Chapter 6 – Red String of Fate
Takumi wondered if this was what it was like to be boneless. He woke up late in the morning and didn't have the will nor the energy to get out of bed. The night before yesterday was like a blur, a very soft and hallucinogenic blur. He felt extremely odd throughout the last two days and he couldn't place his finger on the name of it. It pulled and tugged at his insides. It threatened to rip his chest to shreds and buckle his knees. At the same time, it was warm, soft and languid as if the rays from the heavens warmed him from the inside. He felt something immense inside himself. He remembered when he got back to the dormitory from Ayame-san's house two days ago, he had gone for another shower and then straight to bed. If he did anything else aside from showering and getting ready for bed, he couldn't remember. The only other thing he remembered were her words
'That's exactly what she said… She wouldn't call anyone else but ME'
Something overwhelmed him and he finally found the words to describe it. It was inexplicable joy. That's what it was. It was the same joy that was tearing him to pieces at the same time mending him.
He repeated the words over and over in his head like a prayer. The head-spinning excitement that threaded his blood stream was almost too much to bear. Yesterday, he was on a rampage in the kitchens cooking non-stop with boundless energy fueled by the words of the bella. He pushed and pushed to create the most delectable dishes feeling more invigorated than he had ever been. The other students didn't have time to breathe around him, let alone concentrate on their own cooking.
The blonde Italian rubbed his eyes and tucked his arm behind his head. He felt his face split into a smile. Even at night and in the mornings, it was pretty warm, so he made sure he wore light pyjamas in bed. He pushed his blanket so that it was half-way down his body and lifted his other arm in front of his face.
It was the same hand that held hers. They were soft and small compared to his larger and courser one.
He stifled a yawn and folded both hands behind his head, interlocking his fingers. His eyes drooped as he still felt a bit tired from yesterday and his head was still buzzing.
Bzzzt!
Takumi reached for his phone without looking.
'Ciao!
Ah, it's called 'amore', brother :P I'm surprised
that you would even ask me! Anyway, I can't
wait to meet her when I get back. I expect the
two of you to be together by then. No pressure haha.
Mamma and Pappa appreciate the souvenirs,
especially Nonna and Nonno. You didn't have
to send it by express post, Mamma was only joking!
-Isami.
WHAT.
Takumi flushed and flung his phone onto the other end of the bed. He curled himself into a tight ball and covered his golden hair with his arms.
'Amore? Amore?! Is this what it was?!'
Suddenly the vision of Ayame-san eating his pancakes was so vivid in his mind. He almost broke right then and there in front of her. He couldn't help himself and had probably looked like a fool. He couldn't blink, he couldn't tear his eyes away. Her face, the way she reacted, and the way she moaned when devouring the hot pancakes elicited a pure picture of abandon and rapture when she closed her eyes, giving herself into the pancakes. Even when he mustered the strength to shut his eyes, her angelic voice was amplified as he couldn't see and it strove to drive him mad. It took him everything in his body to stop him from launching over the table and devour her in a searing kiss. A kiss that would tell her exactly how much she was affecting, ever since that day he saw her with a plate of pana di casa with olive-oil and balsamic vinegar.
His body started feeling unbearably hot when his mind starting showing scenes of himself and Ayame-san kissing, imagining how succulent and soft those lips were. He could no longer fight his body's betrayal. His blood was pumping relentlessly through his body, especially down below. Takumi felt sick. He felt so dirty that his thoughts on Ayame-san easily turned down the road into indecency but his body didn't care and relinquished itself to it. He couldn't call himself a gentleman now. Was this what all men felt towards the women they ached for? It was absurd! His rational side tried to force the lid on his surge of hormones but it wasn't working.
Nothing was working anymore. Before he knew it, the il sangue italiano made itself known. It was his food in her mouth that filled her with passion and made him lose his mind. It was his food that brought out the vixen from within her and made her succumb to the exquisite tastes. Not the antipasti, not the semi-freddo, not the coffee-hazelnut ice-cream.
