"Dinner's ready!"
Sayouye's mom's voice came from the kitchen, and Sajuna, who had been nestled in Akira's embrace, quickly blushed and broke free from the lingering warmth of his arms.
"Sajuna!"
"Shinju!"
Sayouye's mom's voice was extremely gentle, calling Shinju, who was doing her homework in her room, out for dinner as well.
"Auntie, let me help."
Akira walked into the kitchen, helping Sayouye's mom carry the dishes to the living room table.
Sajuna and Shinju, who had just come out of Shinju's room, saw Akira's actions and quickly went over to help.
"Akira-kun is so capable."
Sayouye's mom looked very happy, and Akira thought it might be because his performance was better than Sayouye's mom had estimated in her heart.
But he didn't seem to have done anything special...
Akira was momentarily lost in thought...
"Akira-kun, go wash your hands and get ready to eat."
Sayouye's mom gently instructed the nervous Akira.
Then, as if remembering Sajuna and Shinju, she turned to them and said,
"Sajuna and Shinju, hurry up and wash your hands for dinner too."
The four of them sat around the table, looking at the bowls, chopsticks, and dishes laid out. Akira glanced at Sajuna beside him.
"Aki-Kun, sit down first."
Sajuna seemed to sense Akira's nervousness and comforted him.
"Akira-kun, please sit down."
Sayouye's mom also began to urge him.
"Auntie, aren't we waiting for Uncle to come back?"
"No need to wait for him, Uncle probably won't be home until very late."
Sayouye's mom's face showed no signs of distress, but rather a sense of clarity. After all, if Sajuna's Papa-san were here, he would probably be unable to resist confronting Akira-kun.
Akira looked down at the dishes on the table; in the center was a steaming Oden.
Kelp, mushrooms, daikon radish, spinach, shiitake mushrooms, mochi...
The aroma wafting from the meticulously paired ingredients stewed together. Even before tasting it, Akira, being skilled in cooking, could already sense the mastery of Sayouye's mom's culinary skills.
Teriyaki chicken salad, tempura, roasted beef, takoyaki, grilled unagi, tonkatsu—although there were only four people around the table, the amount of food always seemed to exceed what four people would normally eat.
It made Akira feel how much Sayouye's mom valued him.
A warmth flowed through his heart.
Since Sajuna's Papa-san was not joining them for dinner, Sayouye's mom, observing the reactions of her two daughters and Akira, actively encouraged them to start eating.
"Let's eat."
"I'm going to eat."
Following a very ordinary "I'm going to eat," Akira picked up the chopsticks on the table, took a warm ceramic bowl, and gently sipped the miso soup inside.
As the miso soup entered his mouth, Akira felt its savory flavor slowly flow down his throat and into his stomach, a warm sensation gradually spreading throughout his body from his stomach.
Sayouye's mom's cooking is so delicious, Akira thought to himself.
Unlike his own cooking skills, which were purely leveled up through practice, Sayouye's mom's cooking, though some methods were similar to his own, gave Akira a warm feeling.
It was as if love had been poured into it, making one feel happy from the bottom of their heart.
Is this the direction he should pursue?
Akira thought this. He remembered that above his current level, there were special promotion requirements.
Because Akira had met so few chefs, he hadn't understood what he was lacking before, but now, Akira probably understood what he was missing.
"Akira-kun."
Sayouye's mom's voice came, holding her chopsticks and looking at Akira with a gentle expression.
"You've always taken care of my Sajuna and Shinju."
"Not at all, not at all."
Akira quickly waved his hands.
He was the one with ulterior motives, taking advantage of the in-laws not being home to trick Sajuna away.
When it came to taking care of Sajuna and Shinju, Akira always felt a bit guilty.
"Auntie, you're really too kind."
Seeing Akira's stiff demeanor, Sayouye's mom's expression clearly softened even more.
"Akira-kun, you don't need to be so nervous."
"I often heard Sajuna mention you on the phone. She'd say what Akira-kun did with Sajuna today, where he took Sajuna to play, and how incredibly happy she was whenever she was with Akira-kun."
Sajuna's cheeks were already flushed beside them. It was truly embarrassing to have her mom talk about her feelings for him in front of her boyfriend.
"So, I've always wanted to meet Akira-kun."
"No, I've always wanted to meet you and Uncle too."
Akira straightened his posture and quickly replied.
"I always worried that Sajuna would be deceived by boys, since Sajuna always attended an all-girls school and hadn't really met many boys."
A nostalgic expression appeared on Sayouye's mom's face.
"I always thought Sajuna would faint if a boy touched her hand, so I was always very worried that Sajuna would have trouble finding a boyfriend later..."
Sayouye's mom said, and seemed to find it exaggerated herself.
But Akira just wanted to say that her mom really understood her daughter too well.
The Sajuna he first met truly had no resistance to boys...
"So when I heard that Sajuna had a boyfriend, I was incredibly surprised. Although I was worried Sajuna might meet a bad boy, I still listened very carefully as Sajuna told me about your story."
"Akira-kun."
Sayouye's mom suddenly paused.
"Auntie, I'm listening."
"Akira-kun should know that love is blind. Some girls don't encounter bad people because they are foolish, but because they are immersed in the beauty of love."
"Auntie, I understand."
Akira, of course, understood. Precisely because of this, he controlled the pace of their relationship, allowing Sajuna to understand him more fully, as well as his complete love for Sajuna.
"So when I heard Sajuna talk about her boyfriend, I was actually prepared to clean up after Sajuna. But what I didn't expect was that as Sajuna spoke, I didn't find anything bad about her boyfriend."
"Instead, he was a boyfriend who cared for Sajuna in every way, thought of Sajuna in every way, and took care of Sajuna's emotions."
Sayouye's mom rested a hand on her cheek, a happy expression on her face.
"Even I'm a little envious."