31 Dinner Party part 2

After a short walk through a familiar area, Axel knew exactly where they were going but didn't open his mouth, just in case he was wrong.

The closer they got to the store, the more certain Axel was about his guess. It wasn't until they were a couple blocks away did Axel walk next to Sae and whispered, "Sae, are we going to LeBlanc?"

Sae stopped for a second before turning towards Axel with a cheeky grin on her face. She tilted her head in a cute manner and said, "Guess the cats out of the bag."

Axel, however, was stunned the moment he saw Sae's face. To see the usually serious Sae pull a cheeky grin was… an experience, to say the least.

Before Axel could think any further, Sae dragged Makoto next to Axel and smiled as she said, "Makoto, the place that we'll be celebrating at is the place where I met Axel. It's a small cafe called, 'LeBlanc'. I can personally guarantee that the curry and coffee are the best of the best."

Without bothering about her sister, Makoto dragged the half-dazed Axel while she repeatedly said, "Let's go Axel. Come on! Come on! Come on!"

Axel absentmindedly nodded before slowly showing Makoto where the cafe was. By the time they arrived, Axel had finally recovered from his shock.

Walking inside, the trio were greeted by Sojiiro, who was actually in the middle of making some coffee. The smell alone made Makoto happy that they came here as she quietly muttered, "What a nice smell..."

Sae dragged her dazed sister and Axel to a booth before she looked over at Sojiro and said, "Three servings of curry and three coffees please."

With a small chuckle, Sojiro smiled and said, "Coming right up." Before turning toward the kitchen to cook the food.

Suddenly, Sae's phone started ringing. With a bitter smile, Sae apologized as she excused herself while Makoto's mood quickly fell to rock bottom as a small look of sadness appeared on her face for a second before she tried to cover it up.

Axel obviously saw her small look of sadness but didn't know how to comfort her. Mustering up some courage, Axel silently moved next to Makoto and gave her a hug.

It wasn't overly-affectionate or constricting, but it gave Makoto a small feeling of warmth that slowly burned away the loneliness inside her as she closed her eyes and leaned into Axel's chest to enjoy the warmth.

After a couple minutes, Sae came back inside and sat across from Makoto and Axel. Sighing, Sae flopped onto the table and started complaining.

"What don't they get by the word, 'Vacation'!?! Why the hell did they have to call me about where the stupid stapler is!?! They should've just looked for it instead of call me!?!"

Sae started ruffling her hair in irritation while Makoto looked at her big sister with a sad smile.

Seeing that the celebration was falling apart, Axel took a deep breath and said, "Sae, are you okay?"

When Axel stopped speaking, Sae's body twitched before collapsing onto the table. With her arms around her head, she released a tired sigh.

With no better option in his head, Axel reached over the booth and started gently rubbing her back.

While his actions may seem odd, Axel didn't have much of a choice. With his limited experience with people of the opposite gender and comforting them, Axel could only repeat what his mother did to comfort him when he was younger.

Under Axel's gentle touch, Sae softly twitched for a couple seconds before becoming relaxed. The tension left her body, allowing her to rest while being silently reminded of her father through Axel's actions.

She could vaguely remember that during her childhood, whenever Sae felt sad about something, her father would gently rub her back with a smile. Somehow, she would always feel better afterwards.

Using a couple seconds to calm down, Sae sat up with a bright smile on her face. With a cheerful laugh, Sae gave Axel a hug and quietly muttered, "Thanks."

Even though her voice was really soft, Axel managed to hear her. With a small smile, Axel returned her hug and said, "Your welcome."

Suddenly, Axel felt a foot kick him from under the table. In shock, Axel turned and discovered Makoto glaring at him. Sae also noticed her little sisters antics but she only laughed before dragging Makoto into the hug.

Makoto was initially stunned by her sisters actions. However, she slowly showed a huge smile as she laughed and wiped a small amount of tears out of her eyes. Seeing her sister tearing up, Sae's eyes also started to become teary as she held Makoto and Axel tighter than before.

Axel slipped out of their hug as the two sisters hugged each other tightly while apologizing for various things. A sigh escaped Axel's mouth as he felt a hand grab his shoulder. Turning towards the person who grabbed him, he saw Sojiro with a gentle smile while he was holding a tray with three cups of coffee.

With a small nod, Sojiro silently said, "Good job." Before setting the cups on the table. Axel watched as he quietly went back to the kitchen, not even telling them their coffees were ready, so they can have their moment together.

Before he could even have a sip of his coffee, Makoto pulled Axel back into their sisterly hug while giggling. However, she used too much force in her pull, resulting in the three of them ending up on the floor in a pile.

Suddenly, Sae started giggling, which became louder and louder until she was full-on laughing. Her laughter somehow seemed contagious as it spread to Makoto, then Axel and finally Sojiro, who was adding the finishing touches to the curry.

The trio quickly sat at the table and apologized to Sojiro, who waved it off and served them their curry. While the cheerful atmosphere still lingered, Axel quickly said, "Itadakimasu." And started digging into his food.

Makoto and Sae had happy smiles on their faces while a strange light flashed in their eyes when the sisters looked at Axel. When the two made eye contact, it was like they spoke a thousand words before they both clasped their hands like they were praying and said, "Itadakimasu~"

The dinner was silent while the only sound that could be heard was a TV that was showing the news. However, the silence made everyone present feel at peace and happy.

Then, something clicked in Axel's mind. This was one of the things he loved the most about his family. There wasn't a need for words or actions, just their presence alone was enough to make Axel feel happy and loved.

Somehow, silently eating with the beautiful sisters reminded him of his time with his family. Even though they looked and acted nothing alike, they brought a sense of deja vu to Axel as a gentle slowly appeared on his face.

After a couple hours of partying and messing around, Axel and the girls grew much closer than before. Pulling out his phone, Axel saw that it was getting late and knew he should start heading home.

Yet before he could even say, 'Goodbye.' Both Makoto and Sae grabbed him by his arms and started dragging him to their house. Before the party, he might of shook them off and explained that he wanted to relax by himself but now, he smiled as he began walking with them instead of being dragged.