The Bread Factory

-"She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah, she loves you, yeah, yeah, yea-"
- Stop singing - said Isshin-Dono
- Only if you buy me the new Twist and Shout album.
- I said like million times Emma-Chan, we don't have "sen" or "pinds" or...whatever money here is.
- Shouldn't we at least buy some fashionable clothes? These kimonos aren't really up to date compared to what we already saw at the airport.
- Don't disrespect kimonos, your grandma make these for clan, you show some respect and thankf-
- Yes, I know, let's get going or we might miss the train.
Isshin-Dono wasn't the best at English, before we came here I tried to teach him what I learned with the book I read back home, although he was still very annoyed of having to learn a new language. He's still very attached to his cultural past but he's in no conditions to be living in a warzone country.
We went to the underground and took the train to Paddington. We still don't have any money but I'm going to work at a bread factory to help with our expenses. We're living in a huge house on Eastbourne Mews, once part of our clan before World War II. The House was a complete mess so Isshin-Dono started cleaning it, we're only here temporarily though...just waiting for things to calm down in Japan.
I couldn't sleep well that night, I was worried about dad and grandma. They were left in their hometown to keep the business going, I just hope they're not hurt.

On the next day, when I arrived at the gate of the factory a man came to me. He was huge, chubby and he had a wild moustache growing on his funny face.
- H-Hello
- Hello ther', yau're the recruit', aren't' ya? Pretty yaung to work her' but' if the boss says so we shauldn't' daubt' him – he said
- R-Right...
-So, yaur nam' is...Ms Kirabiacha, correct'?
-Kirabyaka sir' – I bowed
- Don't' neid to be that' polit' Ms, we're colleagues from now on. Anyways, welcom' to Willy Whiteford's Bread Factory.
From the outside, the factory looked old and unattractive, almost as if it was abandoned. It was all a bait, when I entered the factory a whole new world was revealed. The building was enormous, full of moustache men and women running around with papers and samples of experimental bread.
The moustache man escorted me to the Boss' office. I assumed the boss was a bit narcissist, as he named the factory with his name. As I entered the office and sat on the maybe-made-of-bread chair, a skinny old man in front of me started talking.
- Welcom' Ms Kirabyaka, I'm Willy Whiteford and I'm the chief of this factory. Yau'll be in the oven department' tchurning daugh into aur scrummy bread! My son Aldrin will be yaur supervisor in that' department', he's a very good kid abaut' yaur age, I'm sur' yau're going to get' along with him.
- Thank you, I'll try my best!
- Tak' it easy, alright'? I don't' want' to sei such a naiss-looking girl fainting on the first' day.
Mr Whiteford didn't look like a narcissist after all, just a nice old man who loved his job, but I imagine he doesn't do a thing besides sitting on his chair and sign paperwork about bread all day.
One of the moustache men whistled and a mini sandwich-looking car appeared out of nowhere, we entered the car and he drove me to the oven department where I was going to work for the next few weeks. It was a large corridor full of people baking dough and the smell was delicious. He then proceeded to teach me how to turn the dough into bread, but I already knew how to do it because of grandma's business. Out of nowhere, a charming blonde guy about my age interrupted moustache man. I instantly bowed at him.
- G-Good Morning sir.
- Woah ther', ther'. Jeiz, a pretty faiss lik' yau shauldn't' be bowing at' peopl' lik' that'. What''s ya nam' miss?
- I'm Kirabyaka, Emma Kirabyaka
- I'm Aldrin Whiteford, now, I think yau got' oven number 52, ill guid' yau ther'. Yau'll be plaissd next' to a newbi'; don't' worry much abaut' her, thaugh. She's a poor thief and only gets us in traubl', we haven't' fired her yet' becaus' we're lacking on workers.
"He's the son of the boss..." Mr Aldrin looked like a playboy, he was probably something of a ladies' man himself, although shaming people wasn't very nice of him.
He guided me to the oven and there was a black-haired girl with very poor-looking clothes next to it. As I suspected, the description he gave me about her wasn't convincing. She seemed innocent, mysterious and pretty, the type of girl you couldn't easily find on the outside world, much less on a bread factory.
- I'll be going then – he said – don't' be so hard-working and rest' from tim' to tim', darling.
He slightly touched my butt and left. That was weird, but it might be some British greeting I don't know of. After some hours, I already have made the quantity of bread necessary for the day, the girl next to me seemed troubled though.
- Do you need help? – I asked
- N-No, thank' yau – she said – I'm gud', AAAAAAARRGHHH.
She got distracted and her finger landed on the blazing metal of the oven. I didn't know what to do, but then I remembered what the moustache man did earlier, so I whistled and a mini sandwich car appeared. I insecurely drove it to find the nearest moustache man and when I found him, he gave me ice and some bandages. I drove back and applied the ice on her swollen but soft finger.
- Th-Thank you, don't' worry about' me though, I can do it alon'. – she said
It was not only her finger that was red, her face was so red she looked like a gutted tomato, but I don't think that was because of her finger. I insisted on helping her and we managed to bake enough bread for the day. We barely talked, but she seemed nice, so I invited her to come to my house after our shift ended.
- Wh-Why? I appreciat' the offering but'...
- C'mon, my great-uncle makes the best cookies in the world!
- I'm a littl' hungry, so I guess I'll accept'.
- What's your name by the way?
- Sofia

