Chapter Twenty Three - A New Sign, An Old Memory

The morning light stretched long and golden across the quiet street, spilling warmth onto the cobblestone path in front of Moonlight Crumbs. The air was crisp, carrying the familiar scent of flour and vanilla that clung to the bakery's walls, a silent promise of warmth waiting inside.

And yet, for the first time in years, the bakery's front looked different.

Elias stood in front of it, a wooden board balanced carefully in his hands. The old sign—weathered, slightly crooked, hand-painted by Kobayashi years ago—was gone. Not thrown away, just… put aside. He couldn't quite bring himself to get rid of it yet.

The new sign was fresh, the paint still gleaming. The brushstrokes were clean but inviting, the lettering warm rather than overly modern. The artist Mira had commissioned had done exactly what Elias had hoped for—capturing the feeling of something new but familiar. Something that still felt like home.

A soft crescent moon was dusted with flour in the design, just beside the lettering.

Elias' fingers tightened slightly around the edges of the board.

This is real.

Taking a deep breath, he climbed the small step-ladder and carefully, deliberately, fixed the new sign into place.

When he stepped back, something inside him settled.

Hikari clapped beside him. "It looks perfect!"

Mira whistled. "Damn. That's almost too fancy for you."

Elias rolled his eyes, but the small smile tugging at his lips refused to disappear. "Thanks."

Kobayashi stood a few feet away, arms crossed, watching the whole process with his usual unreadable expression. After a long pause, he gave a single nod.

"Looks good," was all he said.

Elias exhaled.

That was the highest praise he was ever going to get from the old man.

He looked back at the bakery, taking it in—not just the sign, but the whole place.

The bakery was changing.

And for the first time, that didn't scare him.

They spent the rest of the morning deep in renovation discussions.

The seating area was still a work in progress. Elias had never considered having tables before—Moonlight Crumbs had always been a take-what-you-need-and-leave kind of place. But with customers staying longer, it made sense to give them a space to breathe.

Mira plopped down onto one of the mismatched chairs they'd been testing out, stretching her arms over her head.

"Alright," she announced, "so we've got the new sign up, and the seating area is getting fixed. The bakery is looking great."

Elias barely had time to feel relieved before she smacked her hand against the table.

"But! There's something else we need to talk about."

Elias, still flipping through his renovation notes, sighed. "Of course there is."

Mira waved her phone in his face. "Listen, the new menu update? Huge success. People loved it. But I've been keeping an eye on the customer feedback, and there's one thing people keep asking for."

Hikari leaned forward. "What is it?"

"Drinks," Mira declared dramatically. "People want coffee, tea—something to go with the cookies and bread. If we're serious about this place being a proper café, we need a solid drink menu."

Elias frowned slightly. Drinks. He had always kept it simple—just baked goods. That was what he knew. That was what the bakery was supposed to be.

But…

The customers. They weren't just passing through anymore. They were staying, sitting on the stools, chatting quietly while nibbling their cookies. A warm cup of something would make them linger a little longer.

He chewed on the inside of his cheek, hesitating.

Mira saw it immediately. "Oh, don't give me that look," she groaned. "It's not going to make your life harder. You're already overworking yourself anyway."

"I—"

"I already ran a poll," Mira interrupted.

Elias' lips flattened. "Of course you did."

Hikari giggled as Mira shoved her phone toward him.

The Top Requested Drinks for Moonlight Crumbs:

Matcha Latte – Smooth, comforting, slightly sweet. Black Sesame Milk – A nostalgic, nutty option. Honey Yuzu Tea – Light, fragrant, perfect for cold days. Cold Brew Coffee – Mira insisted they needed caffeine options. Milk Tea with Brown Sugar – A cozy alternative for non-coffee drinkers.

Elias stared at the list, thinking.

The bakery was growing. If he was serious about this, he couldn't just stop halfway.

"…Fine," he muttered.

The day passed in a blur of planning and prepping.

By evening, Elias had finished finalizing the new menu, while Mira had already started teasing the drink options online.

Hikari had spent the day "testing" the seating area—meaning she had sat in every single chair to determine which one was "coziest."

The renovations were moving faster than Elias expected.

And yet…

Something was still gnawing at him.

He stood behind the counter, flipping through his notebook, trying to organize his thoughts. There was still so much left to do.

The door jingled.

Elias looked up, half-expecting another customer.

It was Kobayashi.

The old man didn't say anything at first. He just took a slow look around.

Finally, he nodded. "It's different now."

Elias swallowed. "Yeah."

Kobayashi walked up to the counter and sat down.

"When are you gonna tell me what's actually been on your mind?"

Elias frowned. "What?"

Kobayashi raised an eyebrow. "You've been thinking too hard again."

Elias looked down at his notebook, fingers tightening around the edges.

There was too much. The renovations, the memory cookies, his parents' past—it all felt like too much.

He wasn't even sure how to put it into words.

After a long silence, he muttered, "It's just a lot."

Kobayashi didn't respond right away.

Instead, he reached for the kettle behind the counter. Without asking, without a word, he made a cup of tea and slid it toward Elias.

Elias blinked.

Kobayashi leaned back. "Drink."

Elias hesitated, then wrapped his hands around the warm cup. The scent of roasted barley filled the air.

Kobayashi watched him carefully, then spoke.

"You don't have to do it all at once."

Elias stilled.

"You bake, don't you?" Kobayashi continued. "One ingredient at a time. One step at a time. You don't throw everything into the bowl at once."

Elias stared down at the steam curling from his tea.

He'd been doing exactly that—trying to handle everything at once. And it was crushing him.

"…Yeah," Elias muttered.

Kobayashi grunted, standing up. "Then do the same here. One step at a time."

Elias exhaled, some of the weight easing from his chest.

For the first time in days, he felt like he could breathe.

He looked back up. "Thanks."

Kobayashi shrugged. "Eat before you pass out."

Elias huffed a small laugh.

Tomorrow, he'd keep building.