8 Growl…
growl…
Right in the middle of their ongoing conversation, a sudden, clear rumbling sound echoed from someone’s stomach.
That growling stomach definitely didn’t belong to Fūju.
Therefore, the only person left responsible for the noise was Shoko Nishimiya.
“You must be getting hungry.
I’ll go whip something up.
Conveniently enough, I’m pretty hungry myself!” Fūju signed instinctively.
He completely set aside the lip-reading test they had just been conducting.
Catching Fūju’s hand signs, Shoko Nishimiya’s small face, which had only just managed to lose its blush, instantly burned a brilliant crimson all over again.
She immediately shook her head rapidly, her hands moving frantically to deny it.
“I’m not hungry at all!” Growl…
growl…
However, the exact moment her hands finished the sign, her stomach let out another loud rumble, perfectly on cue.
In an instant, Shoko Nishimiya’s entire body went completely rigid.
The flush on her face deepened to an impossible shade, and she dropped her head in sheer embarrassment, completely unable to look Fūju’s way.
Ultimately, Fūju reached out with both hands to gently raise Shoko Nishimiya’s small head, before speaking to her with clear, deliberate lip movements: “Alright, there’s absolutely no need to be shy around me.
If you keep acting this flustered, I’m going to get upset.
Don’t worry, cooking won’t take long at all.
We definitely can’t let a sweet girl like Shoko go hungry.” Reading Fūju’s clear statement, Shoko Nishimiya could only nod her head slowly, meekly accepting Fūju’s kindness.
Fūju smiled, turned around, and walked straight into the kitchen to prepare a delicious meal for Shoko Nishimiya.
However, the moment he swung the refrigerator door open, Fūju ran right into a pretty serious problem.
The inside of the fridge was practically wiped clean of fresh ingredients.
To be fair, he had fully intended to hit the supermarket on his way back from school to restock his kitchen supplies.
But during the walk home, because his mind had been thoroughly occupied with all the chaotic club events, he had completely forgotten about the plan.
“Fortunately, the remaining ingredients in the fridge are just enough to pull off a batch of fried noodles in sweet bean sauce!” “Looks like I won’t be able to showcase the full extent of my culinary skills today.
I’ll just have to make a stellar batch of sweet bean sauce fried noodles to fill Shoko’s stomach first,” Fūju muttered with a helpless smile.
Having made his decision, Fūju pulled the remaining ingredients out of the fridge one by one and dove straight into the cooking process.
Prepping the ingredients, lighting the stove, bringing the water to a boil, dropping the noodles…
Every single step of the workflow proceeded in an incredibly orderly, systematic fashion.
Within roughly fifteen to twenty minutes, as a mouthwatering aroma began to waft out from the kitchen, Fūju carried two bowls of sweet bean sauce fried noodles out into the dining area.
After placing the two bowls—which looked, smelled, and tasted absolutely phenomenal—onto the dining table, Fūju gave a quick wave to Shoko Nishimiya, who was still sitting on the sofa looking incredibly sheepish.
“The noodles are all done, come over and eat!” Fūju conveyed through signs.
Shoko Nishimiya nodded, her face still slightly flushed, before taking slow, measured steps toward the dining table and slipping into her chair.
“This one’s yours!” After signing, Fūju gently slid Shoko Nishimiya’s bowl right in front of her.
“Thank you!” Shoko Nishimiya signed her deep gratitude.
Following that, she pressed her palms together, silently offering her internal grace: ‘Itadakimasu.’ In Japan, this act was a universal routine performed before digging into any meal, serving as a core expression of appreciation for the food provided.
Once she completed the routine, Shoko Nishimiya took a deep breath of the enticing aroma rising from the bowl of fried noodles in front of her.
Under the influence of that delicious scent, her stomach, which had briefly settled down, let out another quiet rumble, as if voicing its high expectations for the dish.
Shoko Nishimiya couldn’t resist the temptation of the delicious noodles any longer.
Picking up the chopsticks resting beside her bowl, she gathered a small portion of noodles and slowly brought them to her mouth.
“Hmm…” The moment the delicious flavors hit her tongue, Shoko Nishimiya’s eyes lit up instantly, completely captivated by the taste of the dish.
She could confidently guarantee that this was the absolute most delicious bowl of sweet bean sauce fried noodles she had ever tasted in her entire life.
Fūju’s cooking was genuinely incredible.
Bite after bite of noodles continuously vanished into her small mouth.
Because the flavor was so completely out of this world, her eating speed naturally picked up pace.
In no time at all, the entire bowl of noodles had been completely cleared out by Shoko Nishimiya.
It was only after she finished the very last bite that Shoko Nishimiya suddenly realized something highly inappropriate.
