Dinner

The train finally arrived at the station before the atmosphere became any more awkward. With the sound of the doors opening, Kiyoko, like a startled little animal, immediately let go of Hayato's sleeve and turned away, not wanting him to see her flushed cheeks. Having never been this close to a boy before, Kiyoko was completely disoriented, not even realizing when her hand had grabbed onto Hayato's sleeve.

The two walked out of the station in silence. On the way home, Kiyoko spoke first.

"Hayato, do you have anything prepared for dinner? Want to come over to my place and eat?"

Sensing that Kiyoko wanted to change the subject to escape the awkward atmosphere, Hayato replied in kind.

"I brought some things that are easy to prepare, and I have some instant noodles at home."

"That won't do. Volleyball practice is very physically demanding. The grocery store should still be open. Let's go buy you some groceries so you can cook for yourself later. Oh, Hayato, can you cook?"

"I can make some simple dishes."

Hearing Hayato say this, Kiyoko forgot about what had just happened and quickly pulled Hayato along to the shopping street near her house. They bought many things, and Kiyoko felt much more at ease seeing Hayato already carrying two full plastic bags.

Looking at the two plastic bags, Kiyoko thought for a moment and then walked up to Hayato, reaching out for one of the bags. However, Hayato noticed her before she could touch it.

"How can I let Kiyoko-senpai carry this? It's very heavy. Let me handle it."

"That doesn't mean you have to carry it all."

Both had a point, so Hayato conceded, letting Kiyoko share the load of the bag in his left hand. This way, they ended up carrying one bag together.

This way of carrying groceries, like a newlywed couple, along with their Karasuno school uniforms, brought gentle smiles to the faces of the pedestrians and shopkeepers in the shopping street. The two also noticed this, but changing it now would seem too deliberate, so they had no choice but to brace themselves under the elders' gazes and walk home.

What they didn't know was that before long, gossip would spread through the shopping street that Kiyoko from the Shimizu family had a boyfriend.

Finally arriving at Hayato's home, the two let out a collective sigh of relief at the entrance. Although the gazes weren't malicious, anyone would have felt uncomfortable being stared at like that.

After tidying their school shoes, Kiyoko watched Hayato walk into the kitchen with two large bags of groceries. Then she looked at herself squatting at the entrance, arranging their two pairs of shoes side-by-side. She remembered the fish shop owner smiling and asking if she was shopping with her boyfriend when they passed by earlier.

Kiyoko, already reserved and shy, blushed again. Fortunately, Hayato's question came just in time.

"Kiyoko-senpai! Which shelf in the refrigerator is the meat on?"

Gently patting her cheek and pushing the thought away, Kiyoko calmed herself down, stood up, and walked towards the kitchen.

After informing his family, Kiyoko helped Hayato prepare dinner at his house. Since she had brought back some uncooked rice from when she moved, she washed the rice and put it in the rice cooker.

To Kiyoko's surprise, Hayato was much more skilled than he let on. Hayato expertly chopped all the ingredients with a knife and proceeded with the cooking steps in an orderly fashion. Kiyoko, who had wanted to help him cook, found herself with no opportunity to do so.

As dried chili, Sichuan peppercorns, ginger slices, and scallion segments were added to the wok, the aromatics released their fragrance. Then, stir-fried chicken breast cubes were added, and a slightly inauthentic La Zi Ji Ding (spicy diced chicken) was successfully made.

This was unavoidable. For Hayato, he wasn't used to Japanese food yet, and the seasonings for authentic Yanhuang cuisine weren't readily available. Thus, he had to settle for this.

Smelling the fragrant La Zi Ji Ding, Hayato, who was about to take a bite, saw a hint of anticipation on Kiyoko's face as she was spooning rice into her bowl. So, he turned off the heat, picked up a piece of chicken with his hand, and offered it to Kiyoko.

"Kiyoko-senpai, would you like to try my cooking?"

Perhaps because she was hungry, Kiyoko didn't refuse out of shyness. She put down her bowl, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with her hand, revealing her signature beauty mark, and opened her small mouth to eat the chicken Hayato was holding.

