Rommates [closed]

[windyheir]

Characters: Riku and John
Date: 11/1 (backdated)
Format: Prose
Content Warnings: none
Summary: Just two boys being losers and bumming around their apartment for the day

It was early-ish in the morning, not so early that nobody was awake but early enough that it was still technically breakfast time. John had managed to wake up at a somewhat normal time that day, even though his messed-up sleeping schedule had him waking up at all kinds of weird times.

As usual, he was hovering around instead of walking, which was something he usually did when he was still sleepy in the head. He hadn't been jarred out of his dreams like he often was, so waking up was slower, and he still looked drowsy as he went into the kitchen to cook himself some eggs.

John was no master chef, but he could at least fry eggs without burning them. The question was, could he cook one properly while still sleepy?

Comments

[shadowslide]

Riku looked up at the sound of the pan hitting the stove, right in the middle of trying to coax a round, white ball of fur that might have resembled a sheep.

"...You cook?" Riku blinked. He was usually up at dawn and out and about-- seeing his roommate actually wake up before noon was a surprise in itself. He'd never known he could cook.

[windyheir]

John blinked a couple times before glancing over at Riku. Oh right, roommate. And Riku was usually out when John finally got around to getting up and eating, so of course he wouldn't know John could cook.

"Yep," he said, yawning and scratching at an eye before continuing, "A little bit. Eggs aren't so hard."

His dad had cooked most stuff for him before the game, and on the ship they had just alchemized food. As a result, he only knew a few simple recipes.

[shadowslide]

"Farther than I ever got," Riku admitted, padding over to observe. He'd kept clear of the kitchen for the most part, usually eating his meals cold if it wasn't from outside.

At his feet, the round ball of fluff continued to roll around after him like a particularly magnetic cotton ball.

[windyheir]

That got a curious look from John. "You don't know how to cook?"

John was sure he and Riku were about the same age, but all teenagers knew how to cook some things, right? Learning to cook and feed yourself was definitely part of growing up, so it seemed a little weird that someone might not know it.

He glanced down and saw the fluffy pet-thing rolling around. He had seen things around the apartment, and he knew they were all Riku's pets, but he still thought they were cute.

[shadowslide]

"I get by." Mostly on sandwiches and a microwave. It hadn't killed him or burned down a house yet and he usually only had time for so much before he was out the door. Absently nudging the rotund Dream Eater out of the way (to soft bleats of complaint) with a foot, he noticed the glance and smiled a bit.

"This one just makes things sleep." He'd been wondering if there was a way for that to help in the clinic, in the aftermath of the Invasion. He hadn't gotten very far yet, though. The battle had been exhausting, to say the least, but he'd welcomed a little non-induced sleep.

[windyheir]

"Well no wonder I've been tired so much," John said with a smile. Truthfully it was because of his wonky sleep schedule, or so he figured. Cute fuzzy things could have played a part but it was not necessarily the reason.

Looking back to the pan, John took a moment to flip over his eggs before he said, "Want me to teach you a bit? I mean, I'm not the best, but I bet if we combine our cooking skills we'll be able to make twice as much."

[shadowslide]

"The Invasion didn't help," Riku agreed with a smile.

He leaned a bit against the counter, looking at the eggs quickly frying up in the pan, the smell wafting out past him and through the window. He considered it for a moment. How hard could it be... right?

"Sure. What do I do?"

[windyheir]

"Well here, let me finish off mine real quick," John said as he poked at his eggs, testing how they were coming along. He liked his over-easy, so they were done quickly, and he slid them onto his plate. Then he re-greased the pan with a thin slice of butter before picking up two eggs and holding one out for Riku.

"First you have to crack the egg and put the inside part into the pan. Try not to get the shell in the pan, they're hard to pick out of cooked eggs."

[shadowslide]

Riku accepted the egg- feeling a little out of place as he moved closer to the pan. Trying to remember what people usually did, he moved to tap the egg against the counter.

It smashed in his hand, covering his fingers in sticky egg goop as he winced.

[windyheir]

Well that sure was a thing! John stared at the broken egg mess for a moment, then looked up to Riku, then back to the egg.

"I guess you don't know your own strength, huh," John said, trying to sound cheerful about it as he grabbed a kitchen towel for Riku, "Here, try again, but not so hard this time. You want to crack the shell but not make a mess."

They had nearly a full carton of eggs so they have extras.

[shadowslide]

"A little out of practice," Riku admitted. When everything around you was usually virtually indestructible, eggs were surprisingly fragile. He accepted the tissue with a quick 'thanks' and wiped the worst off, picking up another one thoughtfully, feeling the weight for a moment, before tapping it much more carefully against the counter now, a fine, hairline crack appearing on its surface.

"...Is that enough?"

[windyheir]

"You're getting closer," John said, glancing at the crack in the egg, "You need to hit it just hard enough that the egg stuff starts coming out, but not so hard that it explodes."

To demonstrate, he grabbed another egg and cracked it masterfully on the side of the pan, and then he quickly moved it over the pan so the egg's insides went in there instead of all over the stove.