"Now, come help me in the kitchen. " Kamiko turned to continue work on preparing dinner for her family.
Rei recalled Tommy telling her that their mother wanted her assistance at five. In her previous life she had not spent much time developing her culinary skills. Rei was not totally inept, but she had no clue what level Kamiko expected her to be at.
"This is not the first time you have held a knife Rei." Several minutes later Kamiko was growing frustrated with her daughter. "What is taking so long?"
Rei had been set to work preparing vegetables. Kamiko may have been right, but she seemed to expect Rei to know a proper technique for dicing. Rei had never done fine work like this before.
"My apologies mother." Rei replied as Kamiko corrected her for the third time.
"I taught you properly. Are you distracted? You will never find a good man with a lack of discipline." Kamiko shook her head as she returned to her own work.
Rei couldn't deny being distracted. She still had more questions than answers, and it was only now she realized she never confirmed if the person she called was a member of the Harris family, or if they became "Barb Harris" in her place. They knew her name, but all she knew of the person she'd talked with was they sounded young.
Life as a Meshida was taking a toll on her as well. It felt like walking on egg shells, her moves watched and a scolding awaiting if she said or did anything that did not meet expectations. This was without meeting her new father yet too.
Meanwhile Kamiko was concerned. Her daughter had been acting strangely. She had been assisting with meal preparation since she was a small child, but now Rei had completely regressed in skill. The way she carried herself was that of a novice.
Then there was the matter of that phone call. Thinking on it her daughter's words were odd. Rei knew how to contact them, but needed to give her name and confirm the other person attended Lake Point?
Things were not adding up. Rei was keeping something secret. She needed to discover what and deal with it before it became something problematic.
"What is the assignment you are working on?" Kamiko asked while rinsing a chicken breast.
"What?" Rei was caught off guard.
"This assignment you had to call about?" Kamiko continued, her eyes still on her task.
