The days passed no issue with the gym that his people use, not after he looked at them. He doesn’t even want to think of what could have happened if he didn’t check it out. He was born with that gift, it told him when other people are in danger but it doesn’t nothing for him. Shaking his head he got back to work, he’s added napping after lunch and after his nap work outs in the gym to his daily routine. He felt more energized and blazed through his work afterwards, he was no longer waiting for the clock to tick down until his food arrived he always tried to find something to pass the time so he’s not reminded of his hunger. He hardly remembered when he felt full, it was refreshing and he didn’t feel the need to worry about what he was eating anymore.
His chef, Sen as he found out his name a few days later, was wonderful. He seemed to be in higher spirits as well so this change was good for him. Not to mention that the guy now owned the kitchen and whatever is in the kitchen. It feels strange asking for little things or anything in general. He’s not sure he’ll get used to it, he’s almost afraid that it might be too troublesome for Sen. But getting by him was a difficult task, he even went as far as to withhold his utensils until he asked for them.
He leaned back stretching out his back and arms, Sen often sent him texts asking what he wanted, not just the ingredient to use but everything. It made him feel uneasy and he didn’t want to intrude on his creativity. So they compromise that he would send him 3 ingredients and he could take it from there. Coming up with those three was difficult and it takes an hour to figure out the list. Sen gave him an out for it but it can only be used once a day. ‘Chef’s Choice’ so he opted to use it for dinner since it seems to be his favourite time to cook. He’s also been going home earlier too, mainly to help look after Ari while he finished up in the kitchen.
Ari is just a little angel, she’s taken up tea parties in the room next to hers and he sits with her drinking juice or iced tea that Sen made earlier. And for the snacks it was either cookies, cupcakes, biscuits or tarts. So far he’s enjoyed Orange juice with Chocolate cupcakes and Raspberry Iced Tea with Coffee Cake. Chocolate Milk and Chocolate Raspberry Cookies were also delicious.
So far having them around was nice, it certainly broke him out of his mundane life. Maybe during the summer he can host Barbecue's again, he’s sure his neighbours missed him. He’ll have to talk to them and figure out if they want that again. He wonders if they’re mad at him for stopping, now that he thinks about it have they ever said ‘Hi’ to him when he goes to work?
It was certainly worth thinking over his past actions and fixing them. Hopefully they’ll forgive him.
The door opened and Greenbell walks in with a bamboo box, it’s been Sen’s favourite box to send over since he found it tucked away in the back of one of the cupboards. It had many compartments for food. He bought it in Japan when he went to do some business over there, thought it would be fun to have Ashlynn make his food in it. She never did and it’s just been collecting dust ever since.
“Any news about that Shark?”
“No and Miss Fishing is no help at all. Just sits in the chair filing her nails,” Greenbell said, “I’ll have it sorted by the end of the week.”
“There’s no rush, if you have other things to do then do those first.” He opened the box and started to pick out what he’d be eating first, “Tell Miss Fishing that if she doesn’t find something to work on by the end of the week I’ll get rid of her.”
“Sir?”
“No use having useless flesh around here. She has no one, correct?” He ate a small cheese sandwich and saved the second half for the soup that he was going to try next.
“Yes, Sir. No one to miss her or call if she ever goes missing. Have she been trying to make a pass at you?”
“That and she’s annoying, the others are also getting tired of her bothering them when they work.”
“Ah, that’s why they stay in the gym.”
“Told her that the gym was off-limits, she just took it as ‘I’m jealous don’t look at other guys’.”
“Well not every addict can be saved, it’s a shame that she’s like that.” He finished the tomato soup, “I swear that thing gets more elaborate every time.”
“I think it’s fun, has he thought about what school to send Ari to? If not then maybe The Kingdom is something he can take her to.”
“That is a wonderful idea! If you don’t mind, I would like the weekends off.”
“Oh sure, I guess I have been overworking you. Don’t you have a vacation coming up soon? Where you going, Hawaii?”
