Building Trust, Part 3
The store owners of Calhoun Plaza went their separate ways. Agil, Dan, Frankie, Dickson, and his students help each other carry their storage boxes and luggage as they head to the right side of the field where their respective stalls assigned by the event organizers are located.
Si-eun, Asuna and her staff remain in the center of the field as they make their way over to their own stalls. As soon as they arrive, they quickly get their cooking equipment and flyers out from their boxes and luggage and place them neatly on their tables.
After placing several bags and containers of her snacks and candy at the front of her stall, Si-eun turned to her kitchen on her left and began working on making more of them. Asuna and her staff also put on their aprons after setting up their makeshift kitchen, and they too get to work.
"Alright! Yui, Klein, start working on the steamed sausages, scrambled eggs, and mushroom soup. Eugeo, go around the field and distribute the flyers. Kirito and I will start work on our 'special cake'. Let's move!" Asuna ends her orders with a clap of her hands.
"RIGHT!" Her employees shouted in unison.
Eugeo grabs a third of the flyers from the front table and momentarily leaves the stall to distribute them to the people walking around the carnival. As Klein and Yui work at another table at the right side of their stall, they help each other cook the food which their restaurant will be serving to the carnival attendees for breakfast. The younger girl attentively follows the assistant chef's instructions as they work together.
Meanwhile, as they work at the left side of their stall, Asuna and Kirito look through one last time at the ingredients and equipment they have placed on the table which they will need to create the special menu item that they are introducing for the first time at the carnival.
"Baking soda?" Asuna asked.
"Check!" Kirito replied while pointing at the box of baking soda.
"Cocoa powder?" Asuna inquired.
"Here!" Kirito holds up the bag of cocoa powder.
"And the most important of all, red food coloring!" Asuna said with a hint of anxiety.
"Here it is." Kirito replied as he holds up a small glass bottle of red liquid to her.
Asuna sighs in relief and smiled. "Good. Looks like we have all the ingredients we need to make our newest addition to our menu!"
"Red Crimson Cake!" Kirito exclaimed with his fists on both sides of his hip.
"Ummmm, no." Asuna replied dryly before placing a large glass bowl in front of her. "Red Velvet Cake."
"Right." Kirito nodded. He grabs a plastic container of flour which he and Asuna have measured its weight on a scale earlier. "First, we pour 300 grams of all-purpose flour into the bowl."
"Correct." Asuna said. While Kirito is carefully pouring all the flour into the bowl, Asuna grabs a teaspoon and a bowl of salt. "Once all the flour is in the bowl, pour a teaspoon of kosher salt into it."
"Why add salt to something that is supposed to taste sweet later?" Kirito asked.
"It helps cut the oily mouthfeel of buttery dough when the cake is fully baked later." Asuna replied after pouring the right amount of salt into the bowl of flour.
"Oh, that's interesting. Maybe next time, we can use soy sauce to bake our bread too." Kirito said.
"Please…don't." Asuna deadpanned as she holds up her hand.
"Oh, okay." Kirito rubs the back of his neck.
"Anyways, add a half cup of butter into another bowl and mix it for me, will you?" Asuna asked.
"Sure thing." Kirito unwraps a stick of butter and places it into another glass bowl while Asuna uses her teaspoon to scoop up some baking soda.
"While you're at it, I'll pour one teaspoon of baking soda into the flour." Asuna said as she did what she said. She places the teaspoon aside, grabs the eggbeater and uses it to stir the flour inside the bowl. "Stir the flour around for at least half a minute." While she is working, she briefly turns her head to Kirito who is using an electronic hand mixer to mix his bowl of butter. "While you on the other hand, keep mixing that butter until it's completely creamy."
"Got it." Kirito obliged.
When Asuna is done, she places the eggbeater down and the bowl of flour aside. She looks into Kirito's bowl of butter and sees that it is no longer solid. She nods her head and says, "That should do it."
Kirito turns off the mixer and places it and his bowl of now creamy butter down on the table.
"Next, pour 150 grams of sugar into the bowl of butter." Asuna instructed as Kirito grabs a measuring cup and a container of sugar.
"Got it." Kirito said as he pours his sugar into the cup.
"Be careful. It must be the exact amount." Asuna said. When the sugar inside the measuring cup barely surpassed the amount they need for their cake, Kirito places the container down on the table. He carefully pours back any excess of sugar back into the container before showing it to Asuna. After seeing the amount of sugar inside his cup is right, the head chef nods her head in approval, and Kirito pours it into the bowl of creamy butter.
"Mix the sugar and butter together while I work on the eggs." Asuna said.
"Right." Kirito grabs his hand mixer and uses it to mix the contents in his bowl. Asuna now grabs two eggs and slightly cracks one of them against the edge of another measuring cup.
"Now we shall add two eggs into the bowl of butter. Put them one at a time and mix them." Asuna said as she pours the egg yolk into the measuring cup and places the shells aside. While Kirito is still mixing his butter, Asuna grabs the cup and pours the egg into the bowl. Kirito mixes the yolk with his butter while Asuna repeats the process again with the other egg.
Kirito kept mixing as the contents in his bowl is now yellow. As he kept working on it, Asuna grabs a bottle of vanilla and pours some of it into her teaspoon. She places the bottle down and said before pouring the contents into Kirito's bowl, "Now pour two teaspoons of vanilla extract into it."
Asuna fills her teaspoon up again with some vanilla and pours it into the bowl. She places the bottle of vanilla down and now opens a bottle of buttermilk. She smells it for a moment before she grabs her measuring cup, holds it up and pours the buttermilk into it.
"Pour 240 milliliters of buttermilk into a cup." Asuna said. After pouring the right amount of buttermilk into her cup, she places it and the bottle down and grabs a tablespoon and a bottle of vinegar.
"Then add one tablespoon of vinegar into your buttermilk." Asuna pours the vinegar into her tablespoon and later into her measuring cup. "Okay, you may stop mixing the batter now, Kirito."
Kirito sighs wearily as he turns off the hand mixer.
