The Cooking Test (1)

"Reiji-kun, quick! Take out your lunch!"

Airi and Greeny were already drooling with anticipation, they had gone the entire weekend without being able to eat his food and they were experiencing withdrawal symptoms.

So as soon as lunchtime began, they dragged him up to their hangout spot on the roof.

"....It's funny how everyone used to think that I stole people's lunch money, and here I am getting extorted for my food," Reiji complained but still took out his lunchbox obediently.

The two bespectacled students also opened theirs, and Airi even took out paper plates from her backpack. Then she expertly divided all of the food that they had taken out, making sure that each of them had a portion of what the others had brought.

After the first time Reiji had shared his food, she had been doing this strange yet endearing task consistently. They essentially had their own potluck on the rooftop every day.

Greeny picked up his plate and bit into the karaage + pork belly combo that Reiji had made for his henchmen, but a new batch he had cooked up this morning.

"W-Woahhh!! This is the best thing you've made so far Reiji-kun!" He exclaimed with surprise.

Airi dove in as well when she heard that, her eyes crescenting with bliss when the juices burst in her mouth.

"This is crazy!"

"Haha, glad you like it. It's a simpler version of what I'm going to be making for the cooking test today after school," Reiji chuckled at their voracious eating.

"Really? Then the judges will be begging you for the recipe," Airi responded with a grin.

Reiji played with his food a little, his mind wandering off to the thought he had this morning. He sighed and decided to bring it up now or he wouldn't get the chance later.

"....Can I ask you guys for a favor?"

The two squirrels who were munching away at the food tilted their heads quizzically.

"What's wrong?"

"Do you know Sakuraba Hina from our class?"

"That girl who's always with Yuzuki-san and that other guy? Yeah I know her," Airi nodded, as did Greeny.

"Well.... I accidentally met her at the mall on Saturday, and then again this morning. She looked a little depressed both times because she seemed to be arguing with that dude she's usually with. I even saw her sobbing by herself this morning, which was why I was late," he recounted, looking up at the bright sun.

The two listened carefully, though they were a little confused at the random topic.

"She's also in the reading club with you guys, so I was hoping you two could just chat with her for a bit. Not about anything specific, just friendly conversation if that makes sense?"

"Hmm? I don't really mind but will that really help?" Airi asked.

"Well, I'm not sure. She seems a little closed off all the time, so I thought if she could have more people to talk to, it might help her out."

Airi and Greeny nodded slowly.

"Wh-What if she doesn't want to talk?" the timid boy interjected.

"If that's the case there's nothing we can do. Can't exactly force her into becoming friends, can you? That would just make things worse."

Airi rubbed her chin in deep thought, and then she twinkled slyly.

"It's not that tough so we don't mind doing it, but why are you going so far for her? *Gasp* Could it be yo-."

Reiji flicked her forehead when he saw her thought process going awry, causing her to rub the sore spot in pain.

"I just felt bad, that's all. I mean, I literally saw her cry so i can't just pretend like I didn't see it. I'm also doing this because I think you guys would genuinely get along pretty well, and it would also give you two someone else to discuss books with if things go well."

Greeny's eyes brightened at that explanation, nodding happily as if it was just as he expected.

"Y-You're a good person, R-Reiji-kun," he said quietly.

"Damn dude, don't get so sentimental," Reiji laughed and pretended to cringe away, returning to his meal.

***

*DING-A-LING-RIIIIING*

"Alright everyone, that's all for today. If you have club activities scheduled today, head there immediately because the first meeting is always important! The rest of you, get home safe."

The teacher walked out of class after reminding them, leaving behind a bustling group of students who were excited about finally starting their extracurriculars.

They started beaming happily, heading to the Clubrooms in small groups. Reiji subconsciously looked towards the main cast from the corner of his eyes and saw Riku run out with two of his friends, leaving Haruna and Hina behind.

Haruna had not looked at Reiji once the entire day, and he had initially thought he might have done something wrong. But then he noticed her occasionally glance back at him during class when she thought he wasn't looking.

He was a little confused, but he just shrugged and decided to talk to her later.

Airi and Greeny joined him as they also left for their club activities. Reading and Cooking were somewhat close to each other, so they were able to go together for most of the way.

"I'm still sad that you aren't in the same club as us Reiji-kun...." Airi pouted.

"....Don't you want to eat the stuff I make in Cooking Club? I wouldn't be able to do both since they meet on the same days," Reiji smiled with a raised eyebrow.

".....Shit you're right. I take it back, make delicious food for us Chef Reiji!"

Airi and Greeny saluted simultaneously, their eyes shining expectantly. Reiji just shook his head and continued towards the club.

They soon reached the reading club first, and they saw a couple of people entering before them. The two of them turned to Reiji and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Don't worry Reiji-kun, we'll do our best," Airi affirmed seriously.

"Don't stress yourselves, if it doesn't happen naturally then forget about it," he smiled.

After a few more words, Reiji cracked his knuckles as he started walking faster. He had waited the entire weekend for this and couldn't keep his excitement down any longer.

When he got there, he saw more than 20 freshmen inside the clubroom, wandering around the kitchen area that had been set up for the examination.

'Even after all those warnings, there are this many people giving it a shot?'

He sighed with disbelief, because he knew that most of them would fail miserably. There were a couple of cutscenes in the game when the player took this test, where the judge literally caused some of the students to break down into tears with their harsh criticisms.

They did not play around when it came to cooking, treating lackluster effort as a crime and a complete waste of ingredients.

As he was looking around the room, wondering where he should wait, he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Reijiii-Tan~!"

He quickly swiveled around in surprise and saw Haruna standing there with her arms behind her back, giving him a mischievous grin. She giggled when she saw the confused look on his face, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Didn't expect me to be here, did you?"

"....No. No I didn't," he shook his head slowly, still a little dazed at the blonde girl in front of him.

'Why is she here? She never took the cooking test in any of the routes...'

Reiji tried to think if he had maybe forgotten a route, but he was sure that this wasn't supposed to happen.

"Why are you here? I thought you'd be at the reading club with your friend," he asked with a bit of hesitation.

"I was planning to, but I visited the cooking club's orientation after Fujimoto-san told me how delicious the burgers were. And then I found out about all the fun stuff they do at this club, so i thought I'd try my luck!"

'That....makes sense I guess? I still didn't expect her to leave Hina by herself. Thank god I asked those two to try and talk with her, or she would have been pretty lonely.'

"Do you even know how to cook," Reiji teased and crossed his arms, recovering from his puzzlement.

"Hmph, I'll show you my skills today! I practiced all weekend!" She smirked and raised her head with pride.

"....A weekend? Dear god, you're going to get crucified...."

"Woooow, so little trust in your friend? I asked Granny to teach me one of her secret recipes, and I have cooked for us sometimes, so I think I have a decent shot," Haruna retorted adamantly.

"I wish you luck! My advice is to use the allotted time with caution. They've given us an hour, so they'll expect us to use it appropriately. I hope you've planned it all out."

"I-I think I did?" Haruna stammered, a hint of worry appearing on her face.

Reiji was about to reassure her, but a loud call from the front interrupted him before he could do so.

"Everyone line up! We're going to start ASAP!"

The test was about to begin and both of them walked up in anticipation, exchanging encouraging looks.