A slight tinge of pink appeared on Sakura's cheeks when he heard Haru's compliment. She has never been compared to a flower and was too overwhelmed to hear it. "You're the first one who compared my beauty to a flower. I'm so honored," she chuckled softly.
Haru quickly retracted his hand away from her hair and scratched the tip of his nose with the back of his index finger, not expecting such an answer from his visitor. His sudden realization struck him - they only met twice. He still considered himself as a stranger, maybe an acquaintance of hers, so he shouldn't be acting if they've known each other for a long time now.
He avoided her gaze this time, "Please take that as a compliment from a stranger."
"Stranger?" her brows furrowed. "Aren't we considered friends yet?"
He wasn't able to respond upon noticing that they've been standing outside their house for a while now. He opened the gate and walked through it. "Uhh... Welcome? Please come in," he said, unsure of what to tell her since it was the first time a woman visited his place.
Sakura glimpsed at the white colored with black trim two-storey modern traditional house. She wondered why he didn't respond to her question as she passed through the gate, following Haru's lead. 'Is this the first time a woman visited him?' she thought.
"Haru, I actually brought you something for lunch!" she gushed to avoid the sudden awkwardness that was about to build up.
"Oh, you did?" Haru's brows raised in surprise as he glanced at her.
She walked behind him as he guided her through the front door and changed her shoes to slippers first before reaching the open floor area with two big sliding glass windows and curtains on the edges. The walls were painted with soft tones of gray and white, and the flooring was made of maple hardwood.
"I thought you're just here to thank me personally," he proceeded to the kitchen and put the ice cream pints he bought in the freezer.
"You've done so much for me when I was heartbroken," she cringed after saying 'heartbroken' and continued, "so I have to do something to show my gratitude too, you know." She showed the bento bag she was holding, "Taadaaa! Guess what I made!"
Haru walked towards the dining area and pulled a chair for her while looking at the bag, "Hm… bento? I'm just basing on the bag you're holding."
"Ooops!" she chuckled. "Okay, that's too obvious! But yes, you're correct." She carefully took out the bento and the other container with tamagoyaki, gyoza, and assorted fruits, and placed these on the rectangular dining table. "Open it," she sat on the chair he pulled for her.
Haru gazed at the cedar wood lunch boxes in front of him and slowly removed the lids of the containers. His eyes widened upon seeing what was in front of him. The dishes were simple, yet they were skillfully and beautifully arranged, and the combination of the colors as well as the little assorted berries on the side fascinated him.
"That's all I could do, but I hope you like it," she beamed.
"Of course, I do," he glanced at her. "It reminded me of home."
Sakura tilted her head in confusion, "Isn't this your ho-"
"I mean when I was young," he smiled warmly at her.
He recalled the moments when his deceased mother would gladly make bento for him whenever he requested. She would always delicately arrange the different types of food in the wooden box, while also making sure that a variety of colors were included here. His mother's bentos were always pleasing to the eyes and to the stomach. If his mother was alive, he was certain that she would also be delighted with what Sakura had prepared for him.
"By the way, aren't you going to stay for lunch?"
"Hm? I will. Why?"
"You only made one tho-"
Sakura sighed. "It's because I assumed you were in the cafe! My original plan was to give you the bento, then I'd just order lunch-"
"You already have my number. You should have asked me about my schedule-"
"Then it wouldn't be a surprise anymore-"
"Right. But wouldn't it be nicer if you did one for yourself, too?"
"Well…. seeing everyone enjoying the bento I prepared would make me happy already."
His eyes twitched, 'Everyone?"
"I gave bento boxes to those who helped me on my first two days here. Ayaka received the bentos for Nana and your colleagues. It was for sharing, but Ayaka was so happy to receive it," she beamed once again.
"Oh, I thought you only made one."
"Why? You think you're special?"
"I am."
There was a moment of silence as the two stared at each other, and both of them let out a laugh afterwards.
"Excuse my lameness," Haru snickered, "I'll just get you extra rice and water." He turned his back to her and proceeded to the kitchen countertop.
While Haru was scooping newly cooked rice from the rice cooker, Sakura smiled to herself as she finally felt more at ease after hearing him joke around her. She thought that their relationship started off on the wrong foot when she decided not to show up for a month, and it made her upset that he considered himself as a 'stranger' when he complimented her earlier.
She scrambled for her phone inside her bag and sent a text message to Ayaka as promised. Her eyes then wandered around the kitchen and then to the living room, which was opposite to where she was seated. The tables, chairs, and shelves had shades of light to dark brown, and the potted greens found on shelves and corners of the room complemented the earth tones of the interiors and furniture, bringing out a tranquil ambience in the room.
Her eyes wandered back to Haru and her attention was then caught by another tattoo just above his elbow, which was a katana on top of a crescent moon inked in black. She then gazed at the man's long hair and broad shoulders as he stood by the counter while pouring a glass of water.
"Are you hungry?" Haru asked as he caught her staring at him. He walked back to the dining table, and placed the bowl of rice, glass of water, and wooden chopsticks in front of her.
"Oh!" Sakura said in a surprised tone and asked a question instead. "By the way, are you alone now? I'm sorry if I only brought these," she pursed her lips while waiting for his answer. She would really be embarrassed if his parents or siblings were also in the house, and she didn't prepare anything for them.
He sat in front of her, "Don't worry, it's just me and my dad. But he's still at work and won't be here until late in the afternoon." He then pressed his palms together, "Itadakimasu," and bowed his head before taking a piece of tamagoyaki with his chopsticks.
Sakura sighed in relief and waited for him to taste the egg roll. When he did, it brought a smile on her face upon seeing his satisfied expression. She's confident with her cooking skills, but she still wanted to know his thoughts about it. "How was it?"
"I like it," his dimples appeared when he smiled. "Thank you for making these for us."
Sakura beamed as Haru continued eating the rest of the meal and caught up with her. She told him she moved to Tokyo because of her new work and was thankful as it kept her busy while moving on from her recent break up. She also proudly told him about her semi-furnished apartment and got too excited talking about her future plans and purchases for her crib. She'd even let him know when he and colleagues could visit her. When they were almost finished eating...
"Apart from not telling me that you live opposite my place, why didn't you tell me you brought me coffee and food?" Sakura asked before popping the last piece of strawberry inside her mouth.
Haru glanced at her, "How could I tell you when I was too busy taking care of you?
Author's Notes:
1. Open floor area/plan is when the living room, dining room, and kitchen are combined in one big space.
2. A katana is a Japanese sword.
3. 'Itadakimasu' means 'to humbly accept'.