Chapter Nine

A Pretty Serious Suggestion

Chiaki and Hinami invited Asahi to have dinner with them after the sports festival had ended. In reality, it was more akin to a pity party for all of the losers. Asahi already had prior arrangements for that night, however, so he politely declined—after all, why would he wallow in his own misery at a consolation party when he could celebrate with the winner instead?

He didn’t have to wait long before the guest of honor arrived at his apartment.

“It smells fantastic,” she said. The pure delight on her face was obvious as she took in the spread on the table. Adorning it was her favorite dish—omelet rice, perfectly cooked and shimmering in all its golden splendor. “Is this actually for me? This isn’t some kind of prank of yours?”

“You bet. I did say I’d treat you properly if you won, remember?” Asahi replied.

“Then let’s get to eating.”

“Mhmm. I hope you like it. It's freshly made omelet rice. Only the best for Miss MVP herself.”

“W-Would you mind not calling me that?” Fuyuka stuttered while blushing. Although she made an attempt to maintain her trademark, dignified “Ice Queen” demeanor, she faltered under such praise.

“But seriously, you were phenomenal back there,” he remarked as he recalled the second half of the match. It had been a heated game—Fuyuka had managed to score five triples despite the consistent intense pressure put on her from the opposing team. Asahi couldn’t help but chuckle to himself when he recalled Chiaki cheering for his girlfriend like there was no tomorrow. Meanwhile, right beside him, Asahi had wished for the complete opposite.

With Fuyuka leading the roster, her class had been able to turn the tables and made triumphant a comeback befitting of the last game of the tournament.

I feel a bit sorry for what I did to Hinami... but it is what it is, Asahi thought to himself. Although he was relieved Hinami hadn’t won the brooch, he didn’t exactly feel good about the situation—she’d given it her all on his behalf, after all.

Fuyuka took a bite of the food. “It’s... It’s truly delicious,” she praised his cooking with a smile on her face. Given her stoic nature, Asahi appreciated each rare smile she gave more than anything else.

“Glad you like it. Makes it worth the effort.”

Fuyuka’s expression gradually softened the more she continued to eat. This side of her was just as charming and innocent as her typical distant and elegant side.

She’s letting her guard down around me, even if it’s a little bit, he thought to himself. To have “The Ice Queen” so much as grin was absolutely unthinkable for his classmates, much less engage in normal conversation. Despite her best efforts to construct a frozen wall around herself, however, her stand-offish nature only made her more appealing to her classmates. They were enraptured by her and every little thing she did.

“Damn, you’re really digging in, huh? Want seconds?” he asked as she eagerly scarfed down her meal.

“Do I look like a glutton to you?”

“Nah, that’s not what I meant. Sorry if it came across that way.”

Asahi’s question came from good intentions—he figured that she was hungrier than usual after such a taxing match. Fuyuka didn’t take kindly to his comment, though, as she turned her head away in displeasure.

It was nice for her to come over for dinner of her own volition. This was the first time he felt that she wasn’t merely hanging around him due to unavoidable circumstances.

“You’ve been spacing out for a while now. Your dinner will get cold if you leave it for too long,” Fuyuka chided.

“Ah, sorry. I just had a couple of things on my mind.”

“Must be incredibly important if it’s taking your attention away from eating.”

Asahi wondered if they had gotten closer to each other even if by a very small margin. But it wasn’t something he could open up to her about either way, so he quickly abandoned the thought and began chowing down instead.

The omelet rice had cost a pretty penny to make. The eggs alone were two hundred yen a piece. Items such as meticulously chosen premium chicken, butter, and milk had all hiked the price up further. He had not only confidence in the ingredients he selected, but also in his cooking skills.

He took a spoonful of food and was immediately embraced by a mild sweetness that practically melted in his mouth. The ketchup provided the perfect tangy accent that complimented the rice and showcased the quality of the other ingredients.

Don’t wanna sound cocky or anything, but I hit it out of the park with this one, he thought. “This is pretty freakin’ good.”

“Indeed. That’s why you should eat it while it’s still warm,” she proclaimed, as if she herself were the one who made it. When he looked back over at her, he noticed that she’d already finished half of her plate.

