I wasn't sure why it was happening but I liked the idea of hanging with my friends outside of the walk to school. Almost every day was the same for me. Go to school then go home. The new changes in my routine, though slight, have been very nice but I worried they wouldn't last. Ryou had outgrown me once before and there was no reason it couldn't happen again. Also, there was only a few months left of school before graduation. I could see the end coming. Graduation was the deadline.

I was still feeling very negative by the end of the day but the thought of fun with my new friends added a smile to my face. I met up with the girls at the gate as usual and we walked back towards home. I was able to text my mother at lunch about our plans and she even seemed happy that I was going somewhere to have fun. Just then I realized someone had spoken to him. "What? Sorry, I spaced out and didn't hear you," I said apologetically.

"I asked if you had any ideas for our little party?" Koro asked again. "I want to make some cookies and Ryou has some movies we can watch. Anything you want to do?" I thought about it for a second. I had been thinking about this event all day but not once did I ask myself what I would like to do. "Maybe play some games. Video games, or board games, or maybe a card game." Ryou nearly screamed in a gaspy exclamation as though she had just had an epiphany. Koro and I stared at her, both slightly surprised by the sudden noise. Ryou just smiled back at us.

"I know a game we can play. I also have some board games, too. Not sure if I have a deck of cards, though." Ryou continued to smile as though she had a fiendish plan. I wasn't sure what to make of it and just went with it. I was sure I would find out what she was planning eventually. The remaining walk to Ryou's house was a discussion of what kind of cookies to make. Everyone had their own ideas and the discussion continued even when we turned onto Ryou's street, as though it was an everyday occurrence. This actually made me feel good as no one made it weird despite this being a new event.

It had been at least 7 years since I was last at Ryou's house. As we got closer, I recognized it immediately. It looked exactly like I remembered, even down to the flowers in the boxes under the front windows. Ryou's mother loved planting flowers and would make sure the yard was filled with color. It seems nothing has changed since there were still rows of flowers planted all around the edges of the front yard. Raised flower beds were also apparent closer to the house, which I remembered being added the last summer I was here. The lack of change was comforting and I was able to let some of the stress go.

After the three of us walked in the door, Ryou's mother, Josie, appeared as we removed our shoes. "Welcome home, Ryou. How was school?"Josie stood there quietly waiting for a reply for only a moment before noticing me standing there. Her face was blank for a moment before lighting up with the realization of who was standing in front of her. "Aki, I haven't seen you in years! You have grown quite a bit since then. How is your mother?"

Before I could reply Ryou interjected. "Mom, not now, we have activities planned. Is the kitchen ready?"

Josie answered while still looking at me, "Yes, dear, it's all ready for baking. I left out everything you need on the counter. Please clean up any mess you three make." Ryou nodded as her mother turned around and headed down the hall towards the kitchen. Ryou followed along with me and Koro right behind. I was more than a little shocked at how much was on the counter for us to use when he walked into the kitchen. A large bag of flour sat next to a large bag of sugar and various types of toppings and ingredients for cookies. Many colors of sprinkles and candies littered the area with a stack of baking sheets sitting neatly near the oven.

"How many cookies did you think we were going to make, Ryou?" asked Koro, who seemed slightly overwhelmed at the state of the countertop. I didn't have anything to add and just looked over at Ryou who was smiling as big as possible.

"However many we want to make or until we get bored," Ryou stated as she stepped in front of the oven to turn it on for preheating. "I wanted to have a variety and to be as creative as we could. Most of the ingredients will last a long time so even if we don't use them all today we can store them for another time." Ryou then went to the fridge, pulled out a dozen eggs, and added them to the pile.

I had never made cookies like this before. My mother would buy them or make them herself and I couldn't ever remember them being made from scratch. Luckily, there were instructions printed out and placed near the ingredients. Within ten minutes the first batch of cookies had been mixed, rolled, placed on a baking sheet, and put in the oven. As a group we decided chocolate chip should be the first cookie we made since it's a classic and all of us liked them. Once the cookies were in the oven, we started on a new batch. After an hour, we had produced 5 dozen cookies, with each batch being a different kind. Koro and Ryou began discussing the possibility of more cookies and what ingredients to use when Koro noticed me standing by the counter staring at them.

"Maybe we should be done with the baking portion of the evening, Ryou. We have many things to do before the day is over." Ryou followed Koro's gaze to Aki and nodded knowingly.

"Let's clean up real fast and then enjoy some cookies with a movie. You know the movie options so have Aki help you pick." Ryou said to Koro. Koro quickly listed several movie options as I nodded along. Once all the titles were listed, Ryou handed us each a rag to help clean the counter.

I wasn't sure which movie I wanted to watch. I had seen them all at least once so there was no obvious answer. "You and Ryou can pick the movie. I have seen them all before so I will be fine with whichever one you two want to watch." I spoke while cleaning and didn't even look up to see if they heard me.

"Ok, I know the perfect one then," Ryou replied. We quickly finished cleaning the kitchen and put away all the ingredients just before Josie walked into the kitchen.

"Wow, you guys did a great job cleaning up. There is some popcorn in the pantry if you want some for the movie." Koro's face lit up at the mention of popcorn and walked straight to the pantry to search for it.

