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 Posted: Sun Oct 31, 2010 12:11 am
"Too difficult?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, grinning. When Jianyu insisted she was unique, she had to look away, feeling a moment of rare humility. She knew that he meant it platonically. Some part of her, of course, twinged, as if wishing to hear it in a different context. Yue took a deep breath, exhaled slowly and pushed past it. She turned, flashed Jianyu a smile and laughed when she saw his expression over the vegetables.
"You're right, Yu. I don't really know a lot about rawhide. I guess I should stick to wine," she said, grinning. "One would hope you know these things by now, Yu!" Not that Yue was exactly forthcoming about a lot of her fears and more genuine feelings, but most of her personality had been laid out for Jianyu. She had, since that first day, showed him whatever of herself she could.
The herbs smelled delicious. Yue tipped the stirfry sauce into the pan as Jianyu stirred the vegetables around in the wok. She set the bowl down and turned back to her own project, which was breading the meat. "It won't take long, once you're done cooking the vegetables, Yu! I mean, wait, maybe we can put the meat in with the vegetables, but I really don't know..." She turned back to the meat, frowning. She cracked the eggs into the dish which had held the sauce for the vegetables, previously, and whipped them until they were frothy. Next, she took out the cornflour and sifted some into a second dish. She took the meat and dipped it into the egg, then the cornflour, and set it aside when it was evenly coated.
"Our poor parents," Yue mumbled, wincing. "Jianyu, if they disown me and I have to move away, you should know that I have adored you all along, and will miss you when I am raising chickens in the woods." Yue sighed and picked the meat up on its tray, bringing it over to Jianyu where he was cooking.
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Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 11:53 am
"And if my lovely mother and father decide to throw me into the street, at least we'll have stories to tell when we grow old." Jianyu said in mock seriousness as he gathered up the food, dumping them onto clean plates in what he hoped looked like a decent arrangement. Yue had cooked the meat by now, and it at least smelled good - hopefully it would taste just as well. "Come on, Stargazer, we have lingered too long - our parents must think we have escaped out of the back window or something to avoid all of the prying questions we are sure to get, seeing as how my mother loves to know everything about everybody even if it is of no use to her."
He said the words flippantly, but the truth was that Jianyu highly respected his mother. Some might have believed her to be too intrusive at times, but Jianyu had never thought her to be so. Qian Ehuang was a kind and generous woman who was only concerned with the safety and well-being of her children. Of course, some of that concern meant that Jianyu had to answer questions he might rather not answer, and at times he became quite exasperated with her, but it never lasted long.
Gathering up the already prepared dishes and balancing them precariously on his arms, Jianyu nodded towards Yue and exited the kitchen, heading back towards the living room. He managed to get most of the way there before stumbling, a few of them sliding dangerously, but Liwei leapt up, smoothly taking the dishes and setting them onto the table.
"A waiter now, are you son?" he said, winking as he sat back down, picking up his cup of tea and taking a sip. "My my, how versatile you have become, Jianyu."
Jianyu eyed his father, who shook his head and laughed. He moved to sit in an open chair, distributing plates as they waited for Yue to bring the rest.
"Chishio, Yowai." Ehuang said, leaning against her husband. "You take such good care of your family. I can see that quite clearly; Yue was raised well. She is a lovely girl."
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Posted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 10:42 pm
Yue couldn't help but laugh. The idea of Jianyu's loving parents ever throwing him into the street was so ridiculous she could barely conceive of it. She watched him dump the food onto the plates rather unceremoniously, pursing her lips. "We can be free spirits, roaming the land," she suggested, returning to her own task, taking the meat out of the heat. It was golden and crispy. She added it to a lemon sauce and put it on serving dishes. "Your mother is extremely observant," Yue mused aloud, "sometimes that makes me nervous. She looks at me just like Yowai looks at me, and I'm pretty sure I can't get away with anything after those looks." Yue sighed, falsely dramatic. It was true, though; Yowai and Ehuang were so attentive to every detail. Yowai had the added experience of Yue's youth, watching her daughter grow and change and develop her own personality. No matter how much Yue was able to deceive anyone else, Yowai always knew. She never said anything; she let her daughter live according to her own goals. However, Yue knew that she could never lie to her othermother.
Yue was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she didn't see him put the dishes on his arms and wobble off. She winced, peeking after him, watching him stumble. Thankfully, his father was fast and caught the dishes. Yue shook her head, and picked the dishes of meat up, along with extra sauce, and balanced them expertly to the table. Naturally, since she worked at the Ichi-Koi, she was able to carry the dishes. It was something she was good at, at least, which made it even more amusing to her that Jianyu had insisted on bringing some of the other dishes into the room.
"I guess he's charming enough to be a waiter, but I'm not sure I'd bet any money on his balance," Yue chimed in, smiling. Her face was warm, flushed. Was it more than usual? It may have just been from the heat in the kitchen, but Yowai couldn't help but watch her closely. Yue took a seat at the table after making sure everyone had a drink, including Jianyu if he wanted one. Her face grew even warmer when Ehuang complimented her to her mothers. She loved them, Chishio and Yowai.
"Those are kind words," Chishio said, "and I believe you deserve them in return, for the kind heart and calm strength fostered within your son, no doubt by your collective efforts." Chishio bowed her head shyly. She blushed like her daughter, then, and folded her hands in her lap. She couldn't seem to look up at Ehuang and Liwei, embarssed still. Yowai would have spoken for her, but was glad Chishio had answered. Yowai raised her cup.
"May I propose a toast? To our unity, as families and friends, and to the care and love chanelled into Yue and Jianyu," Yowai said. "I would also like to toast in the hopes that this food is edible," Yowai added, her eyes sparkling in mischief as she watched her daughter's face.
"I'm sure it tastes good, Yowai..!" Chishio chimed in, quickly. Yowai clasped her free hand on her significant other's shoulder, reassuring Chishio. Yowai and Chishio had a weight, a gravity, a warmth to them that Yue thought she envied, in that moment. Ever since she was little, they were together, always being strong where the other may have felt weak. That perfect balance seemed sacred and unobtainable for someone like Yue.
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Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2010 2:00 pm
Jianyu held the glass of wine in his hand, raising it to his lips and taking a small sip as he slid a sideways glance to his parents. Ehuang and Yowai were conversing easily with Yue's mothers; a fact that made him very pleased. They were at ease; comfortable and content with their newfound friends, their son, and his best friend.
It was new to Jianyu; he did not have many friends as close as Yue was. Though he knew many, he was close to none, a tradition that he had practiced for several years. He was not used to the comfort that another human being could bring, did not understand the concept of giving one's life for anyone that was not considered family. He had first realized that his heart could be given to someone else when he had met Bataar, and then Huang-Fu, and now Yue. Jianyu was still learning exactly how it felt to care that much about another person, but each day was something new. He was noticing this as he let his eyes move from each person in the room to the next, from his mother, to his father, to Chishio, to Yowai, and finally to Yue.
"To our family," Jianyu said, lifting his glass. "And to our dearest friends."
He smiled. To everyone our hearts have connected with.
"May we all live on in peace and harmony for the rest of our days together."
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