Chapter 17

"It's getting pretty late, shouldn't you be heading home already?" Rin pointed out.

It had been a few hours since IA had come over to work on their project, and there wasn't much to show for it. They had hardly gotten anything done because of Rin's constant complaints and refusal to cooperate, and now Rin was just looking for any reason to end this torture.

"I still have another hour or so before my parents come to get me," IA replied simply.

Rin groaned and looked back over at the clock. It was a little past six o' clock in the evening, the time when Rin would normally start fixing dinner. Her stomach was already beginning to rumble impatiently.

"Well, I'm hungry, so I'm going to make dinner now," Rin stated as she got up from the couch and stretched a bit.

IA looked at her curiously. "Why don't you just wait for your parents to get home?"

"What? No way. If I did that, I wouldn't be able to eat until like ten o' clock," Rin responded in a slightly incredulous tone.

She walked off toward the kitchen, rolled up the sleeves of her jacket, and washed her hands at the sink in preparation for cooking. Rin mentally went through all of the possible things she could make given the food that was in the house, before picking something she hadn't had in a while. It didn't take long to gather the ingredients since there weren't that many, and Rin got to work on the dish. She was a little out of practice when it came to this dish in particular, but it somehow felt nice making it again after so long. It brought a sense of familiarity to her, since she had made it quite often at one point in her life.

"I didn't know you knew how to cook," IA commented from her place in the doorway to the kitchen.

Rin didn't look up from what she was doing as she replied with, "Well, I never told you, so of course you didn't know."

IA gave a thoughtful hum and was silent for a moment. She looked as if there was something she wanted to say, but changed her mind at the last second.

"So, what are you making?" IA asked, beginning to walk over to where Rin was.

"None of your business. And don't come over here, I don't need help," Rin answered, sending IA a pointed look that caused the pink-haired girl to pause in her tracks. "Why don't you just go back to working on the project? That's the whole reason you're here, right?"

"Right..." IA muttered in response.

She lingered for another moment, then turned and walked back to the living room. Rin sighed as she returned to tending to the pot in front of her. Cooking was the one thing that brought her some peace of mind these days, and she didn't need IA to intrude on that. It was bad enough that IA continuously touched upon a personal subject with that stupid project of hers. So what if it was for school? Nothing they did or didn't do would even matter in a year. It certainly wasn't worth an invasion of Rin's privacy... or her home.

After about twenty more minutes of cooking, the meal was finished, and Rin went over to one of the kitchen's multiple cabinets. She reached up and grabbed a plate from the cabinet, before her hand hovered over a second plate hesitantly. Rin did nothing but stare up at the stack of plates for a minute, thinking it strange how easily she had made to grab another. She supposed it was just another thing that came with making that dish. In her mind, her memories, it was always linked with company. Rin shook her head to clear her mind and grabbed the second plate, heading back over to the stove to dish up the meal. Once both plates were filled with food, Rin picked them up (along with some silverware) and carried them with her into the living room.

"Food's ready, so you can stop working on that now," Rin announced as she entered the room.

IA looked up from the notebook she had been writing in and blinked in mild surprise. Rin held out one of the plates to her, which IA accepted gratefully.

"Thank you," IA thanked Rin in her usual plain tone while looking down at the food before her.

Rin huffed indifferently, plopping down onto the couch beside IA and offering the pink-haired girl some silverware. "There's no reason to thank me. I made enough for two people anyway, so I figured I'd give you some. I don't like wasting food."

IA smiled softly and took the silverware from Rin's hand. "If you really don't like wasting food, then you must've made so much intentionally. The fact that you thought of me is what I was thanking you for."

Rin made a sort of spluttering sound, trying to put on what she hoped was an irritated expression. "You wish! It was just an honest mistake, that's all! So I made a little more food than I thought, that's no big deal!"

"If you say so," IA chuckled quietly. She took her first bite of the meal Rin had made, and immediately her eyes widened from the taste. "Rin..."

"Yeah...?" Rin raised an eyebrow at her questioningly. She couldn't help feeling a little nervous having someone try her cooking for the first time.

"This is really, really good. How did you learn how to cook like this?" IA inquired, looking amazed.

Amazed. That was new. Rin would have to remember to add that look to the (short) list of IA's expressions.

"Um, I guess I just picked it up a few years ago. Ever since my mom started working late, I've been left to cook for myself. It's not so bad, really, but I suppose it was a little lonely at first..." Rin trailed off, instantly regretting those last few words. She hadn't meant to say that out loud.

IA hummed thoughtfully and ate another bite. "What about your dad? Where is he?"

"It's none of your business," Rin replied curtly, sending a glare towards the pink-haired girl.

"It's fine if you don't want to talk about it. Just thought I'd ask," IA said simply.

