In The Fine Weather | Haikyuu

Chapter 4

Mako woke up the next day, excited to head to school. It was the middle of November and winter was just around the corner. Her school uniform had doubled its layers to accommodate the cold, two thin sweaters underneath her blazer only enough to keep her comfortable if she briskly walked and cut her travel time by ten minutes.

That was why Mako took her sweet time in the kitchen before leaving, knowing she would be forced to hurry to school anyway. The cheesecake she baked the night before looked perfect, but she had yet to try it. As a baker, she lacked the craving for her own desserts – preferring small bites to assess the result rather than feasting on her own.

Mako packed the cake in three parts, the biggest portion she labelled for Nari, a good chunk for Suna as she promised, and the rest left for the house – a separate slice for Miyoko left on a plate by the kitchen counter. The habit of leaving a portion for her sister stayed since they were little girls, despite Miyoko's criticism turning more and more harsh as the years went by.

By the front door, Mako slipped on her shoes and got ready to leave, but a shuffle of steps in the hallway made her pause. She turned to find Miyoko standing with a nasty bedhead and one hand holding up the plate of cheesecake Mako left for her.

"What's this?" Miyoko asked, voice hoarse and sleepy.

"My cheesecake," Mako simply replied.

Miyoko frowned, probably surprised at the lack of cheese tarts Mako usually supplied her with nowadays in her phase to replicate Aiko's.

"I promised a friend," Mako explained briefly. "You don't need to eat it if you don't want to."

Miyoko laughed, glancing at the slice of cake with amusement.

"I can tolerate anything you bake except for those damn cheese tarts," she said bluntly before stabbing a fork through the cake and taking in a mouthful.

"Eat at the table, freakin' slob," Mako said, wrinkling her nose in disapproval. She meant to leave the conversation at that, but after a pause, she added, "Also, you left the flour lid off again yesterday. Clean up your mess properly, will ya?"

"Only if you stop trying to copy Aiko's cheese tart recipe," Miyoko shot back, but she didn't sound very intimidating as she talked with a mouthful of cake. "I assume you're still on that stupid plan."

Sometimes Mako wondered if she really was the younger sister between them. She knew Miyoko liked acting like a disgusting slob around her because it pissed her off. And even if Mako was well-aware of this fact, it still pricked her temper every single time.

"I am," Mako said, arms stiff against her sides. "And it's not stupid. Don't even know why it bothers you so much."

"I'm supposed to believe that?" Miyoko snorted, pointing the fork at herself. "Don't you do it because it bothers me in the first place?"

"I do it for mom," Mako snapped in disbelief. "Everything has to be about you, doesn't it?"

"You do it for mom?" Miyoko said coldly, ignoring her harsh quip. "She ain't even here anymore. When will that get to your head?"

Mako felt the burning fury run through her veins as she attempted to focus on her breathing to keep her aggression at an acceptable level. Only Miyoko could trigger her temper at a raging state – simply because they didn't agree on many things. The past twelve months found their relationship disintegrating into exchanging cold words and tense encounters.

"You haven't even tried the tarts in a week," Miyoko continued, eyes flashing angrily. "Don't think I didn't notice you messed up that last batch. How many times will it have to happen til you stop?"