thanks so much to those who reviewed: KatrinaKaiba, Pure Essence, Kid Blader, KaguyaEvenstar, Ashley, Undine1, umi, Piscesgrl389, cherrixwolf, UndyingMelodies, painin uranus, Craziwidder, Shy-Lil-Dreamer and Woven Bamboo Pattern! Thanks to everyone who put me or this story on their favourites XD Domo Arigatou gozaimashita!

Cake Baking

Strawberry'd

28 June 2005

"Okaa-san! Why are we eating Western food again?" Ryoma called, looking glum as she stared at the table, piled high with toast, sausages and eggs.

"I like Western food," Ryoma's mother said, untying the apron from her waist. "Hurry up and eat. You'll be late for school."

Ryoma nodded slowly. "Can you make Japanese food tomorrow?"

"You're always complaining!" His mother cried. "You should make it yourself, since you're the only one who wants it."

"Wha – " Ryoma said. "But oyaji doesn't like Western food either."

"Who said?" Nanjiroh said, munching happily on some toast. Ryoma glared at him.

"You should learn how to cook." Ryoma's mother said, pointing at him with a plastic spatula. "I want you to learn how to make something by the end of this week, or I'll be serving you Western food for the rest of your life!"

Ryoma's eyes were wide. For the rest of his life? That was a very long time.

"Well?" His mother said. Nanjiroh snickered in the background.

Ryoma glared at his father again. "Fine." He sat down and started on his toast, muttering dark thoughts while chewing sullenly.

At school, Ryoma was plagued with the thought of having Western food for the rest of his life. He knew he couldn't make a dish by the end of this week. Maybe Western food would grow on him?

Mada mada dane, he thought.

"Ne, Horio," Ryoma started, during lunch break. "Do you know how to cook?"

"Why? Are you planning on opening a restaurant?" Horio asked, in his loud, obnoxious voice.

"Not really." Ryoma elapsed into silence.

"Ryuuzaki-chan!" Ryoma heard someone call. It was Momoshiro-senpai. "What have you got today?"

"Ano," Sakuno stared at the towering upperclassman. "I only have some cookies. They aren't very good…"

"I'll be the judge of that!" Momo-senpai grinned and popped one into his mouth. He started to cry.

"Ano!" Sakuno grew alarmed. Did she put something weird into it?

"They're so good!" Momochan-senpai said, tears streaming down his face. He took another cookie and ate it, this time slowly, his expression showing how much he liked it.

"You should open a business, Ryuuzaki-chan!"

"E-eto, I'm not that good. O-obaa-chan helps me a lot." She stuttered, nervous by all the attention her senpai was bringing.

"Eh! What's this?" Horio called. "I want to try! Come on, Echizen."

"Huh?" Ryoma looked at Horio, who was dragging him to where Sakuno was.

"Sugoi! Here, Echizen, try this." Horio stuffed a cookie into Ryoma's mouth. He frowned at Horio.

"What is it?" He asked, chewing slowly.

"Ryuuzaki-san's cookies!" Horio said, his expression not unlike Momochan-senpai's.

"Ryuuzaki…?" Oh yeah, that's the coach's granddaughter. His poor memory struggled with her first name.

A bell rang.

"Ah! That's the end of lunch. Thank you for the cookies, Ryuuzaki-chan!" Momoshiro-senpai said, and Ryoma felt a flash of annoyance at how he spoke to her so familiarly.

"Oi, Echizen, before I forget, I gotta tell you tennis club is cancelled today." Ryoma's senpai added, waving as he walked out of the classroom.

"Ok," Ryoma said absentmindedly. What was her name again?

He was walking home, his brow creased. It started with an 's'… Sa… Saku… Sakura? Saku…

"Sakuno." He remembered.

"H-hai?" Ryoma turned around in surprise. Well, speak of the devil.

Sakuno blushed. Ryoma-kun had said her first name! "Did you need something?" She asked.

"Oh." Ryoma was lost. He didn't want to look like a fool. Suddenly he remembered the cookies. "Can I ask you a favour?" He asked bluntly.

Sakuno looked taken back. "S-sure. What did you need?"

"I need you to help me bake a cake."

"Ano?"

Sakuno sweatdropped. How had she gotten herself into this mess again? Oh yes, Ryoma-kun. How could anyone refuse a favour from him? She started to blush just thinking of him.