"Thank goodness." He said while placing both the mixer and the bowl of batter down on the table. Asuna grabs the bottle of red coloring and carefully opens the lid.
"And now, we pour some red food coloring into my buttermilk. Not too much, but not too little." Asuna said as she did what she said. She closes and puts the bottle of red coloring aside before grabbing her eggbeater. She rapidly mixes the contents in her measuring cup around, and Kirito watches in awe as her buttermilk changes its color to a dark shade of red.
"That's going to give our cake its name, right?" Kirito asked.
"Yes. But ironically, it will become less red when we add the flour later." Asuna said, putting her measuring cup aside. She grabs a tablespoon and a box of cocoa powder. "What's really going to make our cake redder is two tablespoons of natural cocoa powder into your bowl of batter. Would you do the honors?"
"Sure." Kirito takes the tablespoon and cocoa powder from Asuna's hands. He carefully scoops some cocoa powder with the tablespoon and pours them into his bowl twice.
"In reality, the Red Velvet Cake is actually a chocolate cake made to look dark red. Due to the acidity of the cocoa powder, it will create a reaction with the vinegar and buttermilk to better reveal the red anthocyanin of the cocoa. That is how it forms the color of our finished product." Asuna explained.
"Wait, so there's actually redness inside our cocoa powder all along?" Klein asked Asuna as he and Yui have been listening to their head chef while cooking the food at their workstation.
"Red anthocyanin to be precise, yes." Asuna said to him with a nod.
"Huh, interesting." Klein said before he and Yui look back at the food they are working on the pans and portable stoves. "Next, you will tell me the giraffe's tongue is actually black."
"That's nothing. Some ape-like creatures called Vulcans in our world have pink tongues with purple and orange polka dots." Yui said with a wide smile, causing Klein to frown as he felt the color of his skin draining.
"We really need to change the subject before I lose my appetite." Klein said flatly.
Meanwhile, Kirito mixes his bowl of batter again, causing some powder to fly up to his face. Asuna gasps and quickly covers his mouth with a clean handkerchief before he gave a few coughs.
"Sheesh, mix a little slower, will you?" Asuna said as she puts her handkerchief aside.
"Sorry." Kirito cringed. After putting the hand mixer aside on the table, Kirito adds the third tablespoon of cocoa powder into the bowl. He mixes the batter again with his hand mixer until it turned completely brown.
"Good job, Kirito." Asuna said as she grabs her bowl of flour she made earlier. "Now, we can finally add half of our flour in and mix it with your batter."
After Asuna pours half of her flour into his batter, Kirito grabs the hand mixer again and mix the contents in his bowl.
"Keep mixing until they are well combined with each other." Asuna instructed Kirito.
"Because we don't want a cake that is dense and gummy, isn't it?" Kirito said.
"That's right." Asuna chuckled as she grabs her measuring cup of red-colored buttermilk.
When she sees Kirito's batter is mixed well enough, she carefully pours half of the buttermilk inside it.
"Now, we can pour half of the red buttermilk into it." Asuna said. After doing so, she puts aside the measuring cup and grabs the bowl of flour again.
"Add the other half of flour inside it." She said as she pours the remaining flour into Kirito's bowl as the saucier kept mixing his batter. Asuna puts the now empty bowl aside and grabs her measuring cup again. "And pour the other half of red buttermilk inside it."
After doing as she says, Asuna puts the empty measuring cup aside and continues watching Kirito mixing the batter. Eventually, she sees bubbles forming in the batter.
"That shall do it, Kirito." Asuna said. Kirito turns off the hand mixer and puts it aside while Asuna grabs a wooden spoon and stirs the batter inside his bowl around.
"Ooohhh, look at how foamy it has become!" Kirito said in amusement as he looks inside what has become of the contents in his bowl.
"Yup. It's all thanks to the vinegar I added to the buttermilk." Asuna said. "Time to bring out the eight-inch pans."
Kirito goes over to the storage box and grabs the pans. He turns around and smiles as he shows them to Asuna.
"All two of them!" He said before arching an eyebrow. "Or wait, is it 'both of them'? You know, since there's two."
Asuna sighed. "Just bring them over."
Without saying another word, Kirito rushes back to where he originally stood and places the pans on the table. Asuna carefully pours the batter into both pans and fill them up, but not completely. When she sees a small amount of batter left inside the bowl, she turns to Kirito and instructed him, "Now bring out one baking paper cup."
Kirito nods his head and walks over to the storage box again to grab a paper cup. He walks back to Asuna and hands it to her.
"Great." She said as she puts it down on the table. She carefully pours the remaining amount of batter into the baking paper cup and add a little bit more red coloring into it. After stirring it with a teaspoon, Asuna puts it aside and wraps two long wet strips of fabric around the eight-inch pans. After doing so, she grabs the pans of batter, and she and Kirito kneel to see the large oven they placed underneath the table.
"Now, we can place them inside the oven under 350 degrees for 35 minutes." Asuna said as Kirito opens the oven for her. She places the pans neatly inside the oven. Kirito closes the lid and sets it to the right temperature and time. Both chefs stand back up and the saucier blows out a sigh.
"Whoo, glad we are done with the cakes." Kirito said as he sweeps his hair back.
"And now, we can get to making the cream cheese frosting while it's being baked." Asuna said.
Kirito sighs and droops his shoulders as Asuna grabs another clean glass bowl, two sticks of butter, and two large blocks of cheese from the storage box. She places them on the table and unwraps one stick of butter.
"Add 2 sticks of butter into the bowl, no less than 226 grams." Asuna said, putting the stick of butter into the bowl and throws the wrap into a nearby bin. She unwraps the other stick of butter and repeats the process.
"Now, we add two, eight-ounce blocks of cream cheese, which is about 452 grams." Asuna unwraps the cheese and places them into the bowl as well.
"Time to mix them." Kirito said as he uses the hand mixer to mix the contents in the bowl together.
"While you're at it, we can add one teaspoon of vanilla extract…" Asuna pours some vanilla into her teaspoon and grabs a tiny bit of salt from a nearby saucer. "And a pinch of salt."
