Awkwardness Between them
570 Words
CHAPTER 5
The kitchen lights finally came back.
Unfortunately for Leanne’s sanity.
The moment the room brightened again, she and Kai immediately jumped apart from each other like they’d been caught doing something illegal.
Even though technically—
Kai had only caught her from falling.
That was all.
Totally normal.
Probably.
Leanne quickly looked away while fixing her apron nervously.
Meanwhile Kai aggressively stared at the oven like it personally offended him.
“…The cookies are probably done,” he muttered.
“The cookies almost died earlier.”
“…Don’t remind me.”
Leanne bit back a laugh.
The kitchen suddenly felt strangely small now.
Too quiet.
Too warm.
And every time she remembered Kai’s arm around her waist—
Her heartbeat became embarrassing again.
Kai coughed awkwardly while opening the oven.
“…Can you pass me the frosting bag?”
Leanne nodded quickly.
“Yeah.”
Their fingers accidentally brushed when she handed it over.
Both of them froze instantly.
Then immediately looked away again.
Silence.
Very awkward silence.
Kai suddenly spoke without looking at her.
“…You laugh a lot.”
Leanne blinked.
“That’s random.”
“…Not really.”
He carefully focused on decorating pastries while speaking quietly.
“You laugh more here than when I first met you.”
Leanne stared at him slightly.
Oh.
That caught her off guard.
Kai noticed things like that?
“You noticed?”
Kai shrugged awkwardly.
“…You looked intimidating at first.”
Leanne gasped dramatically.
“Excuse me?”
“You still do sometimes.”
“That’s so rude.”
“But now you smile more.”
Leanne suddenly became weirdly shy.
Kai kept decorating pastries calmly, though the tips of his ears were slightly red again.
“…The club suits you,” he added softly.
And for some reason—
That small compliment affected her more than it should’ve.
Before she could answer—
The kitchen door suddenly burst open.
“WHY DOES IT SMELL SO GOOD IN HERE?!”
Chris stormed inside dramatically while Carl and Ren followed behind him carrying lantern decorations.
Leanne nearly dropped a tray.
Kai immediately stepped away from her.
Chris narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
“…Why are you both acting weird?”
“We’re not,” Kai answered too quickly.
“Very suspicious,” Ren muttered quietly.
Carl looked between them calmly before noticing flour all over the floor.
“…Did something happen?”
Leanne immediately answered.
“I almost slipped earlier.”
Chris gasped loudly.
“YOU ALMOST DIED?!”
“I did not almost die.”
Kai sighed tiredly.
“She slipped because someone spilled flour everywhere.”
Chris looked offended.
“…Why are you looking at me?”
“Because it was you,” Ren answered immediately.
Chris placed a hand over his chest dramatically.
“You accuse me without evidence.”
Carl pointed silently toward the white flour handprint on Chris’s blazer.
Silence.
“…That proves nothing.”
Kai threw a towel directly at his face.
“Go clean the tables.”
Chris laughed loudly while dodging.
The kitchen quickly filled with chaos again.
Carl started helping organize dessert boxes.
Ren checked the festival checklist quietly.
Chris stole strawberries every five seconds until Kai threatened him with a spatula.
And somehow—
The awkward atmosphere disappeared naturally.
But every now and then—
Leanne accidentally glanced at Kai.
And every single time—
He looked away first.
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