“Maui, I want to get away from the cold for a bit.”
“Mm, yes that’s a good idea,” he said and set the box aside, she grabbed it wished him a good nap and was on her way out. He stood and stretched his arms above his head and was ready for his nap. He slowly walked through the place catching up on what he missed over the years and checking his security from both sides. He remembered bits and pieces of their lives, he also noticed a few new faces. They must have picked them up and brought them in for a better life, he’s glad that they kept up his little habit of helping people. If he remembered correctly Aphrodite 23 was also big on helping girls with their debts and sheltering them. He wondered how it was doing now, he’ll have to visit them as well.
“I wonder how the girls are doing,” he suddenly remembered the girls he helped when he was younger. “I’ll send them a text after,” he said and walked into his room. He seen the city through the large window and smiled. He loved this place, he sat on the bed and stared out there for a while then laid down looking at Crison.
The first few days felt a
bit awkward like they were tip toeing around each other, now it felt
as if he was part of the place. His boss let him do what he wanted,
like claiming the kitchen. It was suppose to be a joke but Van agreed
so easily. Now he’s made a few rules for certain reasons.
1. Ask to get something from the kitchen. He made that rule because Van kept poking around and putting things back after looking at them.
2. Tell me 3 ingredients. He wasn’t sure what his boss wanted and just seemed to eat everything. After a bit he was racking his brain to figure out what to cook next. Van also seemed to have this problem since it takes an hour for him to text back. He got tired of waiting and tossed in ‘Chef’s Choice’ to help him pick faster. It didn’t, he uses it mostly for dinner. He was fine with that, dinner was always fun to make.
3. Ask for utensils. He noticed that Van was avoiding asking him for things in the kitchen, he wanted him to know that it was fine to ask him for everything.
4. Only time you are allowed in the kitchen is if you are cleaning the dishes. Van asked a lot if he needed help in the kitchen, he made that rule to keep him from asking anymore.
5. Enjoy the food. Van already does this, after savouring the first few bites he practically inhales the food. He developed a habit of watching Van’s face when he takes the first bite, it made it all worth it.
After dinner Van and Ari go into the Tea Room to have tea and desert, she loves his company and he looks very cute wearing a tiara and now a tutu. He went out shopping with Ari to get more things for the Tea Room, said she had to get these for her guests because it was a Formal Event. He figured that she got those new words from Van and he seems to also be teaching her other important things. He now believes that he has a little sister and dots on her like there was no tomorrow, with how he treats Ari and lets her do what she wants.
He was now wondering if he should bring Ari back to Daycare, she must be missing her friends and he never really given Emily a proper response for a date. Now that he had time for dates, maybe it was time to find someone to spend time with. Also he gets to drive again, he found out that Van paid the owing on his license and he gets to use his car. He always felt important for driving such an expensive looking car.
But also felt cautious for driving such an expensive looking car. It was a Midnight Blue 2022 Chevrolet Corvette. He’s not quite sure what the guy does for a living and he seems to be easy going and childish, not something for an important business but it must be something important if he could act like that. Or was it only at home that he was like that? From the safety of his home and not in public eye.
He finished washing dishes from lunch and now he and Ari are sitting on the couch watching some shows. Greenbell comes in and places the Bento box on the counter next to the sink and updates him on how Van enjoyed the food.
“One more thing before I go, please stop giving him excuses to play with his food.”
“What?” Sen looked at her now more curious.
“Honestly, that fish shaped sandwich would be the death of me.”
“I don’t believe you, send me proof that he does this.” Greenbell narrowed her eyes and nodded then left after that. A few hours later he received a text of three ingredients. ‘Hamburger, Potatoes, Chef’s Choice.’ he stared at the list wondering what he could make with that. He turned to Ari and asked her what she would want with the chosen ingredients.
“Fwies,” she said and thought for a moment, “borgur.” he smiled at her and agreed. Who needs to eat out? This was fun, they watched the rest of the show then he got up to start preparing dinner while she watched an active show.