Asuna pours the vanilla extract and sprinkles the salt into the cheese and butter as Kirito kept mixing them. She grabs another clean glass bowl and places it above a weighing scale. She grabs the bag of powdered sugar and pours them into the bowl until she sees the scale reading barely over the right amount.
"Pour 680 grams of powdered sugar into the mixture, but don't do it while you're mixing it." Asuna said.
"Why not?" Kirito asked as he turns off his hand mixer.
"Because it will create a sugar explosion when you do." Asuna warned as she uses a tablespoon to scoop out some of the sugar out and put them back into the bag.
"Yikes." Kirito commented with a cringe.
"Yeah, not cool." Asuna looks at the weighing scale one more time to see that it now reads the correct amount. She grabs the bowl and uses her tablespoon to carefully pour all the sugar into Kirito's bowl.
"Mix them very slowly. If you do it fast, it will create air bubbles and we do not want that for our cake frosting." Asuna instructed Kirito. Her saucier obliged and uses his hand mixer to blend the contents in his bowl slowly. "Be patient. Just mix it well and slowly, and eventually, we will get our smooth and silky cream for our cake."
"Don't worry. I remember what Dickson taught me. Remain calm and do not lose yourself like a broken mirror." Kirito responded with his eyes fixated on his bowl. Asuna chuckled before she momentarily leaves him alone and goes over to Klein and Yui.
"How's the soup, eggs and sausages?" Asuna asked as she approaches them from behind.
"Perfect!" Klein said as he and Yui turn to the head chef, and each gave her a thumbs-up. They move aside to show her the large trays of mushroom soup, scrambled eggs, and steamed sausages that they have finished cooking. Asuna grabs a fork and spoon and tastes each of them. She nods her head approvingly to them.
"We are open for business." She said to them.
A few minutes later, about thirty people walk over to their stall and form a line as they queue up to buy their breakfast from them. As Klein and Yui serve them, they notice each customer holding a flyer in one of their hands while carrying their tray and food. It seems they have garnered a lot of attention thanks to the flyers Eugeo distributed around the carnival grounds.
Back at their workstation, Kirito turns off the hand mixer after being ordered by Asuna to do so. He slowly lifts his mixer up, and he and Asuna smile as the mixture on it has become soft and silky. Asuna uses a wooden spoon to remove whatever residue is on the mixer and puts them with the rest of the cream in Kirito's bowl.
When they heard the oven ring, Asuna puts on her oven gloves and kneels. She carefully opens the lid and pulls the pans of finished dark reddened cakes out of the oven. After closing the lid with her foot, she stands up and places the cakes on the table. She uses a knife to carefully cut the circular edges around the cake. After doing so, she turns the pan upside down and taps her hand on it until the cake comes off and lands gently on a wide plate. Kirito smiles and widens his eyes in awe upon seeing the cake.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Asuna asked.
"Sure is." Kirito nodded.
"Now, we can add this little guy into the oven." Asuna said, holding up the baking paper cup of batter and passing it to Kirito. "Bake it under the same temperature of 350 degrees, but this time leave it in for 15 minutes."
"You got it." Kirito said. He takes a few moments to put it inside the oven, close the lid and set it to the right temperature and time. When he stands back up, he sees Asuna now holding a cream spatula.
"At the meantime, we can now add the cream on top of it and later stack it with another cake." Asuna said to him. "Care to cut the edges of the other cake for me?"
"Sure." Kirito grabs a knife and the other pan. Asuna proceeds to scoop a huge amount of cream from Kirito's bowl with her spatula and spreads it around the top layer of the cake. When she is done, she sees Kirito putting his knife down and hands the pan over to her. Asuna turns the pan upside down and carefully taps her hand on it until the cake lands gently on top of the one she finished spreading the cream over.
It would take another twelve minutes for Asuna to finish spreading the cream above and around their two-layered cake. And when she is done, the oven rings again. After putting on the oven gloves, Kirito carefully opens the lid, takes the baking paper cup out of the oven, and closes it. He stands up and smiles as he sees the batter has turned into a red cupcake before putting it aside.
Asuna puts her spatula aside and grabs a piping bag. After filling it up with the remaining cream inside Kirito's bowl, she slowly squeezes the piping bag and decorates the top of the cake with swirls, much to Kirito's amusement. When she is done, Asuna places the piping bag aside and passes a grater and a small bowl to Kirito. She instructs him to grate the cupcake above the small bowl until it is completely turned into bits of powder. Kirito spends five minutes doing what he was told. They both put on their plastic gloves and use the powder to decorate the sides of the cake.
When they are finally done, Kirito and Asuna take a few steps back, remove their gloves, and marvel at their finished product.
"Amazing." Kirito uttered.
Asuna nodded and they both turn to each other. "I never could have done it without you."
The two chefs smile as they hold up their hands and give each other a high-five. Asuna carefully carries up the cake and goes over to the cake chiller that is placed at the front of the stall beside Klein and Yui's workstation and kindly provided to them by the event organizers. She inserts the cake inside along with three other cakes she had made at home before the event. Some of the customers at their stall are already eyeing at the latest addition to the cake chiller and murmuring comments about it.
A few seconds later, Eugeo enters their stall through the back. He briefly smiles at the line of customers he helped created before turning to Kirito and Asuna. "Hey guys, what did I miss?"
"Not much, other than the fact Asuna and I had just finished baking our Red Velvet Crowe." Kirito responded. But as Eugeo, Asuna and Klein stare at him in confusion, Kirito widens his eyes when he realized his mistake. "I mean Red Velvet Cake. Not Crowe, who was a friend of mine and Yui."
"You're lucky she isn't here to hear you." Yui deadpanned to her foster father.
Asuna chuckled for a moment before turning her attention to Si-eun's stall. She noticed her fellow store tenant looking nervous and struggling to make her homemade candies while many adults and children are standing nearby and in front of her stall to watch her work. Most of them are making comments to each other as they observe her, which only makes Si-eun feel more nervous. Asuna frowned as she feels that she needs to step in and help her friend.
