Heaven's Senses

I

~~~~Hikari~~~~

In a little shopping district called Sumire-Dori, there's a small shop that sat in the center. A humble place know for its great food and wonderful family staff. It was the crowning jewel of Sumire-Dori. It was my family's place: The Yukihira Family Eatery, a traditional Japanese diner where people can hang out and enjoy delicious food.

"Yo, Pop!" I shouted from the kitchen bar, where I had just gotten done serving a couple of our regulars.

My dad, Joichiro Yukihira, turned to me with a big smile, "What's up, Hikari?"

"Have you seen Soma anywhere? Mayu's here toe taste test the food battle."

"Take a whiff, Hikari. You'll find him."

I sighed and rubbed the bottom of my nose to remove some of the scent blocking gel I wore. Immediately I was bombarded with the scent of grilled squid and peanut butter. I covered my nose to try and block out the horrific smell.

"Oh, seriously?! Peanut butter and squid!" I shouted, "It smells like freakin' death! Where is that idiot!?"

I rushed outside to the back door and saw my big brother sitting in front of a charcoal grill, grilling squid with peanut butter slathered all over them. 

"Disgusting." He groaned and laughed, eating the squid he had just grilled, "These were never meant to go together. I'm like a genius. Squid tentacles with peanut butter... This is so nasty."

"You aren't kidding, big brother. I can smell that horrible concoction from inside the diner." I said chuckling as he turned around with a tentacle hanging from between his teeth.

"Hey, sis, what's up?" Soma asked.

"You know exactly what's up, you slacker." I said, "You got a cooking battle inside. Mayu's already here and waiting for your lazy butt to start cooking."

"Okay, okay, I'm on my way." I watched as he took the headband from his wrist and tied it around his head, "Well, let's do this. Joining in on the fun, Hikari?"

I laughed and waved my hand, "Not today, Soma. But good luck beating Pops. You're gonna need it."

We walked back into the diner and Soma, began cooking alongside our father.

~~~~Soma~~~~

The scent of fried rice wafted throughout the diner, making the customers more hungry with every passing second. I was cooking to my best with Hikari silently judging me from the other side of the diner. I could tell that even when she was looking, she was still judging, coming up with a number in her head based just on scent and hearing.

A few minutes later, the fried rice was ready and several of the customers were standing by the serving deck, waiting for the judge to taste both dishes. The judge was one of our classmates from school, Mayumi Kurase.

Dad took out the band holding his shoulder length hair into a ponytail and smiled as he gestured to his prepared dish.

"Please, enjoy." He said.

"Bon Appetite, my lady." I said doing the same thing with my headband and gesturing to the food.

Mayu took a bite from each of our dishes and quickly ate up almost all of the fried rice.

"This one here!" Mayu declared, pointing to Dad's dish, making him the winner. The customers all cheered and I could hearing Hikari laughing while she tried to balance a tray of drinks in her hand.

"Guess you needed more luck than I thought, big brother." Hikari teased.

"Looks like you still got some more learning to do, eh Soma?" Dad added.