It could only be his dishes. No other food would make him feel this way now, it wouldn't be enough. He wanted to see more. He wanted her to enjoy only his food.
Takumi's head began to clear and all of a sudden the whole universe made sense to him, at least the things in the universe that mattered. His face stopped feeling hot, but his body hadn't calmed down yet.
"Amore…"
The image of her bright smile when she was talking to him about wormholes and time travel took over his mind and drowned out his volcanic hormones. The happiness on her face and the way her sparkling verdant eyes lit up as she chattered non-stop about her interests filled him with a comforting warmth. He loved that. He loved that about her.
"Lei mi piace…" he whispered again to the empty air.
Everything clicked into place. Why he was feeling this way whenever he was around her, whenever he thought of her.
It excited him and terrified him.
What the hell was he supposed to do now?!
Takumi had no experience with girls whatsoever, not even back in Italia.
He met her, he liked her and now the next step was trying to court her, right? That's what his mamma would say. Or maybe there was another step he hadn't thought of… There was no way around it now. There was no point being tortured by these inescapable feelings if he could do something about it. He had no idea if she even felt anything towards him, but he could at least try. He rubbed his forehead. His head felt like it was screwed on too tight. His inner yearning will always be pining for her, forcing his body to go into meltdown, make him do stupid things in front of her to get her attention and won't stop until she was all his.
Takumi slammed his palm against the wall.
'How did I get myself into this…'
Something horrible resurfaced from his subconscious.
'I know a few guys who would love to be that lucky' the unmistakable voice of Namikaze cackled in his ears.
His stomach churned. Did he stand any chance? Did those boys from Karakura High school compare to him? Even Namikaze said so herself that they were unworthy of the bella, but how much could he trust her words? Jealousy bit at him, he was kind of ashamed to admit. Takumi sat up from his bed and folded his knees to his chest and rested his chin on them. If Isami was here now, he would think he was brooding or sulking and try to pry him out of the room and throw him in the shower. Takumi had always been a sucker for competitions whether it be his duello with Yukihira or a card-game with Isami. He was a sore loser when it came to those things, but he was determined he wasn't going to lose in this.
'Bzzzt!'
Takumi unfurled himself, still a bit frazzled and picked up his phone from where he threw it.
'Hey Takumi-kun,
I finally got over my post-traumatic stress disorder
with the fish. In all the 11 dimensions, I still can't
understand why it got soggy then exploded.
Are you free today? I could do with a few tips
from you and maybe have lunch together?
-Ayame
Takumi's body was buzzing again. He was happy that she was still texting him to come join her, even after his debacle the last time he was there. He texted a quick reply that he would be there in an hour. He got up and made his way to the shower, turning on the cold tap first, because Dio knew he needed it right now. After his shower, he picked his outfit for the day. He suddenly felt the urge to dress up a bit more. He selected a pair of skinny jeans, a simple dress shirt and another colour-coordinated waistcoat. He grabbed his fedora, keys and wallet.
One more thing. He grabbed his Aldini apron from his closet too.
Knock, knock, knock
"Coming!" Ayame finished washing her hands and briskly walked to the door. She opened it and was greeted by Takumi Aldini, just who she was waiting for.
"Buon giorno" he said
For some reason he looked more … shinier and dazzling. It was weird.
"Good morning to you too. This way! This way!" Ayame dragged him in by the wrist after he removed his shoes, excited to receive another cooking tutorial from him. She had been practicing pancakes the day before, just the way he had taught her and was very pleased to say that pancakes for breakfast lunch and dinner was her best decision ever! It didn't taste as good as Takumi-kun's but it was still light-years better than what she started with. She hoped her dad would like them too.
"I've bought some drink for us too. May I?" he said, holding up a plastic bag and pointing to the fridge.
"Aw, you didn't have to! Go ahead, you know about this kitchen a lot more than I do now" Ayame chuckled.
Takumi-kun chuckled too and it sounded a bit… different. After placing the drinks in the fridge, he went over to see what she had set out so far. She hoped she set it out right. Chefs on cooking shows seemed to be obsessed with displaying all their food and let the audience believe they could buy ingredients looking that perfect. He stood next to her and nodded.