"If you feel that you need to assist her, go ahead." Kirito said to Asuna. The restaurant manager smiled at him.
"You're right." She nodded to her saucier before turning to Eugeo, Yui and Klein. "Everyone, please take care of the stall while I'm gone."
"Got it, ma'am." Eugeo said while putting on his apron.
"You can count on us." Klein added as he and Yui nod their heads to her.
Asuna makes her departure through the back of their stall. Upon entering Si-eun's stall from behind, Asuna walks over to her and greeted, "Hello, Si-eun."
"Oh!" Si-eun said in surprise as she turns to Asuna and halts her work. She lets out a sigh of relief, knowing that it was not a random stranger who entered her premises. "Hello, Asuna."
"Are you alright? You don't look so well." Asuna asked in concern.
"I guess you could say that." Si-eun said nervously as she adjusts her glasses. "Even though I was the one who suggested allowing the onlookers to watch me work, the reality is that I feel more comfortable when there aren't so many people in my store. I'm sorry, Asuna. I feel so pathetic."
"Don't say that." Asuna said reassuringly as she places her hand on her shoulder. "How about I keep you company and give a helping hand at the meantime?"
"You would?" Si-eun asked. Asuna nodded, causing Si-eun to smile weakly at her. "Gamsahabnida."
As both women work in the stall, Asuna helped to sell the snacks and candies and collect the money from the customers while Si-eun concentrated on producing more of her homemade candies at her makeshift kitchen. The glasses-wearing woman smiled warmly as she felt relieved and comfortable having someone to accompany her. Si-eun also allow Asuna to assist her in making her candy by rolling her dough into an extremely long and thin roll until it reaches the other end of her makeshift kitchen. Si-eun later uses her knife to rapidly cut her roll of hardened dough into multiple tiny bits of candy, much to the amazement of the onlookers standing nearby. Asuna helps her store the candies into tiny glass containers, and Si-eun later ties ribbons around their lids and places them at the front of her stall. As the onlookers applaud, both women turn to each other and shake hands.
"Gamsahabnida, Asuna. I feel much better now." Si-eun said to her.
"You're welcome, Si-eun. I better get back to my stall now. And don't worry, you got this." Asuna said reassuringly. Si-eun nods her head in response, and the restaurant owner gave a gentle pat on her shoulder before leaving her stall. As Si-eun turns back to her customers, she smiles widely with her newfound confidence and resumes her work.
When breakfast ended at 11 am, Klein, Yui and Eugeo began preparations for lunch service while Asuna and Kirito temporarily leave their stall to check on Agil, Dan, Frankie, and Dickson at the right side of the carnival.
When they arrive at Agil's stall, they see the barber performing a haircut for a middle-aged man sitting in front of him, and there are several other men and women queueing up to have a cut and shave from him. Agil spotted Asuna and Kirito watching him from a distance, and he gives them a thumbs-up. Both Kirito and Asuna return the gesture to him before the barber looks back at the head of his customer and resumes his work.
Kirito and Asuna walk over to Frankie's stall and sees her sitting on a chair, singing, and playing Mary Had a Little Lamb with her guitar to some children in front of her while the adults are either staring at the instruments hanging on the metal grid wall or looking through her boxes of vinyl records on the table beside her. When she finished performing, Frankie looks up and waves her hand to Kirito and Asuna. They both wave back at her before walking over to Dan's stall.
When they arrive there, they see Dan serving a customer who wants to buy a few jerseys and trading cards from him, while many others are looking through the other merchandise laid on the tables. Dan glances at Kirito and Asuna standing in the distance and gave a thumbs-up and a wink of an eye at them. Kirito and Asuna smile as they return the gesture to him, feeling glad that the sports store owner is doing just fine.
Finally, Kirito and Asuna head back to the center of the carnival and over to the performance stage where Dickson and his students are due to give a live demonstration of their karate skills. After managing to find a good spot where they can have a clear view of them, the presenter announced the names of the owner and students of the Bald Cypress Dojo and moves aside. Kirito and Asuna cheer and clap their hands when they see Dickson and his students stepping onto the stage. After giving their bows to everyone present in the center of the carnival grounds, Dickson and his students perform many punches and kicks in front of them. While they are performing, Asuna noticed Kirito thrusting his fists through the air as he imitates their punches. She chuckles and shakes her head as she turns her attention back to the stage. The students also break several wooden boards with their flying kicks, and the live demonstration ends with Dickson successfully breaking two bricks in half at the same time with a single chop of his right hand. Kirito, Asuna and everyone in the audience cheer and applaud as Dickson and his students line up horizontally and give their final bows to them. When he noticed them, Dickson gave a wan smile and a quick nod to Kirito and Asuna before he and his students turn and leave the stage.
Kirito and Asuna return to their stall and help Eugeo, Yui and Klein make the final preparations for lunch service. When it began thirty minutes later, the customers start lining up in front of their stall, and Kirito, Yui, Eugeo and Klein serve them slices of pepperoni, salami, mozzarella, and mushroom and olive pizzas, Hamburg steaks, fish and chips, Reuben sandwiches, Caesar's salad, and beef spaghetti bolognaise with meatballs. Eugeo also help hand each customer a flyer advertising their restaurant as they leave.
Meanwhile, Asuna is working behind the chiller, attending to several customers who want to buy a slice of her cakes. She carefully cuts a slice of the cakes they wanted and hand it to them on a paper plate.
When most of their customers are cleared about thirty minutes later, Asuna kneels and sees that her newest addition, the Red Velvet Cake, has caught the most attention from them as there is only a single slice of it left in the chiller. She closes the back of the chiller and stands up as Kirito walks over to her.
"They love it! Our Red Velvet Cake is a success!" Asuna said cheerfully to him.
"That's great!" Kirito smiled at her.
"Hello there." A male voice said to them.
