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Ah, Summer at its best. Hot girls and dudes with barely a layer on their chests, ice creams melting on everyone’s hands, rendering them sticky, mosquitoes, crowded beaches, and the worst sun burns you’ll ever know, but people still call it the best season of the year! The usual. For anyone but Sakurai.
Sakurai always hated summer, his hands would normally be moist naturally, but with that heat? Everything slipped his clammy grip, chopsticks, pencils, the basketball, and worst of all, his cooking knives. He was accommodated to let his mother cook during summer, of course, but now that he was old, as old as 22 years old on this Earth can be, and living on his own? Lord, help the poor man, he almost stabbed his foot more than once trying to slice red and white meat alike.
If it wasn’t frustrating enough, it wasn’t only him he needed to feed, but also the gigantesque growling, walking stomach named Daiki Aomine.
They weren’t exactly living together, while Sakurai had his own flat, Aomine stayed at his parents’ house in Summer when he wasn’t crashing at the brunette’s home. It wasn’t much of a problem, and as much as Aomine liked Sakurai’s food, he was also happy to go out to restaurants, eat disgustingly sweet Italian ice creams, take back doggy bags for the evening, and if they were daring, they’d eat with Aomine’s parents.
The first day Aomine stayed at his flat, a loud clashing sound rang on the floor “Oh Lord, sorry, sorry, I’ll pick it up, don’t worry, I’m sokay,” His tongue forked. “I meant, sorry, and, uhm, I’m okay, of course, sorry!”
Whenever Sakurai made food in this heat, it was required of him to not use utensils, hence the overdose of plain rice and the lack of his bento art when they weren’t eating soba, another easy dish. It’s a real shame on Aomine’s side, but also the brunette’s as it was one of his many ways to decompress and relax.
It was a depressing sight to stare at a helpless and low-spirited boyfriend who’s unable to enjoy his hobby. And as the good partner he was, Aomine tried to distract him from it with a lot of hand touching, pre-cut expensive slices of watermelon, and the confirmation he didn’t mind it at all, that it wasn’t a big deal, because of course Sakurai felt guilty.
“This is our first summer together, the first where we actually get to live somewhat like domestic boyfriends, I’m sorry I can’t even cook a decent meal!” He had said on the second day.
Of course Aomine had comforted the brunette both times he spoke up about his inability. Of course he had tried his best to let him know it was okay, that Aomine could do the cutting if need be, but the distressed man always shook it off and they’d end up going to those restaurants that only open up during Summer. These were usually good to tourists and people that didn’t have a male wife at home.
On the third day, Sakurai let Aomine cut vegetables for him, but still cooked the rest. His brows furrowed all the way through, he later told the older man he felt incapacitated but not enough to be thankful to Aomine, but enough to feel frustrated. Of course, the brunette reassured the blue haired man he wasn’t mad at him per say, but it made Aomine think.
The next day, Aomine was standing in front of the door of the best cook he knows that might help him out.
He cringed just at the demand, and the feeling of tiger eyes lasering through him didn’t help. “That’s why… fuck, can’t believe this… I’ve come to… ask, uhm, for… your help.”
Kagami stared doubtfully at his rival, thousands of thoughts coming in one rush in that big head of his.
An insulting smile covered his face “Magic word?”
“What?” Good fuck lord, If Aomine wasn’t doing this for Ryo, man how easy it would’ve been to slap that smirk off his face “Oh, fuck you!”
The redhead laughed, “Works for me.” He said with a bright and genuine smile. “I mean, damn, you came all the way to my house just to help your guy, I respect that.”
“Can we get to the cooking already?”
Kagami nodded and greeted the other ace inside his flat, still empty, and tidy as ever. It was around noon, just after the couple had ate at a Maji. Sakurai had seemed glad to see Aomine eat his favorite junk food, but he couldn’t help but look a little gloomy, or perhaps remorseful. Aomine had then the idea of asking Kagami, another regular of his beloved fast food.
“So, what do you wanna learn?” Kagami asked, putting the dishes of his own meal in his sink. “If I remember correctly, your boyfriend is one hell of a cook, so I won’t be going easy on you, can’t disappoint the gentleman, can we?”
He doubted he could disappoint Sakurai when the lowest bar was Satsuki. The woman could barely avoid overcooked rice, at least he wasn’t that bad. “I guess we could go with the Hiyashi Chuka, it’s good during summer.” Aomine guessed, walking to Kagami’s kitchen counter
Kagami nodded “Sure, we could also go with Goya Champuru, or one of my favorite, a pot of shabu!” He grabbed two aprons from a cupboard and tossed one to Aomine.
The ace looked down at the clothing “Really Kagami?” He stifled a laugh. “A Batsu Maru apron?”
“Suits you though!” the other laughed, putting on easily his own apron.
“And you’ve got a Hello Kitty one?”
