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If there was one thing Kita cherished above anything else, it was the band she was with.
Kita had always thought of a band as a group of people with bonds comparable to family, a home away from home, and a place she could always return to. Even so, she didn’t expect all those bonds to evolve…romantically. Kita hadn’t ever put much thought into dating, but to suddenly have not one, but three girlfriends? She almost couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe that she would have the pleasure of meeting these wonderful girls.
For example, Hitori. Yes, she had trouble communicating, and yes, she could say some…interesting things more often than not, but she was still wonderful. Talented, considerate, and with the passion that Kita had lacked for all her life. There was a certain magic to cuddling up to her side, taking pleasure in her warmth, and enjoying how red Hitori's face was. It was even more pleasant when Hitori got the courage to reciprocate.
Then there was Nijika! There was no way Kita wouldn’t be able to fall for her warm smile and kind and selfless gestures. Taking the time to check up on her, using her limited free time to invite Kita to go shopping, and being there whenever Kita needed a guiding hand. If there was something Kita knew for sure, it was that she would feel the safest in her arms.
Finally, there was Ryo.
Ryo had been why she had been drawn to the band in the first place, after all. There was something about the way she played her bass that made Kita want to spend as much time with her as possible, to discover what lay in that cool head of hers. To see what made her tick, and to learn from someone who surely had it all figured out.
…Well, she got her wish. Needless to say, it didn’t live up to the image in her head. Still, even if Ryo wasn’t the cool, intelligent, bassist girl with a bad girl attitude that Kita had thought she was, there were other things that Kita loved about Ryo. Her passion when it came to music, her great sense of humor, and her generally calming presence.
So while Nijika and Hitori were out doing some morning errands, Kita figured she could pick up the slack for once by at least making breakfast for Ryo.
At least, that was the plan…
"Um…" Kita muttered, looking at the recipe for French toast. She worriedly looked at the ingredients, and then at the items in front of her. "This is the right amount of milk, right…?"
That was when a drowsy Ryo walked into the kitchen, not looking all there yet.
"Ah, Ryo-senpai!" Kita cheerfully said. She quickly turned back to the waiting bowl in front of her as she focused on her phone again.
Ryo let out a sound that could very generously be translated to, 'good morning' as she limped to the fridge. She never was a morning person.
Kita giggled a bit. This cute side of her was always a treat to see! "Good morning to you too!"
Ryo took out a glass, poured some water for herself, and took a large sip, looking marginally more awake. Once more lucid, she spoke up for the first time today. "Ikuyo. Making breakfast for yourself? Thought Nijika banned you from the kitchen."
Kita pouted at Ryo as she prepared to crack an egg. "Hey now, that's not fair, Ryo-senpai! It's been a while since-!" Just on cue, Kita dropped the egg, leaving yolk on the countertop. Oops.
Her face was red as she wiped down the counter, doing her best to ignore Ryo's single chuckle. "W-Well, either way, this isn't for me…"
Ryo took another sip.
"...This is for you!"
Kita flinched as water shot out of Ryo's mouth, making Kita accidentally clutch the second egg she was holding too tightly, breaking open the shell. Whoops.
"Y-You don't need to do that," Ryo said in between coughs. Suddenly, she looked way more alert than she had been a second ago.
Kita nervously laughed. "I know, I know, this isn't a traditional Japanese breakfast, but it looked really yummy, and I thought you would like them!"
"I…already ordered food."
"Oh, that's no problem! We could save that for another time! Maybe we could even have brunch!" Kita said, preparing to whisk the ingredients. This shouldn’t be too hard, right?
"I'm allergic to cinnamon."
"That's no problem too!" Kita smiled at Ryo, not noticing her increasing panic. "It's an optional ingredient, and I didn’t put it in yet!" Kita devoted her attention to whisking the bowl…very slowly. She didn’t want to make a mess, after all.
"Oh," Ryo said, a slight sliver of despair entering her voice. In the corner of her eye, she noted Ryo tapping her arm. "...What made you do this?"
"Well…this might be a little silly to say, but…" Kita's voice was quiet as she tried her best to whisk the bowl of ingredients. "I guess this is my way of trying to pay you all back." Kita let out a small amount of air before she continued. "You all really helped me when it came to…everything. Without you guys, I wouldn't be as happy as I am now."
She couldn’t even picture a life without them now. She couldn’t imagine a life without seeing Hitori scramble into a box, without being mesmerized by Nijika's smile, without hearing Ryo rant about J-Rock or whatever music topic came to mind.
