Chapter Text
Drunkards stumbled through the streets, students attempted to get home, and extroverts were going around for the party life.
Then there was her, just sitting at this skewer stall she had set up today.
Hitori looked around on the street once more, before looking down at her hands once more.
She slid her hand against the smooth wooden surface of her cart, before looking back at her equipment.
All of her cooking utensils were clean and sharpened. Her cooler was packed full of food and drinks ready to serve. The charcoal grill was prepped and ready to start cooking.
The only thing she needed now was a customer. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be happening at all.
Ah…. No one wants to come to my stall at this time. I don’t blame them, it’s getting pretty late and it’s not like anyone wants to go eat at this shabby cart of mine. I shouldn’t have been so arrogant and thought I could become someone special by starting my own food business.
If anything, I should have just kept on making those cooking videos for my Oh!Tube. I could have at least tried a little harder to get people to notice me more… maybe coming to school in that full chef outfit wasn’t enough? Next time, I should probably bring some food. Yeah, maybe that’s what I needed to do, bring some of my home-cooked meals to meet people!
But then what if they hate my food and yell at me? Wait, what if they do that with my little cart now?
She froze and her face went pale.
Oh no… I didn’t think that far. The last thing I need to happen is for a bad review to hit my cart! I don’t want my dream to end before it even begins! I have to become one of those famous celebrity chefs that have so many fans they keep on coming back no matter what happens!
I have to be successful… otherwise I won’t be able to pay off the fees for this cart… or the loan I took to get everything to set this all up… I spent all my Oh!Tube money on this and took out a loan with my parents… what am I going to do?
Maybe I’m not cut out for this restaurant business after all…
A loud crash shook her thoughts and she turned over to the source.
A drunkard with a guitar case had just plastered herself over the cart.
“U-ugh…”
“E-eep!”
She ducked behind her stall. She crouched there, shaking and quivering as her vision started to bounce around.
Agh! Why did a drunkard have to slam into my cart? What should I do? I can’t think of anything besides waiting for them to leave!
They must have left by now, right?
She peeked her head over to find the person still plastered over her stall. Their magenta hair was sprawling all over, with the person having their head completely down.
“U-um… are you alright?”
“Wa-water… Water please…”
“Y-yes ma'am!” Hitori dug through her stock and pulled out an ice cold water bottle. “H-here!”
The drunkard grabbed the bottle and started to chug the drink down. Gulp after gulp went down until the entire container ran empty. Then—
“Ahhh… That hit the spot!” The woman smiled as she wiped her mouth with her coat sleeve. “Thanks a lot!”
“A-ah… Y-your welcome!”
“Hey, no need to be so stiff!” She laughed as she brushed her hair aside. “I don’t bite!”
“O-okay…” She looked down and shuffled her feet. “A-ah… Are you okay?”
“Haha. Not really.” The woman grabbed her head. “For some reason, my head feels like it’s full of buzzing bees. My stomach’s screaming at me and keeps on ripping into me for some reason, ugh…”
I think I’m in danger…
“I-I uh have to pack up shop and go so-”
“Hey, what’s your name?”
“Huh? Hi-Hitori Gotoh…”
“That’s cute!”
“Uh-uh…”
“Anyways, you got any other drinks?” The drunkard leaned over the side of the cart. “You got sake, right?”
“I-that-” Hitori stumbled back. “I-I’m not allowed to sell alcohol.”
“Ah, shucks.” The woman sat on one of the available chairs and frowned. “You got anything to sell here?”
“We-well, I do sell food… some non-alcoholic drinks…”
“Oh? Anything good?”
The drunkard seemed excited as she heard the sound of food and drinks.
“I-I-uh…” Hitori leaned back and raised her hands.
Ugh. I can’t think of anything else to say! I-I’ll just default to what my parents say!
“W-well, the food’s good! I can say, yes! Why?”
“Hmmm… In that case…” The woman smiled. “I’ll go ahead and order something!”
“E-eh?! Th-that-”
“Let me just take a look at your menu.” That smile on her face eventually warped to confusion as she looked around. “Uh… I don’t see one…”
“U-uhm…” Hitori stood there, her body shaking and jittering for a while, before pointing at the wooden signs. “Th-they’re ri-right here…”
“Huh?” The woman looked and laughed. “Oh! That’s where they were! My bad, my bad!”
