Story of Cilan (CaféMochaShipping)

Ash: age five; Cilan: age eight

"Wat da heck is dat?"

"H-huh?" Cilan flinched at Ash's comment. He looked back at what he had just made. Rice balls for today's snack. And they weren't the perfect triangular shape that was shown in the cookbook. Cilan's were rather…lopsided. "What's wrong with them?"

"Dat's not a wice ball!" Ash distorted his face. He looked rather disgusted at Cilan's creation.

"Hey, I tried!" Cilan stomped his foot. "Besides, it's not about how it looks! Taste it!"

"Fine!" Ash reached for one of the rice balls, most of it falling apart and spilling to the floor before he could get it into his mouth. When he did, he chewed slowly before pausing to make a tight face.

"What's wrong?" Cilan asked.

"Bleh!" Ash spat the chewed-up pieces of rice ball onto the floor next to the spilled pieces. "Wat is dat? Dat's no wice ball!"

Cilan felt himself tear up. "T-that's not nice!"

"I'll go ask my mommy to make me a wice ball!" Ash threw the rest of the rice ball on the ground and ran out the back door of Cilan's house. Cilan fell to the floor, sadly observing his terrible snack creation.

"I-I just wanted to make something nice for him…" Cilan pouted. "Maybe I'm not fit to be a chef like my brothers…"

Cilan's blue-haired brother, Cress, walked into the kitchen to see Cilan kneeling on the ground. "Cilan, what are you doing?"

"Ash spit out my rice ball… He said it was bad…"

"Cilan, if you wanted help, you could have just asked Chili or me."

"But I wanted to do it myself!"

"Fine, fine!" Chili waved his hands. "Okay. But if you need any help, don't be afraid to ask."

"…I'll do it on my own. I'll learn how to cook!"

Ash: age ten; Cilan: age thirteen

"Happy Birthday to Ash!"

"Oh, hey, Cilan!" Ash waved as Cilan entered his bedroom. "Why are you here early?"

"I've been up since early this morning making something for you!" Cilan smiled, holding a box slightly smaller than his head.

"You made something for me? You could have just given it to me at the party."

"But I wanted to give it to you now."

Ash blinked. "Oh, okay!" Cilan handed the box to Ash, which Ash quickly opened it. He suddenly frowned.

"What the heck is that?"

Cilan flinched. "Huh? I-it's a cake?"

"That's a cake?" Ash examined what was supposed to be a cake, but looked more like a messy blob of chocolate icing and some candles. "It looks like a messy blob of chocolate icing and some candles."

"…But it's a cake."

"It doesn't look like one."

"Well, I'm sorry it turned out like that!" Cilan clenched his fists. "I-I tried!"

Ash took his index finger and dipped it in the icing. Then he slowly licked the icing off of his finger. Cilan suddenly blushed at Ash's gesture. "The icing tastes good."

Cilan sighed. "If you don't want the cake, that's fine. Chili and Cress probably made a better one anyway…" He turned to walk out of the room.

"W-wait, Cilan!"

"Ash, it's fine," Cilan stepped out and closed the door before Ash could say anything else. He then stumbled down the stairs and out the front door.

"Whoa, Cilan!" He nearly ran into Chili and Cress on his way out. "Why are you running out the door?"

"Get out of my way!" Cilan shoved past his brothers before they could see him tearing up.

All Cilan wanted to do was make something nice for Ash. He knew Ash loved food and his brothers were awesome cooks, so why couldn't he make food as good as them? It irked Cilan.

Could he ever perfect his cooking skills and make something great for the person he cared about the most?

Ash: age fourteen; Cilan: age seventeen

"This is it. Valentine's Day."

Cilan was at the park, waiting for Ash to show up. He nervously gripped the heart-shaped box in his hand.

Today, he would finally tell Ash how he felt.

"Cilan?"

"Wah!" Cilan jumped off the bench and hid the small box behind his back. He wasn't expecting Ash to show up from behind him. "H-hey, Ash…"

"What's up? You wanted to talk to me?"

"Y-yes…" Cilan stuttered. "H-here!" He shoved the box at Ash's chest.

"U-um…" Ash took the small box and gave it an odd look.

"H-happy Valentine's Day…" Cilan blushed.

"Oh…" Ash unwrapped the ribbon on the box and opened the lid. His face distorted.

"What the hell is that?"

Cilan fell over. "It's a chocolate heart!"

"That's a heart?" Ash examined the globby mess in the box. The only indication it should have been in the shape of a heart was because the box was heart-shaped. "Looks like a…disaster."

Cilan gritted his teeth, eyes tearing up. "Ash! I can't make anything for you, can I? I absolutely suck at cooking and baking!"

Ash blinked.

Cilan continued. "All these years I've tried to make you the best food I could! I mean, my brothers are fantastic cooks and I figured I could be as good as them, but apparently not! And it sucks because I always wanted to see the smile on your face when you tried my food, but you always just grimaced at it! Dammit!"

Ash frowned. He felt bad for upsetting Cilan so much. And after all these years. "Cilan, why did you try so hard? You've been cooking and baking things for me for as long as I can remember, but yet you never stopped trying. Why? Or couldn't you have just asked your brothers for help?"

"I did ask my brothers for help. But I still wanted to try to cook everything on my own and I still can't make anything properly. I guess I was never meant to be a chef…"

"…You always wanted to see the smile on my face when I tried your food?"

"Yes, Ash…" a tear slid down Cilan's face. "Ash…I gave you this chocolate to tell you that I love you…"

Ash gasped. He glanced at the chocolate and noticed sloppy, red gel-icing that said 'I love you, Ash.'

"C-Cilan…" Ash took a piece of the chocolate and took a bite out of it. "Hmm? Hey, this is actually kinda good!"

Cilan frowned. "You're just saying that…"

"No, I'm being serious! Maybe not the best chocolate I've ever had, but I think you can improve. It is pretty good, though."

"R-really?" Cilan sniffled.

"Yes!" Ash set the chocolate onto the bench and suddenly threw his arms around Cilan. "I really appreciate it, Cilan. Thank you."

Cilan's face felt like it was melting. "A-Ash?"

Ash released his hold on Cilan and put his hands to Cilan's wet face, wiping away his tears. "Don't cry, Cilan. Your food may not make me as happy as you want me to be, but…you make me happy! I like spending time with you and you're my best friend!"

Cilan paused before smiling. "Y-you're my best friend, too!"

"And don't give up on being a chef, Cilan. I think you can do it. And I'll be rooting for you because you know how much I enjoy food!"

"Of course!" Cilan hugged Ash again and they both laughed.

So…Cilan certainly wasn't the best cook ever. Actually, he wasn't much of a cook at all. But he could improve.

He didn't have to be Cilan, the super-special-awesome. Ash already appreciated Cilan, the not-so-awesome cook.