Chapter 2:

Captain's Log: Rice Making

XxXxXx

"Will you teach me?"

The blue-haired girl turned her head quickly. She stared at him, brow furrowed in confusion.

"Hn?" It was obvious she had no clue what he was talking about, and he didn't blame her.

He groaned at himself in frustration. "Will you teach me how to cook?"

She raised an eyebrow at him and leaned in closer to him. His cheeks began to turn a soft shade of pink that reminded her of her sister's crayon box. He backed up a little, and the pink of his cheeks darkened.

"Are you f-feeling sick?" she asked quietly, taking a small step backward, in case blurting out silly question was contagious.

"I'm fine," he said sharply, causing the girl to jump. "Well?"

She turned and opened a cupboard. Her fingertips grabbed the underside of a book's binding. She pulled out the cookbook, catching it with her free hand. "I could teach you. As repayment for helping me with my things."

He nodded and crossed his arms, leaning his lower back against the island. He stared at her, catching her off guard as she lifted her gaze from the now-open book. "Aa... I have a few things to do today, but... if you come back tomorrow morning, we can start."

XxXxXx

Hinata sat on her bed. It was nearly midnight already, and she was still finishing her thank-you letters. She had written and re-written for four Neji-nii-san. In the end, she put the original in the envelope and put the stamp on it. She knew she could walk it to the estate, but she had to be in her apartment in the morning to meet Uchiha-san.

'Uchiha Sasuke,' she thought. 'Why would he want me to teach him to cook? He could have asked Sakura-chan or Ino-chan. He could have easily asked TenTen-chan. Why me?'

She pulled out a leather bound book from beneath her pillow and began jotting down her thoughts. She was the luckiest girl in Konohagakure, but she didn't feel like it. She felt like ripping out her hair for offering to teach him. From the rumors that were flying around, she could end up dead after the first day.

XxXxXx

She woke up refreshed and ready to teach her pupil. She walked into the kitchen, wearing a robe over her cotton jimjams. She set up the teapot and began pulling things from the cupboards to make herself breakfast. She sighed as she opened the bag of flour and let the scent waft over her. She smiled contentedly, then pulled down the bag of sugar.

It was 7AM now. She expected him to arrive in an hour, maybe two. What she didn't expect was a knock on her door at 7:15AM. She had just put the tea leaves in the teapot and walked down the hall to take a bath and get dressed.

Eyes wide, she darted to the door and peeked through the peephole. "Oh, my," she said to herself. She pulled open the door and let him in, keeping her head down as he walked into her apartment.

He looked down at her. Her head was disheveled, and she was looking a little embarrassed. "I came at a bad time," he stated, looking her over again.

"Ano... Aa... No. It's alright. Honestly." She let her hands nervously grab at the flaps of her robe. The soft pink complimented the shade her face seemed to be turning. "One moment."

She ran toward the kitchen, her socks sliding on the tile. She shifted out the tea leaves and poured a cup of tea.

He watched her return with a cup of tea, and from what it smelled like, it was ginseng with mint and honey. She stared at him a few moments, then passed the teacup into his hands. After tucking a dark lock of hair behind her ear, she walked toward her bedroom.

He was tempted to follow, but it seemed rude, so he stayed in the living room and drank the tea. It was sweet, but not too sweet. It was sweet enough to keep the heavy taste of peppermint out of his mouth, not so sweet as to drive out the ginseng.

She emerged not long after, still in her robe, but her hair was brushed and pulled back in a low ponytail. "Are you ready?" she asked quietly.

He nodded and stood, walking himself to the kitchen with her following at his heels. She stopped when he did, hitting her nose against his back. She put a hand to her nose and turned away from his back to the counter where she left her cookbook open.

"Do you know how to cook cinnamon rolls or sweet dumplings?" she asked.

"Ano... No."

"Ramen from scratched?" She heard him chuckle over his shoulder. "What is it?" she asked subconsciously running a hand over her ponytail.

