Comet Dragon, breaking into the gravity field

"No," he said softly, imitating his movements. "The gift is a surprise."

"Is that so...? It'll be really sweet if you add some sugar, huh?"

Seeing that she was still about to add sugar, Ritsu Narose hurriedly stopped her.

"Generally speaking, for beginners, if they feel like they need to add more ingredients, it often means that the ingredients are sufficient."

After teaching this little trick that sounds a bit metaphysical to Maomao, Ritsu Narose discovered that the progress on Takamatsu Touma's side was exceptionally smooth.

"Your movements look very skilled. Has Deng ever learned how to make a cake?"

"Well, I've learned a little bit..." Under the eager gazes from the people beside him, Gao Songdeng shrank his head shyly, "But I've never been able to make the cake base well."

That was a long time ago. If Gao Songdeng remembered correctly, he was just a little kid in kindergarten at that time.

At that time, she lost a friend because she gave away a watermelon worm as a gift. In order to comfort her, her mother taught her how to make cakes, hoping to divert her attention.

As it turns out, this approach is probably successful.

Perhaps because of this, Takamatsu Deng did not fall into complete depression because of that experience when he was young.

She still remembers that her mother once learned how to make cakes with her when she was free. Unfortunately, neither of them was able to create a cake as beautiful as the one in the tutorial.

Just the cake base took these two laymen several days to figure out.

Listening quietly to Takamatsu Deng slowly telling the story of her past, Naruse Ritsu mixed the wheat flour and egg white in the bowl.

After pouring the prepared batter into the mold, he casually asked, "Lenna-chan is planning to make matcha cake. What flavor does Deng want?"

Faced with this decision for the first time, Gao Songdeng recalled the pictures of cakes he had seen. Those colorful cakes with exquisite patterns seemed out of reach, while only the simplest fruit cake seemed approachable.

"Fruit cake...is that okay?" After whispering his thoughts, Takamatsu Deng realized that there didn't seem to be any fruits in the kitchen.

Just as she was about to change her tune, she heard Naruse Ritsu mutter to herself, "Fruit...how about pineapple and strawberries?"

"Eh? Is it really okay?"

"Of course, it will take some time to bake the cake anyway, so I can use this time to go out."

Wings suddenly appeared behind Ritsu Narose. He changed his apron and started looking for suitable fruit production bases.

Not long after, Ritsu Narose disappeared into the distant sky. As the cake base in the oven gradually expanded and changed color, Ritsu Narose returned to the kitchen, holding a pineapple in each hand and a large bag of strawberries wrapped around her tail.

With her superb knife skills, she quickly cut the pineapple into seventeen pieces and sank them into salt water, while the task of washing the strawberries was left to the other two girls.

The cake base was still expanding, so Ritsu Narose simply adjusted the matcha flavored cream that Lenai strongly requested.

After tearing open the package of matcha powder and pouring it out, a thick dark green smoke filled in front of Ritsu Narose, as if an evil potion experiment was being carried out.

Smelling a familiar smell, Kaname immediately threw the strawberry over here and looked at the green smoke.

The next moment, the cat's fair cheeks were stained with matcha powder.

She gently poked her cheek with her fingers, and when she felt the powdery touch on her fingertips, Kaname suddenly stretched out her pink little tongue to lick the matcha powder on her face.

But the powder on her cheeks was obviously beyond the range of her tongue, making her efforts in vain.

She suddenly recalled the scene of a cat chasing its tail, and Ritsu Narose had to use a towel to wipe the powder off her face.

However, the cat probably didn't like the forced rubbing of the towel on her face. After Naruse Ritsu's face was also stained with powder from pouring matcha powder, she decisively stretched out her claws and poked Naruse Ritsu's face.

Kaname put the matcha powder on her fingertips in her mouth, and her expression was like a cat inhaling catnip.

While criticizing this unsanitary behavior, Naruse Ritsu carried the cat to the water tank and asked her to clean it. Returning to the cake base that had not yet been topped with cream, he saw Takamatsu Deng looking at him curiously.