Well, why did she have to think about him, when he was right in front of her?

"So I just put the eggs into the flour?" Ryoma said with an eyebrow raised.

"Ah, no. You have to whisk the eggs in a separate bowl." Sakuno corrected.

Ryoma looked at her. "Isn't that creating more work for yourself?"

"Ah, yes, but it won't turn out right if you don't." Sakuno said, hastily.

Ryoma shrugged. "Whatever." He started to whisk the eggs with a fork, spilling the goo over the sides.

"Ah, you should be more careful, Ryoma-kun." Sakuno cried, taking the bowl for him and demonstrating how to do it properly.

The two were at Sakuno's house, in the kitchen, surrounded by various pots, pans, and cookbooks.

About an hour later, Ryoma frowned. He was looking at a charred cylindrical shape, sitting in a cake pan.

"So how'd it come out?" Sakuno returned to the bathroom, words half out of her mouth when she saw it. "Oh. Never mind." She plastered a smile on her face as she took the 'cake' from Ryoma's hands.

"I don't understand." Ryoma said. "What did I do wrong?"

"Well, what temperature did you put the cake to?" Sakuno asked.

"Ah, 650 degrees Celsius. I thought it would bake faster." Ryoma said, looking like he was in the right.

Sakuno grinning sheepishly. "It doesn't work that way, Ryoma-kun. You need to put it to the temperature required."

Ryoma scoffed. "Stupid recipes."

Sakuno smiled nervously. "Ah, let's try again, shall we?"

Just a day less of a week, Ryoma finally made a perfect cake. It was just slightly burnt, just along the edge, but Sakuno smiled nervously and told him it would do.

"Now what do I do?" He asked, looking dubiously at the cake. "It doesn't look right."

"You have to ice it and put decorations on it." Sakura said, losing all of her nervousness while on the subject of her forte. She knew how to bake and cook. It gave her a light headed feeling that she was better than Ryoma in something.

"How do I ice it?" Ryoma said.

"Get a knife." Sakuno mumbled as she concentrated on washing the dishes. She turned around for a moment and saw, with horrified eyes Ryoma, holding a pretty sharp knife hovering over the almost-perfect cake they had slaved over.

"Ah!" Sakuno forgot the dishes and ran over to him, prying the knife from his hands. She blushed at the contact. "H-how about I do that… you can wash the dishes, ne?" Sakuno laughed timidly.

"Whatever." Ryoma looked bored as he picked up one plate and started to scrub it. Sakuno breathed out a sigh of relief. She put the knife away and grabbed a plastic spatula, and some icing. Quickly and effortlessly, she covered the cake with vanilla icing and even made some icing stars on the edge.

"How did you do that?" Ryoma asked, trying to kept he awe from his voice.

Sakuno looked at him in surprise. She had forgotten he was there! "Oh, 'baa-chan helped me in the beginning. It's not too hard." She smiled weakly.

"Che, you're too modest." Ryoma said, tugging on his cap. Sakuno smiled, knowing he was anything but modest. "But anyway, thank you."

Sakuno looked up in surprise. "W-what?"

Ryoma looked uncomfortable. "Thank you. For helping me."

"Oh. Y-you're welcome." Sakuno blushed.

Ryoma shot her a smirk. "You're stuttering again." Sakuno blushed even more. She tried to hide it by busying herself. She quickly put the cake into a box and put it in a bag for Ryoma.

"H-here you go." She said, her hands trembling slightly.

Ryoma smirked again. "Sankyuu." He took the bag and hovered beside her. He lightly pulled on one of her braids. "Your hair is too long."

Sakuno was in shock. "H-h-hai."

Ryoma nodded to her and left, closing the door on his way out.

Sakuno was dumbfounded. What just happened there?

Ryoma walked to school with a slight spring in his step. His mother made a Japanese breakfast! And for dessert the night before, he had eaten the cake he made.

If Ryuuzaki's cakes tasted even better, he wasn't sure he wouldn't start crying like his senpai did.

:shudder: that was really bad. It just kept going, and I need to end it… but I didn't know how… ehehe :sweatdrop:

I started it really excited, but I couldn't finish it then, so the next day, when I finished it, I sort of lost interest… so that's why it's kinda weird.

Ah, well. :D Review!