“So, what should we start with?”
“I kind of want something warm… like that oden over there.”
“That sounds great! Let’s do that.”
Arisa and Ayaka decided that on their own and briskly headed towards the oden stall.
Yuzuru and Soichiro hurried after them.
“I’ll have daikon, egg, kelp… what would you like, Yuzuru?” Daikon is a type of radish
“Hm? Ah, I’m fine with anything—”
He was about to say he wasn’t that hungry—
But realising Arisa’s intention, he stopped himself.
“…I’ll go with your recommendations.”
“Really? Then… konjac, shirataki, and… oh, is that sausage? …Let’s add sausage.” Shirataki is a type of noodle made from konjac.
After ordering, Arisa skillfully began cutting the oden ingredients in half with her chopsticks.
She wanted to try a variety, but couldn’t finish everything—
So she wanted him to share.
“I thought sausage in oden might be a bit odd… but it’s surprisingly good.” Oden is a Japanese hot pot dish.
“Odd? I feel like it’s pretty common… it’s in pot-au-feu too.”
“But that’s Western-style, right? I thought it might change the flavour in oden… but it actually works well even in a Japanese broth.”
For Yuzuru, sausage in oden wasn’t unusual at all—
But for Arisa, it seemed like a new discovery.
Oden ingredients vary by household.
And unless you buy it from convenience stores, you don’t often get to try other variations.
So it was natural that unfamiliar ingredients would seem strange.
“If we add it, maybe the broth should lean more Western? …But then it becomes pot-au-feu…”
“…You don’t have to think about it that seriously.”
Yuzuru smiled wryly at Arisa, who was already deep in culinary thought.
Of course, he welcomed her improving her cooking—
But now wasn’t the time.
“No, this is important…”
“Then let me try your experiments next time. I’ll help you cook.”
“…I’d prefer you only eat the best version, though.”
“I’m curious about how you refine your recipes too.”
At that, Arisa scratched her cheek shyly.
“Is that so? …If you say so. Your opinion matters to me, after all.”
While they talked, Ayaka suddenly turned to Soichiro.
“Here, Soichiro-kun. Say ‘ahh’.”
“W-what? Out of nowhere?”
“Well, I thought we’d compete a little.”
“There’s no need to compete…”
They suddenly started flirting.
Yuzuru and Arisa glanced at each other.
“…So this is how we look from the outside.”
“…We should be careful too.”
Only now did they realise.
“Ahh… this is so warming…”
“And sweet—it’s delicious.”
Drinking amazake, Ayaka and Arisa smiled happily. Amazake is a sweet, low-alcohol Japanese drink made from fermented rice.
This was already their third stall—after oden and takoyaki. Takoyaki is a popular Japanese snack made of octopus-filled batter, cooked in a special pan.
Arisa, who had wanted this from the start, was obviously enjoying herself—
But even Ayaka, who had initially acted like she was just tagging along, was having just as much fun.
“…Did Arisa not eat breakfast?”
Soichiro whispered to Yuzuru.
Yuzuru shook his head, confused.
“No, I’m pretty sure she ate about as much as I did…”
Having eaten Arisa’s delicious ozoni earlier, Yuzuru himself wasn’t very hungry.
But Arisa clearly was.
“What about Ayaka?”
“She said she’d eaten… and that she wouldn’t eat much at the stalls.”
Soichiro tilted his head.
Like Yuzuru, he had eaten breakfast too—
And wasn’t very hungry.
“…Honestly, this is getting tough.”
“Yeah… I’m starting to feel full.”
Both Yuzuru and Soichiro had been eating along with the girls—
And had actually eaten more than them.
It wasn’t entirely the girls’ fault.
They had asked if the guys could handle it.
But the two had foolishly said, “Yeah, no problem.”
“What should we get next?”
“I’m curious about those spiral potato chips on a stick.”
“Oh, tornado potatoes. Nice.”
While sipping amazake, Arisa and Ayaka discussed their next target.
Yuzuru and Soichiro exchanged glances.
“…What do we do? Stop them?”
“…We just said we were fine. It’s hard to back out now.”
Pride made it difficult to admit defeat.
But they were both at their limit.
“…Guess we’ll have to convince them somehow.”
“Yeah… they’re probably full too.”
Timing it as the girls finished their drinks, they spoke up.
“Maybe we should call it a day?”
Yuzuru said right away.
Ayaka looked puzzled.
“That’s sudden. Got plans or something?”
She glanced at Arisa.
After all, it was common knowledge they were spending New Year together.
“Not that I’m aware of…?”
Arisa tilted her head.
“No, nothing like that. It’s just getting late… and it’s cold. Wouldn’t want to catch a cold.”
Using the weather as an excuse, Yuzuru spoke casually.
Both girls seemed convinced.
“Then how about one last warm thing before we go?”
“Maybe oshiruko?” Oshiruko is a sweet red bean soup with mochi.
“Sounds good—I saw a stall over there.”
So it turned into “one last thing.”
But Yuzuru’s stomach was at its limit.
He could eat—
But really didn’t want to.
“N-no, we just had amazake… oshiruko might be a bit…”
Soichiro spoke up this time.
He was also at his limit.
Noticing his expression, Ayaka smirked.
“Ahh, you’ve hit your limit, haven’t you? You should just say so.”
“Eh? …Is that true?”
Arisa looked surprised.
Yuzuru and Soichiro both looked away.
“N-no, not exactly…”
“It’s just… you know, eating too much over New Year…”
“Yeah, New Year weight gain and all.”
At that, Ayaka’s smirk froze.
Arisa also looked down seriously at her stomach.
“…Well, I’m full too. Let’s call it here.”
“It wouldn’t be fair to make you keep going. Let’s head back.”
Both girls nodded.
Yuzuru and Soichiro quietly sighed in relief.
