The kitchen was filled with aromas, the strong smell of fish sizzling in the pan mingled gently with the scent of steamed vegetables. The warm aroma of freshly baked bread alone was enough to fill your stomach. The background to these smells was the noise of pans banging on the stovetops, and the sweet clatter of knives hitting the wood as they sliced through vegetables and fish.
Under the blinding light of the overhead lamp, a young boy was wearing a gray sous-chef's tunic. Despite his serious demeanor, which seemed out of place given his handsome face and early age, his colleagues let him work without paying much attention to him; he was almost invisible in that symphony. His task in the brigade was to prepare desserts.
I hated making desserts; it was the thing I was worst at! My talent lay in appetizers, and I could manage main courses to some extent, but desserts were my Achilles' heel. I had to measure every ingredient perfectly because even a gram more of one ingredient could completely ruin the flavor of the cream. Tonight, I had to prepare pan di spagna, which was a real challenge. So many things could go wrong with it that just thinking about it made me tremble with fear like a child. I checked that the eggs were not cold; they had to be at room temperature. Then I took a vanilla pod and started cutting it with a sharp knife to extract the seeds which needed to be added to the eggs. I put the mixture under the stand mixer and started working on the cream in the meantime. I was not behind schedule in the kitchen, but I still worked with great speed, not taking any time to rest. While finishing one preparation, my mind was already thinking about what I needed to do next.
I was so absorbed in my thoughts that I didn't even notice Chef's arrival until he was standing right in front of my workstation.
"Seto, we need to prepare two more Sacher tortes for tables ten and eleven, and the dining room is asking if you can make the legendary Forest Cake for table eighteen," the Chef said challengingly. It was clear that he hated me and didn't bother to hide his envy.
I didn't take his bait. Anyone who works in the kitchen knows that was too much for one person, and I would never be able to get the orders out on time.
"Yes, Chef," I yelled in the most neutral tone I could find. It was useless to challenge his authority; I would have tried my best, and at most, I would fail. But there is no fear in the heart of those who fight!
The Chef left with a smirk on his face. If I was on schedule before, now I was in an infinite delay.
I was preparing the dough for the other cakes while simultaneously stirring the cream, hoping it wouldn't burn or form lumps. Unfortunately, the Lord had given me only two hands when I needed eight for this job. I was about to succumb to total despair when I looked up and saw Chihiro in front of me.
"Can I help, if you want? The appetizers have been ready for a while," she said with a smile.
I widened my eyes in disbelief. I pinched my cheeks to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but apparently, I was wide awake.
"Of course," I replied as I turned the cake. "Could you check the consistency of the dough for me? Meanwhile, I'll finish preparing the creams."
I could feel Chef's sharp gaze piercing my back.
With Chihiro's help, the desserts came out smoothly. When we finished cleaning and polishing the kitchen, I prostrated myself under my savior.
A not-very-tall girl, however, had curvy hips and ample breasts, a rare virtue in Japan. She was not originally from Tokyo, from what I knew, she came from a small agricultural town. She had always been enthusiastic about cooking. Everyone at work wondered how a woman of such rare beauty had not yet married, or at least not yet engaged.
"There's no need to throw yourself on the ground I would be grateful if you got up, Seto, you're just embarrassing me!" she said, blushing, grabbing me by the arm and forcing me to get up from the ground.
"I will never thank you enough for tonight, Chihiro!" I replied.
"You're an angel on earth!" Chihiro sighed and then started laughing.
"Alright, but after all, you couldn't have done all those preparations alone, I helped you because we're a family in the kitchen, and I think it's right to help each other. Besides, I'm sure you would have done the same if I had been in difficulty."
When we left the restaurant, the moon was already high in the sky, full and obscuring all the other stars. In the streets, the silent sound of the wind alternated with the intermittent shouts of drunks. We smoked a cigarette and chatted about this and that. Our colleagues wanted to go for a drink, but I politely declined their invitation. Chihiro looked at me as if I had betrayed her.
"Promise me that you'll come for a drink with us sooner or later!"
"I'll try!" I replied, smiling.
Walking home, I immersed myself in my stream of thoughts. The thing that weighed on me the most about working at the restaurant was that I always left my sister alone for dinner. Unfortunately, since our mother passed away a few years ago, we've been alone. Fortunately, Yui had never blamed her for it. She was an extremely conscientious and mature girl for her age, and I hoped to give her a life that was as normal as possible.
When I arrived home, I tried to be careful not to make any noise, so as not to wake Yui, who was sleeping peacefully with a serene expression on her face, illuminated by the moonlight. My futon had already been prepared. She smiled at the sight of the dishes left to dry, and I wondered if the dinner I had left her had been appreciated tonight as well. I changed my clothes, took out a pen and paper, and sat at the small table. I wanted to check my financial availability for the month, as Yui was supposed to go on a trip in a month and I had to afford it at all costs. I put away the notebooks once the calculations were done. In theory, if there were no major unexpected expenses, we could afford her trip without too much sacrifice. Anxiety finally gave way to the tiredness of the day. I lay down on my futon, and as soon as my head touched the pillow, my consciousness immersed itself in the world of dreams.