22 Before long, most of the food on the table had been polished off by the two of them, leaving only a tiny bit left over.
At Shoko Nishimiya’s strong insistence, the task of washing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen was taken over entirely by her, just like yesterday.
Even though Fūju wanted to help out, he wasn’t given the chance.
He was pushed straight out of the kitchen, leaving the entire kitchen area completely “occupied” by Shoko Nishimiya.
If there weren’t any other chores around, chances were Shoko Nishimiya would have taken over those as well.
Shoko Nishimiya felt deeply restless if she wasn’t doing something for Fūju as a small token of gratitude.
Once Shoko Nishimiya finished washing all the tableware and cookware, arranged them neatly, and stepped out of the kitchen, Fūju handed a few items over to her.
“Here’s the juice and the recipe.
When making it, the method and the order are super important.
You have to add the ingredients one by one—don’t just dump them all in at once!” “Also, take this food back so your mom and Yuzuru can try it too!” While signing, Fūju handed Shoko Nishimiya two plastic bottles filled with juice, a piece of paper with neat, dense handwriting, and a multi-tiered insulated bento box.
The contents of the bento box were, naturally, various dishes Fūju had cooked earlier that evening.
Of course, it wasn’t leftovers from the dining table, but food he had set aside from the very beginning.
Even if Shoko Nishimiya wouldn’t mind eating leftovers, Fūju himself minded it a lot.
Sending someone leftovers was an incredibly impolite thing to do!
From the start, Fūju had controlled his cooking portions very carefully.
Even though he cooked a lot, the portion served on the dining table was just right for himself and Shoko Nishimiya.
For certain dishes, like the heavy main courses, he had purposely cooked two extra portions.
When setting those dishes aside, he packed those two extra portions into the multi-tiered insulated bento box—the very same one he was handing over to Shoko Nishimiya right now.
“You’re not allowed to refuse!” “Look, my fridge is completely packed.
Even if I wanted to save it in the fridge for tomorrow or turn it into my lunch for school, there’s just no room.” “If it’s left out overnight and goes bad, it’ll end up getting thrown away.
That would be a complete waste.” “Shoko wouldn’t want to see such delicious food go to waste either, right?
So take it home so your mom and Yuzuru can try it!” Seeing Shoko Nishimiya look surprised and open her mouth to decline, Fūju immediately raised his right index finger and placed it gently over Shoko Nishimiya’s lips to stop her from speaking.
“Mmm…” Seeing Fūju’s firm stance, Shoko Nishimiya puffed out her cute cheeks, looking a little pouted.
“There, all good!” “If Shoko still feels bad about taking this, just make a bento for me tomorrow.” “Consider it my compensation.
How about that?
Is that fair enough?” Fūju gently pinched Shoko Nishimiya’s puffed-up, extremely cute cheek, then signed to her with a playful tone.
The moment her cheek was touched by Fūju, Shoko Nishimiya’s face flushed bright red again.
However, upon hearing Fūju’s “request,” her eyes instantly lit up.
She seemed to think of something, her face brightening with joy.
“Mm, mm!” “I’ll definitely make a bento for Fūju tomorrow.” “But if my cooking isn’t good, Fūju can’t laugh at me at all!” Shoko Nishimiya signed with an embarrassed and slightly nervous expression.
While she was happy to make a bento for Fūju as a favor in return, a concern suddenly crossed her mind after having tasted Fūju’s cooking.
She felt completely incapable of making food anywhere near as delicious as his.
Because of that, she worried that the food she prepared wouldn’t live up to Fūju’s standards, or worse, end up disappointing him.
“How could I ever laugh at Shoko?” “When it comes to cooking, taste is important, but the feelings and care put into it matter just as much.” “Just like the food I made earlier—aside from being delicious, Shoko must have felt something special while eating it, right?” Fūju offered a bit of comfort first so Shoko Nishimiya wouldn’t worry too much, before asking her through sign language.
“That’s true!” “Aside from how delicious it was, I also felt this really warm, happy feeling.” “It felt kind of like…” As she signed, Shoko Nishimiya’s hands slowly came to a stop.
Why?
Because she felt far too embarrassed to finish her sentence.
Was she really supposed to say that the happiness she felt from Fūju’s cooking felt like being gently embraced and comforted by Fūju?
That was way too embarrassing!
“Hmm?” “What’s wrong?” Seeing Shoko Nishimiya hesitate to speak, Fūju signed back with a curious look on his face.
“Mmm-mmm…” “It’s nothing!” Being stared at like that by Fūju, Shoko Nishimiya’s face turned even redder, her tiny hands waving frantically.
“I…
I’ll head home now!” Feeling thoroughly embarrassed, Shoko Nishimiya hurriedly finished her sign language.
She grabbed the two bottles of juice, the juice recipe, and the multi-tiered insulated bento box packed with food, then got ready to head out.
“Hold on a second!” Fūju tapped Shoko Nishimiya’s shoulder, stopping her in her tracks.
Then, under Shoko Nishimiya’s surprised gaze, Fūju folded three one-thousand-yen bills into thirds and slipped them into her palm.
Was Fūju giving Shoko Nishimiya money after feeding her until she was full?
Of course not.
That money was actually something Shoko Nishimiya had secretly tucked under the flower vase on the dining table earlier.
If Fūju hadn’t been paying close attention, he almost wouldn’t have noticed it.
It seemed Shoko Nishimiya felt terrible about “eating for free” with so many dishes made by Fūju, so she had left behind a bit of “meal money” as a gesture of goodwill.
Even though it wasn’t a huge amount, that money was likely all the savings she had on her at the time.
The moment he saw those three crisp bills, Fūju’s opinion of Shoko Nishimiya rose immensely.
Shoko Nishimiya really was such a sweet girl!
“Since you promised to make me a bento tomorrow, I can’t accept this money!” “Even if you force me to take it, I’ll just give it back to you tomorrow as payment for the bento!” Fūju gently held both of Shoko Nishimiya’s hands—the ones gripping the three thousand-yen bills—and signed to her with a serious expression.
“In…
in that case, okay!” Seeing how serious Fūju looked, Shoko Nishimiya could only nod.
She took back the money she had previously hidden under the vase, which Fūju had now returned to her.
At the same time, she made a firm promise in her heart that she would learn how to make a proper bento from her mother as soon as she got home, so she could serve Fūju a wonderful meal tomorrow.
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