She’s getting that down faster than usual, Asahi noted. His mouth curled up in a smile—it wasn’t that he found the pace she was eating to be particularly amusing; rather, he was just content in the fact that he was sitting at his table and enjoying a meal with her. He knew that he shouldn’t get used to it, though—there would no longer be a reason for them to spend their nights together like this.

*

After they had both finished eating, Fuyuka volunteered to do the dishes. Asahi had grown to expect this by now, but he still offered to do it regardless. Fuyuka, ever set in her ways, wordlessly handed him the lunch box. He accepted it with a nod and added, “So you did end up washing the container.”

“Of course. I promised to return it to you sparkling clean, after all.”

When Asahi opened the box to inspect the interior, he was practically blinded by its radiance. She wasn’t kidding when she said that, Asahi mused. Suddenly, a terrible thought occurred to him. “Just to make sure... you didn’t use bleach on this, did you?”

“No, I didn’t. I washed it as you normally would,” she assured him.

“‘As you normally would’? Uh...”

It wasn’t the regular caliber of cleanliness—especially not with Fuyuka’s history of subpar dishwashing skills—so he’d figured she’d adopted an unconventional method. She must have gotten drastically better at the task.

That was why she’d handed the box to him silently when he’d offered to do the dishes—it was her response, essentially declaring that she could handle things on her own from here on out.

“Alrighty then... I guess I’m counting on you for dish-washing duty, Himuro,” Asahi stated.

“Your reluctant tone is absurd at this point. It’s only natural for me to help out—after all, you’re the one who went to the trouble of making me that meal,” she proclaimed with deep resolve. Asahi could only return a forced smile as he followed her back into the kitchen. He wanted to witness her new skills in action.

At first, Fuyuka shot a few disgruntled glances at Asahi. She seemed to remember her blunder the first time she’d taken on the duty, however, because she soon stopped. She put on a pair of rubber gloves—correctly this time—marched over to the sink, and began to wash.

As it turned out, her skills hadn’t improved in the slightest. The basics were ingrained into her, courtesy of all the practice she’d had during the week-long cooking classes she’d received from Asahi, but there was still a lot left to be desired. He had to give her some credit, however—the tableware drying on the rack glistened with the same cleanliness as the lunch box she’d returned to him earlier. It was the sort of bizarre scene that looked contradictory at first glance; in truth, the reason was quite simple—so simple that it made Asahi break into a hearty chuckle. He was ultimately kicked out of the kitchen for laughing, but it didn’t matter at that point. He’d already found his answer, after all.

So how had Fuyuka been able to clean the lunch box so well that it looked good as new? She’d done so until it ended up that way, regardless of how long it took her. Thanks to her rather inefficient mindset, it would take her hours to finish the task at hand. Asahi wanted to point that out, but he chose to refrain in fear of getting on her bad side again.

“I have finished washing the dishes,” she finally announced.

“Good job. Sorry for pushing everything onto you,” he said.

“And I told you that I wanted to do this because—“

“Because I was the one who made everything? That doesn’t matter. I’m just grateful in general. Just let me thank you at the very least,” he cut her off.

Fuyuka frowned, but she didn’t argue the point any further. Her eyes strayed downward—or diagonally, to be more precise—toward the pile of textbooks and notebooks that Asahi was laying out on the table.

“Are you going to study now?” she asked.

“Finals are coming up, so I figured I’d get a head start.”

“That’s an admirable idea... but I’m afraid your answers for problems three and seven are incorrect.”

“Well, you got me there,” he quipped after a brief pause to check the answers in question.

“This one is a simple arithmetic mistake, but the other one is completely inaccurate. You shouldn’t use this formula here, but rather...”

Fuyuka always returned to her residence after she finished with the dishes, but this time, she seated herself next to him. If she was fine with helping him study, then he was more than happy to listen. She never provided any sort of diagrams or formulas when she explained the proper methods to him, but her clear explanations helped him to find the answers he was seeking.

“No wonder you’re at the top of the class. Not even the teachers explain things as good as you do,” he marveled.

