'What were you doing in my daughter's room ?' Sunako's father repeated, more fiercely.

Kyouhei took a step back, and soon met the closed door that separated him from Sunako's room. He knew how strong and dangerous her father could be.

' It… it's not what you think…' he stuttered, terrified. His throat was so dry he couldn't even gulp.

He was still looking for an excuse that might prevent him from ending up in a cemetery when a providential voice came out of nowhere.

' Oh honey you're home early, I'm so happy!'

Sunako's mother ran to her husband and hugged him tightly. Kyouhei couldn't help but blush at the sight of this display of tender feelings.

'You should have warned me, I would have fixed you something to eat.'

'Who is he ?' Sunako's father asked vehemently, ignoring her remark.

'Who's who?' Keiko replied while waving at Kyouhei to entice him to run away. He took the chance to flee to his room as quietly as possible.

'This guy!' Sunako's father turned to show Kyouhei, but he was gone.

'He?'

'See? There's nobody!' the mother exclaimed with a tinge of relief.

'He must be in Sunako's room! Sunako!' He shouted and stretched his hand towards the door handle but before he could reach it, his wife stopped him.

' Don't!' She almost screamed, 'you know you're not allowed in here!'

' But…'

'No means no. I told you there's nobody here, don't you trust me?'

' Of course I do, But I could swear I saw...' he started but interrupted himself, confused.

'Your eyes must be playing tricks on you. When was the last time you had a good sleep?'

'Now that you mention it, I feel tired,' the man replied, yawning unconsciously.

'Go to bed,' the mother said peremptorily, 'I'll fix you something before you sleep.'

'You will fix mesomething?'

Suddenly, Kyouhei was the last of the man's concerns.

'Well,' his wife replied, 'I'll heat something in the microwave.'

Moments later, Keiko was knocking at Kyouhei's door. He opened it with a heart full of the hope that she was bringing breakfast but was disappointed when he realized she had come empty-handed. She looked a bit embarrassed.

'I think it would be better if you could stay somewhere else for a few days,' she started. 'My hubby is an adorable teddy bear, but he can be, well, overprotective with Sunako. He went to her school so many times to deal with boys who would talk to her that some people suspect him to be a yakusa. I think for your own safety, you should stay in the cottage I lived in before I got married. You'll find it very cosy.'

'Are you kidding me?' Kyouhei exclaimed in disbelief. 'I thought you were supposed to protect me! And… and I'm not afraid of your husband!' he added unconvincingly.

Kyouhei was beginning to panic. If he was away from Sunako, all of this, everything he had accomplished so far, would have been pointless. And he was just starting to get the hang of it. He was sure Sunako was less wary now.

'Kyouhei,' Keiko said with a reassuring tone, 'Mina left you under my care and responsibility. Do you think I would leave you unguarded? However, my hubby and I haven't seen each other for six weeks now. We need some time alone. Don't be afraid,' she added, 'you'll be fine, I promise.'

She winked at him and kindly asked whether he could leave within an hour after having given him a sheet of paper with a long list of directions and a few childish colored drawings to find the way to the cottage.

Then she added with complicity: 'Anyway, you might not need all this if you ask Sunako to lead the way.'

That last remark left Kyouhei with a huge grin on his face and he started to pack rejoicing at the idea of the trip.

A few hours later, though, he wasn't smiling anymore. Lost. He was completely and hopelessly lost. That damn Sunako! If only she had agreed to show him the way! Once again, she had rejected him. She slammed the door on his face. Kyouhei took a look around him. Where had he made a mistake? Up to some point, Keiko's directions were easy to follow. Up to the entrance of the forest in fact. But damn, how could she expect him to recognize one tree from another inside the forest ? Even with the help of a few cute drawings.

He re-read the instructions: 'After the gigantic knotted oak tree, turn right, then walk for about five minutes in that same direction, at some point you'll catch sight of the cottage.'

Did that oak tree even exist? Had she mistaken it with another ? He had the feeling that he had combed every single inch of the forest, but still the cottage was nowhere to be seen, and it was now snowing lightly, enough to prevent Kyouhei from seeing very far in the distance.

He was genuinely exhausted, and cold, and starving too. He really should have eaten something before he left the house but Sunako's rejection had made him furious and eager to be somewhere else. He sat down leaned on a tree. He would just close his eyes, and rest for five minutes. He just needed five minutes and everything would be better.

