HPDBC Chapter 69 Dinner for Three
Chapter 69 Dinner for Three
The crisp sound of the spoon hitting the porcelain bowl became the most beautiful background music in the room at that moment.
When the pot of red wine beef, which had been stewing for a full three hours, was served, the subtle, awkward atmosphere of "like repels like" vanished instantly, like morning mist under the scorching sun.
With the aid of that black kitchen knife, this dinner possessed a certain magic that completely relaxed the nerve endings. The beef was tender and flavorful, melting on the tongue with the slightest touch, the rich sauce coating the taste buds, making it impossible to think about those complicated entertainment industry rankings except to focus on chewing.
"Want more?"
Kitahara Shin held a spoon, looking at the two empty bowls in front of him.
"want!"
Two voices rang out at the same time.
The next second, Izumi Sakai and Rie Miyazawa looked at each other and burst out laughing at the same time.
"Here you go, this piece with lots of tendon."
Kitahara Shin ladled a spoonful of food for Rie and added a piece of lean meat to Izumi's bowl. "You'll have the energy to argue with your devilish producer when you're full," he said.
Quanshui took the bowl, her cheeks flushed from the steam, completely losing her usual aloofness.
"Actually... I envy Miyazawa-san."
She stirred the soup with a spoon, her voice soft, "I just saw your new boyfriend on TV. When you faced the camera, you smiled so naturally, like... it was born for you. I can't do that; my palms get all sweaty every time I see a red light."
Rie was about to put a piece of carrot in her mouth when she heard this and paused for a moment.
She put down her spoon, her eyes dimming slightly, but they quickly brightened again.
"That was an act."
She pointed to the corner of her mouth, "The angle, the curve, even how many teeth to show—it's all been trained. I'm like a wind-up doll. But after listening to your songs…those lyrics, you wrote them yourself in the hallway, didn't you?"
The spring water nodded.
"That's great."
Rie rested her chin on her hand, gazing at the spring water, a genuine longing in her eyes. "Being able to sing out my own thoughts, to say 'This is my song.' But me, I have to listen to my mother's arrangements, even about what to wear and what to say tomorrow."
"Then write it down."
Spring suddenly spoke, its tone serious, "If you don't want me to say it, then write it down on paper. Even if you don't let others see it, at least you won't forget it yourself."
Two girls who originally lived on parallel paths unexpectedly found common ground on this night filled with the aroma of food.
They are all people trapped in this bizarre and chaotic circle, bound by the shackles of "expectations" and "control".
This dining table, and the man in an apron, cutting baguette bread for them with a helpless expression, became their only refuge at that moment.
"Alright, stop flattering each other."
Kitahara Shin placed the sliced bread in the middle, "It'll get cold if we don't eat it now."
After the meal.
The TV in the living room was playing a rerun of "Tokyo Love Story".
On the screen, "Kanji Nagao" is awkwardly trying to comfort the crying Rika. In reality, Shin Kitahara is leaning back on the sofa, listening to the voicemail on the answering machine with a headache.
"drop--"
"I'm Akina. The snow in New York is so heavy... Oh, right, I watched the first episode. That silly expression was pretty good, Maruko-kun. But... next time you betray Rika and dare to take another woman to eat udon, I'll throw you into the Hudson River. That's it, bye."
Although the voice was tinged with laughter and was referring to content from a TV drama, Kitahara Shin still keenly detected a slight grinding of teeth.
He subconsciously touched his nose.
His gaze swept over the two figures who were insisting on helping wash the dishes in the kitchen, and then he looked at the answering machine that was still flashing.
Previously, his system inventory contained items full of violence, such as "Thug's Gloves" and "Mad Dog's Severed Finger".
And now...
[The Diary of a Faded Idol], [The Chef's Knife of the Midnight Diner]...
Unbeknownst to many, these cold, impersonal equipment slots seem to be accumulating more and more incredible "bonds".
The water was running loudly by the kitchen sink.
Rie skillfully wiped a plate dry, glancing furtively at the spring water rinsing away the foam beside her.
