Kai’s Valentine’s Day

…Ughhh. Kai stared up at the ceiling, sleep having evaded him. It’s been a struggle sleeping this week; I’ve been feeling so restless. Kai rolled over in bed. And rolled again. And again. Alright, guess I’m awake. With a big yawn, Kai slid out of bed and began his morning routine. Oh, right—today’s a new soap day. Having finished inspecting his options, he washed his face and patted it dry. The Sunrise soap seems fitting… I like it; it’s refreshing. With a freshly cleaned face, Kai had cleansed himself of his lingering drowsiness.

Ka-Clink. Popping his head out into the hall, he didn’t see the source of the sound. Must’ve been Kara heading out—maybe she’s grabbing a matcha. I guess I could start getting things ready for the day. I mean, it’s Valentine’s, I gotta make sure it’s perfect. Kai looked around the living room and assessed that he would need to vacuum and wipe down the table.

Vwoooom, shhhhh, vwoooom, shhhh. With the vacuuming complete and the table wiped down, Kai surveyed the room one more time, just in case. He squinted at the TV. Maybe I should dust the screen real quick. And the TV stand. Might as well fluff the couch pillows and fold the blanket too. With a quick spritz of air freshener, Kai had finally finished cleaning the room. Wiping sweat off his brow, he figured he should probably go ahead and take a shower and get dressed before Kara got back. Oh! Can’t forget to stash this… Kai grabbed a star-shaped box from his room and tucked it under the couch.

…

Just as Kai finished buttoning his vest, he heard a knock on his door. Finally! I wasn’t sure what I was going to do next. I’m feeling way too antsy to just sit—even to work on music. He turned with a relieved smile on his face to greet Kara as she walked in.

“Oh hey, morning, Kara,” he beamed at his sister. That’s a weird look on her face. Is something on my shirt? He looked down at his vest and shirt to see if maybe he missed a piece of lint with the lint roller earlier.

Clap, clap! Kai looked up, startled by the sudden noise, to see Kara’s cheeks rosy.

“You ready to get cookin’?” Instead of waiting for his reply, she headed back out into the hall and toward the kitchen, knowing he would be right behind her. After turning on VM’s February Playlist, the pair began preparing for brunch. If someone else had been watching, they would have thought they were witnessing a choreographed dance. Kara and Kai twirled and spun around the kitchen—opening cabinets, mixing ingredients into bowls, baking, and cleaning dishes. It was quite the show. As he mixed the ingredients for his cinnamon rolls and poured them into the tin for baking, he wondered if he made the right choice for their brunch. Maybe I shouldn’t have used a new recipe. What if it doesn’t turn out? I wanted to do something a little different than my usual rolls, something that made a statement. Maybe I should’ve tested it first.. I guess I’ll just have to cross my fingers. He slid the rolls into the oven and closed the door, peering in at his work.

…

Brrring! Kai put on the oven mitts he’d left out for himself and opened the oven. As the heat escaped, so did the sweet scent of his specialty cinnamon rolls. As he turned to place the rolls on the cooling tray, he caught Kara practically drooling from the sight and smell.

“Kara, close your mouth, or you’ll drool on the food!” Kai added the finishing touches to his rolls, a perfectly creamy frosting and a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg, as Kara put her completed yogurt parfaits in the fridge.

“Alright, ready to set up the living room?” Kara began grabbing the heart-shaped string lights she had purchased out of the box. With Kai’s help, they strategically hung them around the room and turned them on. The red lights added a soft glow to the room—the perfect touch.

As Kara and Kai appreciated their work, a whirlwind arrived.

“Hey, guys! Sorry I’m late—actually, I think I’m on time? I brought chocolate banana pancakes! Wait... did I bring the bananas? I brought the bananas. Okay, okay, we’re all set! Oh my goodness, what is that smell? It’s heavenly!” Mia leaned over the cinnamon rolls, taking in a deep whiff. “Kara, did you make these?”

“Actually, that was me,” Kai raised his hand sheepishly.

Mia looked up at him, trying to hide her surprise. “I’m impressed, baker boy! These look awesome.” Kai blushed and turned around to fiddle with the heart lights again, unable to meet her eyes. Thank goodness… now I just hope she likes the taste. Hearing the clinking of silverware, Kai returned to the kitchen to fix his plate. Eyeing the pancakes Mia made, he added a couple to his plate. Mia made these, huh? Think I’ll sneak a quick taste test. He tore a small piece off and popped it into his mouth quickly. Mmm! So this is Mia’s cooking. Kai smiled to himself and took a seat in the living room, ready to dig in.

“Oh! Wait one second, I’ll be right back.” Kara quickly got up and disappeared from the room, leaving Mia and Kai awkwardly waiting. After a minute, she returned with something and placed it on the table. What’s that? Wonder if that’s what she left this morning for. Kara whipped the cover off and smiled with pride as she watched Mia and Kai’s reaction.

“Woahhhh!” Kai and Mia exclaimed in unison. Their eyes lit up as they took in the gorgeous flower bouquet in front of them—pastel pink tulips paired with stunning white jasmine flowers.

Now’s my chance. It won’t be weird that I got something too since Kara did. “I actually have something for us too,” Kai brushed a loose piece of hair from his face and reached down under the couch, pulling out the gold star-shaped box. Kai opened the box to reveal chocolate-covered strawberries and cherries. “I know Kara likes chocolate-covered strawberries, but I figured since I usually see you drink cherry lattes, maybe you’d want chocolate-covered cherries? If not, it’s no biggie... I just thought—” Mia cut Kai off by giving him a hug. Oh. Kai’s face flushed.

Wiping the big smile off her face to play it cool, Mia averted her eyes and admitted, “It’s perfect, baker boy.” The tension left Kai’s shoulders, but now he could barely form a sentence.

“Uh, yeah, no problem. Let’s eat!” he stuttered as he turned on My Adorable Cosplayer and began to dig into the pancakes. As they watched their show, Kai kept an eye out for when Kara and Mia were done eating. Once he was satisfied that they were finished, Kai gathered the plates and brought them to the kitchen to clean. Without asking, they paused the show for him while he cleaned. As he rinsed the dishes and placed them into the dishwasher, Kai couldn’t help but smile. They liked my cinnamon rolls! All the food turned out great. I just hope every holiday from now on can be like this.