"When frying fish, the cooking surface has to be hot enough to seal in the juices and brown the food. You need to heat the cooking surface on high for several minutes before adding the oil. You'll know that the pan is hot enough when a few drops of water thrown on the cooking surface skitter and evaporate quickly. Then you can add the oil. When it begins to shimmer and ripple slightly, or a few seconds later, add the fish. If you're using a non-stick pan, put the oil in the pan before you turn on the heat, as non-stick pans may release toxins when they're heated up empty" said Takumi-kun.
"You make it sound so simple…" Ayame pouted.
"It is simple, when you get the hang of it" Takumi took something else out of the bag and flapped it open. Ayame peaked from behind and was a bit surprised that he brought his own apron. The small embroidery for Trattoria Aldini in cursive Roman alphabets made him look so much more like a professional chef. He didn't have to bring his own as she had spares, but seeing him in it made her appreciate his fine bearing a bit more. Or maybe it was just a man in an apron, cooking something that was appealing to her.
"So basically I didn't preheat the pan and the fish fillet turned soggy" confirmed Ayame.
"Di preciso" Takumi-kun chuckled again "Come over here and I'll show you how to season the fish too"
"Hey, I know how to season fish, thank you very much!" Ayame feigned indignation beside him. She crossed her arms and also feigned a pointed look. Frying was the issue, not flavour.
"Then go on and show me" Takumi-kun pulled his hands away and stepped back.
Ayame stepped into his place and looked over the two pieces of fish fillet she bought from the market, estimating how much seasoning she might need. She spread butter over the fish and then sprinkled the mix of herbs and spices. She proceeded to smother the fish in it, copying the way she saw the cooking shows demonstrated. But she found it harder to do so with the expert chef watching her closely from the side.
"You're slapping the fish, Ayame-san. You need to be gentler otherwise you'll bruise the flesh and it'll fall apart in the pan" he said. "May I?"
"Alright. Go on" she smiled dejectedly. As she was about to step away, he quickly took her hands back and used them to gently massage the butter, herbs and spices into the fish fillet. He stood behind just like the way they were before when making pancakes. Takumi-kun continued to guide her hands into massaging the seasoning into the fish, making sure she flipped the fillets to thoroughly cover the flesh in every nook and cranny.
'Wh-What is he doing?'
Ayame blushed. This was exactly like that time the last time he was here. Her heat rate sped up just like she knew it would. This was the second time! It couldn't be a coincident, could it? Was this his way of showing that she had to learn-by-doing with him? She tried not to think too much over last time, but now it was getting rather difficult to think of anything else that was not as 'innocent' as she'd hoped. She was sure it wasn't normal to be standing in between a tutor-chef and the bench. She never saw that on cooking shows. It felt rather comfortable, as strange as that sounded, despite the unusual position. She might as well enjoy it. She immersed in the scent of spices and cedar and could feel her body relaxing as Takumi-kun worked her hands. He was silent throughout and all she could hear was the squelching of their hands on the fish fillet and his steady and low breathing.
His hands were so gentle and firm.
It felt like an eternity. Ayame bit her lip and wondered if the fish was seasoned enough yet, but Takumi still kept going, making sure he covered her hands along with the two fillets. She turned her head around and was about to ask him if the fillets should be fried yet but her words got stuck in her throat. His gaze was so intense. He switched to looking at her and she swore they were speaking to her, but had no idea what. The shape of his face was perfect in her eyes and there was not a single blemish or an oil spot on his pale skin. Her eyes dragged down to his lips which she noticed was very close to her own. Time stopped. Her lips slightly parted as she drew closer to him. His eyes flickered down too, hot and smouldering…
'Vorrrrp!'
"Aya!"
The magic disappeared.
Both teens jumped on the spot and snapped their heads towards the offending object. It was her bloody phone! The screen was flashing with the name of someone who she wished could have texted at a better time. Takumi-kun removed himself quickly and washed his hands in the sink. She was instantly cold, her heady emotions tumbling in her head. Takumi-kun still didn't speak a word. Ayame bit her lip again wondering what the hell had just happen.