“That nonsense again? I couldn’t possibly be more skilled—let alone more qualified—than our teachers.”

“It’s true, though,” he insisted. “Your explanations are the easiest to understand for me, personally. In fact, I wouldn’t mind hiring you as my, uh, private tutor...”

Asahi tried his best to combat Fuyuka’s modesty. He was determined to let her know he wasn’t just spewing empty flattery, perhaps at the expense of taking it too far. Before he knew it, his tongue had slipped, and Fuyuka gazed at him with a degree of skepticism.

“Me? Become your private tutor?”

“Err... well, no... you see...” he stuttered in a panic as he tried to remedy the situation. His mind was drawing a blank, so he eventually decided to tell her the truth. “Well, you know... Remember our midterms? I got good grades thanks to you, and—”

“That was simply a result of your own hard work, wasn’t it? I’m not sure I had anything to do with that...” she replied.

“God, what do I have to say to get it through that stubborn head of yours? I feel like there’s so much I’d be clueless about if I were studying on my own. Your teaching style suits me best—that’s why I think you’d make a great tutor. Ahh, forget I said anything,” he grumbled as he turned his back to her.

Having her assist with his studies was something he’d considered before, but he’d always quickly scrapped the idea because he was certain she would decline. He had her full attention this time, but he wasn’t exactly holding his breath. The truth of the matter was that their relationship should have ended as soon as Fuyuka had returned the lunch box to him. The fact that she remained after dinner was a miracle in and of itself, so he couldn’t see this becoming a regular occurrence.

When Asahi thought back on it, he realized their relationship had been fickle from the start. It had started a month ago when he’d taken care of her after she’d collapsed from that intense fever. There was always the risk of the relationship severing at a moment’s notice, but somehow they’d managed to make it this far. Perhaps that was why he had had such a major slip of the tongue. He knew she would leave for good in a few minutes, so he—unconsciously—wanted to cling desperately to their precious time for just a little while longer. Even if it was as futile as trying to cling on to a fine thread, he wanted an excuse to continue meeting with her.

No response, huh? he thought bitterly to himself before he awkwardly turned back around to face her again. Fuyuka was resting her hand over her mouth, and her eyes were cast downward, as if deep in thought. Asahi had spent enough time with her to know that this was the gesture she made when she was seriously considering something—though he was unaware if Fuyuka was aware of the habit herself.

So you’re telling me there’s a chance? Asahi marveled as his heart fluttered slightly.

“I don’t mind, if you’re fine with me. I wouldn’t go so far as to be your private tutor, but I have no issue with helping you with your studies,” she finally answered.

“For real?”

“Yes, ‘for real,’” she replied in a composed manner. Asahi, on the other hand, struggled to keep his eyes in his skull. He’d never expected his wish to be granted, not in a million years.

Her words continued to reverberate in his head. Fuyuka, the infamous “Ice Queen” who rejected everyone and locked her heart away, had genuinely accepted an offer to help Asahi with his homework. In other words, she also was fine with continuing their relationship. He just could not wrap his mind around it.

“Although I do have one condition, if you don’t mind,” she added.

“Condition? Oh yeah, sure—I don’t mind paying you by the hour if you want,” he replied.

“There’s no need for that,” she waved him off. Her gaze wandered around the room, and she took a deep breath before she finally continued, “I’ll help you with your studies if you teach me how to cook.”

*

“It’s not as if I’m a walking disaster in the kitchen, okay? It’s just...” Fuyuka repeated over and over whenever Asahi prodded her. “I would feel ashamed if I kept troubling you like this all the time.”

It appeared as though she’d caught on to his persistent hesitation. “Can’t deny that I’d feel relieved knowing you can make a good meal for yourself. That way, I wouldn’t have to hover over your shoulder the whole time,” Asahi agreed.

“There was never a need for you to be so worried about me to begin with,” she retorted coolly.

“I... well... touché,” he faltered with a wince.

“I was just joking. I know I’ve said this several times now, but I truly am grateful.” Fuyuka’s expression quickly softened. It was still a far cry from one of her genuine smiles that cropped up every so often, but it was gentler than her usual distant countenance. Asahi quite enjoyed this hidden side to her that nobody at school was privy to.