"Hey, Sakai-san."
Rie lowered her voice, a fleeting glint of girlish cunning in her eyes.
"Hmm?" Quanshui focused intently on dealing with the oil stains on his hands.
"Does your senior often cook for you?"
Rie asked casually, as if she were talking about today's weather.
"N-No!"
Quanshui's hand trembled, and he almost slipped the bowl into the sink.
Her face instantly turned red to her ears, and her speech involuntarily quickened, "It's just... I worked too late last time, and I was really hungry, so... it just so happened..."
"What a coincidence..."
Rie drew out the last syllable and nodded thoughtfully.
Could it be that this "sister with the spring water" is the protagonist of that scandal?
She looked at the spring water, so flustered that it forgot to rinse off the bubbles, and then glanced back at the man sitting on the sofa who knew nothing about it.
Will they happen to remember to celebrate a single charting? Will they happen to know what the other person likes to eat?
This rock-and-roll sister seems even more clumsy than me when it comes to relationships.
"So it seems I'm the first person to taste the red wine braised beef made by my senior?" Rie muttered under her breath.
The spring water stopped moving.
She bit her lip, and although she didn't say anything, she noticeably increased the force with which she washed the dishes.
Just then, a golden system notification suddenly appeared on the edge of Kitahara Shin's retina.
[Multiple high-level bond partners detected simultaneously]
[Life Skills Achievement Completed: Caretaker of the Heisei Goddess]
[Achievement Reward: Special Title (When worn, all food prepared by the host will double the affinity bonus for a specific female character)]
[Whether or not to wear it?]
Kitahara Shin's eye twitched slightly.
He looked at the two figures in the kitchen, each lost in their own thoughts, and then thought of the songstress in New York who was sharpening her knives.
Doubled?
Isn't it chaotic enough already?
"hide."
He chose to refuse without hesitation in his heart.
This is hardly an achievement; it's clearly a Damocles' sword hanging over our heads.
"Come out when you've finished washing the dishes; there's fruit."
Kitahara Shin closed the system interface and shouted towards the kitchen, "After you finish eating, everyone go home quickly. I still need to memorize my lines for tomorrow."
"Okay—"
The two voices rang out again in unison.
-
After the two girls left, the room became quiet again.
Kitahara Shin walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window and drew back the curtains.
In the early spring of 1990, Tokyo was still a dazzling sea of light.
Roppongi's searchlights continued to tirelessly sweep across the night sky, and the red taillights of cars on the highway formed a flowing artery.
But beneath this glamorous facade, the cracks are already shocking.
A newspaper on the coffee table was blown open by the wind, revealing a chilling line of black text in the corner:
The Nikkei index experienced a black January, plummeting by over 2000 points in a single month, leaving brokerage offices packed with customers.
Although young people on the street were still talking about Rika Akana's smile and queuing up to buy expensive Tiffany necklaces.
But unseen by them, the colorful soap bubble known as "bubble" was actually popped during the recent New Year.
The stock market crash was just the first domino to fall.
Soon, land prices will collapse, banks will go bankrupt, and the days of waving tens of thousands of yuan in taxis will recede like the tide.
"The wind is getting cold."
Kitahara Shin pressed his hand against the cold glass, watching this last glimmer of light.
The real harsh winter is coming.
That was a "lost era" that lasted for thirty years.
Countless families that were just laughing will fall apart, more and more people will go crazy for money like Rie Miyazawa's mother, and more and more people will be abandoned for being old-fashioned like the owner of that Western-style restaurant.
But he remained calm.
He glanced back at the dining table.
The aroma of food and the warmth left by the two girls still lingered there.
In this era on the verge of collapse, he holds his own chips: put options and US dollars, a small house of his own, and enough delicious food to last him a long time.
that's enough.
This year, on the eve of the Heisei era's economic downturn.
Most people are still dreaming.
Meanwhile, Kitahara Shin had already repaired his Noah's Ark and had begun selecting the first passengers to board.