'Oh god, his lips... Pure thoughts! Pure thoughts! Think of Non-Newtonian fluids!' she stamped on any inappropriate thoughts as soon as it formed.
She wiped her hands in the tea towel rather than use the tap. She quickly grabbed the fry pan and turned on the gas, keeping in mind the advice Takumi-kun had given her and letting it pre-heat with the oil first.
"A-are you umm… going to a-answer it?" he finally spoke at last. His voice sounded a bit broken up as if he needed a big glass of water.
"…No, it's alright. I'll text back later" she replied watching the pan.
Vorrrrp! Vorrrrp! Vorrrrp!
"Whoever it is, it must be important" said Takumi-kun, bringing the two fish fillets over from the chopping board to the stove. Ayame couldn't look at him in the face. It just reminded her of their extra close proximity earlier. She didn't want him to see the redness she was absolutely sure was all over her face.
"Definitely not. It's just someone who doesn't know how to take the hint" she murmured.
"What?" Takumi-kun snapped his head back to her, his eyes wide and seeking answers from her own.
"So can I put the fish in the pan now?" she asked quickly.
Takumi-kun looked a bit perturbed but nodded his head. She was glad he didn't pursue the topic. She wouldn't know how to explain it to him and for some reason, she didn't want him to know the details. She picked up the end of the seasoned fillet and placed it gently in the pan one after the other and retracted her hands quickly to avoid oil splatter.
"Fish cooks quickly, so you want to turn down the heat a bit and sear it on the sides first. After that it will gently cook through and retain the juice and flavour and not turn dry as well. Keep a close watch on it" he said, handing her a pair of cooking tongs.
'Vorrrrp!'
Ayame sighed. Takumi-kun left the stove and started going around cleaning up the bench while she stood sentry on the fish and ready to turn it on Takumi-kun's instructions. She made it soggy last time, she damn well better not burn it this time, because she was out of ice. After ten minutes of following his instructions, Takumi-kun deemed the fish ready for plating and she excitedly switched off the gas and carefully lifted the fish with the tongs and gently placed it on the plate. Takumi-kun sprinkled some parsley and grated some lemon zest over it. Again he did it with ease, as light as a feather. She could watch him garnish things all day. Next he cut the lemon and squeezed some of the juice over it. Ayame skipped over to where she left the washed salad greens and started arranging it over their plates and gathering the forks and knives. The zingy lemon and the mixed aroma of spices were gorgeous!
Takumi-kun took off and folded away his apron before he went over to the fridge and brought over the drinks. How did he know! It was ice lemon-peach tea, her favourite. Both settled down into their seats and said a quick 'Itadakimasu' and he said grace in Italian. Ayame was about to put the first forkful of fish when her phone went off again.
She groaned in an unlady-like fashion. She placed her fork down and sent a quick reply, tapping angrily on the button before flipping it closed with a loud snap and placing it away from her reach. Takumi-kun looked at her with confusion.
"Is everything alright?" he asked after swallowing his first bite.
Ayame smiled and nodded her head. As she placed the first morsel in her mouth, all the troubles of the world flew away. It was absolutely delicious!
"Just a guy from school named Izumo-san, who had been bothering me for a while. I've told him a few times that I'm not keen on going out with him, but he doesn't seem to get it" she continued to eat her fish, humming between mouthfuls.
Takumi-kun stabbed his salad.
"Takumi-kun, this is amazing! I never knew the way you seasoned it could make such a big difference! The fish is so juicy too" Ayame rubbed her thighs together, she couldn't get enough of how good such a simple dish was.
"You did a good job frying it and that's the most important part" he smiled at her. Takumi-kun had a very red blush on his face and if Ayame didn't know any better, she could've sworn that he was constantly throwing her glances. She hoped that she didn't look too grubby at home or something, it was so easy to forget that others weren't used to seeing one in home-clothes.