She could never let any of that go.
Kita, as absorbed as she was in her thoughts, didn't see Ryo approach until she felt arms wrap around her stomach, followed by Ryo putting her head on her shoulder. Kita felt her face heat up.
"...You know you don't have to do this, right?" Ryo said. There was a touch of warmth in her voice that Kita could only just pick up.
Kita shook her head, one hand gently clasping Ryo's. "I want to. I like doing something nice for everyone. I just want to make you all happy."
Ryo didn’t say anything for a bit, leaving the sounds of Kita whisking the ingredients to fill in the noise. It was nice to be held like this.
"...I'm looking forward to it, then." Ryo leaned forward, planting a quick kiss on Kita's cheek. Ryo surely didn't miss Kita's blinding smile, but other than her squinting a bit, she didn’t react as she walked away.
…Okay! For Ryo, I have to make this amazing!
“Sorry for the wait, Ryo-senpai!” Kita said, delivering the breakfast food to the patiently waiting Ryo. She gently put down the plate and stepped back, fidgeting in anticipation.
“Thanks.” Ryo nodded, not taking her eyes off the plate. Was it just Kita’s imagination, or was Ryo looking at her food nervously?
“U-Um! Sorry that it took so long, by the way!” Kita waved her arms around, knowing full well that she probably screwed up the food with how many mistakes she made. ”I haven’t made this before, so I think I was slower than I should’ve been-”
“Ikuyo.”
“-And I think I accidentally cooked it for too long, I thought I learned my lesson after last time, but I still made a mistake-”
“Ikuyo, calm down.”
“Ah, don’t be afraid to tell me if it tastes bad! You don’t have to spare my feelings! It’s okay to-”
That was when Ryo, looking Kita dead in her eyes, cut off a large part of the toast and put it in her mouth, cutting off Kita entirely. With balled fists near her chest, Kita studied Ryo’s face intensely, looking for the slightest change in her expression.
Please tell me this is good…! Kita thought, biting her lip. Was she getting too wound up over it? Maybe, but she wanted to express her love wholeheartedly. And once Ryo finished her first bite, Kita watched her open her mouth, and…!
“...Yeah, it’s a little burnt, and it kinda tastes a little weird.” Ryo didn’t mince her words in the slightest. Kita felt a pit open in her stomach.
“O-Oh…” Kita muttered, disappointed in herself. She didn’t know why it hurt so much to hear that, after all, she had told Ryo to be honest. Still, she forced a smile that she didn’t really feel, and spoke again. “I’m sorry. I’ll just take it back then.”
“Why?” Ryo asked blandly, making Kita stop in her tracks entirely.
“U-Um…because you don’t like the food?” Kita tilted her head, feeling a little confused. She didn’t want to eat it, did she?
“I didn’t say that,” Ryo almost seemed annoyed, a small frown on her face as she cut another piece of her toast, as if in direct opposition to Kita’s assumption. “It's kinda off but it isn’t bad. Besides, you made it, so of course I’d like it.”
Kita felt her cheeks flare up again at her words. Ryo had said it as if it was so obvious too! Even after their time together she never got used to Ryo’s flirtation. “Stop it, you’re just saying that…!” Kita waved off the words, trying in vain to hide the stupid smile that crawled on her face.
“It’s true.” There was a small upward tilt to Ryo’s mouth that Kita only just managed to see. Then she smirked. “If it means more people cook for me, then I’ll say whatever I need to.”
Kita puffed out air, putting her hands on her hips while she pouted in mock annoyance. “I’m telling Nijika-senpai that you said that.” Kita would be a liar if she said she didn’t enjoy the slight tells of fear on Ryo. Maybe she had picked up more from Nijika than she thought.
Relenting from the banter, she shot a warm smile at Ryo. “Still…I’m really happy that you said that. Thank you so much, Ryo-senpai. I promise I’ll do better next time, though!”
Maybe it wasn’t perfect, but there was a certain magic in seeing the people she loved enjoy something that she made. The idea of getting it right someday and picturing everyone's joy was an image that made Kita smile like a lovestruck fool.
Not that she wasn’t already, of course.
Ryo cut another piece of toast for herself, shooting Kita a small smile. “...Yeah. Can’t wait.”
Like that, the two settled into normalcy. Kita talked to Ryo about random topics that came to mind, while Ryo occasionally nodded, hummed, or whatever she felt like doing in response.
That was all it took for the two of them to be content.