“It-it’s fine…” She leaned back, hoping everything would go okay.
As for the drunkard, she was busy staring at the options.
There wasn’t much available. The girl was selling different types of skewers, from the usual shrimp and chicken to some strange ones she didn’t recognize.
What the heck is a Hawaiian kebab? Pastor? What is that? I’ve never heard of that before. Am I reading all of these wrong?
She rubbed her eyes, before squinting at the menu.
Nooope. Those were written correctly. Hmmm… I don’t know what to pick. Some of these don’t sound good at all…
She looked at the pink girl who seemed to be melting into the pavement bit by bit.
Though, I should probably get something. She looks like she needs a confidence boost… Wait. I got it!
“Just give me any skewer you think is best!”
“Y-yes ma'am!” Hitori saluted before rushing to do her job.
The charcoal grill was lit up and red heat started to pour from the burning wood. She tied a white bandana around her forehead and started to dig through her cooler chest.
Rows and rows of prepared skewers were lying inside. There was a second portion for the different chilled drinks set up, but right now she had to get to cooking.
That being said… What should I make? What could I possibly grill up that won’t let her be mad at me? I could see it now…
“Hey!” The drunk woman roared as she slammed the skewer against the cart surface. “This food tastes like shit! Do you think you’re a chef?!”
She grabbed the bottom of the cart and muscles bulged from her body.
“No cook worth their salt makes something this terrible!”
With that, she flipped over the cart right onto the poor girl and let them both stay there, buried and defeated.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
I have no choice! I’ll have to pretend there’s nothing for sale!
She got back up and looked at the woman, ready to lie and tell her there was nothing.
Except when she did stand up, she noticed the woman was drinking from her sake juice box.
“Heyyy, you picked the skewer yet? I’m hungry, you know? Don’t know if I can last till the convenience store, haha!”
“Y-I-that…”
No! She’s blocking off my escape! I-if I just tell her I don’t have any food left, she’d… she’d!
“You scum! You dare open a stall without food?! I’m going to rip you apart!!”
I can’t let that happen!
She looked back down at the cooler.
There was no escape now then. She had to do this.
“I-I’m getting started, so don’t worry!”
With that, she snatched two random skewers; a shrimp and a Pastor, and placed the two of them onto the grill. She pulled out a fan and started to wave the flames to get the heat going faster.
Uuuuuuu… What should I do? Why do I have to deal with such a situation like this? Couldn’t I have no customers tonight and go home without having to worry about socializing?
Maybe if I run away now she’d forget about the whole thing and just go to the cov
Ugh… I have to g- Wait. That smell. No! The skewers!
She turned towards the grill in a panic, before breathing out in relief.
Good. None of them had burnt yet. I have to be careful now, the coals are hot so there’s a chance to burn them. Need to focus!
Her eyes narrowed. Her vision straightened and she looked at the skewers.
The shrimp had gone from the bright pink to a pale yellow around the bottom. Char marks were beginning to form on the bottom and the top was starting to show signs of cooking as well.
She frantically flipped the shrimp, before directing her attention to the Pastor skewer.
O-oh shoot! The meat!
The pork on the bottom had begun to char bit by bit, which wasn’t good. The meat was still pink all around the body, which made her move frantically. She rotated the skewer with her right hand, before realizing something.
The sauce! I didn’t season them!
She searched through the cart frantically, before finding two containers of what she was searching for. She yanked them out and kept on going.
She forgot about the fact she had a drunkard customer. She forgot that she was out in the open street. Nothing else mattered to her anymore except for the skewers.
She was so focused on making sure they were cooked right that she never noticed the drunkard’s expression change.
The woman went from a lazy smile to a tight line. Her half-lidded eyes opened up fully as she looked at Hitori cooking her food.
The girl had gone from a nervous wreck to a focused machine. Every single movement she made was calculated. From flipping and rotating the skewers to applying a layer of one of the two sauces she had in her arsenal. Nothing was wasted, everything was done with passion.
A passion that she herself could fully respect.
Not to mention the smell of the cooking food.
She gulped. She had to wipe her mouth to get rid of the drool.