***

The smell of fresh popcorn filled the house, masking the smell of baking that had once filled the air. I sat down at one end of the couch positioned in front of the TV. I chose the right end of the couch because I preferred leaning on the arm rest as I sat so as not to be too close to anyone that might sit next to him. I didn't want to invade anyone's personal space unless invited to do so. It was also next to a small table that provided a place to put my drink. Koro sat at the other end and placed her drink on the matching table before grabbing a remote from the coffee table to turn on the TV. Ryou put the disc into the DVD player under the TV and grabbed the remote before sitting down between Aki and Koro. I was hoping it would be her that sat there.

As she sat down, the scent of her hair briefly washed over me. The smell of apple blossoms was just the same as when they were kids and played together outside her house. My memory flashed to when we were eight and would run around the yard trying to catch the butterflies that were common among Josie's flower beds. The memory came and went in an instant but it brought a smile to my face.

"What are you smiling at? Did I sit on something?" Ryou asked, looking around her seat. I looked over to her as the smile faded.

"No, I caught the smell of your hair and noticed you still use the same shampoo from when we were kids." My explanation caused Ryou to look away and down towards her feet as her cheeks became slightly flushed. I thought I might have embarrassed her but saw she was smiling a little. The room was silent for a moment then Ryou seemed to bounce back from her shyness and pressed play on the remote. She went to put the remote on the coffee table but it was so full of snacks and cookies that she quickly gave up and handed it to Koro who placed it on the table beside her. I grabbed a couple chocolate chip cookies from the coffee table and settled back into my corner of the couch.

Everyone remained silent as the movie played. It was one I knew well. I went to see it twice in the theater and bought it almost immediately when it was available on DVD. Though billed as a romantic comedy, it had something for everyone with a few action scenes and a surprisingly compelling story. I had never watched it with others, though, and was interested to discuss it with Ryou and Koro. I looked over at the two girls about halfway through the movie and they were so engrossed in the film they barely blinked. I was similarly entranced the first couple times I watched it. I had always hoped to watch it with a girlfriend some day. It always felt like a great movie to cuddle up on the couch to watch. I turned back to the TV and took another bite of a cookie and thought I saw Ryou looking at me out of the corner of my eye but dismissed it as my imagination.

By the time the movie ended, more than half the food had disappeared from the coffee table. No one had said a word since the movie started and now that it no longer filled the room with sound I felt things had become awkward. Josie walked into the room, breaking the silence. "How was the movie? Do you need more snacks?" She looked down at them smiling.

"We still have plenty, Mom, but thanks," Ryou replied quickly. The sudden interaction seemed to release the tension in the room.

"Are we going to watch another one?" Koro asked. Ryou walked over to the TV and grabbed the stack of movies.

"Maybe we should pick one at random. I will hold two in each hand behind my back and Koro can pick a hand." Ryou quickly hid them all behind her and shuffled them between her hands.

"Right hand." Koro said.

"Ok, Aki, you pick between these two. Pick a hand." Ryou kept the two movies from the hand Koro picked hidden behind her and shuffled them a little between her hands.

"Right hand again," I replied. Ryou brought the chosen movie out to show everyone.

"Oh, that's a good one," Koro exclaimed. I had to agree. I enjoyed that movie when I first saw it but I had only seen it once when it first premiered in theaters. I was having a hard time remembering much about the plot but I knew I definitely enjoyed it.

Ryou turned around to put the movie in and placed the case next to the DVD player. "Does anyone want a blanket? It's getting a little cold in here." Ryou paused to look at Koro and me. We both nodded in reply and she walked into the hallway and out of sight. I noticed Koro was looking at me after Ryou left the room in search of blankets.

"What? Do I have chocolate on my face?" I asked, feeling concerned.

"No. Well, yes, but that's not why," Koro replied. I grabbed a napkin and wiped around my mouth as Koro continued seemingly unconcerned about the chocolate. "Don't blame yourself for the silence. I saw that look on your face when you mentioned the shampoo. You looked slightly terrified but you did nothing wrong." I looked back at Koro with what I assume was a puzzled expression. I had no idea why she felt the need to say anything but was glad to hear I wasn't at fault, despite still feeling like I may be the cause. Koro opened her mouth to say something else but Ryou walked in with blankets and Koro immediately stopped and went back to looking at the TV.

I was still confused but Ryou's sudden return distracted me. Especially when I noticed the blankets she held were actually one big blanket. "I couldn't find small individual blankets but this big one should be more than enough for us all to share." Ryou seemed pleased with herself and her explanation and began unfolding the blanket. I was surprised to see how big it really was and loved the vibrant royal purple color. It was longer than the couch and seemed to be mostly square because we turned it a few times to situate it and it seemed to be the same no matter the orientation.

As we all settled in again, I felt a little less awkward. Koro's comment, though somewhat cryptic, was a sort of relief to me. The blanket was also very warm and amazingly soft, providing a new level of comfort to the situation. Ryou started the movie up again once everyone was settled in and cozy under the blanket. I felt a little less nervous since Koro spoke to me and having a blanket to hide under was nice. All of us sat silently watching the movie as the sun began to set, briefly bathing the room in an orange glow before falling below the horizon.