My Japanese Childhood Friend Is Too Flirty

23. After School with Childhood Friend (3)

After much trouble, shopping was finally over.

The time was already late afternoon, with the evening glow setting in, and it was almost time for dinner.

I came home with Aki, carrying ingredients for making stir-fried pork, various snacks, and plenty of leafy vegetables.

Since my mother and father went to America, the house was naturally empty.

Aki, who came to our house for the first time in a few days, seemed to feel a bit awkward about it, and carefully put down the plastic bag while glancing around the living room.

“Uju~chan, your mom and dad really went to America… I should have at least said goodbye before they left.”

“They had to leave suddenly, so how could you? Don’t worry about it, Aki.”

Those two are very sociable and speak English well, so they should be fine over there. The real problem is me, left behind in Korea.

I insisted on staying here out of stubbornness, but now that I’ve been living alone for over three days, I’m starting to regret it.

It’s not that I didn’t know, but I’m painfully realizing that doing all the housework in this big house by myself is no easy task.

Cleaning, laundry, cooking, tidying up… It’s hard and quite annoying to do all the things my mother used to do.

If Aki hadn’t decided to come over, I probably would have just pretended to clean up again today.

‘This is why rooms get dirty when you live alone…’

“Well, it can’t be helped. So, Uju~chan, shall we start cooking right away?”

“Let’s do that. I’m getting hungry too.”

If we start cooking when we’re a bit hungry, it should be ready just when we’re really starving. I nodded and untied the knot of the plastic bag with the groceries.

“I’ll start cooking the rice now, and Aki, you’ll make the stir-fried pork, right?”

“Yeah, I was thinking of making soy sauce stir-fried pork like you mentioned earlier, is that okay?”

Aki asked me while tying her hair into a ponytail.

I stared at her for a moment, thinking, ‘Aki looks cute no matter what hairstyle she has…’ and nodded.

“Of course, that’s fine. Just make it delicious.”

“Hehe, got it. I’ll make it so good you’ll fall for me while eating, so Uju~chan, you can go and rest.”

“Huh? Rest? Do I not need to help?”

“Yeah, yeah, making stir-fried pork isn’t that hard. The prep work takes a bit of time, but the cooking itself should only take about 15 minutes.”

“Still, it’s a bit awkward for me to just sit here. Isn’t there something simple I can help with?”

“Hmm, something simple…”

Aki, who had fetched a cute pink apron that matched the color of my hair, started putting it on while drawing out the end of her sentence.

‘Isn’t that supposed to be tied at the back?’

I knew because it was an apron from my house. I quickly approached and reached out behind Aki.

“Here, let me tie it for you.”

“Oh, you don’t have to…”

“Come on, we can’t let our chef’s hands be used for something like this, can we?”

After all, she’s the chef who’s going to make stir-fried pork so delicious that I’ll fall in love with it all over again.

As I said this with a lot of fuss, Aki gave a faint smile as if she had no choice and slightly turned around to offer her back.

“Alright then… I’ll leave it to you, Uju~chan…”

“Yeah, just trust me.”

Since both the wearer and the apron were cute, I decided to tie the strings in a cute way too, like tying shoelaces into a bow.

Cross the two ends of the strings, grab one end and bend it, then do the same with the other end and pass it through the loop created. Now, pull both bent parts to tighten and balance them, and you have a bow knot.

Tying a knot like this isn’t actually that hard. It’s simple enough that it was done quickly.

…Yeah, it was done quickly, but…

At the edge of my vision, as I fiddled with the knot, I saw the nape of Aki’s neck, slightly revealed by her ponytail.

Her skin, as white and soft-looking as it appeared, seemed like it would feel tender and smooth to the touch.

To someone, it might just be an ordinary part of the body, but…

For some reason, I couldn’t take my eyes off Aki’s white nape.

I stared, so focused I even forgot to breathe for a moment.

“…….”

A swarm of thoughts flooded my head.

‘It’d probably be so soft if I touched it, right? I want to try just once. Just a light touch would be okay, I think, and if Aki got surprised, I could just say it was a mistake. No, that’s kinda wrong, isn’t it? It’s Aki’s body, I shouldn’t just touch it however I want. What am I, a pervert? Ah, but still, I just want to touch it a little. No, not just touch it, really, I’d be happy to just brush my lips against Aki’s nape even slightly…….’

“……Woo-joo~chan, are you done?”

If Aki hadn’t called out to me, I probably would’ve kept having those weird thoughts.

“Huh? Ah, yeah. I’m done….”

Coming to my senses belatedly, I secretly swallowed the saliva pooling in my mouth.

And then, I shook my head to completely erase all the absurd thoughts that had bloomed in my mind.

‘……I shouldn’t be like this.’

Aki trusts me completely and even came to my house to cook for me. But having impure thoughts about Aki is just wrong. I’m not some animal that can’t control itself.

Don’t get worked up, Woo-joo…….

“Okay, check it out.”

“It’s in the back so I can’t see it that well…? Well, anyway, Merci, Woo-joo~chan.”

Aki, a mixed-blood, expresses her thanks in French.

I took a step back, repeating, ‘Good thoughts, good thoughts….’

“Speaking of ‘merci,’ it reminds me of the chocolate Aki brought to our parents for Valentine’s Day this year.”

Aki had given our parents store-bought chocolates, but she gave me handmade chocolates.

When she gave it to me, she said something like, ‘This is just a courtesy. I haven’t shown my true feelings yet. Woo-joo~chan!’

Handmade chocolates that taste better than most store-bought ones aren’t even made with sincerity, so I can’t imagine how delicious they would be if they were made with true sincerity.

