Ensemble Stars Collection

Cookie-Cutter Smile [Arashi/Shu] (Part 3)

Shu stared down at his and Arashi's shared creations.

Flowers, hearts, and people-shaped cookies laid on the cooling tray. They had just gotten out of the oven, and smelled wonderful. They were simple sugar cookies, nothing too fancy. Some were a little darker than others, but it was actually rather endearing, in a way. It really emphasized the fact that these were homemade cookies.

"Don't they smell divine?" Arashi asked. Her sudden comment made Shu jolt in surprise, resulting in the girl's light laughter.

Shu composed himself, "Indeed, they do smell lovely."

"Once they cool down, we'll be able to decorate them, okay?"

Shu nodded, watching Arashi go off in search of frosting and icing. He watched as she moved, reaching up to the highest cupboards and bending down to the lowest of cabinets. She looked so...happy, genuinely happy. If this had occurred months ago, Arashi would've held such a sour expression at having to deal with Shu for so long. Times have certainly changed, and Shu felt the need to apologize for his actions in the early stages of their relationship.

He wouldn't just yet, though. It simply wasn't the time.

"What're you staring at, Itsuki~?" Arashi teased. Shu blushed, he was too absorbed in his thoughts to notice her coming over with tubs of frosting in her arms.

Shu tried to keep his composure, "A-ah, nothing, really. I was zoning out, my apologies."

Arashi chuckled, "That's okay, no need to apologize." She set the frosting on the counter and lightly tapped the cookies , "The cookies seem to have cooled down enough, so let's get to decorating!"

Shu smiled and walked over to Arashi's side, "Is this your favorite part of baking, Narukami?"

"It is! I love taking creative liberty over how I want them to look. It's freeing, in a way."

"I can heavily relate to that. I think the same thing when I create costumes."

"Is that so? I suppose we have a bit more in common than I thought!" The girl laughed. Shu joined her, and they smiled at their shared ideology.

Those smiles stayed as they stared at each other. Indigo met purple as they gazed into each other's eyes, and it made Shu feel...warm. It was comforting, and it felt like home. She held so much love in her eyes, love that seeped out of her like a pheromone. That love she held would always pull you in. It pulled Shu in, that's for sure. She was so easy to love.

Arashi was lovable, and Shu couldn't help the growing urge to tell her that.

Arashi was first to snap out of the haze they were in, "A-ah! Sorry about that. I guess it was my turn to zone out, hehe!"

Shu nodded in understanding, but couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at the breaking of eye contact. Arashi then handed the boy a tub of red frosting, "Let's start decorating, shall we?"

They did, and Shu began with something simple: a red heart. Shu had always prided himself in his artistic abilities, so he was confident in his skills to make a perfectly coated cookie. However, that confidence soon fell, as the boy forgot that he was an expert at sewing, not cookie decorating. Shu had found the task to be quite difficult. Frosting got all over his fingers and the table, and at some point he grew so frustrated he almost snapped the cookie in two. He wouldn't give up, however, and found himself reflecting on what Arashi kept repeating to him when they rolled out the dough.

"With the dough...with the dough..." He muttered to himself.

"Itsuki? Is something wrong?" Shu had spoken a bit too loudly, and Arashi had heard his murmuring.

"O-oh!" Shu snapped out of the trance he had put himself in, "I'm okay. Apologies for, erm, disrupting you."

Arashi chuckled, "You didn't disrupt me at all! I was just, ah..." She trailed off, not finishing her sentence. She then went back to decorating her cookie, which looked like a little green flower.

Shu couldn't help but feel curious as to what Arashi was going to say. Was she annoyed, concerned? Maybe she was checking to see if Shu was okay? The last option seemed less likely than the others, but Shu figured it'd be better to just hope that was the case.

They both continued with their cookie decorating. Arashi had attempted to try and help Shu pivot his frosting-covered knife around the curves of the heart, but he refused, not wanting another incident like their dough-rolling one. He got the hang of it soon enough, though.

As he worked, Shu would occasionally glance over to Arashi. He watched as she glided her knife over the small cookie, covering every inch with green frosting perfectly. She was meticulous about the details, Shu noticed, just like him. At one point, Shu felt a little rebellious and glanced at Arashi's face instead of her hands.

Oh, how proud she looked.

She smiled down at her work, occasionally humming to herself in satisfaction. Sometimes strands of hair would get in the way of her line of vision, and she would blow upwards to push it out of the way (and, no, Shu definitely didn't get the urge to tuck it out of her face himself, no way). No matter how long he stared, though, the girl's smile never faded.

Shu thought it was quite pretty.

"Done with this one! How is yours coming along, Itsuki?" The boy looked away as quickly as he could before Arashi could notice his staring. He looked at his half-finished cookie in shame.

"It's, erm-"

Arashi sighed, "And I thought you were the great Shu Itsuki of Valkyrie. Really, haven't you learned how to manage your time better?" Teasing, again.

"I'm sorry." Shu muttered. His voice was so quiet that even he could barely catch it. An apology had slipped out, something Shu hardly ever said aloud. What was he even apologizing to her for?

More fittingly, he supposed, what wasn't he apologizing to Arashi for?

The girl cocked her head to the side,"Did you say something?" Thank goodness, she didn't hear him. Shu would've never been able to live that down.

Shu cleared his throat, "I-I meant to say how ironic it was of you to say such a thing, Knights' little princess." He emphasized the last word over-dramatically.

"What do you mean 'ironic'?! And don't call me 'princess'!"

"I'll call you whatever I deem fit. As you said, I am the great Shu Itsuki, after all."

"You little-!"

Their regular banter continued on. At some point, the two settled for simply hurling insults at each other, most of which could hardly be called "insults" and were more fittingly deemed "nicknames". Even as they quarreled, Shu couldn't help but find it to be a bit fun. It wasn't fun to hurt Arashi, of course. Rather, their more playful banter was what brought him some joy. It eased the tension in the atmosphere and made Shu internally chuckle at the stupid nicknames they'd call each other. He felt comfortable like this, so casual and relaxed.

As they teased each other, though, the cookies were soon forgotten.