"What's wrong? I'm so angry that I'm crying."

Hearing Naruse Ritsu's doubts, Takamatsu Deng shrank back like a frightened animal, and then whispered, "I... am a little curious..."

"What are you curious about?"

"Um, matcha powder."

Looking at the bag of green powder in his hand, Ritsu Narose was also very curious why Lenai liked this thing so much.

"If Deng wants to try it, he can."

After he finished speaking, he saw Gao Songdeng close her eyes, slightly open her thin cherry lips, and wait quietly for him to put the chopsticks into her mouth.

"..."

Ritsu Narose would not admit that she had any bad images in mind.

When Takamatsu opened her eyes again, she saw Naruse Ritsu with his back to her, looking a little awkward. He maintained this strange expression until the cake was finished.

Looking at the matcha cake, fruit cake, cupcakes, and the nuclear explosion cake and pork belly cake, which were both failures but each had its own unique appearance, a unique sense of satisfaction emerged in Takamatsu Deng's chest.

"If you want to eat it, there's more here. It's made by Lenai-chan herself, so keep it for your family."

Naruse Ritsu took out the packaging box and ribbon. Since the matcha cake that Lenna was going to make wasn't very big, wrapping it up wasn't very difficult.

"Here," Naruse Ritsu placed the six-inch cake in Kaname Rakuna's hands. After confirming that the ribbon on top would not come loose, he said goodbye to her. "Be careful on your way."

Without leaving in a hurry, Kaname Rakuna, holding the cake in both hands, looked at Naruse Ritsu and Takamatsu Touma again, and suddenly asked, "Aren't you going?"

"Where?"

"my home."

"No need," Naruse Ritsu politely declined the cat's invitation and explained, "Runa-chan should just stay with your family at this time."

Recalling what her grandmother had said to her in the morning, Yao Lenai didn't say anything else, but just nodded.

That night, when the clock was about to reach eight o'clock, Yao Lenai heard a noise at the door.

A rustling sound came from afar and drifted towards the dining table. The girl, who had been sitting there since she came home, finally changed her resting position on the table and sat up slightly.

Seeing that the lights were still on in the kitchen, Tsuzuki Poetry Ship—the boss of RING frowned.

She remembered that she had told her granddaughter in advance that she would be home late, but when she came back, she saw that the little girl had forgotten to turn off the lights in the restaurant again.

The stern aura caused by work had not disappeared when she returned home, but the frown on the old man's face was instantly replaced by another confused emotion when he saw Yao Lenai sitting on the chair and the cake on the table.

She remembered that Lenai's birthday was not today.

Near the dining table, only Yao Lenai was sitting there - Yao Lenai's mother had not returned home yet due to work, so there were only the two of them at home at the moment.

"What is this doing?"

"Gift."

"A gift?" She repeated her granddaughter's words, but her doubts remained unanswered. "Who is it for?"

"Grandma's birthday present."

The light above the dining table was still on, and the green matcha cake stood out in the glow. Kaname's grandmother shifted her gaze and saw another candle on the table, with a small box of matches next to it.

The old man, whose body showed no signs of fatigue, suddenly closed his eyes and gently pressed his forehead with his hand.

Suddenly, she heard a faint friction sound in the air. Opening her eyes, she saw the candle inserted in the center of the cake burning silently in this quiet space.

As she got closer to the table and looked more closely, she realized that this matcha cake, full of personal touch, was definitely not something bought from a cake shop.

Its shape and the rich aroma of matcha reveal the true identity of its creator.

"Happy birthday."

Seeing the flickering candlelight reflected in the golden and blue eyes, the old lady, who was respected by others outside, could no longer maintain a stern appearance in front of her family. She finally showed a gentle smile that was rarely seen in other people's lives.

ask for leave

The work and rest schedule these days is unbearable. I can’t stand staying up late anymore (sad)

Sitting in front of the computer, I just want to sleep

So I took a leave to catch up on my sleep

zsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbdzsbd

48. Gravity Unfolding

Whenever Gao Songdeng sees the small items he has collected in the room, he thinks of the past.