“Jealous?”
“You wish.”
After a shared laugh, they got back to it. First minutes of the lesson though were extremely boring, what if there were two different knives, one for fish, one for meat? What’s up with the three same-looking wooden spoons?
Rapidly enough, they got to the first recipe Aomine suggested. In front of him, fresh ramen noodles, shrimps and other meats, corn, a singular egg, a bunch of tiny glass bottles. Sure, Hiyashi is known to be rather simple, but Daiki remembering a recipe by heart? You might as well wish for a golden ticket.
“Alright, let’s cook the ramen, I’m sure you’re at least able to do that!” The redhead exclaimed, passing Aomine a large pot.
Easy, thought Aomine, one liter and a half in the pot, and wait for the boiling point. “How long does it take to make?” asked the trainee, arms crossed and glancing at the still water.
“Around 30 minutes” the chef frowned. “You’re going to let it boil like that?” He said judgmentally, unconsciously shaking his head.
“What, like you have a better technique to boil water?” Aomine retorted, his voice slightly higher. “It’s literally just boiling, there isn’t a magic trick to make the process faster, is there?”
A short sigh escaped out of Kagami’s mouth. “You’ve got a deal with the word ‘magic’ today, stupid,” an angry ‘you’re stupid’ left rapidly another pair of lips. “ and it’s not magic, doofus, it’s called salt.”
And like the proclaimed world class chef Kagami said he was, he swiftly sprinkled big chunks of salt. Aomine wasn’t expecting much, however the calm surface of the liquid started bubbling almost immediately. Aomine stared at the little bubbles forming at the bottom of the pot, mouth ajar. Witchery.
Around 40 minutes later, Daiki presented two bowls of ramen topped by the rest of the ingredients that had been previously sitting on the counter, seasoned with the mix of soy sauce and rice vinegar. He set them down on the low table and sat down, his legs tired from the heat and standing up.
The air was slightly tense, either Aomine imagined it or Kagami really tried to appear threatening. It worked if it was the latter, thanks to the context. His friend thanked him for the bowl, carefully lifted it in his left hand, chopsticks ready in his right hand. Aomine’s hands gripped his knees, respectfully letting the chef take the first bite. If he could impress Kagami first try, that’d be a feat Sakurai would surely be proud of.
“So how’s the food?”
Kagami irked a brow and let his bowl back on the table. “You’re just like an American waiter, can’t let the client eat peacefully!” Aomine wouldn’t apologize but his face did scrunched up a bit. “And relax, I’m no Gordon Ramsay… It’s actually good.”
Aomine exhaled air he didn’t even notice he imprisoned in his lungs. His shoulders slumped and his lips formed a smirk. “Of course it’s good, I’m a damn genius, the only-“
“Oi, cowboy!” The redheaded exclaimed, pointing his chopsticks dangerously close to Aomine’s face. “Taste your own and tell me what’s wrong with it.”
“You said it was good man!” He complained but followed the request, nonetheless. “Thought you were ‘no Gordon Ramsay’…” A few ‘yeah, yeah, just eat’ rang inside the taller man’s ears. How impatient, thought Aomine, already forgetting he pressed Kagami too.
The taste isn’t as bad as he thought it’d be. It’s nowhere near Kagami or Sakurai’s level but it was alright. Though, the chunks of the toppings were sure a mouthful and sometimes over seasoned or salted. Still, Aomine would consider this a win for the first time he tried to seriously cook… Is that a carrot peel?
“I think you’ve noticed by now, the plate is a bit unbalanced when it comes to the seasoning and you lack concentration, hence the random peels and unequal chunks and pieces of food.” Kagami notified his friend while nodding to himself, resembling a chef giving advice to some rookie. “Also, you make one hell of a mess when cooking!”
“Dude, why you using such big words, we ain’t in Master Chef.” Asked Daiki, deadpanned.
Kagami blushed at the comment, thinking he was all mighty for a second… He had to appreciate these moments of Aomine being inferior to him in any way possible, it didn’t happen much!
After this lesson, Aomine came back often, he promised to himself by the time summer ends, he would have cooked for Sakurai at least three times!
While Aomine spent most of his afternoons with Taiga, it never crossed his mind to tell Sakurai, after all it would be a surprise, but day after day, Sakurai eventually noticed his boyfriend would leave him regularly to go who knows where.
It’s already been a week since Aomine’s first disappearance. Sakurai wasn’t known to be incredibly possessive but it worried him enough, especially when each times the two men saw each other after one of Aomine’s ‘escape’, the taller man would be snickering to himself for no reason, appearing sort of… giddy. Sure, Aomine spent all the rest of his time with Sakurai, refusing to sleep at his parents’ for the time being, but it left a bad taste in Sakurai’s mouth.
