[🌟] - ever the playful spirit, barry attempted to peek over kouki’s shoulder; to catch them slippin’ but found they already anticipated this as their arms covered whatever they made. he huffs jokingly but retreats to his work without a compliant- barry partly did that to distract kouki from seeing what he was holding!
a quizzical eye ran over what he had so far. he had alot of time to spare and kouki vocalized their need for more time as well, giving barry a chance to let his creative side show. only, the more he looked at the rice squares the harder it was to visualize the details.
ah! whatever! abstract art was a thing, right? so barry tackled right into it, discarding pieces of ripped seaweed he wasn’t satisfied with and sticking the ones he liked on. sure it didn’t have precise detail, but it had the makings of some Frankenstein-esque riceball.
pure mad creation. he let out an evil chuckle to match with his genius plan.
it didn’t take long for him to be satisfied with how it looked even though there were only two striking details. three onigiris for three scarf besties: selective, but still madly shredded seaweed made up the hair and choice cuts from various vegetables held some resemblance to the scarves they wore- pink ham for hikari, pale pickled radish for kouki, and the skin of a cucumber for his own. if it wasn’t for the color variations, none of them would have been distinguishable
he was finished long before kouki, but he took some time to sprinkle sesame seeds and other seasoning for that mouth-watering flavor! cleaning his hands in the sink once more was the proverbial, crossed the finish line moment and he perked up when kouki declared their finish as well.
“ I guess I’ll start us off, yeah? “ barry brandished his paper plate with all the acting of a performing masters chef and a dramatic ‘drum roll please!’.
with his previous chef’s persona back on, barry did his trademark wink, finger gun, and a tsk and gently laid the plate in front of kouki.
“ I give you~! Riceballs with the striking resemblances of only-the-coolest-kids-known-in-Sinnoh named, Hikari, Kouki aaaaand!,” he pauses, before declaring. “-Jun! It’s to keep the theme consistent.” He quickly adds with only a tiniest hint of a blush.
Finally it’s time to show what they’ve made! Usually at this part in a cooking show there’s a lot of anticipation for what the judges will say and who will be eliminated... but honestly, that pales in comparison to this.
Kouki nods eagerly when Barry offers to go first. They had no idea what to expect, since they hadn’t peeked over even once. Whatever it was though, it was sure to be amazing. Barry wasn’t one to do things halfheartedly.
A wink and a fingergun, with a tsk to boot ( is this going to become a habit? ). This time around, they can’t help but laugh--- though it’s more of a short giggle.
The reveal of the riceballs has Kouki stunned. It’s the three of them! The little colorful ‘scarves’ is what tips them off, along with Barry’s announcement. That’s so adorable! It’s funny how they both ended up doing something revolving around their trio. They really are connected, huh?
“Aw, Jun.” They smile at the use of the other’s given name. “You really outdid yourself, I love it!” Here come the dimples. When this whole baking session started they never thought it’d go down this direction but they’re so happy it did. Being the big sap they are, they’re absolutely touched! Maybe they should exchange meals like this more often.
“I’ll have to take a picture of this before I eat it.” Not only to save forever but also to send to Hikari.
The onigiri is oddly shaped and the decoration is certainly ‘avant garde’ but since it’s something their friend made, it’s automatically better than any they’ve had before. Not that they’ve tasted it yet... hopefully it’s good in that regard!
“My turn, then? I can’t eat yours with my arms covering this so... here you go!” Kouki stands up straight, putting their hands aside to reveal their chocolate and peanut butter Sinnoh starter sandwiches. Next to the plate is the two jars of spread for Barry to take home. “I didn’t mean to but it matches yours, huh? It’s us and our starters.” They point at the two plates as they speak.
