Earlier that morning,
The sun had barely risen when Aiko stirred from her sleep, the events of the previous day still vivid in her mind. Determined to convince Sota to join the flag football club again, her resolve only strengthened overnight. As she got ready, she remembered how she had sneakily followed him home after their last conversation. She needed to know where he lived if she was going to make her plan work.
Aiko recalled the route she had taken, trailing a few paces behind Sota until he reached his house. Once she was sure of his address, she hurried back home with a sense of accomplishment. Now, with the morning light filtering through her window, she felt a surge of determination.
Quietly, she slipped out of her house, making her way to Sota's place. She arrived early, intending to catch him before he left for school. As she reached his house, she found herself lingering near the gate, unsure of what to do next. The air was cool, and she shivered slightly, a mix of anticipation and nervousness running through her.
Hesitantly, she wondered whether she should ring the doorbell or not. 'Would it be weird if I rang the doorbell? Or no... what do I do? Should I just wait... brrr~ it's cold.' She told herself as she paced back and forth.
From a distance, she didn't notice someone walking towards the house. She was so preoccupied with her decision that it didn't even occur to her that someone was coming up to her.
"Excuse me, are you looking for someone?" Sota's mother asked Aiko, causing her to swivel.
"Ah, er, good morning." She uttered, respectfully bowing her head.
Although Sota's mother had blue hair as well (it runs in the family), it didn't even occur to Aiko the possibility of meeting her. That's why she didn't hesitate to respond to her question.
"I'm looking for Sota... Kazemachi?" She trailed off when the realization finally kicked in.
"Ah, if you're looking for my son, then he should still be asleep. Come in dear, it's too chilly for you to be waiting outside." Sota's mother offered, opening the gate in front of them before beckoning for her to accompany her inside.
"
"Would you like some coffee? Milk? Have you had breakfast?" Sota's mother asked, giving her a warm smile as she headed to the kitchen.
Aiko meekly followed. 'W-w-what is going on?!' She screamed in her head as she fidgeted, making her way towards one of the chairs as she quietly seated herself.
"What's your name, dear?" Sota's mother asked.
"Aiko, Tachibana Aiko." She responded.
"So you go to the same school as Sota, right? How was he at school?" Sota's mother casually asked, making small talk. She didn't want to pry into their private lives, although she could more or less guess that Aiko was close to Sota.
After all, there was no way she would visit him so early in the morning if they weren't close, right?
"Yes... er, he's doing okay." A simple answer came out of Aiko's mouth.
"And you're in the same class?"
"Ah... no~ ma'am..." Aiko trailed off.
A glint of sparkle briefly appeared in Sota's mother's eyes as her lips parted into a smile. Now that she thought about it, there was no way her son would let a girl wait outside, especially in the cold mornings.
The only thing Sota's mother could think of was that this visit was unannounced. 'She probably wanted to surprise my son... well, that's plus points in my book.' She chuckled.
Since there was nothing else she could do except sit down, Aiko let her instincts take over, and she stood up from her seat. She then joined Sota's mother in the kitchen.
"May I help? I know how to cook." She asked, relieved that all her days of cooking practice were finally useful to someone else.
"Sure, I wouldn't say no to that, Aiko. Here." Sota's mother pressed her hands together before handing Aiko the apron. "You can start with the vegetables, and then I'll start cooking the pancakes for our breakfast."
Nodding her head, Aiko set to work with the vegetables, cutting them based on the instructions of Sota's mother. As the two of them were making small talk here and there, she noticed the familiar bento box to the side of the sink.
"Ah, are you preparing the Sota Bento Deluxe?" She asked out of nowhere.
Sota's mother nodded, and then a soft laugh escaped her mouth. "You even know about the Sota Bento Deluxe, hehe~ and to answer your question, yes. Did Sota mention what the Sota Bento Deluxe meant?"
This time, it was Aiko's turn to nod her head. Somehow, she felt a slight feeling that she was gossiping about Sota to his mother. Then again, it didn't make her feel bad. In fact, she was enjoying their conversation so far.
It didn't take long before Sota's mom warmed up to Aiko. After talking to her for a little bit, she realized that Aiko was just sweet. As minutes passed, Sota's mother couldn't help but wonder whether the two of them were dating or not.
In any case, it was her time to show her son's good points, so she decided to talk about Sota. She was especially careful not to storytell Sota's embarrassing moments.
And in return, Aiko was particularly cautious not to mention anything about flag football. She knew that Sota had a love-war relationship going on with the sport, and bringing it up might force Sota's mother the story behind it.
"Ah, so you're into sports as well, are you in any clubs right now, Aiko?" Sota's mother asked out of nowhere.
This caused Aiko to briefly freeze before scratching her head. Before she could answer, however, she heard a noise from behind her. In a flash, her head turned to look for the cause of the noise.
"Aiko? What are you doing here?"