Hayato, on the other hand, watched Kiyoko tuck her hair back and eat the food he offered with her small, cherry-like mouth. The movement was natural and extremely alluring, and he quickly shook his head to dismiss the thought.

Covering her lips with her slender, white fingers, Kiyoko chewed a few times and swallowed the chicken.

"This is very delicious, but it's a bit spicy."

After praising the dish, the spicy sensation that followed made Kiyoko quickly grab a glass of water and drink it. Then, ungracefully, she fanned herself with her hand, sticking out her pink tongue and breathing out to soothe her tongue, which had gone numb from the spiciness.

This action directly made the hot-blooded Hayato's eyes widen. Although he had girlfriends in his previous life, perhaps because this body was still that of a young boy, Kiyoko, who was already a beautiful girl, performing such an action was more than Hayato could handle.

He quickly turned around, served the La Zi Ji Ding from the pot, and told Kiyoko to drink more water before bringing the rice to the table. Kiyoko, not noticing Hayato's unusual reaction, drank another glass of water and brought the rice to the table.

Then, after asking about Kiyoko's preferences, Hayato made a sweet-tasting scrambled eggs with tomatoes. With all the dishes on the table, and after a chorus of "Itadakimasu," they both started eating. The difference was that Hayato ate the La Zi Ji Ding, while Kiyoko ate the scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

"This is also very delicious, Hayato. You're too modest; you're actually a great cook."

Resting her left hand on her cheek, Kiyoko put on a happy expression. She hadn't expected her childhood friend to be so good at cooking, not just playing sports.

If the Kiyoko Guard duo saw her like this, they would probably ascend to heaven on the spot.

Watching Kiyoko happily eating the food he made, Hayato thought to himself that the food was good, but Kiyoko's appetite was limited. After she was full, Kiyoko could only watch as Hayato finished all the remaining dishes and had another heaping bowl of rice.

"Phew~ I'm full."

Taking the water glass Kiyoko handed him and drinking all the water, Hayato let out a satisfied sigh. Kiyoko, resting her chin on her hand, looked at his face and softly said, "Good work."

Then she cleared all the tableware from the table and placed them in the sink to wash. Seeing Kiyoko tie on her apron, Hayato was about to say he would do it, but Kiyoko turned back and winked at him.

"You've been working hard with training and cooking. Leave this little thing to your big sister."

Overwhelmed by her cute wink, Hayato didn't refuse and went to the sofa to lie down, turning on the TV to pass the time.

Listening to the sounds from behind her, a smile appeared on Kiyoko's face as she washed the dishes. She felt as if their current situation was no different from that of a newlywed couple. Then, blushing again, Kiyoko quickly dismissed this strange thought. It was all Hayato's fault for insisting on fighting over the bag with her, which led to so many misunderstandings.

Puffing out her cheeks, Kiyoko playfully threw a small tantrum, something no one had ever seen before.

After quickly finishing the dishes, Kiyoko decided it was time to go home. Hayato, yawning, saw her to the door. Seeing him like this, Kiyoko flicked his nose again.

"Don't fall asleep yet. The final exams are coming up soon. You heard, right? Those who fail can't go on the training camp."

A little more awake after being flicked, Hayato confidently made a V-sign upon hearing this.

"Don't worry, Kiyoko-senpai. It's not me bragging, but my exam scores have always been among the top."

This wasn't Hayato bragging. In his memory, Hayato's grades had always been consistently ranked within the top 10 in his grade, and top 3 in his class, so he had no weaknesses in terms of academics. All these memories related to learning were now firmly lodged in Hayato's mind, so he wasn't worried about the exams.

"Is that so? That's good. Then you should get some rest. I'm going home now. You don't need to see me off."

Although Kiyoko said he didn't need to see her off, Hayato still escorted her to the entrance and waited at his doorstep until Kiyoko entered her home. As Kiyoko opened the door, she turned to look at Hayato. He smiled and waved goodbye to her. After Kiyoko went inside, he returned to his own home.

Turning off the living room lights and going upstairs to his room, Hayato stretched his arms behind his head.

"Even though I said that, it's better to review just in case."

He then opened his textbooks and sat down at his desk to start reviewing.