yogen | you gotta do the cooking by the book

WHO: Stephanie, anyone she has wrangled into Cake Adventures, and YOU
WHEN: after school, 4/13
WHAT: Cake Adventures

[if anyone, but particularly one certain someone, was hoping to enjoy a nice, quiet cooking club meeting today, that's not happening. the door isn't closed, but it's cracked open only slightly, and there is a piece of paper taped to the door.]

NO NENES ALLOWED
(NOT IN A MEAN WAY)
(NENE DON'T COME IN HERE IT'S A SURPRISE)
(BUT IT'S A GOOD ONE DON'T WORRY)
(-STEPHANIE)

[she signs her name with a little heart on the I, so that's something everyone gets to know now.

should non-Nene people decide they want to know what the fuck is going on, the door is open! and inside is a whirling pink dervish, having taken over a section of the room for the noble art of Baking. she's won over the teacher with an impassioned speech about doing kind things for your friends, and has relatively more lax supervision than a small child should probably have with an oven? it's fine. she seems to know what she's doing, at least, though she refers to the journal she has laid out on the counter almost religiously. there are a lot of strawberries involved, and it does not seem like just one cake is being made today.

also, she's singing. and not quietly. basically the entire time. dancing also becomes involved at points. she's making her own fun.

at about 7:30, there is a post on the forum by user s.meanswell.]

NENE
meet me in room 2-C soon!

[basically just relying on the honor system at this point.

it is very close to her bedtime, so she's a bit tired, but Steph remains determined, sitting on top of the teacher's desk, kicking her feet, a foil-covered object next to her.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[she has mentally categorized this kid as Basically Like Stingy and thus does not take offense, merely tries to dial down her energy a bit.]

Gosh, I'll have to work it in, somehow... The batter, maybe, or even... And then the peel, I can...

[wheels just visibly turning in her head. then, she pauses, and smiles at him.]

Thank you. I really do appreciate it. [and she clearly means more than the lemons.]

[ Oh... hm. He ducks his head at being thanked, not used to the genuineness of it all. He's also maybe ducking his head because crap, she's going to need the knife to cut and zest the lemon— possibly multiple lemons because you can never have too many lemons to go in one cake— and he'll never get the knife. It's not even that sharp a knife? There are so many sharper knives here.

There are no more eggs to crack so he wanders the club room to look for a spare knife. ]

[she just kinda. watches him. putting off her work for now. because it's actually remarkably easy to figure out what this kid wants, for all his seeming chronic inability to just outright ask without specific prompting. and she wants to see how long that goes.]

[ STOP it's hard to ask for something when that requires using your voice.

There aren't a whole bunch of knives to begin with, either, and the cooking club doing cooking club things is actually using them to cook. After going through the drawers and sort of awkwardly standing around the counter on the other side of the room like he wants to ask the other members but doesn't want to interrupt or say anything, somebody takes pity and tells him they'll let him use the knife after they're done with it.

He nods and pulls up a stool, resting his head on his arms and fifteen minutes are going to pass with nothing happening because maybe they never intended to give him a knife. ]

[she has given him many non-verbal options.

she frowns throughout the entire exchange, and the entire fifteen minutes. because if there's one thing she cannot abide, it's rudeness. and she is very sus that some rudeness is going on right now!]

Hey... [god. she knows she knows his name. she always feels like she knows everybody's name, just skimming under the surface of the water of her mind, and if she can just concentrate...]

Hiro! [she shakes his shoulder gently] Are you okay?

Edited 2021-04-09 05:21 (UTC)

[ She did and he should have taken them. Next time he gets his hands on a knife he's not letting it go.

He at least has the patience to wait for it, though— but he startles when Stephanie calls his name, shoulder jerking in surprise when she touches it and locks in place. He lifts his head a second after, and his shoulders relax and drop, sort of like when you poke at a snail and they hide in themselves but will start to sloooowly emerge and peer out at you once it feels safe again.

He stares up at her with some confusion, and rubs the corner of his eye with the heel of his hand. He might have been asleep this entire time, but he looks okay. He also looks to Stephanie's counter, unsure how much time has passed and maybe she's already done with her cakes. ]

[a kNIFE IS NOT A FORM OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION HIRO

she isn't done with her cakes, but she is done with everything that requires cutting. ~~because she rushed.~~ which is why she has the knife, cleaning it off with a paper towel because really, just. the less blood water involved in this process, the better?]

Are you tired? [she holds the knife out to him.] You really should get enough sleep every night. It's really important!

[ THERE IS REALLY SO MUCH YOU CAN COMMUNICATE WITH A KNIFE IN YOUR HANDS

There is so much you can learn from seeing a boy stand up and take a resin knife and just slide it into his pants pocket blade first. How has Stephanie been carrying this around, does she wrap it...

But never mind that, he places his hands together on the side of his head like a pillow for sleeping but then shakes his head, tapping a finger to his temple and frowning a little. Can't sleep. Overthinking, or something. This is what school does to you ): ]

Ohhh. [an insomniac. she knows all about that. and also how useless and unwanted helpful advice can be! but, she also knows one thing that is invariably appreciated...]

If you ever need someone to cover you so you can take a nap in class... [just

trails off meaningfully.]

[ He lifts his hand palm down and sort of hovers it in front of her forehead. You're a tiny little bean, Steph, even shorter than he is and he's short compared to most of the other students at school. She's got to bulk up twice her size to cover for him. ]

... Oh! Metaphorically, silly! Like, I could distract the teacher, or even help convince them you're really sick and need to go to the nurse's office... Stuff like that!

[ As tempting as that is!!! he looks startled at the offer, either because she's offering in the first place or of what she's offering to do. Um, um... he looks at a loss, fingers on one hand pinched together like he wants to mime pencil and paper to ask for that, but that's also too much work. ]

...don't... you'd get in trouble for me.

[ it's a whisper and a mumble and hard to hear on purpose, but she shouldn't have to act out just to get him a free pass in class. First of all, he should just go to the nurse's office to start with instead of interrupting class to leave. ]

[she can't help the little gasp when she hears his voice.]

Okay. Still, you let me know if I can help you with anything, alright?

[if she were back home, with her friends, she wouldn't ask first. even with some of the other normal people here, she wouldn't.]

... Would you mind if I gave you a hug? You can say no.

[ Mm... hm... the little gasp makes him press his lips tight together, like he already regrets opening his mouth, but he gives her a little nod that's supposed to be yes he'll let he know if he needs her help, also yes he minds receiving hugs— not to be confused with yes I would like a hug, and he takes a step back so she doesn't get the wrong idea. ]

[nods] Gotcha!

Thanks again for the help. I'm sure the assistant principal will love it!

you gotta do the cooking by the book

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