Capítulo 65: Evenly Matched in Appetite
Once the grill reached the right temperature, Izumi Aimi joyfully placed a slice of pork belly on it. The sizzling sound of the meat as it cooked, combined with the rising aroma, teased their taste buds.
How could any middle or high schooler in their growing years resist such a tempting scent? Izumi Kotomi also picked up some meat from the plate and placed it on the grill, listening to the pleasant sizzle as they waited for the pork belly to cook.
It was odd—Aimi usually didn't like eating pork belly. The only exception was when it was grilled. According to her, the only way she liked pork belly was when it was grilled. Even if it was prepared as braised pork, she wasn't a fan.
Kotomi could relate. Every time their mom made braised pork, Aimi would specifically pick out the fatty parts and give them to her sister, opting to eat the lean parts herself.
Kotomi wasn't particularly fond of the fatty parts of pork belly, but she could eat them if necessary. However, Aimi was different—she couldn't stomach even a bit of fat. So, every time they had braised pork, if Aimi accidentally grabbed a piece with fat, she would naturally hand it over to Kotomi to handle.
"Aimi, do you want me to bite off the fatty part for you?" Kotomi asked, taking a sip of her oolong tea, enjoying the refreshing coolness.
Aimi shook her head and replied, "No need, Onee-chan."
"Huh? Don't you dislike the fatty part of pork belly?"
She used to avoid it, so why the sudden change?
"I do dislike the fatty part, but grilled pork belly is different. The mix of fat and lean meat when grilled is really delicious!"
Indeed, with grilled pork belly, the heat melts away some of the fat, making it crispy and delightful. That's why Kotomi enjoyed grilled pork belly so much.
"I see. Here, eat it while it's hot." Kotomi nodded in understanding and used her chopsticks to place a piece of grilled pork belly onto Aimi's rice.
In the Izumi household, it was common to enjoy grilled meat with a bowl of white rice halfway through the meal.
"Mmm! So good! This is the flavor I've been looking forward to all day at school! I'm completely satisfied!" Aimi's eyes narrowed in delight, forming charming crescent moons, as she bit into the meat, savoring the taste.
"I thought I was full after having two yakisoba rolls at school, but the moment I smelled the grilled meat, I got hungry again."
Kotomi picked up a piece of sweet grilled chicken skin and enjoyed its mild sweetness in her mouth.
She then grabbed some lamb and slightly grilled onions from the grill, savoring the unique, juicy sweetness of both the lamb and onions.
Grilled meat, hotpot, and meat buns—these are the foods that can easily bring satisfaction.
"By the way, Aimi, the meat platter you ordered is really good. You have quite a knack for picking dishes," Kotomi said as she ate a piece of grilled tenderloin with her rice.
"That's because I ordered the most expensive and best one."
"Mmm!" Kotomi was taken aback. No wonder the meat tasted so exceptionally good—it even felt like high-quality meat.
It turns out it wasn't just her imagination; it really was premium meat!
Ah… I can almost feel my wallet aching.
What is this pain?
It's the pain of watching my money slip away.
Oh well, the meat's already on the grill, so I might as well focus on enjoying it rather than worrying about the cost.
While the Izumi sisters were enjoying their delicious grilled meat, in a quiet corner of the restaurant, a short-haired girl in a black beret lowered her hat slightly to obscure her face. She then opened her phone's camera, zoomed in on Izumi Kotomi, and snapped a few photos.
Click, click, click—
In an instant, several close-up photos of Izumi Kotomi enjoying her meal appeared on the girl's phone.
As she looked at Kotomi's blissful expression in the photos, a faint smile of satisfaction played on her lips.
How cute… If only I could be the one sitting across from you, sharing a meal with you, she thought to herself.
Then she got up and walked to the counter, where she said to Sakura Adachi, "Excuse me, I'd like to pay the bill for table 13. The grilled meat was delicious."
"Thank you for your kind words. Will you be paying with cash or card?"
"I have a membership card. Here you go."
Sakura Adachi took the membership card, swiped it, and the computer displayed the cardholder's name.
"Ms. Megumi Kato, right? After this transaction, your card balance will be 5,400 yen. Would you like to top it up now?"
"No need for that at the moment," Megumi Kato replied softly, her eyes occasionally glancing back at Izumi Kotomi, who was sitting not far away.
Just a little more patience… Tomorrow, she'll be all mine. Megumi kept telling herself this.
"Alright, your payment has been processed successfully. We look forward to seeing you again," Sakura Adachi said with a smile as she handed back the membership card.
Megumi Kato took the card, left Anjima Yakiniku, and removed her black beret as she walked home.
Meanwhile…
Gulp, gulp, gulp—
After finishing the last sip of her oolong tea, Izumi Kotomi and Izumi Aimi finally felt full and satisfied.
"I'm stuffed," Aimi said, patting her belly with contentment.
"Aimi, your appetite is catching up to mine."
They had ordered a lot of grilled meat, but the two of them finished it all. Not only did they eat all the meat, but they also polished off three bowls of rice.
By the way, the rice at Anjima Yakiniku comes with free refills.
After paying the bill, the two sisters left Anjima Yakiniku and headed to a convenience store to buy some juice and snacks before heading home.
A rare weekend like this called for staying up late to truly enjoy the precious time off.
And how should they spend the night?
By watching a movie together!
Kotomi had just bought a 4K monitor, so tonight was perfect for watching a blockbuster!
"Hey, Onee-chan, which cola are you going to buy?"
"Obviously Pepsi!"
"Huh? Coke tastes better. No way, we're getting Coke!"
"Tonight, I'll make you understand how great Pepsi is, even if I have to spoon-feed it to you!"
Back at Anjima Yakiniku…
After seeing off the last customer, Sakura Adachi stretched lazily and rolled her neck to relax. She lowered the shutter to avoid any more customers coming in. After cleaning up, she and Shimamura would leave through the back door.
"Shimamura, do you need help?" Sakura asked as she walked into the kitchen.
A chestnut-haired girl standing by the sink turned around and said, "It's alright. I just need to finish cleaning the cutting boards, then I'm done."
"What about these dishes? I'll help you out. You're not great at washing dishes, right?" Sakura said as she stepped forward and started helping Shimamura clean the dishes.
Shimamura smiled sheepishly and then joined Sakura in tidying up the kitchen.
"By the way, I saw a text from Hino. She's getting married," Sakura said suddenly while washing the dishes.
"Huh? She's getting married? Why didn't I get a message?" Shimamura was surprised. Hino Akira was one of her longtime friends, and now that she was getting married, Shimamura was only just finding out.
Even Sakura knew before she did…
"That's probably because you keep your phone on silent while you're in the kitchen!" Sakura teased.
"That's probably it…" Shimamura realized, pulling out her phone from the back pocket of her pants.
When she unlocked her phone, the first thing she saw was the message from Hino Akira.
"Hino really is getting married. It feels like so much time has passed since we last met, but at the same time, it feels like only a few weeks ago. I can't believe the next time we get in touch, it's for her wedding," Shimamura said, reflecting on the message.
Their most recent meeting had been several years ago.
It was a chance encounter on the street, years after they had both graduated from high school. That day also happened to be Shimamura's birthday.
They hadn't seen each other since.
"But who's Hino marrying?" Sakura asked curiously.
"I don't know. There's no hint in the message," Shimamura said, looking at her phone.
Hino's message only mentioned that she was getting married and invited them to her wedding, but it didn't say who she was marrying.
[Congratulations! We'll definitely come to the wedding, Sakura and I. By the way… who's the lucky person you're marrying?]
Shimamura typed this reply and sent it to Hino Akira.
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