There were two smells going around in the air. One of them was the mixture of something sweet and salty, while the other was mostly spice.
All of these were hitting her head and she couldn’t help but be in pain each second.
Hey… When’s the food going to come out? Come on, I’m getting hungrier by the second now…
She could only stare as the girl kept going with the skewers with that intense gaze. The only times she seemed to stop paying attention to the food was when she had to fan the coals more or when she had to wipe the sweat off her brow.
Her body was starting to shake out of control. She didn’t know if she could hold out any longer. Ah, her stomach was starting to hurt like mad.
This was torture. She was being abused. And there was nothing she could do but watch.
She took out one of her sake juice boxes and started to pull every last bit of alcohol into her body. But that didn’t help. If anything, that made her hunger worse.
More than ever, she craved the sensation of an ice cold beer. If she could get a big can of that and have that combined with the skewers… That would be heaven right now.
Unfortunately, Hitori probably didn’t sell alcohol, seeing as how she was probably underaged and all.
She exhaled every last bit of air in her body. She could feel the entire world starting to slow down. She was going to—
“H-here you go!”
… salvation.
The two skewers were perched on top of a plain bamboo plate. The trench had started to have some sauce pool on the bottom, mixing from both the shrimp and the mystery skewer.
Both of them looked immaculate. Something that seemed to have come straight out of a food manga. The kind of food she always wished she could eat everyday.
The shrimp was glistening with a light brown shine. There were parts of the flesh that had char, but those were clear as day from the grill. There were flecks of green scattered across the seafood over the glaze that just smelled divine.
She couldn’t wait any more. She took the skewer into her hand.
The meat was so warm. The heat was radiating onto her cold hands.
She could see the steam flying off of the shrimp.
Common sense would have made her blow to lower the temperature. Common sense would have made her wait and ask for a drink.
Common sense can go right out the door and into the trash.
A bite. A single shrimp from the skewer.
Heat and fire came first.
Then the flavor burst.
The meat was succulent and juicy. Every single drop of flesh contained the natural taste of the ocean. All of that began to flow through a soy sauce valley, forming a beautiful blend of flavor that was forming a tidal wave.
The salt tsunami was stopped by the giant wall of sweetness that was the honey. The floral tastes came together with the sweetness to form a beautiful harmony that counteracted the ocean. Then, just as she thought she was safe…
The beach began to experience minor eruptions of heat. Not from the temperature, but from the garlic shoots that were scattered on top of the meat. Each little discharge brought a kick to her head. The sweetness and saltiness were now fighting with the spiciness before all of them swirled together to become the perfect balance of flavor.
She chewed and chewed, as if she was eating the most amazing piece of gum in the world. Then she swallowed.
A breath of relief and joy came from her soul.
That was amazing. Five stars. Totally rocking.
She was about to go for another bite, before she looked at the skewer still steaming hot.
She’d have to cool this down. No, more than that.
She’d have to do this right.
She blew on the food. She pulled out the sake bottle she had stashed on her.
Without any hesitation, she engaged in both.
Two planets collided to form a miracle.
All of that flavor combined with the bitter alcohol created a live concert in her mouth. One that wouldn’t stop playing the best hits over and over again.
She swallowed. Then she indulged again and again. She went for another bite and-
Wood. Her sharp teeth hit wood.
Something was off.
She pulled out the skewer from her mouth and-
No shrimp. No meat.
No way…
She twirled the stick over. She looked up at the sky, before looking down. She closed her eyes for a few seconds then opened them.
Nothing remained on the skewer. Not even a little bit of sauce.
She looked at the stick with longing. She could see herself being left behind all over again.
At least, until she remembered she had another to eat.
She almost went mad again. She almost grabbed the skewer and dug in.
This time, she had patience. This time, she had to make this perfect.
“Hey, Hitori?”
“Y-yes, onee-san?”
“Do you sell any drinks?” She smiled at the young girl. “Could go for something sweet.”
“Ah-uh…” Hitori started to go back into her cooler. She dug around for a while, until she pulled out a drink.
The plastic cup contained some kind of orange and red liquid. There wasn’t any ice inside the container, but there were some strawberries within.
“Th-this is something my mom really liked to drink.” She placed the drink down. “I-It’s called the Festive Mango Sunset.”
