Average Cook

Things started off great.

Lorelei jumped out of Lydia's bed, teeming with excitement. She saw Nico waiting for her outside the door. He wore a dark blue shirt with a different band's logo. Looking down, Lorelei saw that Lydia had dressed in pajamas featuring an unholy amount of polka dots.

Nico raised his eyebrows. "Nice outfit."

"Not important," Lorelei said. "Are we going to cook today?"

"You're really excited for this, aren't you?" Nico noted.

He waved his hand to items on the table. "We're all good. Roll back your sleeves, wash your hands, and we can get started."

They began with the pancakes. Nico pulled out a dark-colored pan, not unlike the ones he had shown her on his phone before. He then pulled out a large bowl, as well as a large spoon.

"Alright," Nico said. "We gotta put the stuff the box wants into this bowl in the amount it says." That was quite the sentence.

With Nico guiding her, Lorelei managed to get the mixture made without too many problems. Nico turned on the stove. Lorelei watched the flame that burst forth in awe. Unfortunately, the orange tip of the fire made her remember the leaves she was to wear for the ball. Of course, she did love leaves, but that ball was sure to be a pain to attend.

Lorelei shook her head to clear it. "Do we just put the mixture on?"

"Yeah, let me show you." Lorelei watched intently as Nico made the first pancake, determined not to fail.

Before she knew it, they had made a pile of pancakes. Near the end, Lorelei had remembered the cookies she had bought and, as a result, a few of the pancakes had flecks of cookie in them. Once they had finished with the batter, Nico grabbed a spoon.

Lorelei watched in horror as Nico scooped up the pancake mix and ate it. "What in the Spirits are you doing?!"

Nico blinked at her. "Eating pancake mix. Why? You want some?" He pulled out a second spoon.

"No, thank you," Lorelei responded. That would be completely unladylike.

Lorelei grabbed a pancake, cutting it delicately with a silver knife she'd found. Perhaps it was because she had helped to make the odd food, but it tasted more wonderful than anything a chef had ever prepared for her. Entranced with this feeling, Lorelei failed to notice how quickly she was eating until her food was gone.

Grinning, Nico got up and stretched. "Well, now that we've conquered pancakes, you ready to take on the brownies?"

He had her make the brownies.

Lorelei did her best to read the instructions and, though it took a while, she managed to get everything together. While she nearly dropped the egg whole into the bowl, she somehow avoided getting any of the shell into the bowl. It was quite fortunate that Nico had taught her how to handle an egg for the pancakes or else she would have been quite lost. She could ask for help at any point, he'd told her, but she did not want to interrupt whatever he was drawing in that notebook of his.

"Leave the mixing bowl, for now," Nico told her after she put the brownies in.

Obeying him, she placed the bowl to the side and waited. Knowing it would take a while, she sat at the table next to Nico. The room began to smell delectable. For a stretch of time, the only sound to be heard was the scratching on paper from Nico's pencil. Lorelei began to get impatient. Why did Nico choose a dessert that took two hundred minutes to bake?

Nico looked up. "Do you smell something burning?"

The two of them looked at the oven. Jumping up, Lorelei ran to open it. Black smoke rushed out. An alarm started going off.

Cursing, Nico opened the windows. Grabbing a hand towel, he flapped it up and down. Lorelei, however, was too shocked to notice. So shocked, in fact, that she didn't even register when the smoke cleared and the alarm stopped.

Slowly, she bent down to pick up the brownies she had been so proud of. Rather, she picked up what was left of them. The whole thing was charred black. The beautiful mix she had spread herself was reduced to a mess.

"I do not understand," Lorelei said. "I followed the instructions."

Nico frowned. "How long did you put them in for?"

"Two hundred minutes, as it said on the box," Lorelei said.

Nico gaped. "Two hundred?"

"Yes," Lorelei said, confused. "That is what the box said. It requested two hundred minutes at four-hundred and fifty degrees."

Nico retrieved the box. "Lorelei, this says twenty minutes at three hundred and fifty degrees."

"Oh, Spirits. . ."

Lorelei set the brownies down, her thoughts whirling. Why had she not checked the instructions again? She knew better. Why had she not checked on the brownies? She was supposed to be smarter than that.