"Oh, it's nothing..."

"Rice?"

He blinked and shook his head. "I can't make that either."

He watched her jaw slack as she turned to stare at him. He shrugged as though it were no big deal. She placed her hands on her heavy hips and sighed. "This will take a long time..."

XxXxXx

That night, Hinata sat on her bed, touching the sleeve of her robe and pouting at the new burn marks along the cuff. She sighed and soothed her thumb over the fabric, wishing she could rub away the crisp edges. "I needed a new one anyway..."

She loved her robe, but knew she would have to toss it. Hyuugas, no matter how far from the compound they lived, did not wear tattered, or burnt, clothing. She sighed and leaned back on her bed, ponytail still in its place at the base of her neck. "I didn't even yell at him for burning it..."

She rolled onto her side. She'd spent the better part of her morning teaching him to cook rice without an electrick cooker. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to teach him how to cook cakes or rolls. She looked back at the sleeve, and noticed the other was burned as well.

Frowning deeply, she tossed the terrycloth across the room, onto the chair near her bed. Moments later, she was fast asleep, dreaming, and hoping, he wouldn't burn down her apartment the next day.

XxXxXx

Sasuke was very sorry for burning her robe. She had pulled it off as soon as it started flaming and tried to stomp it out with her socked feet. Her socks were singed as well, but she was obviously more worried about the robe. He thought of how to pay her back. If she'd heard the rumors, she would push him out of her apartment the following day.

He shook his head and stared at his ceiling, still wearing the training clothes he wore when he'd gone to see Hinata. He thought of cooking her something, but decided against it. Burning his home was not on his list of things to do. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He jumped off his bed and started toward the busier part of town. He was going to buy her a new robe.

XxXxXx

The first batch of rice they, meaning Sasuke, made was hard. The second was too sticky. The third was dry and barely cooked. Finally, after the fifth attempt, he made a good batch of rice. He smirked and nodded down at his creation.

Hinata pulled out a large bowl and poured out the rice. She set the pot back on the stove, and handed him the bag of rice and a pitcher of water.

"We'll try the rice one more time," she told him. He watched the rice, tempted to stir it just once. "Don't touch the spoon," she said quietly as she pulled out a paper towel. She handed it to him. "Remember, when the bubbles are below the rice level, put this on top, put the lid back on, and turn off the stove."

He nodded at her instructions, waiting as patiently as he could. He finally removed the lid, placed the paper towel over the rice, and replaced the lid. He turned off the stove and waited. This was the hardest part: the waiting.

"If this turns out well, we'll move on to bigger challenges."

He wasn't so sure about the 'bigger challenges' part, but he was definitely sure about getting this batch of rice right. They waited fifteen minutes in silence. Hinata puled the lid off, pulled out the paper towel, and stepped back for Sasuke. He stepped forward with the wooden spoon in hand and began stirring fervently.

"Not like that," she instructed. She placed her hand over his and slowed his motions. She turned over the rice, using his hand and the spoon. Once he understood the motion, her hand drifted to his wrist and let him do the work. He lifted a spoonful, blowing on the steaming rice.

She took the spoon and a tasting bite. She smiled sweetly. "That's perfect," she sighed. She looked down at the rice, then back up at Sasuke. "You're getting better."

Her soft praise rang in his ears. All that praise earned her a soft blush before the Uchiha tilted his head down and looked at the rice himself.

"Teach me to make sushi tomorrow."

XxXxXx

That evening, Sasuke stared at the robe across from his room. He decided he was going to take it to her tomorrow. He wasn't going to chick out of that again. He nodded to himself, and eventually, nodded himself to sleep, dreaming of making sushi with Hinata. Maybe he would feed her a bite and kiss her lips if she stained them with soy sauce. He sat up and blinked.

There wasn't a snowman's chance in hell he liked her. Uchiha Sasuke didn't like girls.

Then he thought to himself. 'She's not a girl; she's a lady.'