He knew it was bad, and he knew he should have confronted Aomine first, but Sakurai feared it wouldn’t make doubt leave his mind as every time Aomine says he’s going somewhere, he keeps insisting it’s not worth mentioning it, and a few hours later, he would come back for dinner.
Gosh, the brunette felt so bad following Aomine around without him knowing… He was like one of those crazy fangirls Kise Ryota had! But well, maybe it wouldn’t be that bad, Aomine had always been loyal, once you get to know him he would be an actual decent human being despite what everyone protested.
Sakurai started to recognize the place they wandered to, it was close to one of the stadium in Tokyo, where they played the Winter Cup every year during high school. What could Aomine possibly do here? Were there any basketball events Sakurai failed to know about?
His question went rapidly answered, at a turn, the young man saw the other climb up stairs to an apartment. Sakurai had a bad feeling, he was sure this place was familiar, he’d already been there.
The door flew open to reveal the blue haired man’s rival and close friend, Kagami Taiga. Sakurai watched helplessly as the men hugged briefly while giving a pat on the shoulder each. Sure, they could’ve just been friendly gestures, but Sakurai couldn’t understand why Aomine wouldn’t tell him he’s going to see Kagami.
They entered the red-haired man’s flat, talking and smiling to one another. Sakurai couldn’t even sigh, he just stayed petrified, a constipated look plastered on his face. He wouldn’t believe that, no, Aomine was very keen on staying faithful to one another, betrayal is the worst feeling, the couple were very strict on this.
Sakurai went through the things that could have made his lover chose another over him… His self-deprecating attitude didn’t help much, but he could see why Kagami isn’t a terrible choice. They had many interests in common, went along well in spite of their rivalry, have known each other for almost as long as the shooting guard had known his ace and, well, last but not least, Kagami certainly didn’t have clammy hands when he cooked.
Defeated, Sakurai walked back to his own home. He would have a talk with the one he cherished tonight, to be sure it was still a reciprocated love. But for as long as it wasn’t sure, Sakurai couldn’t, or wouldn’t get mad or upset. After all, he also broke their mutual trust when he decided to follow Aomine without a clear consent.
The hours were long. Sakurai couldn’t get his mind off of what he saw today, he did try to cook to relax, but his attempt were unsuccessful. Not even by the sweat, just by the sheer stress he couldn’t get a good hold on his utensils. He then proceeded to draw a bit, but again, his hands shook too much, his lines were far from presentable. So he decided to shoot in his tiny hoop by the entrance door. It would be a fun game for visitors to play while Sakurai finished to do whatever he would be doing while the guests waited. Maybe out of ten, he got the ball in twice. It wasn’t even two feet away from him.
“Get yourself together, damn it!” He groaned to himself. He looked down at his phone. Almost 7 in the evening. Aomine would soon be back, he should ready himself, maybe cook something… Ah, well, who was he kidding? If what he feared turned out to be true, Sakurai could always count on Kagami to cook him something decent and simultaneously avoiding to injure himself.
Sakurai eventually sat down, his eyes stuck looking at his feet. How pathetic I must appear, thought the brunette to himself. I still have yet to cry, at least not until I’m positive.
Click!
His head shot up as he heard a key insert itself in the lock of his door.
Click.
Click!
“I’m back, sure hope you didn’t miss me!”
Sakurai waited silently for Aomine to get rid of his things. His eyes stayed on the same horizon line for a good minute before Aomine finally came into view. The brunette could feel his hands becoming sweatier, he tried to prevent it, swiping the moist off on his thighs. How was he supposed to bring it up? He’s never had to do that before, his heart rate went up instantly as he tried to get words out of his mouth.
Immediately, Aomine worried. He walked calmly to Sakurai’s side. They knew he wasn’t the best with words, but the simple gesture of taking Sakurai’s hand in his, it made the brunette’s heart flutter. “Can you tell me what’s wrong, Ryo?” His tone was demanding, but he meant well.
“I’m just… I’m-!” Dang, he promised himself he wouldn’t sound so weak!
Aomine changed his hand on Sakurai’s and used the now free one to make circles on Sakurai’s back in attempt to soothe his boyfriend. He waited for Sakurai to calm down, avoiding to stare at him or make him even more uncomfortable to talk.
“Daiki, I’m, I am so tired of you just, disappearing for no, mhm…!” The brunette restrained himself and shot his eyes closed. “No reason!” The pleasant feeling on his back stopped. He knew Aomine looked at him even without seeing.
After exhaling a deep and panicked breath, he continued. “I know you don’t mean to hurt me, I know we’re not living together, yeah?” His eyes opened abruptly, staring into his partner’s blue eyes. “I’m not sure you’ve noticed, but it’s been a week, and, and, and I just, I don’t know if you’re leaving me to find someone else to be around with, I don’t know if… if you’re in danger, or doing some really bad stuff, I…” It became to unbearable to gaze into the other’s confused eyes, it’s almost as if what Sakurai is describing never happened.
