Dream Bakery - Completed April 7, 2018

Chapter Eleven:

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Janet left early the next morning, to Kengo's disappointment. He wandered downstairs alone and sat beside Molly on the couch, not yet hungry. Instead of eating, he watched her play video games, keeping his announcement to himself until he could get his family all together and tell them at once.
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By the time his sisters came down for breakfast, Kengo decided he was hungry after all and joined them, choosing a plate of French Toast over their cereal.
"So did you see any aliens last night?" Kimi asked, eyes bright with anticipation of juicy gossip.
"No, though Cousin Cassiopeia was working," Kengo answered.
Ruby shook her head. "She doesn't count. What was it like?"
Kengo was only too happy to describe the restaurant and the food until the two teeneagers had to go to school. He hadn't gotten much sleep last night, so after doing some chores, he decided to go back to bed for a few hours.
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Molly took a break from her video game to dress, then went into the kitchen, intending to make lunch, only to find the stove was broken. So she set her plans aside to fix it rather than using the one in The Cakery. It would have tobe fixed at some point and it was already creating a mess.
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Meanwhile, Masami took a book on Gourmet Cooking outside to read, hoping to learn some new techniques and restaurants. She felt sore and tired, in no mood to go into work today, choosing instead to work from home.
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Her first assignement was to watch the cooking show for several hours, so she got comfortable on the couch after finishing with the book and turned to the cooking channel.
Molly joined her soon after with a plate of garlic noodles, and the two of them enjoyed themselves discussing the cooking show, the host, and whatever else came to mind.
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Inspired by a few hours of watching the show, Masami decided to try another gourmet dish. "Chicken parmigiana...yes, we've got all the ingredients, that's good. Though I think I'm going to get some fresh produce and spices at the next spice festival for next time," she said aloud.
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Ruby came home still wanting some space from her family. Instead of speaking to anyone or starting her homework, she spent several minutes playing with Nova and the laser pointer, though she was hungry.
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With both Molly and Kengo napping, only Masami joined the teenagers at the dinner table. She and Ruby ate while the twins got an early start on their homework, all four talking over each other.
From long practice, Masami was able to follow the flow of the conversation, advising Kimi on her homwork, applauding Ricky's efforts on a test, and listening to Ruby's story.
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Molly came down in time to help Kimi with her homework, letting Masami focus on Ricky.
Ruby tuned both groups out, growing tense again, just wanting to eat and get away on her own for a while.
"Can you explain this to me again, Mama? I think I'm missing something," Ricky said.
"Sure. Let's start at the beginning, one step at a time," Masami suggested, taking him through the lesson again, pausin gto make sure Ricky understood.
"Good job, Kimi. You're better at history than I was," Molly praised.
"Thanks, Mom. Guess I just really like dates," Kimi said, pleased by the praise.
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Masami stepped way to watch another cooking show, giving Ricky a chance to finish his homework on his own, though she was still nearby if he needed more help.
Ricky assured her he could dot, and Masami decided to trust him.
Ruby finished her dinner, and despite herself, decided to do her homework near her siblings, figuring if they helped each other, she would finish sooner and could get out of there for a while.
Molly moved around the table, checking on everyone's work. "Way to go, Ricky! Ruby, remember to write neatly, don't rush. Do you need some help?"
"Yes, please, Mama. What does this mean?" Ruby asked, pointing to a passage in her book.
Molly moved back to her side, reading the lines to herself before explaining them to Ruby.
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"I'm out of here! I'm going for a jog, I'll be back before dark, promise," Ruby announced, slapping her book shut and jumping up from her chair.
"You'd better," Molly called after her.
Ruby didn't bother to answer, rushing up to her room to change into her workout clothes then rushing back down and out the door. She instantly felt better, her mind clearing and her body relaxing, which was a relief after being so tense for so long.
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Kengo came downstairs in search of a snack while Ruby was out. He grabbed a slice of blue confetti cake and joined Kimi on the couch, listening to both the TV and stereo at the same time. "I see Mama got you hooked ont hat show," he said.
"How do you know?"
"Cause it's her favorite. Mom likes a different one better," Kengo explained.
"Oh." Kimi nodded. "Well, it's good."
"Sure is," Kengo agreed.
He told her about his engagement next, and was nearly strangled and deafened by her resultant hug and squeal.
Of course that brought everyone else currently in the apartment rushing to find out what was happening, and Kengo shared his news as well, enjoying temporarily being the center of attention.
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Once the excitement had died down, Molly went into the basement to workout for a while, deciding to start with the punching bag. There was nothing like having your teenage daughter pat your belly and asked if you were pregnant to motivate a person to get into better shape, she thought wryly. At least, she hoped Ruby had only been joking.
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Masami took a brief nap and woke feeling energized, which gave her the foolish idea that she was up to using the treadmill. Only twenty minutes of running convinced her otherwise, and she got down, feeling sore and tired. Realizing how late it was getting, she grimaced. "Better go to the spice festival before it closes, or I'll lose my chance to speak to the vendors," she told herself. She left directly from the basement, not bothering to go inside and change. She hadn't been exercising long enough to really work up a sweat after all.
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Ricky had gone to bed several hours earlier, not long after finishing his homework and haivng a quuck dinner of garlic noodles.
He woke while Masami was gone, and while the rest of the household slept, he went down to the basement for his turn on the treadmill. Being young, he lasted several hours despite his lack of experience before fatigue forced him to stop very early in the morning. Yawning, he barely remembered to turn off the stereo before heading back to bed until long after the sun came up.