Suddenly, a rather basic question came to his mind. “I know I’m asking this late in the game, but... are you sure you’re okay with coming to my apartment all by yourself?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked.

“Well, you know... because I live alone, and maybe you fear for your safety or something.”

“Are you implying you could be tempted to do something to me?”

“Never. Wouldn’t dream of it,” he stressed. Asahi could easily imagine his life falling apart if he were to do anything drastic to Fuyuka right there. It went without saying that he had no intention of doing so, though. He’d never even considered the thought. “I didn’t pull anything shady when you were sick, right?” he added.

“Perhaps,” she agreed after a slight pause. “But that wasn’t the case when you saved me from collapsing to the floor.”

“How exactly was I supposed to avoid that?” he retorted in an exasperated voice.

“I’m just teasing you again. I know that you’re not that kind of person—I wouldn’t be here if you were,” she explained with a heavy sigh.

Asahi didn’t blame her for being so astounded. The truth was that she had been spending a great deal of time alone with him at his place, whether intentionally or not. He had mixed feelings about the large amount of trust she seemed to place in him, but it meant that he got an excellent tutor out of it.

“I think we’ve got a good schedule going here. We can cook dinner, eat, and then study,” he proposed.

“That sounds good to me,” she replied.

“So should we make this a daily thing?”

“Yes, if it’s okay with you. Meeting daily will help us in achieving quick progress, after all.”

“I guess that’s true...”

There was nothing wrong with what she said, but Asahi wasn’t entirely convinced. His heart was trying to make sense of the jumbled feelings he had. Fuyuka, in contrast, was as calm and collected as ever.

*

And so the two eventually reached an agreement where they would essentially scratch each other’s backs. In order for it to be as efficient as possible, they set a few ground rules:

First, they would split the cost of ingredients in half.

Second, Asahi would be in charge of procuring the ingredients, while Fuyuka would take care of the dishes.

Third, if either of them couldn’t make it to dinner, they would need to notify the other.

Fourth, studying would begin precisely one hour after washing the dishes.

Just as she had before, Fuyuka insisted on covering the entire cost of the ingredients. However, it was different from the week that had led up to the sports tournament—Asahi and Fuyuka had their own duties to fulfill, and it was no longer a matter of doing a favor for one or the other. Asahi had finally managed to persuade her to go Dutch on the ingredients. From there, everything else was smooth sailing.

“Anyways, you're fine if we keep doing this until finals are over? I’m counting on you,” Asahi said.

“I am. Likewise, I’m counting on you, as well. And yes, I feel this is the perfect opportunity for both of us to achieve our goals,” she replied.

“Uhh, sure.”

“You don’t sound entirely convinced.”

“Nah, it’s nothing. It’s just that... well, the timing’s perfect for me with exams and all. I’m not really sure it’s the same for you.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know... Like, it might take more time to teach you how to cook properly... even after our exams... maybe,” he faltered. He’d intended to sound more assertive, but it was hard to remain confident with the constant barrage of intense glares coming from her direction.

“Are you suggesting that I’m truly that helpless when it comes to cooking?”

It’s true that Asahi had never once seen her cook before, but he could hazard a guess based on her previous knife-wielding skills. Still, he tried to reassure her. “No, that’s not what I meant. Just that it’s trickier than helping someone with math problems.”

Improving on cooking was a broad and subjective goal to begin with, and they were limited to a month-long window. Fortunately for Asahi, Fuyuka was more than content with focusing on the basics.

“Alright, I guess we can leave it here for today. I’ll call you tomorrow to figure out when we should meet up,” Asahi concluded as he ended their session. He rose from his chair and prepared to see Fuyuka off at the door as they usually did, but she remained seated.

“C-Could you wait a moment, please?” Fuyuka mumbled.

“Hm? What is it?” He figured they’d already covered everything that needed to be said. When he turned around, he noticed a small, white, palm-sized box sitting on the table. Although he couldn’t guess its contents from the outside, it somehow seemed familiar to him. “And this is?”

“You can consider it a token of my gratitude for everything you’ve done for me. Seeing as you wouldn’t accept any money, I figured that this would do,” she explained.