Asuna and Kirito turn and see a man standing in front of their stall. He appears to have swept back blonde hair, dark blue eyes, short facial hair on his chin, and wears a pair of headphones around his neck, a dark tan long-sleeved shirt, blueish-gray jeans, and green sneakers.
"Are you two the ones who are running this stall?" The man asked.
"Yes, we are." Kirito replied.
"Is there something wrong, sir?" Asuna asked worriedly.
"Oh no, not at all!" The man chuckled as he holds up his nearly empty plate filled with scraps of his spaghetti bolognaise and pepperoni pizza slice. "I just want to know more about your restaurant because this food I just ate is absolutely delicious!"
Suddenly, Klein gasps upon seeing the man standing in front of Kirito and Asuna. He hastily goes over to them and asked the man, "I'm sorry but…are you DJ Higa Takeru?"
"Yup! That's me!" The man replied with a grin.
Klein squeals with joy before turning to Asuna and Kirito. "Guys! This is Higa Takeru, one of the DJs of WAORZ FM!"
"WAORZ? One of Chicago's most-listened-to radio stations?" Asuna asked with her eyes widened.
"That's right!" Takeru laughed as Kirito, Asuna and Klein turn back to him.
"That's so awesome!" Klein cried enthusiastically. "I love listening to your morning show everyday while I'm cooking and eating my breakfast at home, and now here you are in the flesh! What an honor!"
"Ahahaha, now you're making me blush." Takeru chuckled with a sheepish grin.
"So, what brings you here, Mr. Higa?" Klein inquired.
"The radio station sent me here to do a coverage of this event." Takeru explained. "They want me to report back to them what attractions they have, what activities are going on, you know, that kind of stuff. While I was waiting at one of the tables, one of my assistants came to your stall because it's the only one that serves spaghetti and pizza." He suddenly perks up and said ecstatically, "And when I finally got to taste your food, it was simply out of this world! Truly one of the best spaghetti and pepperoni pizzas I've eaten in this city!"
Asuna, Kirito, and Klein chuckled sheepishly at his remarks.
"So, I ask my assistant who made this food, and he handed me this flyer." Takeru said, showing them their flyer in his other hand. "And now that I'm here, I just want to say you guys did a great job with this food. Thank you very much!"
"You're welcome, Mr. Higa!" Asuna said cheerfully as she, Kirito and Klein bow to him.
"So, you're Asuna's Baking Company, the restaurant that has been gaining some buzz on social media. I'm not a fan of Internet drama, but I did some research, and it seems you used to be one of the worst-reviewed restaurants in America while it was under the management of your previous owners." Takeru said.
"That's true. And it was sullied further when one of the previous owners was arrested for attempted murder. That is why as the new owner and manager, I, Asuna Yuuki, am working hard to rebuild my restaurant's public image and reputation." Asuna explained.
"And you really show." Takeru nodded approvingly. "You and your staff deserve a lot of credit. How about I record an advertisement for you guys as part of my report for tomorrow?"
Asuna, Kirito, and Klein perk up upon hearing this.
"You mean our voices and restaurant name are going to be heard all over the city?!" Klein asked enthusiastically.
"That's right." Takeru nodded.
"That would be great, Mr. Higa!" Asuna said to the DJ excitedly before her eyes softened. "But not just an endorsement of my restaurant. I want all the strip mall where we are located in, the Calhoun Plaza, to be known too. My fellow store owners deserve credit too."
"Sure. I can do that." Takeru smirked with a wink of an eye.
After temporarily closing their stall, Asuna, Kirito, Klein, Eugeo and Yui follow Takeru to his dining table. The DJ orders his assistants to clear the table and set up their mixing console. After the assistants did what they are told, Takeru speaks into his microphone to test the audio and console. His assistants each gave the DJ a thumbs-up when they confirm the console has captured a recording of his voice. Takeru holds up the microphone to Asuna first, and the staff members of Asuna's Baking Company take turns to advertise their restaurant. Asuna later ended their recording session by saying the location of her restaurant and strip mall.
After taking a group photo with the DJ and being handed each a white t-shirt with the official logo of his radio station as their gifts, Kirito, Yui, Eugeo and Klein return to their stall and continue working, while Asuna escorts Takeru and his assistants to Si-eun's store. After shaking hands with each other, the DJ explains to the candy store owner that he would like to record an advertisement for her and the other store tenants of Calhoun Plaza. Si-eun wholeheartedly agreed with his proposal and when Takeru holds up the microphone to her, she introduces herself and provides information about her store.
Asuna, Takeru and his assistants later paid visits to Agil, Frankie, Dan and Dickson, and the store tenants take the opportunity to advertise their stores as well. When their recording session with Dickson is done, Asuna and Takeru shake hands with each other, and the DJ promised their voices will be heard on his radio station tomorrow morning.
The next morning, Agil, Frankie, Si-eun, Dan, Dickson and his students gather at Asuna's stall where she, Kirito, Yui and Eugeo watch Klein places his boombox radio on top of the cake chiller and turns it on with a remote. After tuning into the right station and bringing up the volume, Klein puts down the remote and he and the others lean closer while listening to the radio.
"Happyyyyy Sunday Morning, Chicago!" Two DJs, a male and a female, both announced in unison.
"I'm Melinda Jones." The female DJ introduced herself.
"And I'm Higa Takeru." Takeru said. "And welcooommmeee…to the Sunday edition of Higa and Jones in The Morning on WAORZ FM!"
"I hope everyone in the city has planned how they are going to spend the last day of the weekend chilling and unwinding before work and school returns tomorrow." Melinda said.
"And for those who still don't have any plans how to relax on what is going to be a beautiful Sunday, why not drop by Jackson Park where the second and last day of the Jackson Charity Carnival is happening?" Takeru said.
Everyone except Dickson gasp upon hearing this.
"Here it is!" Klein said, trying to contain his excitement.
"Oh, I hope it's good." Asuna said anxiously as she clasps her hands together.
"Takeru, you were at the event yesterday. Care to share with us what you saw over there?" Melinda asked her co-host.
