Would you like a cup of tea? || Shigeo Kageyama

Vanilla Tea

"Oh, you're here." Hotaru smiled as Mob came in through the entrance door. "I was wondering if you were going to back out, but seeing that you're here, I guess I underestimated you." He stood stiffly until she patted on a chair next to her. "C'mon. I got your tea ready already."

"Ah, right." He awkwardly sat down. His oddly detached behavior felt more mellow, compared to before, which made her glance into his eyes, eyes that somehow hinted of liveliness and hope.

"It seems like you're pretty happy today. Did something good happen today? Or yesterday?" She poured the tea into his cup as he fidgeted in his seat.

"Well..." He strangely felt compelled to talk - or perhaps, he just wanted to share his success in joining a club that he felt would help him reach his goal. "I joined the Body Improvement Club!"

"...Body Improvement Club?" She blinked in confusion, scrunching up her face as if she was trying to imagine what that was. "What do you do in that kind of club?"

"We run... Do squats... Lift..." Mob let out a small sigh, despite the smile on his face. "They're all really nice."

Hotaru laughed as she patted him on the back lightly. "Sounds like you're having fun, even if it's hard work!"

"...Fun..." Mob's smile widened a little bit more. "Fun... You're right. I'm having fun...!" He then noticed how the sweet scent of vanilla permeated the air. Somehow, he could imagine himself eating freshly baked sugar cookies. "This tea..."

"Isn't it irresistible?" Hotaru stood up from her seat and twirled around, her eyes sparkling with immense delight. "I even baked some sugar cookies to go with this." She placed a small plate of sugar cookies next to his cup. "You can eat it in two ways. One, you dip the cookie into the tea and take a bite out of it before taking a sip from your tea. Two, you take a bite out of the cookie and then take a sip of your tea." She smiled excitedly, waiting for him to choose out of the two options.

"!!!" There was a feeling of anticipation that he felt, almost digging deep into his soul. His fingers trembled as he picked up the cookie with his hand. He watched how the cookie softened while absorbing some of the liquid. Biting into it, the rich sweet flavor of vanilla exploded into his mouth, making his good mood go up even more than usual. His cheeks flushed and his eyes glistened of unexplainable joy. It was at this moment that he wondered if Tsubomi would have liked this tea - just like how he was enjoying it.

"So?" Hotaru interrupted his imagination. "How is it?" She grinned, waiting in anticipation for his response.

"It's delicious... I never knew that tea could be so tasty..." He murmured to her as he stared down at his tea.

She leaned against her seat. "It's all about experimenting and trying new things. That's the only way for you to truly know if you like something or not."

"...Then have you tried something new for that reason?" Mob looked at her, waiting for an answer.

Hotaru blinked before staring at the ceiling. A thoughtful expression crossed her face. "I..." Her gaze then directed towards the floor. "I suppose if you count brewing and tasting different kinds of tea, then yes. But..." She almost looked lost. "For other things... To change myself... I'm doing it little by little now. What about you?"

Someone who was similar to him - that is what he felt after listening to her words. "I'm trying to change myself too, so that's why I joined the Body Improvement Club!" His voice sounded louder than before.

This made her smile warmly at him. "I see. Then I'll cheer you on, Hope! We'll both change into someone who we wanted and want to be!" She pumped her fist into the air.

Mob's expression brightened. "Yes, let's do our best, Taru!"