“Festive Mango Sunset, huh?” The drunkard took the cup into her hand and blinked.
It’s cold! It’s colder than any of my drinks!
She took the cup with both hands and took a big gulp.
Mango. Strawberry. Lemon.
All three fruits united all at once to bring her up in the air. She could feel herself being lifted up by the sweetness of the mango and strawberry. Then, she hit the sour ceiling of the lemon.
That was when she was hit by the salt that laid within the clouds. Without warning, she was brought back down to Earth and was grounded by the quadruple strikes that hit her body.
She had drunk quite a bit, leaving enough room for something special.
Without any hesitation, she filled the rest of the cup with the sake she had brought.
She had perfection in a cup now.
She looked at the last skewer, which was seeping red onto the bamboo. She picked the stick up carefully, but she wasn’t able to stop the rest of the sauce from dropping.
Huge flecks of chili flakes amidst the dark red sauce fell onto the plate.
She gulped as she looked at the skewer.
The thing was intimidating. There were several stacks of meat covered with red sauce, with light char marks scattered around the side. Between some of the threaded flesh were chunks of pineapple, soaked in that clearly spicy sauce.
Another gulp. The smell was overwhelmingly full of spice.
This thing was mocking her. Torturing her just by sitting there.
She glared back.
She wasn’t going to let this thing beat her down!
Without hesitation, she took a bite and-
Fire. Flame. Burn.
Meteors crashed down onto the world and everything went up into flames.
The tender flavor of seasoned pork spread its fatty oils throughout her tongue, letting the fire spread throughout her mouth. The pineapple could only bring mild defenses, for the acidity of the fruit only raised the intensity of the spice.
She took a deep breath in to help with the temperature.
That was a mistake.
The cold night air superheated upon touching her tongue. All of that heat traveled down her throat, infecting the calm cells with passion and fever.
She couldn’t do this on her own anymore.
She tapped out.
She took the sunset drink and took down several deep gulps of the sweet refreshing drink and leaned back.
The sweet fruits came to the rescue. They rushed in and began to brush each of the spices away, leaving behind a clean slate. The alcohol that would have ignited the blaze further was deactivated by the sugar that remained within the drink. Thus, she was saved from the pits of hell and brought back to Earth.
She took a single deep breath of the cold air, before breathing out the heat remaining in her throat.
She took a look at the skewer, which was half finished. She looked at the cup, which only had a quarter of liquid left.
She needed to think before she went in again.
It only took a second.
The skewer was finished. The drink was completed. And she…
She was happy.
She was still hungry, yes, but the whole experience was well worth this stop.
Though, the yakitori… the Hawaiian…
She shook her head, before smiling at the girl.
“Thanks, Hitori. That was really good!” She smiled. “I’ll have to come back tomorrow!”
“Eh? Really? You liked it?!”
“Yeah! Really good!” She gave a thumbs up. “Better have a seat reserved for me, okay?”
“Ah-Yes!” Hitori smiled, before blinking. “U-um… I almost forgot, who are you onee-san?”
“Hm? Me?” The drunkard chuckled as she stood up to full height. “The name’s Hiroi Kikuri. I’m the bassist and singer of SICK HACK and don’t you forget it!”
“I-I won’t! I’ll reserve your spot for tomorrow!” The girl frantically yelped.
“Don’t forget!” With that, Hiori smiled as she walked away, her job done.
Hitori stood there, before sighing as she took off her bandana. She took away the bamboo plate and the empty cup and was getting ready to go when-
She paused. She looked at the empty table, then back at the woman.
She didn’t pay!
“A-Ah, Hiori onee-san, you forgot to-” She looked down and noticed something else.
Her bass was still here.
“Th-the bass! Mo-money! Yo-you forgot!”
But she was yelling into the darkness of the night. The woman was long gone.
She hung her head and sighed. However, before she could sit down and rest, a voice spoke up.
“Ano… excuse me?”
“Y-yes?!” She looked up, expecting to see the drunkard again, only to come face to face with a small group of people.
“Are you still open?”
“Yes!” With that, Hitori gave off a shaky smile.
“We’d like to order!”
“Can I get the same drink that woman got?”
“I’d like to get four of the shrimp skewers she had.”