“I already told you there’s no need to pay me back... I did because I felt like it. It’s no big deal, really.”

“I can’t accept that. I want to thank you for my ribbon, not to mention all the trouble you’ve gone through for me this past week.”

“I mean, if you insist...” he reluctantly conceded. He was all too familiar with her obstinacy by now, and he would feel bad if he rejected her gift without even seeing what he was actually receiving. A strange and rather trivial thought flitted across his mind—what if she was giving him a box full of jewels? Her title was “Queen,” after all. If that were the case, there was no way he could possibly accept them.

He slowly opened the box, which was surprisingly heavy for its size, and what should appear but a brooch embellished with three ruby-red roses. A sudden wave of déjà vu washed over him... or, rather, a sense that he’d heard about this brooch before.

“Isn’t this the prize you get for being the MVP?” he asked with a suspicious tone.

“You would be correct.”

“Ah, okay...” he faltered. It was obvious just by looking at the quality and luster of the accessory that it wasn’t some cheap knockoff, even in his inexperienced eyes. In fact, it might have been too beautiful—he felt like he’d soil it with grimy fingerprints if he touched it, so he simply closed the box and handed it back to Fuyuka.

“So you’re just going to reject this, too?” she asked incredulously.

“I can’t accept it. You earned it through hard work. Besides...” he trailed off with some hesitation.

“Besides?”

“Nah, you know what? Don’t worry about it.”

Based on her reaction, it was clear that Fuyuka was unaware of the “legend” associated with the brooch. Despite its popularity within the female population at school, it wasn’t a surprise that “The Ice Queen” hadn’t caught wind of the rumors. That made it all the more difficult for Asahi to bring the topic up, however.

“You really seem to struggle with conveying your feelings...” Fuyuka whispered.

Asahi couldn’t keep quiet after her remark and quickly blurted out, “Isn’t this the legend—oh crap.” He attempted to cover his mouth in a panic, but the damage had already been done.

“What ‘legend’ are you talking about?”

There was no way he could conceal it any longer—Asahi proceeded to explain everything to Fuyuka.

---

---

“I-I Simply intended it as a token of my gratitude! Without your help, I wouldn’t have been able to participate in the tournament! That’s why I wanted to give it to you. I didn’t have the slightest clue about that legend! Not to mention it’s only nonsensical gossip, right?! Whatever the case may be, I didn’t mean any ill will by it!” Fuyuka frantically ranted. Her face was bright scarlet, and her shoulders were trembling intensely.

“I get it, I get it. Let’s just take a chill pill, okay?” he assured her. He felt a pang of guilt about how worked up she’d gotten, but there was also a sense of smug satisfaction in seeing how uncharacteristically flustered she had gotten. “Ahem... Anyways, as I was saying, I won’t be able to accept this.”

“That won’t do. Please, I insist,” she persuaded.

“You’re quite the stubborn one, aren’t you? How many times have I told you to not worry so much about repaying all your debts?” he snapped.

“Well, sorry for being myself, okay?! Taking it back now would only make it seem like I’m overly conscious about the rumors!”

Asahi wanted to refute her further, but he held his tongue. It was clear as day that she was worked up—her standard monotone was long gone, and raw emotion crackled in her voice. The legend must really have weighed on her mind. He should have known she would be so steadfast on this, as she always was with everything.

“I’ll be leaving now,” she announced as she stood up. The brooch remained ignored on the table.

“Hey, wait a second! What about the brooch?!” he cried.

“I hope to see you tomorrow night. Goodbye,” she said as she walked to the entrance. As she closed the front door, the sound echoed throughout the room.

“The brooch may not mean anything special if you give it to someone you don’t actually love, but...” he sighed with the brooch in his hand.

It was fair to assume that Fuyuka held no feelings of that kind for him either way—for better or for worse—so he shouldn’t fret too much about the legend. It wasn’t as though Asahi put any stock in urban myths to begin with. Despite that, he couldn’t get his mind off of that glistening trio of roses, no matter how hard he tried. In the end, his night was spent tossing and turning as he pondered what he should do with the brooch.