We were leaving the factory when Mr Aldrin ran towards us. He seemed confused and pissed off.
- Such a lovely lady lik' Ms Lirabyacha shauldn't' be wandering araund with a slag lik' her. Wauld yau lik' to join me for som' scones and a builder's tea?
- Sorry Mr Aldrin, I already have plans for the evening. And it's Kirabyaka.
- Alright' then, I'm telling father abaut' this – he whispered
While we were walking home Sofia was very quiet so it was hard to start conversations, yet she was so pretty. I loved this view.
After a while, we arrived at my house. Isshin-Dono seemed quite unhappy with the cleaning task. I politely asked Sofia to get her shoes off at the entrance because Japanese culture was very strict in not dirtying the floor. Surprisingly, Isshin-Dono seemed happy to have guests there.
- Good evening, what your name? – he asked
- I'm Sofia Dumplings.
- Well Sofia-Chan make you comfortable, I get you cookies. Emma-Chan, I cleaning the house when I find old record turntable, if you gather money this week you buy new Beatles album you excited about.
- Really?? Arigatou Gozaimasu!
If it was a boy, I imagine Isshin-Dono had already grabbed the katana. He left us alone in the living room with some hot mouth-watering cookies. Sofia was more comfortable so she started talking more. It looks like her father was the leader of a famous gang in London but he was murdered last year. Until now she's been living with her sick mother, trying to get as much money and food as she can to survive. Everyone in the bread factory seems to hate her, although the boss has his bursts of happiness. After a well-spent evening at our house, Sofia had to go home.
- Are you sure you know the way back? – I asked
- I've already said, don't' worry abaut' me, I'll be fin'. D-Do yau want' to go for a walk in London tomorrow, ya know, for yau to know better the city?
- Of Course!! Ihihi, until tomorrow then!
I closed the door and immediately went to sleep, the thoughts inside my head were rumbling around and I couldn't fall asleep, my heart was beating as fast as a brand-new Ford Mustang. What was I feeling? After 3 hours wandering around my bed, I could finally fall asleep, couldn't wait for tomorrow anyways.

