She brought out something Luke had never seen before.
It was served in a cylindrical container, sliced horizontally to reveal the contents. Rice packed inside, but this rice had a distinct plant fragrance to it. Not just regular rice. Something else mixed in. That explained the smell from earlier.
Luke leaned closer to examine the container. Not glass. Not plastic. Not ceramic. It was made of wood. Hollow wood, smooth on the inside, like it had been carved from a single piece.
Yuki had mixed in chunks of avocado, some kind of pickled greens he didn't recognize, sesame seeds, and a sauce he'd never tasted before.It was surprisingly delicious.
"This is a secret Takahashi family recipe," Yuki said, watching him eat with that pleased smile.
"I've never had this before," Luke said between bites.
Yuki laughed softly. "That's why it's called 'secret.' "
Luke kept eating, but something felt off. It was all vegetables. No meat at all. No fish. He found himself thinking about last week when he'd gone to that Japanese place on Riverside Street. What was it called? Hanami? They'd served this amazing dish with seared salmon belly and grilled eel over rice, rich and fatty and perfect. His mouth watered just remembering it.
This was good, but... all greens?
"Describe the taste for me," Yuki said, tilting her head. "Do you like it?"
Luke nodded. "Yeah, it's really good."
"I'm glad." Yuki's smile widened. "I can make so much more for you."
Over the next few weeks, Yuki cooked for him almost every day.
Her skills in the kitchen were incredible. Everything she made tasted amazing. But more than that, after eating her food, Luke always felt... content. Peaceful,almost floating like that warm, hazy feeling you get after smoking weed, except from just eating regular food.
He'd finish a meal and just sink into the couch, completely relaxed, and his mind drifting pleasantly.
It was just normal food, he told himself. Rice and vegetables and nothing special about it.But damn, it felt good.
**
Luke found himself falling deeper into his relationship with Yuki and everything that came with it. The food, the sex, the comfort of having someone around. Their joint channel was thriving too.
Once they started making videos together, people stopped bringing up that Halloween night where he'd lost his shit. The comments weren't about him crawling on the floor anymore or screaming at lizard paint. Instead, people talked about how cute they were together, how lucky Luke was, how they wished they had a relationship like theirs. The energy completely shifted from mockery to envy.
Then his old boss from The Rusty Nail called.
"Luke, buddy. Listen. I know things ended rough, but... we want you back. Double your old pay. Weekends only if that works better for you."
Luke almost dropped his phone. ".. Seriously?"
"You're famous now. Every time you performed before, we had a decent crowd. Now? People are asking if you're coming back. We could fill the place twice over."
So Luke went back to doing comedy. And his boss was right. Every show now, fans would show up just to see him. Take pictures. Ask about Yuki. It was surreal.
This particular week, his boss called again.
"Hey, so Friday night. Big show. I was thinking..." His boss paused. "Could Yuki come? Do the set with you? People would go insane."
Luke looked over at Yuki, who was reading something on her phone on the couch.
"Let me ask her."
He put the phone on his shoulder. "Yuki, my boss wants you to come to the comedy show Friday. You want to?"
Yuki looked up and smiled, shrugging playfully. "Sure! I'd love to meet my fans."
Luke told his boss yes.
Yuki was magnetic. Everyone loved her. She was beautiful, cute, with this mysterious air that made people want to know more. And her body? Luke couldn't even think about it in public without getting distracted.
But not everyone was happy. Some of Yuki's original followers from her solo account were still bitter that she'd deleted everything to merge with Luke. Comments would pop up sometimes:
"We only followed for Yuki."
"Luke doesn't deserve her."
"She should've stayed independent."
...
Luke tried not to let it bother him. For Friday's show, they planned to share some couple stories, maybe mix in some scary elements. They'd tell ghost stories, maybe do some light pranks on each other during the set,just make sure it is funny but with that edge of creepiness their audience loved.It would be perfect.
**
7:55 PM.
Five minutes to showtime.
Luke stood backstage at The Rusty Nail, adjusting his microphone. He could hear the crowd filling in, voices buzzing with excitement. Way more people than usual. He peeked through the curtain and saw the place was packed.
8:00
Luke walked out to applause and took the stage.
"Thanks everyone for coming out tonight. I know you're all here to see me make a fool of myself again." Scattered laughs. "But seriously, thanks. It's been a wild few months. You know, when your girlfriend pranks you so hard it goes viral, you kind of have to marry her or she'll just keep doing worse shit." More laughs.
He talked for a few minutes about living with Yuki. How she'd rearrange his apartment when he wasn't looking. How she'd hide his phone in increasingly weird places. How she once replaced all his regular food with Japanese ingredients and he had to learn to cook actual meals instead of microwaving pizza rolls.
The crowd was loving it.
"Anyway, I know you're not here to listen to me ramble. So please, give it up for the woman who ruined my life in the best possible way...Yuki Takahashi ! "
Luke gestured toward the wings. The crowd erupted in cheers and applause.
Ten seconds passed.
No Yuki.
Fifteen seconds.
Twenty.
...
Luke looked to the side of the stage. His boss, Marcus, stood behind the curtain frowning. He shrugged, confused. Luke gave him a "what the fuck" look. Marcus shrugged again and mouthed, "I don't know."
Where was she?
Then Luke heard it. A woman crying from the bathroom.
"Hold on," Luke said to the audience, and rushed off stage.