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“Big sis Ran? Where are you going?”, asked a child when he saw a neatly dressed girl carrying a tote bag on her shoulder.
The girl called ‘Big sis Ran’ turned her head down to look at the little boy who asked the question.
“Just shopping,” replied the woman with a toothy smile, then continued, “Well then, I'm leaving now,” as she closed the door, leaving the child there.
“Be careful~!”, replied the child, then sat down on the sofa while playing with his phone. He looked at the date displayed and suddenly remembered something.
Oh yeah, tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Could it be that she's shopping to prepare for tomorrow? Does she want to send her something again? What does she want to send him this time? He can't wait for it.
Then about half an hour or an hour or so later, she came home carrying two large plastic bags and went to the third floor to put them on the table.
While the woman was gathering the necessary ingredients, the little boy peeked to see what she was actually doing. From the unopened bag, his eyes fell on a handful of bean sprouts, red peppers, a box of tea, chicken, oyster sauce, palm sugar, a bag of flour, a small bag of butter, and... a bag of chocolate chips? He could tell that the vegetables, chicken, and oyster sauce were for their dinner, but what about the rest? Was she planning to make a chocolate chip cake or something like that?
Looking at the woman who was pacing back and forth placing items on the table, he could see several eggs, vanilla extract, baking soda, and salt.
“Big sis Ran, what are you going to make with that?”, the child asked, still confused about what to do with the items.
The girl just smiled and replied, “Sure~ Conan, do you want to join us?”, asking the child, whom she called Conan, if he wanted to join or not. The child nodded happily, and the woman asked him to get a large bowl and a whisk. After he brought them, the child watched as the woman began to mix butter, white sugar, and palm sugar. After a while, the woman handed him the bowl and asked him to beat the eggs and vanilla extract, while she beat the other ingredients in another bowl. Although he was still guessing what they were making, he did as he was asked for the time being.
After the dough was mixed evenly, he saw the woman open the bag and add chocolate chips. Seeing her shape the dough into rough balls, it finally occurred to him: did she want to make cookies?
One circle, two circles, several circles convinced him. So, armed with the information he had obtained, he asked the woman again, “Who is this for?”
In a cheerful tone, the woman replied, “Well, for him,” then quickly corrected herself by adding, “Ah, no—Mom and Dad too, okay?”, with a slightly nervous gesture. The woman felt a little embarrassed because this year she wanted to send one to the boy too. Meanwhile, the boy was stunned to hear this. Even this year, she hadn't forgotten to make one for him.
Then suddenly, he saw the sad look on her face, prompting him to comfort her reflexively, “Ah, Bis sis Ran... It's okay. He'll definitely be happy to receive it”, and his last words were sincere from the bottom of his heart. He was happy to receive the gift from her, especially since it was handmade, proving that she still remembered him, even though they were currently in a long-distance relationship with no clear explanation from him. If only he could say...
The woman just smiled and said it was okay as she began to heat the buttered pan and put in the dough that had been shaped earlier, leaving space between each piece. But that didn't completely fool him because her smile looked forced, making him feel bitter seeing it even though they were making sweet food.
“That Shinichi, do you think he'll like it?”, she asked, her glazed eyes fixed on the frying pan. Honestly, she didn't know why she asked the little boy that question, even though he was often with them. Maybe... she wanted an answer that would calm her heart. After placing the first batch of baked cookies on the plate, the woman saw the child's nod and sincere smile and said that he would definitely like it. The image of the child that flashed through her mind was Shinichi, her boyfriend.
"... Shinichi?", she asked quietly, but immediately shook her head.
No, that's impossible. How could such a small child be him, she thought to herself as she put the new batter into the pan. At least she wanted to believe that he was really investigating a difficult case. Maybe after this she would take a short break before cooking their dinner.
Meanwhile, those who heard the whisper could only think to themselves, I'm sorry, Ran... I promise I'll find evidence to incriminate them, pretending not to hear, ignoring it innocently as usual, their hearts honestly torn apart like the brown sugar earlier.