"Oh, there are live dances and musical performances, a small amusement park where children can have fun all day long, and there are LOTS of stalls that sell all kinds of merchandise and oh so delicious food." Takeru explained.
"Yummy. What food do they have?" Melinda asked cheerfully.
"Oh, there's chicken wings, corn dogs, taquitos, churros, but there is one stall that really got my full attention, and that's Asuna's Baking Company." Takeru said, causing Asuna and her staff to squeal.
"Oh, care to share more about them?" Melinda asked.
"Sure thing! Their stall makes all kinds of Western food and desserts such as pizzas, spaghetti, steak, salad, cakes…and boy, let me tell yeah, when my taste buds felt the flavor of the sauce on their spaghetti, and the cheese on their pizza, it was truly out of this world! I was blown away!"
"Wow! Just wow!"
"But man, saying all of this to you doesn't do justice to them. You must go down to their stall at the carnival or visit their restaurant tomorrow to really try the food out for yourselves. And if I've gotten you interested in Asuna's Baking Company and would like to know where it is located, just listen to what their staff has got to say." Takeru paused as he now plays the audio clip of Asuna and her staff which he and his crew recorded yesterday.
"Hello! I'm Asuna Yuuki, the owner and head chef of Asuna's Baking Company." Asuna introduced herself.
"And we're her staff!" Kirito, Yui, Klein and Eugeo added in unison.
"Would you like to have scrambled eggs or mushroom soup to start up your day?" Kirito asked.
"Have pizza, spaghetti, steak or cheesy baked rice for lunch and dinner?" Klein asked.
"Or try out our signature cakes ranging from Red Velvet, Chocolate Marble, and German Black Forest for dessert?" Eugeo asked.
"Then come on down to the Jackson Charity Carnival to try out our food, or visit our restaurant tomorrow, located in Calhoun Plaza, at 101 Bennett Drive, Chicago, Illinois 26825." Asuna said.
"We cannot wait to serve you and put a smile on your face!" Yui said cheerfully.
When the recording ends, Agil, Frankie, Si-eun, Dan, Dickson and his students turn to Asuna, Kirito, Klein, Yui and Eugeo and clap their hands while the restaurant manager and her staff smile sheepishly at them.
"Great job, you guys!" Frankie said.
"Well done!" Si-eun cheered.
"You did good, everyone." Agil added.
"Arigatou." Asuna chuckled.
"Quiet!" Klein shushed everyone and they all continue listening to the radio.
"What lovely people, aren't they?" Melinda asked.
"They sure are. And it's not just them that I want to give a shoutout to, but also their friends and fellow storekeepers of Calhoun Plaza. They too deserve some credit, so let's hear what they have to say, shall we?" Takeru said before playing the other recordings, starting with Si-eun.
"Modu annyeonghasibnikka!" Si-eun blushed as she hears her voice on the radio. "I'm An Si-eun, and I run the East Asia Bubble Pop at Calhoun Plaza. I mostly sell authentic candies, snacks, and other foods straight from Korea and Japan. So, if you are craving for a taste of East Asian culture, come down to my store, East Asia Bubble Pop, in Calhoun Plaza at 101 Bennett Drive, Chicago, Illinois 26825. That's 101 Bennett Drive, Chicago, Illinois 26825. Gamsahabnida!" As her recording ended, Si-eun places her hands on her cheeks and chuckled sheepishly while Frankie laughs as she gave a pat on her shoulder.
"Hello everyone." Frankie gasped with a wide smile upon hearing her voice. "My name is Frankie Foster, and I own the Fosters' Music Shop at Calhoun Plaza. I sell all kinds of stuff related to music such as guitars, banjos, saxophones and especially vinyl records dating back from the 40s to the modern day. If you are a fan of any music in general, come on down to my store in Calhoun Plaza. I might have what you are looking for. Have a good day!"
"Yes!" Frankie whooped as she pumps her fist. "That was so good!"
"Good morning, Chicago." Agil smiled as he hears his voice. "I'm Andrew Gilbert Mills, and I run The Classic Mills Cut at Calhoun Plaza. Come on down and I promised to give you the best cut, trim, and shave anyone can ask for. See you soon."
Agil simply nods his head approvingly after listening to his recording.
"Hello there! I'm Dan Eagleman, and I run the Double Time Sports store at Calhoun Plaza! Are you a huge sports fan? Looking for some merchandise based on your favorite athlete and team? Then come on down here and check out my stuff! I look forward to seeing you!"
Dan gave a chuckle as he places his fists on both sides of his hip and grins in satisfaction.
"Hello Chicago. I'm Dickson Godak, and I'm the owner and sensei of the Bald Cypress Dojo. I believe everyone has the potential of becoming a true and honorable fighter regardless of their age and gender. If you want to become one, then be sure to pay a visit to my dojo at Calhoun Plaza and sign up, for I can show you the way. Thank you for your time and have a good day."
As his students clap their hands to their master, Agil smiled warmly as he gives a pat on Dickson's back.
"Way a go, Dickson." Agil said while the karate instructor gives him a wan smile.
"And there you have it, folks." Takeru said. "These are the guys who run the stores of Calhoun Plaza. And like I said before, if any of them caught your interest, be sure to pay them a visit tomorrow, or come down to the Jackson Charity Carnival at Jackson Park and drop by their stalls now!"
"Man, these guys all sound so loveable…I would really like to go see them now." Melinda chuckled.
After Klein uses the remote to turn off the radio, everyone turns to each other and burst into cheers as they pump their fists up in the air. As everyone except Dickson laugh, Asuna, Kirito, Yui, Eugeo and Klein gave each other high-fives while Agil, Frankie, Si-eun, Dan and Dickson wrap their arms around their shoulders to pull themselves into a tight group hug.
"Aw man! This is definitely going to attract a lot of attention for the strip mall for sure!" Klein said to his fellow staff members.
"We are going to be more famous than ever!" Yui whooped as she pumps her fists up in the air again.
"Alright!" Eugeo added cheerfully, pumping up his fist as well.
