yogen | npc contact.2

( bzzt. wrong answer; his attempted smile falters at that. )

You can't get by on just apple juice, y'know. It's...

( he pauses. glances over to the other students who are browsing but lets be real 90% of the time people who are browsing are just doing that and not planning to buy anything at these hugely inflated prices, and sighs. but looking back to kamo-kun, he'll try to get that smile in place again anyway, even if he looks a bit apologetic. )

I know it's business hours, but how much would it cost to steal you away for a bit? I wanna make sure you're doing okay.

[ It's fruit, it's healthy. ]

I can take a five minute bathroom break for free, I guess...

[ They don't like leaving the shop unattended for too long, on the account of some otherworldly force breaking people's bones if they try to steal from the shop. But there's not a lot of people stopping by today, as much as they loathe to admit it, so whether the door is open or closed doesn't make much of a difference.

If anything, they're not getting the usual sales because they can't pull themselves together and put on the act they need to.

... ]

Will you buy me apple juice?

( he wants five hours but if it'll get them out, he'll get his chance, maybe. )

Yeah. Anything you want.

( and he'll hold out his hand for them to take, because even if (maybe especially if) they're having a hard time, he's figuring out that it's that physical reassurance and affection that really means something to them. and the fact of the matter? is that it's just as reassuring to him — maybe he failed, maybe what he did wasn't enough, but they're still here. they're safe, and they're alive, and he hopes their hand will be just as warm when he holds it, looking expectantly so the two of them can make their way to the door. )

Two apple juices.

[ One for now and one for later, so they can spend even longer cooped up inside.

But it's with the same lack of hesitation that they reach out for Amami's— really, anybody's— hands when they're offered, hands still warm but grip maybe a little looser than usual. At least the vending machines are just around the corner. ]

Yeah. Two for now, I'll bring you more later.

( anyway, that's fine, because he can give a little squeeze to make up for that. pauses at the door when they reach it, so that kamo-kun can lock up. lock up!! )

[ Can you imagine if there were still window shoppers in the store? Maybe they close the door and lock up while people are still inside, because they can't steal if they're trapped, and maybe they'll find a nice rock to buy in the five hours they'll end up staying.

So yeah they lock up and turn left to the vending machines. ]

( maybe there are? that's not amami's problem. it's supporting business, so it's fine.

but yeah, they can go to the vending machines now. amami will pull out his pda with his free hand and unlock it so he can hand it over to kamo-kun. they can pick their apple juice, then he'll know which one they like. )

So, spicy or sweet? In general, I mean. Not apple juice.

I— oh.

[ They were about to say apple cider as a compromise, but never mind then. Plain 100% apple juice in a box and one of those bendy straws taped to the back. ]

Spicy, I guess, if I have to choose one. Spicy hurts, but sweet isn't something you can eat a lot of.

A little bit spicy then, but not too much. How about that?

( he'll give them a minute to get their straw sorted, and then give his hand again. that should hold them over for now. in the meantime, amami is going to think through some recipes he knows... for all the ridiculous things he's probably adding to the grocery lists though, it's probably dependent on how successful his requests end up.

anyway, if they'll give him their hand back, he'll start tugging them towards the dorms. )

Yeah. Like hot and sour soup.

[ Nothing overwhelming, just enough to be noticeable. Something easy to eat, like the apple juice that is very quickly emptied once they start, holding onto Amami's hand until they turn the corner and pass by the store and keep walking, and they look over at him. ]

Where are we going? The art room?

Like I said, you can't get by on just apple juice, yeah? You need a break for lunch.

( don't think they can make lunch in the art room, and from the way they don't seem to be headed towards the stairs either, there's really only one kitchen left. some fresh air would do them good too, he thinks; he's not sure how much they're actually leaving their shop in this past couple days, no matter how justified they might be in that. )

[ They could get by on just apple juice. It's a fruit, and it can be lunch. But they follow along anyways, sticking close but not too anxiously— as long as it's daytime, it's okay, and as long as they're with Amami, it's okay. There are a lot of people around, but as long as they stick close, it's okay.

... ]

What do you want for lunch?

Me? I'm not a picky eater, so whatever we make for you, I'll just have some of that.

( going to so many places, it'd be rude to turn away whatever's offered to you. if this man can eat fried worms, he can eat whatever kamo-kun wants without complaint. let him swing their arms a little — you know, the way that kamo-kun would do for them before. )

[ nooooo don't remind me of the fried worms ]

Then, hot and sour soup. We'll need tofu, bamboo, lily, wood ear, shiitake...

[ everything else is pretty commonly found in the kitchen pantry but it needs to have bamboo shoots and lily or else it's no good. ]

Oh, is that your favourite?

( or just what they're in the mood for right now? he makes a mental note either way. )

We'll check. Between everyone's different grocery lists, we might be able to find them.

( somebody? maybe, could have listed them. it's not impossible considering their mix, so they'll figure it out when they get inside, making a bee-line for the kitchen. )

No. But it's healthy, and easy to make, and sour is good for appetite.

[ They can make a lot at once, too, and nurse the leftovers throughout the next few days. Anyways, once they get to the kitchen npckun lets go of Amami's hand so they can wash theirs at the sink, shaking them dry while looking around for a cute apron, there'd better be a cute aprond around here; they're probably going to end up borrowing Nene's or something. ]

I guess it's as good a choice as any then.

( sometimes the food you're craving isn't necessarily your favourite — that's fair. amami will be getting their favourite out of them though. for now, he takes his turn washing his hands as they hunt down an apron. hope it's extra cute, if it's not, amami will sponsor a cuter one.

with that, amami will start pulling out some dishes and things to cook with, glancing over his shoulder to kamo-kun. )

Do you want to start grabbing the ingredients while I get everything set up?