I woke up, dressed up with my prettiest kimono, ate breakfast and brushed my hair.
It was Sunday so we didn't work today.
The doorbell rang and I could hear Sofia from downstairs.
- She almost ready I think. – said Isshin-Dono
While I was fast walking down the stairs, I stepped on my long skirt and fell.
- Are you alright'?
I looked up and saw Sofia with her hand wide open, ready to pick me up. I noticed that she made an effort to dress well despite her economic status, her long black hair was braided and tied with a ribbon and she was wearing a salmon-pink strawberry dress. I took her hair and she helped me get up. She looked more confident and happier than normal, which was a relief because I was very, very nervous. We went to the underground and took a train to Central London. When we got out we saw a huge column with four statues of lions around it.
- That''s the Trafalgar Squar', it was built' araund 120 years ago. The lions are the Landseir Lions and It''s said that' the paws of each lion are not' as graissful as the rest' of the body as they wer' don' last', and by which tim' the dead lion provided by London Zoo for the model had deteriorated rather badly. – said Sofia
- What about the column?
- It's called the Nelson's column, som' tim' ago they've written ther' "Victory over Germany, 1945", but' they recently erased it.
Sofia enjoyed talking about history, she looked like a whole different person from the one I met at the factory.
- Let's sei the Big Ben next', yau'll lov' it!
She hold my hand and we ran together through Parliament St. until we reached Big Ben. I was indeed lovin' it.
- 96 meters of pure beauty! – she said
- Woah!
- It''s incredibl' Innit'? Its magical clock can be heard from nin' miles away, and it's one of the most' precis' ones in the world!
After a small walk around Big Ben and Westminster Abbey my stomach started growling, so we stopped by a local restaurant to eat.
- What' wauld the mademoiselles lik' to eat'?– asked the waitress
I looked at the menu but there were so many options I couldn't choose one to eat, so I asked Sofia what she recommended.
- W-Well, Fish and Chips is a classic one, but' yau might' be tired of eating fish in Japan, so I would recommend ya a "Roast' Dinner" or even a "Steak and Kidney Pie".
- Sounds good to me, we can share it anyways. But we can't spend that much money.
After a while waiting the waitress brought our dishes. The Steak and Kidney pie was delicious, the mix of flavours was amazing, the crunchy potato dough complemented the steak but the kidneys were weird, but not horrible.
Sofia was eating Fish and Chips and she looked overwhelmingly satisfied with it. I imagine she eats a dish like this once a year, so I was also satisfied to see her happy.
- By the way, how's your finger? – I asked
- It''s getting better, thanks. I'm impressed thaugh, yau mak' really good bandages, they didn't' com' off onc'!
Now that we were full, we headed to St James's Park. The huge green trees were reflected on the magnificent clean water, I looked at Sofia and she seemed in peace, just like me when I'm around nature. After we fed the squirrels we went to the famous Buckingham Palace.
Unfortunately we couldn't see the queen, I heard that she was very beautiful and I've never seen an image of her because media information in Japan was very strict. We sat on the Victoria's monument in front of the palace to see the parade.
- The Quein's a very brav' woman you know...- said Sofia - abaut' 20 years ago she enlisted in the military, even thaugh she had such a high statchus, she wanted to protect' her cauntry from Germany and Japan at' all costs.
- Y-yeah, my country wasn't the best when it came to decisions
- Don't' worry abaut' that'. I truly believ' that' after this political crisis, Japan's going to becom' a fantastic plaiss to liv' in.
We went to the underground and took a train back to Paddington. I walked Sofia home and thanked her for showing me the city.
- And you even haven't seen all of it! – she said – one day when we get more money, I want to show you Chinatown and The Tower of London, and...and many more!
- I look forward to that – I smiled
- B-By the way, you're v-very p-pretty today, and I hoped you enjoyed this day as much as I did!
I blushed.
- Y-Yes, I r-really enjoyed. B-Bye.
- Bye
Our faces were cherry red, we couldn't speak properly, why was this happening?
I headed home and got mentally ready to a new week at the bread factory. Tomorrow was probably going to be disappointing compared to the fun I had today.

Thursday while I was baking dough in the oven, a baguette with wings came flying to me and dropped a letter, it was from Mr Whiteford.

"Dear Emma:

You're doing great! Your breads are being cooked in perfection and I can bet that there are a lot of families out there happy to have such a toothsome bread in their table.
Also, I know this isn't related but you should definitely try to be closer to my son, he's a gentleman and can't be possibly compared to Ms Dumplings. Girls can be friends but, you know, he's capable of doing much more than her.

Keep up the good work,
Willy Whiteford"

Mr Aldrin was nice indeed, but I didn't really feel like getting closer to him, he doesn't seem like the type of person I would like to be friends with, b-but if the boss says so I g-guess I should give it a try...
Sofia said she couldn't go to my house today because she needed to go to the pharmacy to buy pills for her mom. While we were making the last breads, Mr Aldrin approached us.
- Ms Kirabyapa, can I talk to yau? – he asked
- Y-Yes...and it's kirabyaka...
I got out of Sofia's oven and talked to Mr Aldrin privately.
- Yau're doing great' in the oven for a woman. Stchunning!
- Thank you a lot, Mr Aldrin.
- Call me just' Aldrin, don't' neid to be that' polit'...Well, I want' to reward yau. Follow me if yau pleas'.
I followed Mr Aldrin to a cleaning room. Suddenly, he leaned me against the wall and started kissing me. His lips were aggressively strong, I immediately shoved him.
- Weren't' yau liking it? Why are yau even acting lik' this?
- S-Sorry, but I don't think that was quite appropriate.
- It's Ms Dumplings fault' Innit'? Disgusting.
I left the cleaning room and went home. Isshin-Dono was listening to 30's music, probably from some old vinyl discs he found when he was cleaning the house. That night I couldn't sleep quite well, why was Mr Aldrin so obsessed with me?
The next days went normally, I tried to avoid Mr Aldrin and his childish acts, but Sofia always made my day brighter.