When they heard a cough, Asuna and her staff turn to Dickson who is now standing in front of them and their stall. As his cheeks turn red, Agil, Frankie, Si-eun and Dan titter as they stand behind him.
"Come on now. Don't be shy." Dan coaxed as he gives a pat on Dickson's back. Dickson briefly glares at him before looking back at Asuna and her staff.
"Asuna Yuuki, I…really want to thank you…for all of this." Dickson said flatly. "When we first met each other…I thought you would be no better than Addie and Teddie. But…you have truly proven…how wrong I was. So…from the bottom of my heart…and on behalf of everyone working in Calhoun Plaza…" He gives a solemn bow to Asuna. "Thank you…for putting us back on the map."
A wide smile plastered across Asuna's face again. She bows back to the karate instructor and replied, "You're welcome, everyone."
Everyone returned to their respective stalls and get back to work. Things went normal for them throughout the morning, but when afternoon came, Asuna and the other store tenants of Calhoun Plaza noticed a significant increase of customers coming to their stalls. Many of the new customers told them that they came down here after hearing their audio recordings on Higa and Jones in The Morning, much to their delight. The store tenants take this golden opportunity given to them by providing their best impression and service to them, as well as making lots of money in the process.
At 4 o'clock, the store tenants of Calhoun Plaza decide to take a break after serving all their customers. After spending the last one and a half days operating their stalls, they realize they had not gotten the spare time to engage in any activities in the carnival. So, they temporarily close their stalls, meetup at the amusement park, and went their separate ways.
Asuna, Kirito, and Yui decide to ride on the roller coaster first. When it is their turn to board, Yui takes a seat in the frontmost open car while Asuna and Kirito sat together and behind her. All the riders push down and place the safety bars right above their laps before the ride begins to move. The ride went slow at first, but after making its first round around the tracks, the roller coaster suddenly accelerates faster with every round. When it reaches its highest speed after the fourth round, Asuna, Kirito, the other children, and their parents scream with either surprised or terrified looks on their faces, while Yui on the other hand whooped excitedly with her arms raised and her eyes wide.
Meanwhile, Klein, Frankie and Si-eun entered the Tilt-A-Whirl and sat together in one of the empty cars. They gently push down the safety bar onto their laps and wait for everyone else to take their seats. After the operator made sure everyone is safely seated, he goes over to the console and starts the ride. The rotating platform began spinning round and round, causing the cars to rotate in circles, and the riders scream in excitement. When the ride ends a minute later, everyone including Klein, Frankie and Si-eun make their way out. Both women happily converse with each other how much fun they had riding on it before turning their attention to Klein. When Frankie asked Klein for his opinion on the ride however, the assistant chef clutches his stomach and covers his mouth as his face turns pale. Frankie and Si-eun yelp and quickly escort Klein to a safe place where he can hurl his contents out.
Eugeo, Agil, Dan and Dickson sat inside a car of the Ferris Wheel together. As the wheel slowly rotates around in circles, the four men spent their time conversing with each other and sharing more information about themselves.
Everyone later meetup and head over to the bumper cars. Kirito and Asuna sit next to each other in a blue car with the saucier taking control of the steering wheel. Eugeo and Klein pair up and sit inside a red car, so did Frankie and Si-eun in a green car, and Agil and Dan in a brown car. As the drivers and passengers fasten their seat belts, Yui cheers for her foster father and friends while Dickson stays silent as they stand behind the gates and watch. When the cars are operational, everyone began driving around the open area, except Kirito and Asuna who had not start their vehicle. As Kirito wonders why they are not moving while turning the wheel side to side, Asuna tells him to step on the gas pedal. Kirito looks down and places his foot down on the said pedal, causing him and Asuna to yelp as their car suddenly move forward. But their surprised looks are quickly replaced with smiles as Kirito drives around while avoiding the other cars while Asuna laughs cheerfully as she sits back and enjoy the ride, even if it is a bumpy one. Eugeo, Klein, Frankie, Si-eun, Agil and Dan hoot rambunctiously as well as they made several sharp turns and drove around in circles.
When the ride is over, everyone heads to the carousel next. Asuna, Kirito, Yui, Eugeo, Klein, Agil, Frankie, Si-eun and Dan gaze and smile at the fancy and colorful designs of the horses and carriages that serve as seats for the riders. Dickson however remains expressionless as he tells the others to enjoy themselves while he stays behind and watch. However, knowing that the karate instructor has not been enjoying himself much with the rides so far, Yui and Eugeo frown, turn to each other, and nod their heads. They suddenly go over to him, grab his arms tightly and pull Dickson over to the ride, never wanting to let go unless he joins them, much to the karate instructor's annoyance. Asuna, Kirito, and the others simply laugh as they stand idly and watch. In the end though, Dickson reluctantly joins Yui, Eugeo and Dan as they walk over to a horse carriage. The karate instructor and the sports store owner sit together on the chair-like seats while Yui and Eugeo saddle up on the wooden horses that are meant to look like they are pulling the carriage the two men are sitting on. Asuna, Kirito, Klein, Agil, Frankie and Si-eun also find themselves a horse to sit on, and when everyone else have found their seats, the carousel begins rotating around in circles while cheerful music is being played from the speakers. Everyone cheers and laughs as those riding on the horses wrap their arms around the poles while their seats move up and down. Dan laughs as well as he sits back and enjoys the ride, while Dickson on the other hand stays silent as he frowns and resists dying from embarrassment with his arms folded.
Finally, they head to the last amusement park attraction which is the house of mirrors. Everyone except Dickson laugh as they navigate through the hall and occasionally stand still and move their body and limbs around to see their reflections in all sorts of shapes and sizes. When Klein laughed and commented that the mirror beside Dickson makes his head shaped like a giant hot air balloon, the karate instructor turns to his left and gazes at his reflection. When Klein and the others did not see Dickson laugh however, everyone fell silent and continue moving forward, fearing that they may have upset him. But unbeknownst to everyone, Dickson managed to stifle a chuckle that threatened to come out from his throat.