Silence enveloped the two as they ate their meal. Rin stared down at her plate, at the familiar combination of rice, chicken, and vegetables that formed the dish, and felt sullen all of a sudden. For some reason, she was beginning to think that telling IA about some things wouldn't be too bad. Maybe she was just getting desperate to talk to someone again.

"...He left," Rin started quietly.

IA looked over at her in puzzlement. "Huh?"

"My father, he left when I was little. Apparently, he and my mom got into this big fight about something, and he just got up and left. My mom still has no clue where he went, but I couldn't care less. I was too young to even remember him," Rin continued a bit tentatively. Though, she soon grew very self-conscious and changed the subject before IA even had a chance to say anything. "So, what about you? What's your family like?"

IA thought about this for a moment, then replied. "Well, my mom stays home to look after my little sister and I, and my dad works as a lawyer's assistant. Not the most interesting job in the world, but it makes a decent pay." IA paused momentarily to shrug breezily. "Since my little sister is only two years old, things are always kind of crazy at my house. I end up having to watch after her a lot when my parents are busy, but I don't really mind that much."

"Funny, I never pictured you as the 'big sisterly' type," Rin commented with a hint of amusement in her voice. The image of IA chasing after a toddler all day was almost comical.

IA smiled faintly. "Yeah, neither did I. I was always so sure that I was the one who needed to be taken care of..."

She trailed off and looked slightly troubled for a moment, but as soon as Rin blinked the expression was gone. IA's face had returned to being as plain and impassive as usual. Such a blank expression... was it even normal?

"Well, I'll go take care of the dishes now. You can work on the project or do whatever in the meantime," Rin stated as she picked up both of their now empty plates.

Rin carried the plates back to the kitchen and dropped them into the sink. She turned on the faucet, letting cool water run over her hands and the surface of the plates, when suddenly she felt the presence of another person standing beside her. Rin turned her head quickly to look at the person, and she couldn't help but feel a small twinge of disappointment at seeing IA. All of this, from the food to the feeling of someone standing beside her at the sink, made Rin honestly think for a moment that it was Miku with her right now. Foolish thoughts like those were what really left a dull, lingering ache in her chest.

"What are you doing?" Rin questioned, trying to ignore how a lump was forming in her throat.

"I'm helping you wash the dishes," IA answered matter-of-factly, as if it were obvious. "It's only right since you made dinner for me."

Rin wanted to protest, but she didn't trust her voice enough right now to speak, so she merely turned her gaze back to the sink wordlessly. For a few minutes, the only sounds that filled the kitchen were that of running water and the clinking of plates.

"You said earlier that cooking by yourself was lonely at first, but what made it not lonely anymore?" IA asked, breaking the silence.

"I suppose I just got used to it after a while," Rin replied after a moment. Trying to keep her voice steady ended up coming out as surprising calmness.

"Even if you got used to it, it wouldn't change the fact that cooking by yourself was lonely. So, there must've been something else," IA pointed out. She paused to think for a moment (or maybe she was hesitating?), before she continued with, "Was there someone else with you at one point?"

Rin's eyes widened slightly, and she nearly dropped the plate she was holding at this. Of course IA just had to ask about that, of freaking course. IA always found the most sensitive topics to bring up, didn't she?

"N-No," Rin started to reply, but her voice shook, so she stopped to clear her throat and tried again. "No, there wasn't anyone. It's always been just me. Like I said, I must've just gotten used to it."

IA made a low sound as if she didn't quite believe Rin but wasn't willing to push her any farther. Instead, she merely helped Rin finish up the dishes in silence, then they returned to the living room to work on their project some more.

"Hey, IA?" Rin started while taking a seat on one of the chairs in the living room.

IA looked up at her with a slightly curious expression. "What is it?"

Rin opened her mouth to say something, then shut it and veered her gaze to look at the wall. Her cheeks were tinted a light red, as if she was embarrassed about something.

"Nevermind..." Rin muttered.

IA blinked confusedly, then she shook her head and smiled softly. Whatever Rin was going to say, it wouldn't have mattered anyway. Enough had already been said to embed an undeniable underlying layer of trust between the two.

A/N: I just wanted some cute Rin and IA bonding moments, is that too much to ask? Seriously, I love these two so much it's not even funny. While the whole "Rin getting pissed off at IA and resulting in some sort of comedy" thing is great and all, I think there has to be at least one moment like this where Rin actually acts like she doesn't hate IA's guts. So, I wrote this and felt that I had achieved that goal. Anyway, I meant to post this yesterday, but I kind of forgot. Oops. As always, please tell me what you think of this chapter and the story so far, the feedback is greatly appreciated!

Have a wonderful day/night/whatever~