"Has he been bothering you for long?" Takumi-kun pointed his fork at her phone, his tone had a hint of scorn which made Ayame a bit worried.
"Towards the end of semester. Not long" she replied. The atmosphere was dampening because of this stupid topic. She quickly tried to think of something that could take the edge off. So far her mind was full of science and time-travel… ugh, she needed conversational cue cards.
"Men shouldn't do things like that if the lady isn't reciprocating" he muttered.
"They sure don't" she said offhandedly.
"What about your father? He's part of the police department, maybe he could do something to send him away?" he asked again.
"Otou-san's in the police, not part of a mafia, Takumi-kun" Ayame chuckled "I'm starting to wonder if your family has ties with any"
"It was j-just a suggestion! I'm positive that we don't! …I think" he said looking away from her.
Takumi-kun looked like he was slightly brooding as he ate his fish and Ayame never liked to see him look so down because it was like looking at a kicked puppy. She could tell this topic was bothering him very much for some reason he kept prodding further. How strange.
"Otou-san is way too busy with his work. He even sleeps over at the precinct just so that he could co-ordinate teams on tough cases, or even manage cases himself that are too hard for the others. I don't want to distract him from his investigations" said Ayame.
"If anyone's bothering you… you know I'm just a phone call away… right?" he looked up at her and his face had a light dusting of pink along his cheeks.
"Haha, it's good to know there's someone I could turn to" she smiled at him, continuing to eat her fish.
Takumi-kun's eyes darted back down to his. "But anyway, you're not interested in dating… at all, are you?" he said, taking a slow sip from his drink, his eyes focused to the side.
Ayame hummed a bit "I wouldn't say that. Everyone has a Mrs. Right and a Mr. Right out there for them"
"I-I see, that's true. So… uh, what kind of guy w-will make the r-right one for you?"
Takumi-kun was sounding less and less relaxed by the second. A pregnant pause that had time enough to turn a bit awkward settled between them. What could she even say? He didn't have to keep going with this conversation if he didn't want to and Ayame was sure he was the type of person to stop doing something if it was making him uncomfortable. But it was too late to switch the topic now, or not answer, that would be rude as hell and clearly obvious make his questions very awkward. She decided to answer the best as she could.
"Well like, s-sweet, kind and caring. Someone who won't mind all my q-quirks and techno-babble too. I l-love learning new things, especially to do with ph-physics, mechanical things and robotics, so I hope he wouldn't be intimidated or… find it u-unfeminine. Love me for who I am, of course. Someone I could turn to for comfort when things get stressful or painful and vice versa. Oh and most definitely be able to handle Chizuru-chan and Otou-san"
Takumi-kun looked like he almost choked on his salad from the last bit of her sentence, but recovered in a blink of an eye.
"I'm sure there's someone out there that fits the description perfectly. And even if they don't, I'm sure they will do their very best to try to" he smiled at her. He picked up his glass of peach-lemon tea and swirled it in his hand, the ice clinking on the sides.
'Yeah, it'd be great if he was an amazing chef who cooks Italian food too' Ayame thought smiling into her drink, trying to hide her blush.
"That is basically fucking food foreplay!" Chizuru-chan laughed hysterically.
"That's not funny…" Ayame sighed.
"Come on, I don't even need to read the subtext here to know that Romeo is head over heels in love with you" she said balancing her bright red slushie drink in her palms as she walked dangerously on the edge of the footpath. "Italians can be very forward in their affections you know"
"I did think that it was unusual for him to be that close to me or touch me like that while we're cooking together. Learning to cook is a very hands-on thing though, so that's probably why. But you still shouldn't stereotype people" said Ayame as an afterthought.
"Ayame-chan, you were snapping your fingers and he comes running. Do you know how freaking far Tootsuki is from your place? It must've taken him an hour to get ready and then travel, and for guys that's a bloody long time"
"I only texted him to ask if he wanted to come. I didn't demand he had to" Ayame shot back at her.
