Recipe 9: Cake for dessert!
Author's note: I am again sorry for the late update! Lame excuses.. This is what happens when the author slowly loses interest in the story right? No, I haven't lost interest! I just can't find time.. Nearly two months of exams coming up *gulp* and my sister is always using this device.. I hope you don't hate me. You have full rights to.😁
Enjoy! This one may be a bit too fluffy, it might make you choke.. I should stop talking lame like this now. Thank you so much for motivating me, AnimeGirl4576 and all the others who have reviewed! And please tell me if there are any mistakes, English is not my first language. I should really shut up now. Enjoy! (I'm saying that again. For no reason.)
Ichigo pulled her hair in frustration. The blonde chocolatier sitting beside her looked at her, an amused smiled creeping onto his face. Ichigo frowned at him. "Sheesh, Kashino! What is the area of this silly triangle?"
He took Ichigo's hand, the one that was gripping the pencil, and guided it across the page.
"There's your mistake. Fix it now and redo the sum."
She looked at him, her veins popping. But she redid the sum anyway.
"Look, that wasn't so hard, was it? Okay, on to the next sum."
Ichigo put her head in her hands sighing. "I hate these exams! Why don't they just keep a baking test? Why Maths and Japanese and English and History and.."
"Well, you need Maths to calculate cake measurements. You need Japanese and English to read recipes, and you need to know the history of cakes and the area they originate from. Plus, if you didn't learn all these subjects you'd be considered illiterate. Now next sum."
She groaned.
"Hey, I should be the one groaning!" Kashino said, scowling at her. "I'm supposed to be studying, yet here I am helping your hopeless self. Quick now!"
Kashino immediately felt bad when he said that, but he did this all the time now. He knew it would make Ichigo angry and then she would work even harder. The Sweets Spirits watched from a distance.
"Poor Ichigo.. Kashino's butchering her!" Vanilla exclaimed.
"She'd probably fail without him to help her!" defended Chocolat. Andou usually helped her with studies, but he had a bad cold and he was trying to recover before the exams started. Hanabusa was busy studying himself. Kashino had already studied, so he was the only one available to help Ichigo. And he did not find that fun.
Café suddenly had an idea. He whispered into the others' ears, and they grinned.
"Perfect.." said Chocolat.
The exams were finally upon them and it took a toll on everyone. The normally happy-go-lucky Ichigo was bad tempered and stressed, and Kashino didn't talk anymore because he was so busy studying. He often made mistakes while baking. Andou had recovered except for the odd sniffle, and he made sure that their bad moods weren't too bad. Hanabusa was more narcissist than ever.
Finally, Kashino snapped. Ichigo had completely messed up his chocolate cake after school when they practiced baking.
"Amano!"
She flinched at his sharp and loud tone. Andou ran over.
"Can you just stop?! Can you stop messing everything? I never even wanted to be in the same school as you, loser!"
Everyone froze. All Kashino saw was red, and Andou tried to calm him down. Ichigo's eyes filled with tears, and she ran out. Not the easy crybaby Ichigo tears, the funny chibi tears when there were no cakes. These were real tears of pain, burning her cheeks and dripping onto the floor.
Kashino… H-he hates me.
The Sweets Spirits glared at Kashino and flew after Ichigo.
Kashino suddenly blinked. And met an instant pang of regret.
Oh no. What did I just say?!
The two of them buried themselves in studies, so that they had something to distract them. Hanabusa and Andou watched helplessly as the two bakers shut themselves in. Kashino couldn't concentrate properly, but he studied twice as much to make up for it. Ichigo was, for the first time, studying seriously and with full concentration.
A little more than a two weeks later, the exams were done and everyone sighed in relief at the last exam. A week later, just before the holidays, the results came in. Andou was first, and Ichigo and Kashino were tied at second place
Kashino had been trying to apologize to Ichigo for a few days now, but Ichigo avoided him. The Sweets Spirits agreed that now would be the best time for their idea more than ever.
Ichigo heard her phone buzz, and she opened it.
Ichigo-chan, is it okay to meet in your house? We don't have much to do… And your kitchen is big, isn't it?
Hanabusa Satsuki
She smiled.
She clearly wasn't expecting Kashino to show up along with Hanabusa and Andou.
She opened the front door in surprise, and her smile disappeared. Her parents had gone out with Natsume for a while, so she was alone.
"What is-"
Hanabusa was holding a blindfold, and he put it over Ichigo's eyes.
"Sorry, Ichigo chan. Just come with us."
The Sweets Spirits were up in the air out of Ichigo's earshot, giggling. "I can't wait!"
Ichigo followed the three boys unsurely. Kashino held her hand.
Why does this hand feel so warm? Even though it's so rough?
They took a long route and went right back to Ichigo's house, this time the back of her house. Her parents and Natsume were waiting there with a few of Ichigo's old friends. Andou gently removed the blindfold, and Ichigo almost jumped.
"Surprise!" Everyone yelled. There were chairs set out, and a few games and a picnic basket, but what caught her attention the most was the beautiful and large cake in the middle of a table surrounded with small delicious cakes of various kinds. And small Spirits, grinning mischievously.
"Wow! Did you all plan this?"
They nodded, smiling. Kashino turned to her.
"Um, Amano. I'm sorry for what I said back then. I'm very thankful to have you as a friend. You made my days brighter. Thank you." He said, blushing and looking down. Ichigo noticed his hand entwined with hers even though her blindfold was off, and turned red.
"Thank you, Kashino."
He suddenly noticed his hand and pulled it away, beetroot red.
"Ahem," said Ichigo's father, narrowing his eyes.
Ichigo laughed. And she literally dove into all the cakes, gobbling up like her life depended on them. Soon everyone joined in.
Later after the 'picnic' was over, the four of them sat on the edge of the balcony, swinging their legs. Andou and Hanabusa exchanged knowing looks and went away with some excuse, and the Sweets Spirits got their cameras ready.
Ichigo and Kashino didn't say anything, but their hands got closer and closer until they were intertwined with each other. They smiled and looked into each other's eyes.
Amano's eyes.. They are prettier than chocolate. So deep and brown and warm..
His eyes are honey.. The warmest honey I've ever seen.
After a while, Ichigo finally mustered up the courage. The red faced Ichigo looked down and whispered, "I like holding hands with you."
He smiled back, blushing. "Me too."
The Spirits did not miss this. They came tumbling out, giggling and gushing over the romantic moment. Café shook his head, exasperated. "They totally ruined it." And then he joined them and teased the two.
After the teasing died down, everyone came back. Ichigo's mother called.
"Dinner's ready, everyone!"
Ichigo's eyes gleamed. "Will there be cake for dessert?"
Everyone laughed. "Of course!" Her mother replied. Ichigo ran forward, with a wide smile stretching from ear to ear, gleaming brown eyes and friends running beside her.
Thank you for reading!
(I have a valid excuse for updating the past few chapters late.. I discovered BTS in November or December last year and I just can't stop thinking about them 😍)