The way she had just gorged herself looked incredibly unrefined…
She cautiously raised her eyes to peek at Fūju sitting across from her.
The exact moment she looked up, Shoko Nishimiya found Fūju staring right back at her, his face wearing a warm, gentle smile.
Meanwhile, Fūju’s hands began to form familiar signs.
“So, how was it?
Did it taste good?” “Yes, it was absolutely delicious!” Without a single shred of hesitation, Shoko Nishimiya nodded her head rapidly.
“There’s still plenty left in the pot, let me fetch you another bowl!” Fūju signed.
Shoko Nishimiya’s initial instinct was to shake her head and turn down the offer.
However, the taste of those noodles was just far too incredible.
She still had a strong craving to eat just a little bit more.
Therefore, Shoko Nishimiya gave a slow, gentle nod, her face flushing slightly from embarrassment.
Within moments, Fūju emerged from the kitchen after plating a fresh, secondary portion of noodles for Shoko Nishimiya.
Furthermore, worried that Shoko Nishimiya might feel thirsty after eating the noodles, he had also very thoughtfully poured her a refreshing glass of water.
“Thank you!” After using sign language to convey her gratitude for Fūju’s attentiveness, Shoko Nishimiya, with a rosy face, reached out her small hands to accept the fresh bowl of noodles and the crisp glass of water.
Not long after, both Shoko Nishimiya and Fūju finished the remaining food in their respective bowls, bringing their dinner to a close.
Per Shoko Nishimiya’s absolute insistence, Fūju was ultimately forced to hand over the task of washing the bowls and the cooking pot to the girl.
Once the cleanup was completely taken care of, the two of them returned to the living room and settled back onto the sofa to continue their chat.
However, likely due to the fact that she had eaten a whole extra portion of noodles, Shoko Nishimiya appeared significantly more bashful than when she had first arrived.
At various points, she didn’t even dare to look Fūju directly in the eye, frequently burying her cute little head downward—a sight that Fūju found completely adorable.
Ding-dong…
ding-dong…
After they had been chatting for a good long while, the house doorbell suddenly rang out through the quiet room.
Fūju rose from his seat and walked over to answer the door.
Standing outside were two female figures of distinctly different heights.
Fūju recognized both of them instantly; they were Yaeko Nishimiya, Shoko’s mother, and Yuzuru Nishimiya, Shoko’s younger sister.
“Fūju, is Shoko inside your house?” “She left a small note taped to our door saying she was over at your place,” Yaeko Nishimiya said, her eyes locked onto Fūju.
Toward Fūju, Yaeko Nishimiya had initially maintained an incredibly cold attitude, completely refusing to approve of their friendship.
That was because she assumed Fūju was only hanging out with Shoko out of sheer pity for her daughter’s condition.
In her eyes, that kind of pity could easily turn sour one day, potentially leaving Shoko with severe emotional scars.
She absolutely refused to let that happen, which was why she had fiercely rejected any form of care Fūju tried to extend to Shoko early on.
However, after watching their bond grow stronger and healthier day by day, and seeing the sheer frequency of Shoko’s smiles increase alongside a visibly brighter personality, she had gradually begun to acknowledge and accept Fūju.
The exact same thing applied to Yuzuru Nishimiya as the younger sister.
Because of that change, the relationship between the Nishimiya family and Fūju could currently be categorized as an incredibly solid neighborly bond.
“Yes, she’s right inside.
I’ll go call her out for you!” Fūju nodded in confirmation.
“Hearing that, I can finally breathe easy!” With Fūju’s confirmation, Yaeko Nishimiya let out a long sigh of relief.
Immediately after, Fūju turned around to head back to the living room to call Shoko Nishimiya.
However, he didn’t even need to bother, because Shoko Nishimiya had already poked her head out from the living room corner, her face filled with pure curiosity.
The moment she saw that the visitors were her mother and sister, she immediately jogged over to the entrance, her face lighting up with absolute joy.
“Mom, Yuzuru, you’re back!” Shoko Nishimiya signed happily to Yaeko and Yuzuru.
“I’m so sorry, Sis!
I accidentally took the wrong set of keys, so I ended up carrying yours away with me!” Yuzuru Nishimiya immediately blurted out her apology the second she faced Shoko Nishimiya.
“It’s completely fine!” Shoko Nishimiya shook her head casually, her hands moving smoothly to ease her younger sister’s worries.
After the family exchanged a few quick words, Yaeko Nishimiya and Yuzuru Nishimiya voiced their gratitude to Fūju, before guiding Shoko Nishimiya back toward their own house.
Meanwhile, right before stepping away, Shoko Nishimiya threw one final, lingering look back at Fūju, before ultimately walking off into the evening alongside her mother and younger sister.
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