“What was that red skewer the woman had? Can I get six of those?”
“Oooh, Hawaii? I’d like three of those please!”
“I’d like to have two chicken skewers. I don’t want something sweet though, do you have any other kinds of drinks?”
Her eyes were swimming as her body went on autopilot. She started to cook and rushed to get everything done. No words were given as she just worked to make the money.
M-more people… There’s so many orders! I-I have to rush! Ahhhh! I hope the crowd ends after this!
Unfortunately for Hitori, the crowd did not end. The line kept on going and going.
She wasn’t allowed to leave until her entire inventory of food was gone.
Another night. Thankfully, the stall wasn’t as busy as yesterday night.
Hitori could only relax as she took a few sips of the hot soup she packed for her dinner.
She just hung her head as she tried to get that awful memory out of her head.
All the orders… all the people… all the insanity…
Uuuuuggh… I promised myself I would never do this again! But… I made so much money… I-I could definitely get some new kitchen equipment if I do this a few more times! I could get that amazing stand mixer that could change to be a meat grinder, a pasta machine, even a juicer! I-I can do this!
She looked up from her cup of soup to look around, only to find the streets empty once more. She sighed and went back to her drink.
Ah… Who am I kidding? No one will come today, especially with how I probably messed everything up yesterday… I did bring that onee-san’s guitar bag today, but… she probably won’t show up either. She might have just been nice when she said she really liked my food and all…
She took the chance to sigh again, before finishing off her soup.
… I don’t think I should be open today. All of this is too much for one day.
With that, she got up to start cleaning up and leaving to go back home. This time she could make it for dinner and-
“Heyyyyy, Hitori!” She flinched and turned towards the sound of the voice.
There was Hiori, waving with a sake bottle as she was flanked by two other women.
“Oh wow! I’ve seen these all over Japan but I never bothered to eat at one hosted by a high school girl!” The blonde one shined. “This is cool!”
“Huh. So you weren’t just making things up then, Hiroi.” The black haired one said as she took a seat. “Guess there’s something new everyday.”
“That’s right! I wouldn’t lie to you girls!” Hiroi grinned as she poked Shima’s face, to the woman’s annoyance. “Come on, we made a bet, so you’re paying for me!”
“Ugh. Fine.” Shima scowled as she took a look around the cart, before looking at Hitori. “Hey. Sorry for everything.”
“A-ah no, it’s fine!” She waved her hands, before looking at Hiroi. “I… I just need you to pay first before I give you any… food...”
“Huh? Isn’t that common practice?” Shima blinked. “Why are you saying that like… that…”
Slowly, the woman turned to Hiroi. The bassist started to chuckle and look away.
“Hiroiiiiiii… Did you not pay for your food yesterday?”
“Ahah… ahaha…” The drunkard’s chuckles were soft and weak. She stared at the living demon god that was Shima, before turning to the soft and squishy Hitori. “Hey! Did I leave my bass here yesterday?”
“Don’t change the subject!”
“A-ah, yes you did onee-san…” Hitori pulled the guitar bag out.
“Ah, thank y-”
Before Hiroi could take the bag, Shima jumped up and snatched it away.
“I’ll be holding onto this until you can pay me back for yesterday and today.”
“E-eh?” Hiroi blinked, before a weak smile popped up on her face. “C-come on Shima, you don’t have to do that.”
The other woman gave such a withering gaze that Hiroi was starting to freeze in place. However, before anything could happen…
“Hi! Can I get that sunset drink that my friend talked about yesterday?” Eliza asked with a giant grin on her face. “Oh, and two of every skewer you have!”
With that, the two snapped back to reality and turned to Hitori.
“A-ah yes! Coming right up, ma’am! I-I’ll get you some delicious sk-”
“Wait! You got any other drinks?” Hiroi smiled. “I want to try something new today.”
“Same. I’m not much for sweet drinks.”
“A-ah, let me go check!”
The group sat there and got their drinks. The food came out and the previous anger all evaporated upon devouring some of the food.
Laughter broke out. More people came by to eat. Alcohol was starting to flow amongst the people all thanks to one specific magenta haired drunkard.
But, as Hitori scrambled to get food made and drinks completed…
Things felt nice for a change.