After leaving the house of mirrors, everyone returns to their respective stalls and resume their work. They continue serving the customers and earning more money until the organizers made the official announcement on stage that the event has officially come to an end at 8 o'clock in the evening.
All the vendors put an end to their operations and close their stalls before heading over to the stage to join the visitors in watching the closing ceremony. Kirito, Asuna and the others manage to find a good viewing spot, and they stand close each other and see the same female presenter walking up on stage.
"Hello everyone!" She greeted everyone gathered in front of her while walking over to the center of the stage. "As we announced earlier, the 2024 edition of the Jackson Charity Carnival has officially come to an end, and we would like to thank everyone…the performers, the vendors, and most especially, the visitors…for participating in this wonderful event and doing our part to help those who are in greater need. This year, we see a record attendance number of 92,000 visitors, and accumulate a total sum of $6.2 million for charity! And we couldn't have achieved these records without the help of all of you. So please give yourselves a HUGE round of applause!" The presenter exclaimed enthusiastically as she pumps her fist up in the air.
Everyone immediately responded with loud cheers and thunderous applause. The presenter smiles as she claps along with them, and she holds up her microphone in front of her lips a few moments later, causing the audience to quiet down. As the presenter continues speaking, Asuna looked to her right and sees Kirito, Yui, Eugeo and Klein all standing beside her.
"Congratulations on a job well done, guys." Asuna said to her employees.
"You too, Asuna. Even though the last two days were tougher than we thought, we manage to work together as a team and pull this off just fine." Kirito said, flashing a grin at his boss.
"And let's not forget we couldn't have done this too if it weren't for the help of our friends." Yui said, looking to her right and sees Agil, Frankie, Si-eun, Dan, Dickson and his students continue looking and listening to the presenter on stage. "They deserve credit too."
"Indeed. And let's also not forget we did all of this for folks who are less fortunate than us." Eugeo said.
"Good thing 85% of the total revenue we earned during the last two days will go to charity. These people do need it more than us. I know the feeling." Klein said with his eyes softened.
"Me too." Kirito said grimly.
"Well, we can rest easy knowing they will be getting their help soon." Asuna said reassuringly to her employees.
Kirito smiled at Asuna as he perks up. "You're absolutely right."
Asuna nods her head to him before they all look back to the front and continue listening to the presenter.
"And so, without further ado, let us now welcome…the children of the True Hearts Association!" The presenter announced as she turns to her left and backs away. The audience clap their hands as over forty children make their way over to the center of the stage. All of them are dressed in plain white t-shirts with purple and orange hearts printed on them. Some of the children had missing limbs, some of them are holding clutches, and four of them are bound to their wheelchairs.
After the children lined themselves up in two horizontal rows based on their height, a boy and a girl step forward to the front of the stage. The girl holds up her microphone in her hand while the boy remains silent as he performs hand gestures as she speaks, "Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of all of us at the True Hearts Association, we thank you for your kindness and generosity. Because we were born with our disabilities, there are so many times when we struggle to live our lives normally like everyone else, and cry in our sleep wondering why God made us the way we are. However, your actions and participation in this event help restore our faith in life and humanity. By donating your money to our organization, it reminds us that even in times of darkness, there are a lot of people in this world we live in who are willing to lend us a hand and encourage us to live our lives to the fullest despite being born the way we are. It makes us realize that having disabilities or not…we are all the same. We are all human…and we are all connected to each other in spirit. God bless you. God bless humanity. And God bless the world. Thank you."
The audience applauds again as the girl finished and all the children gave their solemn bows to them. As he clapped, Kirito's eyes were brimmed with tears while his heart is filled with sad jollity. The somber images of the less fortunate people living in the poorer districts of Chicago and Mizuho remain fresh inside the former army captain's mind. But hearing what the girl said on stage, as well as seeing the cheerful looks on everyone's faces during the last two days has given him hope and optimism that goodness still exists within the hearts of humanity. Upon seeing her foster father crying with tears of joy, Yui wraps her arms around his waist and gave him a warm embrace. Kirito smiled down at her as he returns the hug.
"Thank you so much again to the children of the True Hearts Association." The female presenter said calmly as she walks back to the center of the stage and places herself between the boy and girl. A huge smile suddenly appears on her face as she exclaimed, "And with that…It's time to let out the fireworks!" The audience cheered loudly in response. "ARE YOU READY?!"
"YEEEESSSS!" The audience and children on stage shouted in unison.
"Then audience, turn around…" The female presenter said while the audience did what they were told and look up at the night sky. "And heeeeeerrrrrreeeeee…WE GO!"
And within a few seconds, multiple fireworks of various colors burst in the sky, causing the audience to cheer, smile and hold up their phones to film the spectacular display above them.
Asuna, Kirito, Yui, Eugeo and Klein all smile with their eyes widened. Agil, Dan, Frankie, Si-eun, Dickson and his students are enjoying the display too, with the karate instructor having his arms folded and a wan smile on his face, while the other store tenants wrap their arms around each other's shoulders.
Asuna felt blown away by the fireworks as she had not seen a similar display since the summer festival in Izu Oshima five years ago where she was working as a voluntary stall vendor. She could even still remember the last person she interacted with before the festival came to an end that night.
"I wish you all the best in your future endeavours, Yuuki-san."
"Arigatou. I wish all the luck in the world for you and your friend too, Uraraka-san."
'I wonder how she and her friend are doing right now…' Asuna's eyes softened.
"Asuna…"
She soon snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Kirito's voice. The restaurant manager turns her head to her left and sees the saucier smiling back at her.
"Even after all this is over, let's continue to bring happiness to everyone through our cooking." Kirito said.
Asuna smiled and nodded her head. "Yes. Let us work hard together."
With that, Kirito and Asuna look back at the night sky, cherishing every moment of the fireworks display until the end.
Sovereign: I would like to thank LayLay lives, AquaBluey, Allfather-Ford, Zecrow09 and Manugrinspon for reviewing, favoriting, and following my story. Thank you!
And to all my readers, thank you all very much for your patience and support.
