Dango 101

Tomoki’s a writer which means that aside from selling himself through his writing, it means that he has to get more real life experience in things that will make him uncomfortable. At least that’s his whole perspective on the whole thing. 

Still, he’s curious about making dango. In another language, you’d call him nosy. That’d actually be more accurate if he’s being honest but he’s a damn good liar. 

(Rather, Tomoki thinks he is.) 

“I thought you’d be late,” is the first thing that comes out of Dan's mouth and Tomoki supposes he could be far later than he already is. 

“Nonsense, I’m on time for this.” 

“You don’t even eat dango,” Dan then points out which is a fair point. It’s not something Tomoki will argue against. “So why the curiosity?” 

“Call it nosiness,” he answers rather easily. 

“Then you’re always nosy.” Dan comments before leading him in to show him where the dango is made. There’s already things on the table – all of the ingredients. “I do hope you listen to what I say though.” 

“I’ll try.” 

If anything, it’s a good experience to use later as he picks up the bowl with the rice flour. Then the amount of water in another bowl. 

“Keep mixing it until it clumps together, then it’s hands on,” Dan explains, which says far too much for Tomoki’s liking. To say that he’s not one for hands on work is an understatement. 

It takes him far longer than he’d like to get all of the dough clumped together - courtesy of his overthinking. All the same, he starts to knead the dough and tries not to think that much about it. Really. 

To Tomoki, it’s like two hours before the dough is ready for the next. Supposedly it’s easy to touch and it’s finally stopped sticking to his hands. Really that’s when he knows it should be ready or at least close. He still kneads it some more, always a bit too worried that he hasn’t done it enough. Still, he turns to Dan: 

“Do you think this is enough– or should I–” He vaguely makes the kneading motions with his hands again. 

Dan looks over, surveys the dough then pokes it once or twice. “It’s enough. Are you ready to make the balls then?” 

“How even do they have to be?” 

“As even as they can be.” 

Which is fair. He can do it even if the dough still feels all sorts of weird in his hands. At least this won’t take long. If anything, there’s a new plot spinning in his head with this experience. Oh the things he can do with this knowledge… 

Always useful for later when he needs a late dinner or snack. Tomoki already stays up too late, this is nothing. 

Then came boiling the small balls, always to make sure that they don’t stick to the bottom of the bowl. Dan shows him how to make the sauce, specifically red beans because Tomoki’s always had a bit of a sweet tooth. What he doesn’t expect is to learn that to make the sauce, it’s not as hard as he thought. 

Rather, it could be harder as they wait for the balls to boil completely. 

Once they do, however, begins the rush to skewer them onto the sticks themselves which Tomoki tries not to overthink that much. It’s not like he knows where the center of the balls are in the first place – they all look identical as he stabs the stick in. It’s three on every stick, an easy number to remember before he sets it onto the table. 

Dan then showers the dangos with the sauce that they made, enough to coat them with it. Then the shop owner turns to Tomoki. 

“You should try one.” 

“To make sure it’s edible,” Tomoki agrees. No one should have to endure his cooking, at least not until he tries it himself. He’s not someone who’d like to poison someone by accident. Who knows, maybe he’ll overcook or undercook something one day that’ll lead to someone getting sick. 

All he can hope for now is that it’s not today. 

To his surprise, they’re fine. Decent even. Tomoki breathes for the first time since this endeavor. 

“I think I’ll take home the rest,” he admits, quiet. “Have them as a late night snack or something.” 

Dan nods, understanding. “Don’t put them away for too long unless you want to get sick.” 

Then, he’s told some basics about actually making them at home, how to ensure he doesn’t end up with too much of a mess and other things he can put into the dangos themselves. It’s nice, Tomoki thinks, to be able to cook for himself like this. 

“Maybe I’ll come by your store more often if I’m craving sweets,” he says before he leaves. 

“I look forward to it then.” 

All in all, it’s a good learning experience.