Van came home looking a bit worn, more than usual and went straight to his room. Normally he sits at the kitchen first and says a few small things that happened that day. A few minutes later he hears Van’s door open and close and then the Bathroom door open and close. Shrugging it off he laid out the food for them, Ari no longer having to rely on him to pick her up and sit her down since she now has a stair case that she takes absolute pleasure in walking up and down slowly like royalty. With nothing to do but set the plate in Van’s usual spot at the end of the counter opposite Ari and sit himself in the middle closer to his daughter. He grabbed his plate and started eating while he and his daughter talked of the day. Twenty minutes later Van comes out and sits in his spot, taking a moment to enjoy the smell of the food and take a bite of the fries first. Sen sees his shoulders rise in a silent inhale and relaxed as he exhaled, sighing eyes closed and started to eat properly.
‘Not sure what Greenbell was on about he doesn’t play with his food.’ Sen thought and went back to talking with Ari since his boss was keeping quiet this time. ‘Something bad must have happened at work,’ he thought. The rest of the routine went on as usual, Van and Ari going to the Tea Room to have tea and brownie cookies. He washes the dishes and often visits to refill the tea pot and put out some healthier snacks for them to eat as they finish their second round of tea.
He then goes into Ari’s room to sort out her bed and put the new stairs out from her upgraded bed frame. Van thought it would be easier than moving the stairs from the kitchen to her room and back again every day. It was, he didn’t know that Van was handy with working with wood. The stairs were where the drawers used to be and she has a new dresser and an area where she can change. He pulled the butterfly curtains closed and turned on her Bee night light and put on some nature sounds on low volume so she could have a more peaceful night. He set out a small glass of water and picked up her hamper and walked to a small shoot and tossed her clothes in. He usually does the laundry in the morning after breakfast and the woman that cleans up the house goes through the house as usual but with few less tasks and they have coffee after their work is done and talk for a bit. When coffee and snacks are done he helps her take out the garbage and chats with some of the neighbours that pass by.
They told him that Van wasn’t normally the introvert, he hosted parties all through the year, at least once a month. They asked him if he was going to start it again, he wasn’t too sure since he was just a Chef that worked for him.
They finished their party bidding each other adieu and went to get ready for bed. He wasn’t too sure what they talk about but it always seems that he missed another happy moment. He walks to Ari’s room and she’s just finished picking which bear that would sleep next to her as well as a story. He lays next to her and starts the story then ends with a song. He leaves and goes to gather the tea cups and pot to wash them. Only to find them in the kitchen already and being washed. So he sits at the counter and watches his boss clean the tea set for a bit then asks how his day was.
“It was alright, worked out longer than usual,” Van responded, “how was yours?”
“Nothing interesting happened here either, oh the neighbours asked if you were going to host parties again. Surprised me that you even hosted anything that wasn’t Tea parties with Ari.”
“I was just thinking that too, I might start in the summer. Have a barbecue in the backyard.”
“How big would this party be?”
“Usually 20 people, might be more since I’m returning back to the neighbourhood circle. I’m not the only one that hosts these get-together, neighbourhood parties are for everyone. Only thing is you have to keep in contact with the neighbours to go to them.”
“So it’s not publicly announced, it’s more hush hush underground stuff?”
“Yeah, passwords and secret handshakes.” Sen chuckled and seen him finish cleaning the tea set and dry his hands.
“Would I be able to join these secret met ups?”
“Of course, if the neighbours are talking to you it means that they accept you into the family.” Van stepped out of the kitchen then said quietly to himself but Sen was still able to catch the words. “And I’m not forgotten.”
“Good night,” Sen said and got up to go to bed, he heard Van behind him going to his own room. He couldn’t help but feel Van staring at him when he goes to his room and it stops when he closes the door behind him. He’s not sure why but Van seems more cautious when it comes to his room.
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