Okay.

[ Cooking together... will be kind of weird. They've never done that before, and when it was them and Komaeda, they had made Komaeda sit off to the side so he wouldn't be in the way, but maybe it'll be fun.

They choose this apron to tie behind themselves and sets off to gather the ingredients: everything they mentioned before, plus ginger, chili pepper, vinegar, both light and dark soy sauce, cornstarch, egg, scallions, extra extra bamboo because the bamboo is the best part of this dish...

the mushrooms get handed over to Amami. ]

These need to soak.

( me like wow i cook for real like once a month idk what i'm doing saying they should cook actually. it's fine. that just means amami can grab one of those shiny silver bowls and rinse them off, then fill it up with water and that's soaking them i think. amami knows what he's doing, even if i don't. actually, you know what? that's genius. even aside from the adorable apron, it's super endearing watching kamo-kun take the lead anyway, so he'll offer up a smile in their direction. he looks pretty amused. )

You're gonna teach me how to make it, then?

( he'd thought he could teach them something to make, but learning one of theirs — that wouldn't be so bad. something he can mentally tuck away, in case they ever ask for it in the future. )

I can, yeah.

[ It'll be like doing it themselves, except they can keep their hands clean. Amami's going to use hot water to soak the mushrooms so it'll take less time, and then be instructed to slice them as thin as he can while the chicken stock comes to a boil on the stove for the soup base. The tofu and bamboo get sliced, and npckun just sort of eyeballs how much of the vinegar and soy sauce they add and taste tests for the right flavor. Mushroom and bamboo take longer to cook, so they go in first, then the chili to infuse heat into the soup, salt, pepper, a little bit of cornstarch mixed with water to thicken the soup. They make Amami stir the pot and keep everything swirling while they beat two eggs and slowly pours it into the pot so it cooks in silky ribbons like in egg drop soup, and they step back to pull a stool over to the pantry so they can get at the bowls stored way up high. ]

-—just a drop of sesame oil, because you want the fragrance without it cooking. And then after the soup is portioned, you'll add the scallion at the very end— it's for color, so you don't want to stir it in, just sprinkle it on top to finish off the dish!

[ Little by little, as they go through the steps, they do seem to cheer up considerably without realizing. Because cooking is fun, teaching is fun, getting to boss somebody around is fun, and it's very easy to take your mind off things while cooking because there's a certain order and time limit to things and you're constantly moving, there's no time to be sad. ]

( it's... yeah, this is nice.

a little bit of normalcy, compared to the soft-spoken, absent sort of feeling that had been present before — not only with kamo-kun, but himself as well. letting them show off a little, watching them get so absorbed in making sure he's doing it right that they're happy to boss him around without really thinking much more into it, something about it sets his heart at ease some. whether or not they're "better" now... that would be nice, but probably isn't so realistic; seeing them offer up a smile though, even if it'll take them time to share it as much as they had before, it tells him that they can. they will get better, and his expression is soft as he looks at them.

give him a moment though and, he'll follow those last couple instructions, sprinkling the scallion on top and picking up the two bowls to hold out for kamo-kun. )

You're a good teacher, aren't you? If that's the finishing touch, do you wanna bring these to the other room? Maybe by the windows.

( he'd say fireplace, but no. )

I'm just gonna set aside some of these dishes and I'll be right there.

Dad says the best way to learn is to teach somebody else.

[ So they did a lot of teaching. Doesn't have to be to a person, either, you can teach your toys or photos or reflections in the mirrors, they're all good listeners. Amami's a good listener too, and they bet the soup's going to be good; it must be, because they taught him how to make it.

But anyways they take one bowl from Amami's hands and they're going to bring the bowls over one at a time because they don't trust themselves with two, slow steps to the nearest table by the windows and then hurrying back to the kitchen to get the second bowl. ]

( amami grins, and while kamo-kun's working on the bowls, he'll tidy up the kitchen some — mostly just dumping all their dishes in the sink, putting a lid over the leftover soup because they probably made more than two bowls worth, grabbing some napkins and spoons for them to eat with. when kamo-kun's about halfway back to the table they've picked out, amami will fall into step beside them, setting himself down on a little loveseat near it so kamo-kun can sit next to him if they want. (hopefully.)

in the meantime, he'll claim the bowl they already dropped off as his, picking it up off the table so he can take a sip... bite... (subaru vc) do you eat or drink soup? )

[ If it's more than 50% liquid you drink it. But npckun seems to hesitate when they return to the table with the second bowl, because you don't drink spillable things on furniture that looks very hard to clean? This is why we have hardwood floors and uncomfortable wood chairs you can just wipe down and be over with it.

...

But they do want to be near Amami so they set the bowl down next to his and slides in next to him and decides to be very very careful so they don't spill a drop.

... ]

How is it?

( subaru vs. kamo-kun on is this soup food or drink, fight!

later. because for now, amami is busy drinking his soup. he's pretty confident in his fine motor skills now that he's not going through the lovely void-broke wrist pains, and he's not all that careful about it. he must've been hungrier than he'd thought himself, actually; not feeling his best in the morning to make lunch for the afternoon, and so he ended up skipping it by mistake. so even when kamo-kun asks him, he's gonna take a couple extra seconds before setting the bowl down. you know — to show how good it is. "you know it's good food when nobody's talking" and all that.

once he's done with that though, he'll offer a bright smile. )

Of course. I'm not a bad cook myself, but you might just be even better.

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