"You wouldn't ask if you thought he was going to say 'no'. Anyway, how did he react when you talked about wormholes?" Chizuru-chan asked, sipping her slushie drink.
"Oh yeah, that was when we were making pancakes. He just asked more questions and assured me that he liked listening to it, although I could barely believe him" said Ayame. She stopped in the middle of the footpath and faced her best friend "Do you suppose… maybe he likes me too?" she inquired, trying hard to no let her voice waver.
"I don't suppose anything. I can see it plain as day that, yes, he likes you, especially the way he was so fidgety and nervous that time we went to Meshina" her best friend said nonchalantly stopping in the middle of the footpath too.
"AHA! So there was something going on when I went to the bathroom! What did you say?" Ayame folded her arms together and tapped her foot against the pavement.
"Nothing unusual, just that if he ever hurt you I would break his legs. Or was it punch his dick with a cactus? I sometimes forget" Chizuru-chan slurped on her icy drink.
"Seriously?! Why did you say that for?" Ayame couldn't believe what she was hearing. Chizuru-chan had already made threats to him and they only met a few times! Her friend was incredibly infuriating when she wanted to be.
"Relax, I had to make everything crystal clear for him. He said that he would never, and that he would always treasure you if he could" she said slyly.
"What… he did?" Ayame didn't think he would say something like that. She had expected he would say something like he wasn't interested in her at all and stuff, but to hear that straight from Chizuru-chan's mouth? Chizuru-chan was a brutally honest and blunt individual. She had no causes to lie for anything when it came to her friends, except for mischief. She couldn't be a double-spy even if she wanted to. Now that she thought about it, Chizuru-chan would have no qualms for lying straight to a stranger's face… Also she never passed up an opportunity to make a double-edged remark on Takumi-kun no matter how much Ayame shot her back down into her box.
"Sure did. He was so adorable, like a baby beetroot" Chizuru-chan giggled.
"Chizuru-chan. I really like him and I don't want our friendship to go sour because I'm not reading the signs properly" Ayame knitted her brows.
"It'll be fine"
"Do you think I have a shot with him?" Ayame looked at her best friend earnestly.
"He is the one guy who has ever asked you about wormholes. If that isn't saying something. I don't know what is" Chizuru-chan went over and gave her a hug "And I hope he knows that the Kuchiyose-kun and I come as a package deal with you" she snickered and swung her arm over Ayame's neck. They both continued strolling, on their long and sunny walk to the Tsubakidai Park in Sakurabashi ward.
Ayame had known for long time ago that she was smitten with Takumi-kun. She wasn't sure exactly when, but it didn't matter anymore. She had always told herself that it was preposterous that she would be attracted to someone as vibrant, stunning and talented as he was so quickly! She had always been an over-cautious person, calculating things to the ninth decimal when time allowed and double-checked and triple-checked everything. That was, anything unrelated to cooking because that blew shit out the window for her. Initially she thought it was probably because of his charm and good looks like typical girls fell for. She made sure to check all the parameters. However, the more she talked to him and get to know him, it wasn't that at all. Sure it was those superficial qualities that captured her visual attention, but it was his passion, dreams and great aspirations that really hit the nail on the head for her. That fateful day when she left her physics dictionary behind at the cafe had brought him into her life and she didn't know what she could have done to deserve meeting someone amazing, well-mannered, passionate, talented in cooking and handsome. In her eyes, he became more than a bit of eye-candy. It was more, he was so endearing and sweet to her when she was going through a phase of techno-babble. He hadn't made fun or ignored her like the rest. She melted when she was with him. Those intimate touches in the kitchen sent rockets to her nerves, but she hadn't been quite sure it was anything significant on his part.
But that day when frying fish together... his lips were so close...
'Could Chizuru-chan right? Could he be… as well?'
She had no reason to believe she had qualities he would find attractive in her. She was a school nerd and she was a pedantic study freak. She went to public lectures in her free time for goodness sake! She toyed with circuit boards and built toy robots from kits, she needed some social cues to close her mouth when techno-babbling for too long, she was a horrible cook, she had two weirdos for friends, AND the icing on the cake:
Otou-san was the Superintendent General of the TMPD. In short, he commanded the whole department along with the eight different bureaus, a big bunch of district headquarters and over forty thousand police officers. The only two people he answered to was the chairman of the National Police Safety Commission and Okaa-san.