When she was young, her kindergarten teacher once said to her mother, "Mrs. Gao Song, your child doesn't seem to want to play with other children. It really makes me worried..."

It is difficult for children of that age to remember trivial things happening around them, but she miraculously remembered the scene when her mother came to pick her up from school that afternoon.

She has been having doubts about the matter ever since.

She clearly tried to make friends and even gave her favorite watermelon worm as a gift to the other person, but the final result was not satisfactory.

She became even more troubled when she saw her mother's apologetic expression when she talked to the teacher.

Why can everyone find suitable friends to play with, but she is always alone?

The situation did not improve at all after I entered primary school.

When elementary school students are about to graduate, souvenirs such as yearbooks are always very popular.

Although Takamatsu Deng wrote her name on other people's lists, she did not take out the "friends list" she had prepared.

After all, "classmates" and "friends" are two different things, right?

On the day of graduation, the thin roster did not record anyone else's name except Takamatsu Deng's own.

When I got home and asked my parents, they didn't have any special thoughts about it - because the memories of elementary school were a bit too far away for them.

People often say: A person does not need too many close friends, no more than five is enough.

So, since she doesn’t even have a like-minded friend, is she outside the category of “ordinary people”?

When she entered junior high school, she heard her Chinese teacher talk about writers writing poems to express their feelings and giving them to their friends. Does this mean that she can also imitate this behavior?

However, when she did so, she found that there was no one to whom she could give the gift.

This reality did not change until Toyokawa Shoko took the initiative to invite her to join the band. However, the band was like a dream, and soon because of her, the dream was shattered and the team fell apart.

I will never meet a true friend in my life.

Until that day came, she had always held on to this thought...

The voices of Ritsu Narose and Rina Kaname talking passed through the living room and drifted into the kitchen.

After finishing the cake, Kaname Rakuna went home first, while Takamatsu Touma remained busy in the Naruse family's kitchen. A strange feeling crept into her heart as she heard the faint, unrecognizable voices from the other side.

Carefully decorating the top of the cake with fruits, she saw that the bright red strawberries looked particularly cute against the white cream. She suddenly stopped and fixed her eyes on the serrated knife beside her.

When Ritsu Narose saw Maomao off and returned to the kitchen, he saw that Deng Takamatsu had already cut a piece of cake and was waiting there quietly.

"If you don't mind, can I try it?" Gao Songdeng held the cake he made nervously. His mood at the moment was no less than that of the exam.

"Of course. I'm actually looking forward to it."

Taking the cake, Ritsu Narushe cut a piece of cake vertically with a fork and put it into his mouth.

The soft texture of the chiffon cake blooms in your mouth, and the sweet aroma combined with the cream is light and not too greasy.

Seeing Ritsu Narose gradually change from savoring in small bites to enjoying in large mouthfuls, a special joy and satisfaction blossomed in Takamatsu Touma's heart.

Although her current life already made her satisfied enough, when she saw other people getting along with Lu, the envy she felt was like the rising tide, which inadvertently reached her ankles.

Although he envied that kind of close relationship, he also found it difficult to imitate the actions of Aine or Suyo...

The little animal's gaze was unmistakable, its glaring gaze fixed on Naruse Ritsu from beginning to end. After finishing the fruitcake, he gently asked Deng if he had anything to say.

Gao Songdeng was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head to look at the cut piece of cake in front of him, with a nervous and timid expression on his face.

"I...I want to take the cake home..."

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but for some unknown reason he changed his tone.

It is important to let mom and dad taste the cake you made yourself, but Deng has something equally important in his heart.

"Um, Ritsu is coming too?"

"I don't need to..."

"wrong--"

The voice suddenly became much more decisive, and the courage that had been suppressed for a long time suddenly popped out in Gao Songdeng's heart like a spring.

Facing Naruse Ritsu's surprised look, she clasped her hands tightly and said, "This is the cake Ritsu taught me to make. I must express my gratitude!"

"Actually, I've already received your thanks. There's no need to be so formal."