Welcome Party (2)

Chapter 22: Episode 11 - Welcome Party (2)

Suddenly, magical sparkles formed and a fraisier cake decorated with marzipan figurines of me and Fraise, chocolate coils, assorted berries, and a candied rose appeared on the lunch table. Right beside the fraisier cake was a mochi-looking dessert and four sparkling drinks.

"Everyone helped prepare it," Hanabusa said as the three boys looked at me.

"This looks nice!" I complimented, observing every aspect of the sweets layed out in front of us. "Let me guess, these marzipan figurines and rose candy were made by Hanabusa, these chocolate coils were made by Kashino, and these mochi-looking ones are from Andou,"

"It's a "turkish delight" made with a Japanese style to dock the cake. There's whipped cream and strawberries mixed in," Andou added.

It was easy for me to tell what kind of cake they made without tasting it since the appearance was much different than a typical Japanese strawberry shortcake.

"This is a Fraisier cake," I observed, closely inspecting how they made it. "The French style of a strawberry shortcake."

"Ah, yes, as expected of the new addition to Group A," Hanabusa admired. "This cake is heavier and deep compared to the light Japanese shortcake."

Their fraisier cake was much different than what mine had looked like when I made it for the judges at my entrance exam. They had two sheets of an almond sponge cake, they used a buttercream for the filling, and coated the cake with pink marzipan.

Hanabusa cut me a slice of the fraisier cake and handed it to me. When I took a bite of it, I envisioned that I was walking through a wild strawberry garden.

"This kind of cake was the one that Keiko made for her entrance exam," Fraise brought attention to this.

"For the esteemed Henri Lucas to be impressed by Michiko's creation, I can only imagine that hers tasted much better than ours," Hanabusa gave a light smile.

I fixed my gaze on the marzipan figurines that Hanabusa made.

"I'm curious to know how you made the marzipan so well," I pointed to the small marzipan figurines of me and Fraise.

Hanabusa looked at me in surprise as he took a sip from his sparkling drink.

"Oh, have you ever heard "steal with your eyes from a craftsman?" Hanabusa asked, putting his drink down on the table.

"I think I have."

'If I remember correctly, this was a technique that my mom explained to me when I was younger. She'd told me that when she was first starting out as a patissiere, she was still a newcomer. If she wanted to learn something from her superiors, she had to quietly observe how they made their things and steal their techniques.'

"In the future, Michiko, if you enter a patissiere, no one will be kind enough to teach you things. Newcomers have to steal techniques with their eyes from their seniors if they want to learn," Hanabusa said seriously.

'It's just as Mom described. You have to observe closely and steal the techniques of others,' I pondered for a bit before Hanabusa could see the stern expression on my face.

"Just kidding—besides, this is a school where you learn. If you want me to, I'll teach you what I know because you're cute," Hanabusa gave me a flowery smile as he complimented my appearance.

"Thanks... I guess?" I nervously crooked my head to the side nervously when he gave me his flowery smile.

'Is he trying to flirt with me or is he like this towards every girl?'

Kashino and Andou faced away from us in disgust.

"I can't follow this guy's character," Kashino rolled his eyes.

"Same here," Andou agreed, sighing in disbelief.

"Ah, for the flowers I make, I do rough sketches. To grasp the shape, I draw it out countless times so that I remember it," Hanabusa explained, showing me his sketchbook full of drawings of flowers. "Next, I learn about flower arrangement to study decorating."

I looked at his sketchbook and I could relate to this.

'I do the same as Hanabusa as well. I have my cooking notebook where I come up with different ideas for cakes and draw them out.'

"Do you want me to give a crash course on how I form my marzipan?" Hanabusa offered and I nodded willingly

"Yes, please," I responded with determination.

And so, Hanabusa showed me how to make the marzipan and shape it out well so that it looks nice. He gave me tips as I wrote down his teachings.

"They already started a lesson," Kashino face-palmed his forehead as me and Hanabusa focused on the marzipan.

"Unbelievable," Andou sighed again in disbelief.

"Well… when it comes to Michiko, it's strange, but it makes me want to teach her things just like how sand absorbs water. It's interesting because even if she's already good, she's always ready to learn more and absorb just about anything until she masters it," Andou recognized.

"Hmm… I guess emotionless people are more serious," Kashino said bluntly.

"That's pretty rich coming from you, Kashino. Aren't you also emotionless and serious?" Andou chuckled while Kashino shot him a death glare.

As I worked on the marzipan alongside Hanabusa's instruction, the other two sweets princes watched and gave out a few more tips.

~

"Hey, look at that. Coming in late and she thinks she's so special, that Michiko Keiko," three girls talked amongst themselves as they observed Keiko and the Sweets Princes from a fair distance. They hid behind one of the booths the cafeteria had where they wouldn't be seen by them.

"She's only been here for less than a week and she's already getting closer to the Sweets Princes. How irritating to look at."

The girls gossiped among themselves as they stared coldly at Keiko in jealousy and frustration.

* * *

During our cooking class, our teacher walked around handing out papers to each group.

"We're making snacks to bring to Piyo Piyo kindergarten today. Groups A, B, and C are in charge. Have fun making it," the teacher directed at the top three best groups of our large class.

'We're going to a kindergarten? But I'm not good with kids!'

"Oh, Michiko, this is your first time, right? So you must be confused," Rumi gave me a friendly smile as we went to the sinks to wash our dishes.

Rumi is in Group C but I haven't talked to her since I first transferred here. She didn't treat me indifferently even though I didn't talk much. Instead, she gave me a warm, welcoming gaze when she talked to me.

"This is the volunteer work we have to do," Rumi explained as she washed a bowl right next to me.

"Oh, is that so?" I responded, drying the dishes right next to her.

"Are you good with kids, Michiko?"

I pondered for a bit, trying to think of the encounters I've had with children.

'Do Haruto and Eiji count? I mean, since they're younger than me I do consider them as children, but other than that, I don't encounter other children.'

"I don't look approachable so people try to avoid me."

"Hehehe!" Rumi chuckled at my response. "You're funny, Michiko. We should talk more often," Rumi suggested, rinsing the dishes.

Her look towards me didn't show any dislike and it seemed like she truly wanted to talk to me.

"Oh, sure!" I replied with a smile.

'Does this mean that she wants to know more about me? Maybe, we can even be friends?'

"Michiko, just make sure that when we get to the kindergarten, you keep your guard up… You can't take them lightly, the enemy is tough," Rumi warned and I looked at her confusedly.

"The enemy?" I gave her a puzzled look.

"You'll understand once you see them. Don't let them control you…"