But today was horrendous. I baked much less breads than normal and Sofia didn't go to work. While I was resting a huge moustache man came to me
- While you're resting, can you deliver this paperwork to the Boss? – he said
- O-Ok
He winked at me and I went to the boss' office. I was unsure to go there because Mr Whiteford was always recommending his son and saying how great he was and that he and me would be a good couple. I already said what I dislike about Mr Adam, anyways.
I was about to enter when I eavesdropped on a conversation between he and his father. Mr Whiteford seemed out of his mind.
***********************************************************************************************
- WHAT DO YAU MEAN YAU HAVEN'T MADE ANY PROGRESS WITH HER? – Mr Whiteford asked
- I'm trying my best' dad; she aint' coping at' all.
- AUR PROFIT IS ALMOST NEGATIVE BY NOW; THE RECIPE OF AUR DAUGH ISN'T GOOD ENAUGH. WE NEID THEIR CLAN'S RECIPE, I'M ALMOST SURE THEY HAVE ONE. KIRABYAKA BREAD IS FAMAUS ALL OVER THE WORLD!
- I know dad, we just' neid to get' rid of Ms Dumplings, I think she might' be the problem. How is Ms Kirabyaka getting along with her anyway?
- Don't' worry abaut' Ms Dumplings. I asked som' friends this morning to get' rid of her mom. I know we can't' fir' her becaus' of the agreiment' we mad' with the town major, but' she might' try to commit' suicid' after what' happened.
***********************************************************************************************
I couldn't believe my ears. I immediately ran home and told Isshin-Dono about the recipe and how they want to use me to get it.
- They want sacred recipe? And they use you to that? I'm go to factory right now give them lesson with katana.
- I-It's fine, you don't need to do that I can just look for another job and-
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. It was Sofia. I hugged her and apologized, her mom's death was my fault.
- Wh-Why are yau apologizing? – she asked
- Mr Whiteford hired people to assassinate your mom, they want you to commit suicide so I can forget you and date Mr Aldrin.
- What' do yau mean forget' m-
- Enough, we going to factory – said Isshin-Dono.

We arrived at the factory and went upstairs, towards the Boss' Office. While we were running, Mr Aldrin stopped us and asked:
- What' are yau doing Emma? Who's that' old hag and why is Ms Djumplings still her'?
- You haven't fired her yet, have you?
- Can't lose time with spoiled kid, I go to Whiteford's Office.
Isshin-Dono ran towards the office and Mr Aldrin seemed confused.
- Answer my question Emma, what' are yau doing? – he said
- You don't have the authority to call me by my first name.
- But' she does?! C'mon, after all the lovely tim' we spent' together?
- What lovely time you wanker? I know about your plan. I eavesdropped on you earlier.
- Yau did WHAT? Tsk, It' looks lik' Ms Djumplings' mother isn't' the only one getting killed today. – said Mr Aldrin
- WHAT ARE YOU DOING? HAS SOFIA EVER DONE ANYTHING BAD TO YOU?
- WHY ARE YAU SO PROTECTIVE? SHE'S JUST AN UGLY THIEF AND-
Sofia started to cry.
- BECAUSE...BECAU-
- WHAT?
- I LOVE HER.
...
Sofia's face was so red, like a ruby tomato about to explode. Somehow my face was similar to hers.
- ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING. I MEAN YAU'RE BOTH GIR-
- I KNOW IT'S WRONG...BUT- I- I DON'T CARE; JUST LEAVE US ALONE!
Mr Aldrin was pissed off, he ran towards me with his fist ready to punch my face when Sofia grabbed his fist, squirmed his arm and kicked his bollocks.
-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHH – he said
Sofia wasn't crying anymore, she was dead serious, but her scarlet-looking face was still there. Mr Aldrin was lying on the floor, but still conscious.
- It''s not' tru', it's not', It''s not'. YAU'RE FREAKS, FREAKS! GOD SHALL PUNISH YAU IN HEL-
A huge moustache man stepped on his face and broke his front teeth. He was carrying Isshin-Dono on his arms. Isshin-Dono was gravely injured, with a bullet hole on his left leg and two on his right arm.
- I already called an ambulanc' with the phon' Whiteford had in his offaiss. Yaur great'-uncl' was very brav' to fight' against' a man with a revolver – said the moustache man
- Is he going to be alright'? – asked Sofia
- He might' surviv' but' he'll hav' to use a wheilchair for the rest' of this lif'.

The ambulance arrived and took Isshin-Dono to the hospital, he wasin coma three days. Once the nurse said he was conscious me and Sofia ran tohis room. He was losing conscious again when suddenly the lights turned red andthe holter monitor started to make noise.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...BEEP
- Emma, I hear-COUGH COUGH. I heard what you said about Sofia, just-
- Sorry Isshin, I know it's wrong but it's just how I feel and-
BEEP..BEEP..BEEP..BEEP..BEEP..BEEP..BEEP
- Let finish please, it's not wron-COOOUGHHH rong, don't think that again.People say bad things about but- COUGH COUGH
BEEP.BEEP.BEEP.BEEP.BEEP.BEEP
- HE'S LOSING BLOOD – said the nurse
- DO SOMETHING!! – screamed Sofia
- but they never understand what love is about, it- COUGH
BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP
- ""It matters not who you love, where you love, why you love, when you love or how you love, it matters only that you love.""Sayonara, Emma-Chan.
He smiled.
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