The Shadows of Fate

The warmth in the pouring rain

"Too sweet! What the hell is this thing?!"

"There's so much flour on this thing that I could feel it in my tongue!"

"Powdery...too powdery!!"

Complaints after complaints, that's how working in the main city is. There's no such thing as "satisfying" with the people in the main city.

All of them are hard to please.

Atsushi was, of course, never the type to care about people whining about his sweets. Why would he? People who can't understand how a pastry should taste doesn't deserve a piece of his mind.

For him, food is the most important thing in this world. Sweets are the most important thing in our body because it energizes our cells and it makes you smart.

So those people who don't like pastries that's not even that sweet are dumb as hell.

Sweets give peace to Atsushi.

Just like his lovers.

And maybe this town too.

There were various times when Atsushi wanted to stop working in the bakery, but he couldn't handle sitting alone in the house while his lovers were away, working. That was his only motivation back then.

When they moved together in this town, Atsushi had to find another bakery to work in at. That was when he met Himuro. Himuro is a year older than him and has been working in the bakery longer than him. He was the one who guided him through things.

Though their first interaction wasn't as good.

"These are the crates–"

"Agh I already know, those contain sugar I get it I get it so don't bother me"

"I am merely guiding you–"

"I don't need your guidance. I've already worked in the main city—"

"Okay! I get it that you've already worked in the main city–where everything is rich and high but I don't give a shit about that!! But you're not in the main city anymore and you're just in a small bakery that's already considered as the biggest bakery in this town. So know that everything works here differently than the main city!!"

Atsushi was stubborn and very prideful back then. He wasn't used to the small environment, everything was new to him. And because of his size, it wasn't hard to get terrified gazes from people.

The day Himuro outbursts at him was the day he respected him. Because no one had ever spoken back to him about his antics beside his lovers.

And because Himuro was right. Main city is different from towns.

If complaints and criticism are always heard in the main city, here at the town, criticism is so rare.

Working in the town is peaceful. Too peaceful in fact.

For every customer who ordered, Atsushi would always bat an eye back then. Too wary of their reaction. He used to watch them taking a bite of the pastries, but whenever they did, there were no complaints. No distaste, no frowning, no reaction at all.

It's not like he was expecting any.

Sweets are everything to him. It doesn't matter what people think, he earns and eats. He bakes and decorates. Besides he gets free pastries for whenever the bakery closes and there's leftovers.

Taking leftovers is not pathetic at all, it's an act of consideration to the ones who made it with all their time.

So if you'll ask him if he loves his work, yes he does. Not because he loves making people pleased with his pastries, but because he loves sweets.