Work Text:
Shizuku opened the door to the apartment, removing her gloves and then following the scent of warm, savory soup broth to the kitchen, where Airi was standing at the counter, a knife in her hands, chopping up some carrots.
Airi paused, set the knife down and looked over her shoulder as Shizuku opened the door, giving Shizuku a warm grin.
“Good evening, love. How was your day?”
“Same as usual.”
Shizuku walked up behind Airi, wrapping her arms around Airi’s waist and pressing a kiss to the crown of Airi’s head, causing Airi to sigh. With the knife safely set down on the counter, Shizuku reached forward and took Airi’s hands in hers, her wedding ring bumping against Airi’s with a small clink.
Head resting on Airi’s shoulder, she compared Airi’s hands to hers. Airi’s hands were smaller, but calloused, with small scars and burns covering her hands and near her wrists. She rubbed her thumbs over the backs of Airi’s hands, the texture rough.
Meanwhile, Shizuku’s hands were soft and silk-smooth, pale and unblemished, the near image of perfection. Any minor imperfection would be covered up with gloves until it faded away, and she was the image of purity once more.
“What are you thinking about, love?” Airi murmured, seeing how Shizuku’s hands were shaking.
“So much pain on your arms… why?”
“Eh, just minor cooking incidents. A couple of knife slips, some run-ins with hot pans or liquids, that sort of stuff.”
“You work so hard for both of us…”
“Because I want to. Because I love you, Shizuku.”
Shizuku stayed silent, tears threatening to drip from her eyes.
“Shizuku, remember when you first started coming over? Remember what we ate?”
Shizuku did in fact remember. Instant noodles and takeout food.
“Yes…”
“And remember how you’ve been on a diet for most of your career?”
That, Shizuku did remember, and what she was reminded of nearly every day, and every month when the physicians did their checkups, writing down numbers and presenting them to her manager. She remembers their frowns as they tightened the restrictions on the food that she ate, in order for her to fit the image that they wanted from her. She remembered going to sleep each night, in her own bed or in Airi’s, a gnawing hunger in her stomach which she forced down and ignored, and when she was in front of the camera, smiling for everyone to see.
“You always looked so hungry… and you stopped eating. I was so worried, so I started trying to learn to cook. I thought that maybe you’d start eating if it was me who was cooking. And you did! When I set down that first bowl of udon noodles in front of you, and you devoured it, I was so happy.” Airi sighed contentedly.
Oh.
“So that’s why you’ve been cooking for us all this time?”
“Mhm. It was a process, though. I knew nothing about cooking. But I had to learn to make something other than cup noodles.”
Airi pointed to a small knife scar on the palm of her hand.
“This one is from when I tried to learn how to slice bamboo shoots thinly. They’re pretty tough! My knife wasn’t sharp enough, because I thought I would be safer with a blunter knife. Nope. My knife slipped. Sharp knives are best.”
Then, Airi gestured to a burn on her forearm.
“And this one is from when I accidentally knocked a skillet off the stove, and the cooking oil splashed onto me. It taught me that the pan handles should not be pointing out towards the walkway.”
Airi continued to point and gesture at various burns and scars, explaining the story behind each one, and Shizuku silently marveled at each lesson Airi told.
“Cooking is a process. You can only learn by doing… and I’ve learned.”
Shizuku buried her head in Airi’s shoulder, unable to stop herself from crying.
“Eh? Shizuku, are you alright?”
Shizuku let go of Airi’s hands so she could pull Airi into a hug, still crying. Airi turned around in Shizuku’s embrace and kissed away some of the tears on Shizuku’s face, a comforting expression on her face.
She cares, so, so much… I wish I could…
“Airi-chan, may I help you cook?”
Airi hesitated.
“Well, I wouldn’t want you getting hurt…”
“I want to help, though! You’ve done so much for me, and I feel like I should give back.”
“Oh, Shizuku, you don’t need to. You already do so much for me.”
“Please?” Shizuku looked at Airi, pulling off the best puppy-dog eyes she had. Airi sighed.
“Fine, but please be careful, alright?”
Airi shifted to the side so that Shizuku could stand next to her at the counter, and slid the cutting board and a small knife over.
“So, you want to hold the scallion in place right here, and slice across to make little circles.”
Shizuku put the knife down, and clumsily sliced downwards, making uneven pieces.
“Yeah, that’s pretty good. But maybe try this.” Airi slid closer, steady hands holding the knife, cutting small, uniform pieces.
“You’re so good at this, Airi-chan!”
“I’ve got a lot of practice.” A small, proud smile flickered over Airi’s face, and Shizuku leaned down to kiss her.
Shizuku returned to her task once more, speeding up the motions with the knife.
“Hey, Shizuku, don’t go so fast-!”
Shizuku yelped. A small drop of blood stained the cutting board, and she yanked her hand away, the knife clattering against the counter.
Airi grabbed Shizuku’s hand, examining the cut.
“Good, it doesn’t look like it’s deep enough to scar. You got lucky.” Airi opened a drawer, pulling out a first-aid kit. “We’re still going to need to clean and bandage this, though.”
Shizuku watched silently as Airi pulled her over to the sink, rinsing the small cut and then drying it, wrapping a small bandage around her finger.
“Please be careful, alright? I know you don’t like it… but you still have to be perfect for the public.” Airi brought Shizuku’s hand up to her mouth, kissing the bandage, and then letting Shizuku’s hand fall.
She turned back to her task, looking kindly at Shizuku.
“I’ll help you learn to cook… but for tonight, you should let me take over.”
Shizuku nodded, taking a seat at the table, watching Airi finish preparing the meal.
“Time to eat!”
As soon as Airi set the two bowls down, Shizuku grabbed Airi, pulling her close and kissing her, trying to express all the feelings that she had been feeling that evening into the action. She felt Airi’s lips curve, and she softened the kiss, Shizuku sinking into Airi’s warm comfort.
“What was that for?” Airi complained, though fondly, once they broke apart.
Shizuku gave her a little smile.
“To thank you.”