"Huh...?"
Hinami's expression froze for a moment. "Why suddenly bring up Byakuya-niichan?"
"Because you like Byakuya-niichan, of course."
Ryouko said with a smile. "Since you have those kinds of feelings for him, you need to find a way to capture his heart through his stomach."
"Make him want to eat your cooking for the rest of his life—then you've basically succeeded."
"Do your best, Hinami. Mom believes in you!"
Ryouko cheered her on.
"..."
Though Hinami knew her mother had long since figured it out, being told so directly still made her feel shy.
But she nodded. "I understand..."
Clearly, she had taken it to heart.
While preparing lunch in the kitchen, Hinami kept thinking about what her mother had just said.
Capture Byakuya-niichan's heart through his stomach...?
Can I really do that?
Hinami didn't have much confidence. She knew Byakuya-niichan was an amazing cook—practically on par with a professional chef.
In comparison, she only cooked occasionally. Although her parents always praised her food, she felt it wasn't as good as her mother's...
With cooking skills like that, Byakuya-niichan probably had high standards for food, right?
So Hinami felt it would be difficult to capture Byakuya-niichan's heart through his stomach.
The more she thought about these things, the less she could focus. She almost cut her finger.
"Hinami, you can't be careless when using a kitchen knife. If you accidentally cut your finger, that would be terrible."
Byakuya had noticed Hinami's distraction and spoke softly to remind her, not wanting to startle her.
"Ah!"
Hinami snapped back to attention. "Sorry, I'll be more careful."
"...Are you worried about not cutting well enough?"
Byakuya had already guessed what was troubling her.
"Yes..."
Hinami nodded softly.
"It's fine. You'll get better with more practice."
Saying this, Byakuya placed his hand over Hinami's, intending to help her cut.
His hand could almost completely envelop her small hand...
...
While preparing lunch in the kitchen, Hinami kept thinking about what her mother had just said.
Capture Byakuya-niichan's heart through his stomach...?
Can I really do that?
Hinami didn't have much confidence. She knew Byakuya-niichan was an amazing cook—practically on par with a professional chef.
In comparison, she only cooked occasionally. Although her parents always praised her food, she felt it wasn't as good as her mother's...
With cooking skills like that, Byakuya-niichan probably had high standards for food, right?
So Hinami felt it would be difficult to capture Byakuya-niichan's heart through his stomach.
The more she thought about these things, the less she could focus. She almost cut her finger.
Shaking her head vigorously, Hinami pushed these thoughts aside for the moment.
She needed to make lunch for her parents now. First, she had to make this meal well before thinking about anything else!
...
About half an hour later.
Hinami had finished preparing lunch for herself and her mother, then packed another portion into a bento box.
Since her father worked at the clinic during the day and generally didn't come home for lunch, she and her mother didn't want him eating takeout all the time. So they would prepare a bento and bring it to him.
They could have prepared it in the morning before he left, but a bento sitting from morning until noon would definitely get cold. Besides, their home wasn't far from the clinic, making it convenient for Hinami to deliver it.
After eating lunch with her mother, Hinami took the bento to the clinic for her father.
...
In the afternoon,
Around two o'clock,
Hinami was already thinking about what kind of bento to prepare for Byakuya-niichan.
She tried hard to remember what Byakuya-niichan liked to eat.
After all, they had all been human for several years now, and during that time, she had shared meals with Byakuya-niichan many times. She had a general impression of what he frequently ate.
If it was something he ate often, even if he didn't love it, at least he wouldn't dislike it.
"I think it was... tomato and egg stir-fry? Beef with green peppers? And beef curry with potatoes..."
Hinami recalled several dishes that Byakuya-niichan ate fairly often.
And of course, white rice was essential.
With a concrete plan in mind, Hinami immediately headed out to the supermarket to buy ingredients.
The house was short on tomatoes and beef.
The supermarket had a dazzling array of ingredients. Since she rarely did the shopping herself, Hinami wasn't sure which to choose.
After some consideration, she decided to pick beef that was somewhat pricey but still within her budget.
She figured more expensive beef probably wouldn't be too bad.
Then, Hinami selected a package of pre-sliced and packaged beef—the standard format for Japanese supermarkets.