‘If possible, I’d like to receive Aki’s sincere chocolates soon…’

“Wasn’t it Merci chocolates that Aki gave to my parents back then?”

“Ah, that’s right. You remember that, Uju~chan?”

“Yeah, it was so delicious that I couldn’t forget it even if I tried. But Aki, when are you going to give me your sincere chocolates?”

“Well… didn’t I tell you before? It’s still too early for that.”

So, I’m curious about when that ‘time’ will be. I’ve asked several times before, but Aki stubbornly refuses to answer.

Well, it seems like Aki has her own thoughts since she’s hiding it like this.

I gave up on prying further and smoothly changed the subject.

“Aki, are you free on White Day?”

“White Day? Oh, you mean March 14th? That’s a Saturday.”

“Yeah, March 14th. Do you have any plans? If not, let’s hang out.”

“Ah… Uju~chan, are you asking me out on a date? Hmm, hmm~?”

Aki, thinking she’s caught me, stops her busy hands and asks in a subtle voice.

It was such an obvious question meant to tease me, so I chuckled and played along.

“Yes, I’m asking you out on a date. So, are you free?”

“…Ah, well. Maybe…?”

Okay, I’ve got her approval.

“But… Uju~chan, what are we going to do on White Day?”

“Aki, you like baseball, right? I was thinking we could watch a movie, have dinner, and then go see a baseball game in the evening. Your favorite team happens to be playing in Seoul on the 14th…”

As I was slowly reciting the date plans I had prepared, Aki’s eyes lit up as she muttered, “Baseball…?!”

“……Let’s go!”

Before I could even finish speaking, she grabbed my hand.

Moreover, she didn’t stop there, showing a smile that couldn’t hide her excitement as she repeated, “Baseball, baseball…!”

“I want to go, I want to go watch baseball with you, Uju~chan!”

“Uh, uh….”

I had heard that Japanese people generally like baseball, but is it okay to be this happy just because I suggested we go watch a game together…?

I like playing basketball, but I’m not really interested in professional games, so I couldn’t quite understand Aki’s reaction, but I was glad she liked it anyway.

“Then, let’s meet around noon on March 14th. If the meeting place is in front of your house as usual….”

“……Ah, wait a minute! Not in front of the house, let’s meet in front of the station with the movie theater!”

“Huh? Why? Isn’t it more convenient to just meet and go together?”

“Well, that’s true, but…. Anyway, that day won’t work. Let’s come out separately and meet from afar, Uju~chan…!”

“……Really? Okay, let’s do that then.”

I didn’t really understand why it had to be that way, but if Aki wanted it, then it must be right.

I nodded without much thought.

* * *

……A few hours later.

Late evening, at Aki’s house.

As Juju took a bite, she genuinely exclaimed, “Wow, Aki…! What is this, how did you make it?” The stir-fried pork was so delicious that she made another serving for me to eat for breakfast the next day before heading home.

“……Mama, mama!”

As soon as I put down my bag, I looked for my mother.

The reason is simple.

My Korean childhood friend, a boy I care a lot about, Joo Woo-joo, had asked me out on a ‘White Day date.’ I needed advice from my mother about it.

“Oh my, Aki. You’re already here…? …You could have stayed over there.”

Aki’s mother, Fujiwara Iroha, who was engrossed in something in the master bedroom, came out to the living room, tidying up her disheveled clothes.

Aki grabbed her mother’s wrist, which had a peculiar atmosphere, and muttered, “Hurry, hurry! Something really urgent has come up…!” as she dragged her to the sofa.

“What’s wrong, what happened…?”

“Mama, don’t be surprised when you hear this, okay? Woo-joo~chan asked me out… on a White Day date.”

“Why? You two do that every year.”

“No…! It’s not just any date, it’s a baseball stadium date! Woo-joo~chan, who hates baseball stadiums, asked me out on a baseball stadium date…!”

“Oh my, really…? Woo-joo suggested it first?”

“Yes, really! I didn’t even hint at it, but Woo-joo~chan suggested it first.”

“Our Woo-joo must have made a big decision…?”

“…! Right, Mama, you think so too, right? Calling me out on White Day and suggesting something I like!”

Phew-.

Aki let out a breath mixed with excitement.

Her mother, Fujiwara Iroha, found Aki, who was excited over such a thing, both cute and naive, and smiled softly.

Secretly supporting her high school daughter’s fresh affection from behind.

“Daughter, then… you should prepare thoroughly, right?”

No, she decided to help her openly from the front.

Even though it’s obvious they like each other, they still haven’t confessed yet, those infuriating…

No, for the sake of my cute future son-in-law.

“When did you say the date was? March 14th?”

Indeed, Fujiwara Iroha is a former model.

Although she quit her job to devote herself to her family, in her younger days, standing in front of others was her life and profession.

For someone like her, who is adept at turning the gaze of an unspecified number of people favorably, figuring out how to catch the eye of a mere high school rookie is not a difficult task.

‘If I dress her up beautifully and place her right in front of Wooju, so he can’t help but confess…’

It’s a given that my daughter, who hasn’t even had her first kiss yet, will have her love fulfilled.

Rather, it was right to worry about what comes after.

“Yes, March 14th.”

“…Alright, I got it. Mom will help you.”

Our daughter, Fujiwara Aki, has become so beautiful that Wooju’s eyes will be glued to her.

Hoping they won’t rush things too much.

“Oh, really…?”

“Yes, Aki, just trust your mom.”

‘Marriage should at least wait until she’s twenty…’

“…Mom will take care of everything.”

Fujiwara Iroha gently held Aki’s hand.