"Shit," was Sakura's first thought to her big revelation to herself.  Her second thought was: I guess this is proof of me being a fucked-up person. 

      She inhaled and exhaled. 

      "This is wrong." she paced around her room--lost in her thoughts--until she accidentally lost her footing and fell to the floor rear-end first. 

     Sakura's first suggestion to herself was to call her mom, who was an expert when it came to these dilly-dallying crushes. 

      But then she remembered that she had never talked to her mother about this.  Knowing Kakono, she would probably freak out about it and broadcast the news to the entire world.  However, Sakura didn't have to specify who it was...right?

     So our silver haired genius quickly fabricated a highly convincing anecdote before dialing her mom's number. 

     Since she rarely ever called her parents, so her mom was very eager to pick up as soon Sakura had pressed the green "call" button. 

     "Kura-chan!!" her mom squealed into the phone on the other line. 

     Sakura couldn't stop herself from smiling; her mom's excitement was infectious.  "Hey, mom.  How are you?" 

     "Just peachy, dear.  But let's talk about you." Kakono paused for a moment before continuing her speech.  "How have you been?  I hope you're eating well...Is the teaching okay?  Do you need a haircut?  Have you met any cool people yet?"

     The girl giggled quietly to herself.  "Slow down, mom.  I've been well these days.  I usually cook for myself, but my friends at Polar Star do a good job at surprising me with their new recipes.  Teaching has been easy as well and I'm planning on stopping by home over the weekend to get a haircut.  As for meeting new people...I may or may not have met special someone a few weeks ago...."

     Kakono fell silent and Sakura was starting to become genuinely worried about her mother's reaction to the news.  "Y-you haven't fallen for one of your students, have you?" the tremor in Kakono's voice conveyed that she was evidently worried. 

     Sakura's eyes widened.  Her mother was spot on, but she couldn't let her know that.  "N-no!  Of course not, mom...that's absolutely absurd.  Quite funny actually." she added as an afterthought as she laughed shakily.  "Anyways, I met him at this café and we instantly became friends.  But then, I realized that I was starting to feel something for him.  He's a really nice and funny person, with a good sense of style when it comes to food too!" Sakura sighed dreamily.  "He's perfect." 

     "Just asking, but how old is he?"

     She fell silent.  "He's 17," she answered after hesitating a moment.  "I'm pretty sure he's told me that." Sakura could feel her mom smile at the other end of the line. 

     "This is perfect, Kura-chan!" she cheered.  "Now we just need to make sure he falls for your charms!" 

     ____________________

     The next day, Sakura woke up early enough to bake enough cups of Panna Cotta for everybody she wanted to visit that day.  She had remembered that mental note to self to bring some Panna Cotta to share with the Aldini twins and she had not forgotten (Yay~)!! 

     After throwing on a pair of jeans and a banana milk sweater, Sakura grabbed the tray of Panna Cotta and headed out the door.  She sighed, looking out at the vast road before her.  "I have  shit ton of walking to do." she muttered pessimistically. 

       Eventually, after about half an hour of getting lost, and another half another of navigating her way to the Aldini's apartment, Sakura found herself knocking on their stylish burgundy door. 

     On the other side of the door, she could hear the twins (mainly Takumi) arguing about who would open the door.  Finally, Isami flung it open and poked his head out.  "N-nakiri-sensei?!" he asked in complete bewilderment. 

     Sakura stifled a giggle.  "I take it that you forgot to check your peephole," she gesture to the tiny lens in the door.  "Before you opened up?" 

     Isami nodded.  "What brings you here, Nakiri-sensei?" he regained his perfect confident composure again. 

     "Well," Sakura lifted up the tray of Panna Cotta.  "I made these for a friend of a friend a few days ago and I happened to think about you and your brother.  So...here I am now!"

     "I see," Isami said.  "Please come in, Nakiri-sensei." he invited, stepping aside to welcome her own. 

     Sakura nodded obligingly, removing her shoes carefully since a teetering tray of Panna Cotta was in her hands.  She followed Isami into the kitchen, where Takumi was waiting.  "Nii-chan, we have a guest!" the younger one exclaimed. 

      "Who is it?" Takumi asked regally, sipping his tea from some valuable-looking china set.  He looked up to meet Sakura's expectant gaze, almost dropping his tea cup as he quickly set it down on the kitchen counter top.  "Nakiri-sensei!" he bowed humbly.  "Welcome!"

      Isami and Sakura giggled.  "Relax, Nii-chan, she's only here to share some food."

      "F-food...?"

      "Right!" Sakura confirmed brightly.  She placed the tray of Panna Cotta in front of Takumi.  "I made these, but you each only get a sixth of what we have in here."

      "Ah, thank you, Nakiri-sensei.  You didn't have to." Takumi thanked, his head bowed low. 

      "Lift your head up," Sakura ordered, slightly annoyed.  "It's getting irritating having to see everybody look at me like some sort of empress."

       "Ah!  Sorry, Nakiri-sensei!" Takumi apologized quickly, lowering his head again.  But then he remembered what she had just told him and looked up immediately.  "Um, how about we sit down?"

     "Good idea, Nii-chan!" Isami praised.  "I'll go get some tea."

________________________________

     Tea with the Aldini's was pleasant.  To Sakura's dismay, they completely forgot about her request and decided to treat her "like some sort of empress" anyway.  The Panna Cotta tasted original, with its characteristic silky texture. 

     The young girl spent a long moment outside of the Aldini's apartment, wondering who should get the Panna Cotta next.  Her grandfather, Nakiri Senzaemon, her cousins, Alice and Erina, or her two besties in the Elite Ten, Kobayashi Rindo and Tsukasa Eishi?  Contemplating via distances, Sakura found that going to Rindo and Eishi's offices were much more convenient than stopping by her grandfather's. 

     After a long walk (yay, exercise!), she knocked on the door as patient and polite as possible.  0.236 seconds later, a characteristically enthusiastic Rindo flung the door open, nearly hitting the younger genius smack in the face. 

     "Kobayashi Rindo!" Sakura scolded loudly, balancing the Panna Cotta tray on one arm before slapping her elder playfully on the shoulder. 

     "Eishi!" Rindo called, paying no mind to the younger one's scoldings.  "Your girlfriend is here!!" The thought that Sakura and Eishi were dating was a common inside joke within Rindo's mind.  And unfortunately, the two friends were the people who heard about it the most. 

     "Eh...his girlfriend...?" Realization dawning upon her, Sakura's face blew up into a not-so-gorgeous tomato red color.  "Friggin' Kobayashi Rindo!" Sakura smacked her friend multiple times again, stomping her foot for added effect. 

     "Fufufu, good to see you too, Kura-chan!"

~i~love~me~

A.N: Hey, y'all.  Hopefully you guys received the little message about my absence.  If not, it's on my profile page so go check it out!!  Yay~~  Anyways, super sorry about dying and being revived again, but most importantly I....am...back!!!  Yes, that's right.  Unfortunately, due to many complications, I'm not sure how long I'll be staying.  For all I know, I could be here for the next three months and completely disappear.  I'll try to remember to confirm my plans by the end of July, before school starts again for me.  Luv y'all~

Word Count: 1,267 words

~Stupid Author~