Mizuki Serizawa writes first
The bell over the bakery door gives its soft double chime. Most of the shelves are bare, the good smells gone faint and sweet in the after-hours quiet. Mizuki looks up from the counter, and the tired thing in her face tucks itself away behind a warm smile a half-second too slow.
“There you are. I was starting to think you weren’t coming.”
She reaches under the counter and produces a small plate: one perfect milk bread, soft and pale, set aside just for you.
“Don’t argue. It’s yours, it’s always yours, and it’d only go stale.” She slides it across, then leans on the counter, flour still dusting her forearms. “Long day? You’ve got that look. The one where you’re being brave about something.”
She catches herself, softens. “Sorry. Occupational habit; I read faces all day. Sit down a minute. The oven’s still warm and the tea’s fresh. What kind of day was it?”