When he woke up, he immediately wondered whether he was dead. If he wasn't in Heaven, Heaven couldn't be different from this. He was warm, and an amazing and mouthwatering smell was hitting his taste buds. He opened his eyes and looked around him. He was lying on a large green soft sofa, near a fireplace, hence the warmth that made him feel so peaceful and comfortable. He was apparently in a cottage. Could he have reached Keiko's former home and not remember it ? He looked around to check whether he could find a still life that Sunako's mother had talked about when she had described the place to him. A still life with an incredibly shiny orange in it, she had said. It was there, hanging from the wall opposite the chimney. How did Kyouhei get here?

He tried to push the blanket that was covering him and stand up, but he had no strength left. As soon as he removed the blanket, he felt as if all his limbs were freezing. He was so cold. How could he be so cold ?

A voice he very well knew interrupted his mental mumbling.

'Don't move, you barely escaped death, you're not gonna pass out now! Hold on a minute, the food's coming.'

Kyouhei closed his eyes and sighed. So he was dead. Sunako would never cook anything just for him.

'There, it's ready!'

He heard kitchen utensils clinging against a bowl, and approaching steps.

'Sit down,' she ordered.

He was fully awake now. Sunako had just cooked something for him. Sunako had brought food for him. He eyed and smelled the meal suspiciously. This looked like soup, but for what he knew, she could try to poison him.

'What is it?' he asked.

'Can't you see? It's negi-miso-yu*. It will warm you up. But if you don't want it, I'm not forcing you.'

She was about to take the dish away, but Kyouhei's stomach growled furiously at the smell. He had not realized how starved he was.

He grabbed the bowl and began to eat avidly. This soup was delicious. The scallions were unusually tasty. She must have chosen the fresh ones. Exactly what he needed right now.

Soon before Kyouhei felt satiated, the recipient was empty and the boy was about to ask for some more soup when Sunako approached the bowl with a ladle full of the precious liquid and poured generously.

Once the second bowl finished, Kyouhei laid back down on the sofa and tucked himself in. Sunako went away to do the dishes. He could guess from the noise she made that she was furious.

'Did… did you save me?' he asked tentatively.

The strength with which she put the pot away made him jump.

'If not me, who? I knew you would get lost! Mom hasn't been here for years, how could she confidently give you these old directions? Gosh, I really thought you were dead when I found you lying there, and you would have been if I had arrived five minutes later! I should have waited maybe,' she said after a while, 'you would have made a beautiful corpse.'

'How can you say something like that!' he exclaimed, furious.

'But then, how could she give you these spots? The oak tree was cut off three years ago!' Sunako said absently.

'Are you kidding me?! I've been wandering around for hours!'

'I know! Believe me, when she told me she gave you directions, I freaked out… although I didn't know you'd be stupid enough to let yourself be caught off-guard by a tiny snowstorm!'

'What…?' Kyouhei asked as realization sank in. 'Are you saying you came to find me on purpose… to save me?'

'It's not as if I had a choice ! Mom threatened and bribed me. She told me she would cut my pocket money for an entire month if I didn't come here. But I need that money, I'm broke and the next Chainsaw movie is out on Saturday. And she told me that if I stay for a week, she'll buy me the full-size replica of Freddy Krueger. I've been waiting for it for months!'

Her eyes were sparkling at the thought of it. She became so excited that Kyouhei thought she would choke from it. Despite this, he didn't forget what he wanted to ask her.

'And… did you know I would be there too?' asked Kyouhei again, just to make sure he had heard correctly.

'Well, it's not like I came for you. She just brought money up.

Kyouhei sat up straight, leaned on the back of the sofa and looked in her direction. She noticed him but wouldn't meet his eyes. And carried on obstinately washing a bowl that must have been sparkling.

'So, she bribed you, and it worked?'

'Well, she kind of pushed me out of the house. She always wants to be alone with Dad when he comes back home.'

'And how did you know where to find me ?'

This time, Sunako turned to him, her eyes frowned.

'Are you serious?!'

'What?'

'I mean, you were not even half a mile away from the cottage. I'm surprised you didn't even see it at all!'

'That's crazy,' he muttered. 'To think I nearly died…" he shivered.

After a pause, he added: 'So, I supposed you're going back home now that I'm here, safe and sound.'

'And miss the occasion to win my own precious Freddy Krueger? No way! And I already went back once home, it gave me nightmares for weeks!'

She put the bowl away and hung the wet dish towel.

'I'm tired. I'm going to bed.'

'Sunako.'

'What now?'

She repressed a scream. Kyouhei had come close to her, so close she could almost touch him.

'Do you realize that you signed for an entire week alone with me?' he said with a smirk. 'And I'll make sure it's an unforgettable one for both of us.'

*Simple to cook, yet nutritious. In Japan, people drink this soup to ease cold symptoms. /recipe-negi-miso-yu-scallion-miso-soup/