He looked away, sniffing and on the verge of tears. “The past few years have been amazing, I don’t want them to end, but… no, I wouldn’t understand, I won’t stop you, but just tell me if… eh, if you’re some sort of spy or agent that has to save the world conveniently every afternoon…” His last comment made himself smile, he tried to joke, but even then it was painful. Because as crazy as it sounds, at least it would mean Aomine hadn’t abandoned him yet.
Aomine stayed silent, to find the right words, the younger man was sure.
“Ryo… I’m… I’m sorry you feel that way, and you, you got the right to be mad at me, I was stupid, but.. let me-“ Aomine got up, Sakurai hesitantly looked back at him, confused. “I’ll show you, alright?” His blue eyes stared into space. “Stay here alright, or come, don’t care, but, trust me on this one alright?”
And he just left to go somewhere else, like he did every afternoon. But this time Sakurai followed him, and with his consent, to… his kitchen? “Daiki, I… I didn’t make food tonight,”
“It’s fine, don’t worry, actually, it’s better.” Aomine interrupted. “You got any apron my size?”
Sakurai pointed to where he kept his own aprons mechanically. He watched in silence Aomine cook some food, it was unbelievable. The Aomine Daiki the shorter man had always known never once made his own food before, and now, in front of his very own eyes, he witnessed the eater becoming the cook?
Unsure of what to do, Sakurai simply set the table. And even if Aomine was cooking and focused entirely on making food, he still acknowledged his partner and let him access to whatever he needed, glasses, silverware, tablecloth. When there was nothing else to do, Sakurai sat down, still staring without a word his boyfriend.
A little while later, the brunette was presented with a bowl of Hiyashi Chuka, the different ingredients neatly placed on top of the ramen and a bottle of soy sauce. They weren’t many odd pieces, it was actually pleasant to look at, everything seemed the perfect size.
“Have a taste.” Sakurai glanced at Aomine, he had a tiny, content smile dressed on his lips. It showed he was humble but also really proud of what he’s done.
Without any hesitation, the young man dug in. And as good as it looks, it tasted even better. The soy sauce placed on the table is pointless, thought Sakurai, the seasoning is good as it is, and the simplicity of the meal doesn’t require an explosion of taste. Nevertheless, it was a great feat to make such an equilibrated plate, sure, it wasn’t perfect either, the choice of the ingredients could have been better and the ramen are a bit overcooked and the only thing on the plate that might be too salty, just a bit really, and assuming it’s one of Aomine’s first cooked meal, it’s already great!
“Where did you learn all of this?” He couldn’t restrain from asking.
“From Kagami actually… It might sound weird but I’ve been going there for the past few days, and I can see now how it felt like I was seeing someone else, but really, he just helped me learn how to cook!”
Sakurai fell silent. It seemed harder for him to continue eating. “… Is it because I was momentarily inept to cook that you decided to learn?”
“Sure, if you want to put it that way, but I… it’s…” Once again, putting his exact thought into words felt like a challenge to Aomine. “Seeing you unhappy, it made me feel conflicted, because it seemed like such a simple problem to overcome, but even then, I couldn’t anything… So, uh, I asked the other idiot to help me out, so for once I’d be the one to make you happy with food, you know?” explained Aomine, a tiny hint of blush appearing on his cheeks, embarrassed after confessing.
Sakurai felt so dumb now. Aomine called Kagami an idiot, but the real idiot would be Sakurai, to have doubted Daiki… But it also warmed his heart, to think Aomine would go to this extent to make his boyfriend smile, probably putting his pride aside, Sakurai was in luck, to have been able to be invited through Aomine’s inner wall and have discovered such a caring man.
“I’m sorry for every doubting you, I wish I hadn’t reacted like that-“
“No, I am, uhm, …sorry I mean, I could have at least warned you, but I was just, you know, excited, and yeah, I guess I got carried away.”
Sakurai shook his head. “No, I… I am sorry, please forgive me, but I, I followed you, to Kagami’s house, I mean.” His head looked down, but ashamed as he is, the brown-haired man sheepishly looked up to see what kind of reaction his boyfriend would have. “I know it’s shameful and what I’m about to say won’t change what I did, but I only did it once, and it was today, I… I was-“
“Ryo.” Interrupted the tanned man. “I know you didn’t mean any harm, and well, I think I would’ve done the same if you disappeared every once in a while without explanation, so, uh, let’s… let’s eat and go to bed and you’ll be my little spoon for tonight and let’s call it quits, yeah?”
Sakurai chuckled lightly. “You know how much I’d rather be the bigger one, right?”
Aomine smirked and got up, Sakurai followed and they hugged briefly. “Consider this a punishment for stalking me, mushroom head!”