I failed.

How could she call herself a noble if she couldn't handle a simple recipe? How pathetic was it that she, a fully-grown adult, was unable to handle something so simple for others? Why had she ever thought that she could flourish in this world if she could not even master the basics?

"Lorelei?" Nico cut through her thoughts. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she lied, blinking her unshed tears away. She straightened. "I should clean up this mess."

"What? No." Nico stopped her. "I know something's wrong. Talk to me, Lorelei."

"What do you want me to say?!" Lorelei yelled. "Do you want me to tell you that I failed? That much should be obvious. I failed at making these brownies, just like I failed at being a noble. I truly thought I could be different here! I believed that I could be more than the crazy woman who refuses to release the past! And yet, here we are! I can't handle even the most basic of recipe! Lydia is in my body right now being the perfect noble, and I am in her kitchen burning baked goods!"

"Perfect?" Nico frowned. "Lorelei, no one's perfect, especially not Lydia."

Lorelei scoffed. "I do not see her ruining dessert."

"So, what?" Nico shot back. "Just the other day, Lydia told me how she was so different from the nobles Sara told her about. She said that, no matter how much she tried, she always felt like she was less than those ladies."

Nico met Lorelei's eyes. "But you know what? That couldn't be further from the truth. Is she perfect? Absolutely not, but that's what makes her great. It's what makes you freaking awesome."

He pulled her hands into his. "Perfection is a disease that sucks all the joy out of life. Being perfect is boring. Did you burn those brownies? Sure. You know what, though? Come a few weeks from now, this'll be a hilarious story to tell. If you hadn't burnt them, you'd probably never be able to laugh about it later."

"The nobility would not agree," Lorelei said.

"The nobility can suck an egg," Nico snapped. "Look around, Lorelei. Do you see any nobles here 'cause, from where I'm standing, it's just you and me here. This isn't Cachonei. There aren't any uptight, self-centered women judging you here. They already took your days. Don't let them steal your nights, too."

"Besides." Nico walked over to the abandoned mixing bowl. "We still have this."

"Ah," Lorelei said, relaxing. "We can make more."

Nico snorted. "No. We can eat the batter!"

"That is rather unladylike," Lorelei said. "I could not possible take part."

"But you're not a lady here, are you?" Nico pulled out the extra spoon again, waving it at her. "C'mon, Lorelei. Let loose! There's no one here but us."

Hesitantly, Lorelei grabbed the spoon. Nico scooped his spoon in the batter. Following his lead, she did the same. The taste was unlike anything she had ever had. The chocolate, though not hot, was still excellent on her tongue. There was an interesting texture, like a soft, pleasant sand on her tongue. Widening her eyes, she dipped in her spoon for another taste.

Nico groaned in satisfaction. "This is the best part of brownies."

"Not the final product?" Lorelei asked.

"Nah," Nico replied. "I mean, the brownies are great, but nothing beats licking the batter. It's like a rite of passage."

"I am glad to know I did not mess up that part, at least." Lorelei smiled sadly.

"Don't sweat it," Nico said. "You didn't mess up the pancakes, which is more than most college students can say. In terms of cooks, I'd say you're about average."

"College sounds more interesting each time you say it," Lorelei said.

"Eh, it's fine," Nico said casually. "Well, until you get to finals week but, otherwise? It's just a lot of work."

"I can handle work," Lorelei said confidently. She had handled rigorous study since she was a child, after all.

Nico paused. "Do you. . . want to go to college?"

Lorelei thought for a moment. "Yes. I think that would be lovely."

Nico stared at her for a minute. "Lorelei, do you want to. . . stay here? Like, long-term?"

Lorelei considered that for a bit. On the one hand, she had a life in Cachonei. She had a husband who was considerate towards her. She had a family that cared for her future. On the other hand, said husband was only a friend. Said family, other than one brother, only cared for what they thought her future should be.

"Yes," Lorelei said, looking at Nico. "I would wish to stay here."

"Heck yeah." Nico raised his spoon higher, the batter attached hanging on for dear life. "Modern world for the win!"

Giggling, Lorelei mimicked him. "Modern world for the win."