The next morning, Mizuha opened her eyes as sunlight came through her curtains. She glanced at her clock and realized she had woken up earlier than usual.
She felt excited as she remembered her plan for the day. Quietly, she made her way to the kitchen, careful not to wake her parents. She gathered the ingredients and began preparing tamagoyaki, just as Eri had taught her the day before.
As she cooked, she made extra portions because she wanted to share the tamagoyaki with her friends at school. The eggs sizzled, filling the kitchen with a warm, savory smell.
Mizuha was so focused on her task that she didn’t notice her mother entering the room.
Her mother startled Mizuha slightly. "Oh, you’re up early today."
"Making tamagoyaki?"
Mizuha nodded and smiled. "Good morning, Mama. Yes, I thought I’d try making it myself."
Her mother moved closer. "That's thoughtful of you. Here, let me help." She started whisking more eggs while Mizuha worked the pan.
Together they worked in comfortable silence, the kitchen filled with the sounds of sizzling and clinking utensils.
As they finished the last batch, her mother turned to her.
"You go get ready for school. I’ll pack it up for you, okay?"
Mizuha hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Thanks, Mama."
She gave her mother a quick hug before going to her room.
As Mizuha showered and dressed for school, her mother packed the tamagoyaki into her bento box and made separate portions for her friends.
She wrapped everything neatly. She's getting better, her mother thought with a smile.
As Mizuha finished getting ready, her mother handed her the bento. "Here's your bento. Take care."
"Yeah, alright, Mama, I'm heading out now…"
Mizuha grabbed her things and headed out the door, feeling excited about what would happen that day.
At school, Mizuha didn’t pay attention during morning classes. She couldn’t wait to share her homemade tamagoyaki with her friends.
Finally, the bell rang, and the lunch break started. Mizuha pulled out her bento and the separate box of tamagoyaki as Shimizu approached her seat.
"What’s that, Mizuha? It smells good."
Mizuha winked. "It’s a secret. You’ll all get to try it when we get to our spot."
Eri already knew about the tamagoyaki, so she smiled as Mizuha excitedly talked about it.
Zul leaned in."Hey, Hikaru just messaged me. He’ll be a bit late and told us to go ahead without him."
Shimizu nodded. "Alright, got it. Let’s head to our usual spot."
Meanwhile, Hikaru was still in his classroom, rushing to finish his work so he could join Mizuha and the others for lunch on the school rooftop.
Finally done. I need to hurry and catch up with them, Hikaru thought as he grabbed his bento box.
Just then, Akemi approached him. "Hikaru-kun, wait!"
"Huh? Akemi? What’s up?"
"Can I join you for lunch? I want to meet the friends you're always with."
"Uh, sure, but..." Hikaru hesitated, feeling uneasy.
"No, it's fine. Let's go," he said, pushing past his hesitation.
Akemi followed behind him to the rooftop to join Mizuha and the others.
By the time Hikaru finished his work, Mizuha and the others started their lunch at their usual spot on the rooftop.
Shimizu looked at the box in Mizuha's hands. "Quick, Mizuha, show me what you brought today!"
Mizuha smiled and opened the box. "Here you go."
The tamagoyaki was cut into slices and neatly arranged inside.
"Wow, tamagoyaki! Can I taste it now? I can’t wait any longer!"
"Sure, go ahead."
Shimizu picked up a piece and took a bite.
"Mmm, it’s so delicious!" She smiled as she enjoyed the taste.
Mizuha held out the box to Eri and Zul. "Here, you two as well."
Eri and Zul each took a piece. "Let's eat!"
Eri was clearly impressed. "Mmm, so good, Mizuha-chan. You’ve definitely improved since yesterday."
"Yeah, this tastes just like what Eri made before."
"Well, I learned how to make it from Eri yesterday," Mizuha admitted, feeling proud.
Eri blushed slightly from the compliment. "Don’t say that, Mizuha-chan."
As they continued to eat, Mizuha glanced around. Hikaru still hadn’t arrived.
Takamiya-kun is a bit late. What happened to him?
Just then, Hikaru rushed onto the rooftop, slightly out of breath. "Sorry, everyone, I'm late."
"You’re late! What were you doing?" Shimizu said.
Before Hikaru could answer, a voice called out from behind him. "Hikaru-kun! Why are you walking so fast?"
Akemi struggled to catch up to him.
Mizuha and the others were surprised when Akemi appeared behind Hikaru. Mizuha and Shimizu looked at each other, both confused by her sudden arrival.
"Huh, is she...?" they both murmured, trying to process the unexpected arrival.
Shimizu broke the silence. "Umm, Hikaru, who is that?"
Hikaru turned to face the group. He gestured toward her. "Oh, her? This is Akemi, my classmate. She wants to join us today."
Akemi gave a polite nod. She was nervous but determined as she stood by Hikaru’s side, waiting for the group’s response.
"Nice to meet you. I’m Minato Akemi."
Mizuha recognized her immediately.
"Ah, you’re from yesterday! Thanks again for helping me earlier."
Shimizu looked at Mizuha. She was curious. "Huh, Mizuha, have you already met her before?"
"Yeah, she helped me yesterday."
"Don’t worry. It was just a small thing."
"So, you're the famous Yuki-san, right? I've always heard about you from Hikaru-kun and my friends too."
Then, turning to Shimizu, she said, "And you must be the famous Shimizu-san, the one who beat up some upperclassmen recently. You don’t seem as bad as they say."