Her family background was enough to send boys running to the hills to book flights to get the hell out of Japan, but not Takumi-kun. In fact, he didn't seem to have any flaming idea of the gravity of the position her father carried. The entire Tokyo's law enforcement was in his palm. Takumi-kun probably heard the word 'police' and that was enough for him. Ayame planned to keep it that way.
When Takumi-kun asked her about her interest in dating, she literally didn't know what to say. She didn't want to give him the wrong impression at all and the constant texting from Izumo-san certainly didn't help. She didn't want to hope that there was jealousy in his eyes or tone, because that would be completely wrong of her.
Her stomach felt queasy.
He was training in a demanding and famous culinary school and she was studying to get into Toudai to become an engineer. They had vastly different dreams, almost at opposite poles. Were they even suited for each other? She and Takumi-kun were goal focused people in a fast moving and demanding world. Someone who was as passionate as him in being a chef will always put his cooking dreams first. Deep in her heart, she knew she would want to put her career in the mechanical engineering first too…
'Even if we did… is there a chance in making any potential relationship work?'
"Did your dad like the pancakes and fried fish?" asked Chizuru-chan, snapping her out of her thoughts. Ayame was glad for Chizuru-chan stopping her from sinking into the abyss of her mind.
"I could tell he did even if he didn't want to say it. He said he couldn't believe that I would make something that tasted better than cardboard. Which is a good thing, it means that he approves of it and that's all that matters. Otou-san always gripes so it's no biggy" Ayame smiled and skipped along the pavement.
"Your dad's backhanded compliments are the worst. He's always in a foul mood. I'm astounded there are some officers willing to work under him" Chizuru-chan mumbled.
"That's because he's the best in what he does!" Ayame stuck her tongue out at her, eliciting another smirk from the sunglasses-toting girl. "By the way, Takumi-kun gave me some passes to visit Tootsuki earlier in the week. Want to come?" she asked.
Chizuru-chan slid her sunglasses down her nose and looked at Ayame over the rims. "What for?"
"He said he would like to give me a tour and that there was someone he wanted me to meet who could show me some of the mechanical and technological advancements in the world of molecular gastronomy. Some cutting-edge stuff!"
"Geez… the subtext is in capslock…"
"What was that?" Ayame didn't quite catch Chizuru-chan's mumbling.
"Nothing. Have you asked Kuchiyose-kun yet?" Chizuru-chan finished the rest of her slushie drink and threw the plastic cup in the bin.
"I'll text him later. He usually naps during this time" said Ayame "I know you're not really into foodie culture and stuff, but I think it'll be good for you to go. Who knows, you might end up enjoying it" Ayame said, hoping that she was encouraging enough.
"I don't see the point, but when you look at me like that, it makes me want to be nice to children. Okay, I'll go"
"Yosh! We're meeting up at the Tootsuki gates at nine o'clock tomorrow!" Ayame bounced up and down excitedly.
"That early on a Monday? Give me a break…" Chizuru-chan groaned.
"You already said yes, so you can't take it back!" Ayame laughed.
The two friends finally made it to Tsubakidai Park and went to sit on the swings and continued to talk about nothing and everything together.
I re-read all my chapters and I noticed my choice of words: In the flipping pancake scene I typed "Takumi jerked her hands..." and in this scene it was "worked her hands..." Hmmmm...
Takumi finally had an epiphany! I couldn't keep him in denial for too long, not when Isami is teasing him via texting. Smooth move Romeo... what a backward way of trying to find out if Ayame is single. Hopeless, I tell you...
Thanks for sticking around everyone! I hope you've enjoyed the chapter and once again, shoot me a review and let me know what you guys think, love to hear some!
Get ready for the Tootsuki visit in 5 days!
Signing off
-TripWire-dono