This girl looks nice, but she's got quite a mouth, Shimizu thought, irritation rising.
"Oh, is that what they say? How nice of them."
Then, Akemi pretended to notice Zul.
"Huh, is that you, Zul? It’s been a while! I see you’re still as quiet as usual."
Zul remained silent, not reacting to her words, instead focusing on his bento lunch. The lack of response was typical of Zul, who preferred to keep to himself in most social situations.
Sensing the awkwardness, Eri tried to step in. "Umm, Zul’s not—" she began.
But before she could finish, Zul leaned in close to Eri and whispered into her ear, "Eri, just ignore what she said. Her attitude’s always been like that since middle school."
Eri understood and let it go.
Why do I feel like I didn't like her before? She did nothing to me or Zul, Eri wondered, unable to understand why she couldn't get along with Akemi.
Meanwhile, Mizuha spoke up cheerfully while holding out the box of tamagoyaki to Hikaru and Akemi. "Oh, since you’re both here, I made some tamagoyaki today. Please have a taste!"
Hikaru gratefully accepted a piece before taking a bite. "Thanks, Yuki-san! I’ve been looking forward to this. This is good!"
Akemi hesitated for a moment. She was unsure, but then reached out and took a piece.
"Thank you."
"Yuki-san, this is delicious. Did you make this?"
"Yes, I made it, thanks to Eri-chan for teaching me how to make it."
"You learned it from Sakamoto-san? Wow, that's nice! I never knew you had such great cooking skills," Akemi said.
The compliment embarrassed Eri.
Mizuha offered the remaining tamagoyaki to her friends. "Here, there's still more, everyone."
She then picked up a piece with her chopsticks and turned towards Hikaru.
"Umm, Takamiya-kun, here... open your mouth."
Mizuha nervously held the tamagoyaki in front of him.
What am I doing? Why am I suddenly feeding him? Mizuha wondered, her face turning red.
Hikaru stared at the tamagoyaki, then at Mizuha. He was blushing.
Wait, Yuki-san, what are you trying to do? Also, those are your chopsticks — is this... an indirect kiss? he thought, feeling even more embarrassed.
Despite his surprise, Hikaru decided to play along.
Well, I’ll just play along... he thought as he opened his mouth slightly.
Just as he was about to take a bite, Akemi suddenly leaned in and snatched the tamagoyaki right off Mizuha’s chopsticks.
"Aaaa... ummm... so delicious!"
Both Mizuha and Hikaru froze in shock, staring at Akemi in disbelief.
"Ah, sorry, am I interrupting something? Tee-hee."
Mizuha stammered. "Ah, it’s nothing..." She was deeply embarrassed.
Hikaru yelled at Akemi. "Akemi, what are you doing?"
You ruined everything, he thought, feeling frustrated.
Akemi smiled. "Oops... sorry... sorry."
Suddenly, Shimizu burst out laughing. "Hahaha, what are you two trying to do?"
Akemi smiled. "Ah, I feel full, and I feel lucky because I got to taste this delicious tamagoyaki today. Thanks, everyone, for letting me join you today. Can I join you again next time?"
Mizuha smiled back. "Sure, why not? You’re welcome to join us anytime."
"Also, can we exchange numbers? We’re all friends now, right?" Akemi added.
"Sure, I'm glad you asked me that. Here, this is my phone number," Mizuha said, held out her phone, letting Akemi scan the QR code, and they saved each other's numbers.
"Also… Mizuha-chan, would it be okay if I called you by your given name?" Akemi asked.
"And please, call me Akemi too," she added with a bright smile.
"Sure, why not?" Mizuha smiled back. "Akemi-chan, then."
"Yes, Mizuha-chan. I'm glad we're friends now," Akemi said warmly.
I wondered if i can called Yuki-san by her given name too, Hikaru thought, watching them.
The bell rang, signaling that the lunch break was over.
"Ah, it’s time already. See you later, everyone. Let’s go, Akemi."
"See you later, Yuki-san… I'll be waiting for you at the school gate as usual," Hikaru said.
"Yes, see you soon, Takamiya-kun."
Akemi froze as she looked at Mizuha and Hikaru. Then she thought, I see, so that actually happened…
Akemi then spoke. "Well then, see you later, everyone." She waved and followed Hikaru back to their class.
Zul stood up. "I think we should return to our class as well."
"Yeah, let's go," Mizuha said.
After that, Mizuha and the others returned to their class for the next period.
Mizuha felt happy that day. She had made tamagoyaki for her friends and had also become friends with Akemi.
That girl, Akemi, is nice, but she has a sharp tongue sometimes. I think I'll get used to it next time, Shimizu thought as she walked back to class.
Shimizu turned to Mizuha. "So, Mizuha, what kind of food will you make for us tomorrow? I can’t wait to taste it."
"Give me a break, Shimizu. I can’t cook like this every day. Not tomorrow, maybe another time, okay? I still need to study. Why not ask Eri-chan-sensei here? She’s a better cook than me."
"Oh, not again, Mizuha-chan. This is the third time you’ve said that." Eri blushed, poking Mizuha lightly.
The three of them laughed together while Zul followed them back to class.
Mizuha was glad that she had spent another enjoyable lunch with her friends. She was also happy that Akemi had joined them.
As she prepared for the rest of her school day, she wondered what might happen next.
With that thought, she returned her attention to class.912Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZKoD6GA8CF
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