A Little Fire Never Hurt (tf2 fanfic)

Dear Annie

NARRATOR POV:

Dear Annie,
I miss our talking, and i miss you. Im not sure what compelled me to write this, but i am. Sorry for the inconvenience of the letter, i understand youre probably busy. I miss our talks, and you. You have a special place on this team so do not take it to heart with what engineer says.

With love and care,
Pauling~

As Annie read the letter, she smiled widely, from ear to ear. The letter was in cursive, and a small smiley face was drawn on the bottom. It smelled of Paulings signature scent, roses and vanilla. Inhaling sharply, her heart melted. She folded the letter gently, as if it was made of glass. Tucking it into her side table, she smiled and then changed into her clothing.

She slipped on her shoes and then left and locked her door. She made her way to the kitchen, where the guys where sitting. She smiled, and then went over to the tables.

"Before i cook.. is anyone allergic to anything? I dont feel like killing someone" she laughed.

Everyone shook their head, and Annie nodded. Turning she looked at the kitchen, figuring out what to make. She opened and peered into the fridge, seeing what ingredients she had to work with. She had beef, chicken, garlic, green onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, and some more vegetables. With a satisfied look, she closed the fridge and made her way to the pantry. Opening the double doors, she found noodles, half bags of chips, canned vegetables, sugar and flour, rice, and bread. Happy with her plenty selection she closed the pantry.

Scout interrupted her train of thought a few seconds later, "So! Whatcha gonna prepare, sandwiches? Cereal? Fried chicken?"

"What? No-" Annie replied, "I was thinking something homemade, and by that i mean something southern" she smiled.

"Whatcha thinking? Burgers? Hot dogs?" Engie asked, surprised at her choice.

"Jeez, no, is that all you guys eat? I mean something fancy, and good. Youll see" And with that she winked.

She returned to the fridge and started to pull out ingredients. Engie was watching intently, seeing if he could figure what she was fixing. She laid out her ingredients on the counter, which contained: butter, bell pepper, garlic, green onion, and parsley. She then ventured to the pantry to gather rice, flour, chicken broth, and rice.

Laying her things on the counter she took out a cutting board, mincing her onion, bell pepper and celery. She then heated a large pan, when to the right temperature she made roux (flour and butter). When the roux turned a lovely golden brown, she added the vegetables. The intoxicating smell filled the kitchen. The men were practically drooling over the smell.

"Holy shit this smells amazing!" Scout complimented. Annie said nothing and continued to go back to work.

She later added the garlic, slowly cooking the vegetables. Annie poured the broth in, the skillet making a hissing sound. The salty tang of the chicken broth/stock was heavenly. Mixing the ingredients together she added some spices to help incorporate flavor. Letting the pan simmer she searched around until she found a large pot. Adding three cups of rice, she then added water. Setting it over the ovens burner she let the rice cook.

Gasping, she turned around, "Do we have any shrimp!? I forgot to ask, my bad" she said sheepishly.

Sniper nodded, "Sure do, mate, up in the freezer." He pointed at the fridge.

"Thank you" Annie replied gratefully, she turned the heat down on her veggies, she opened the freezer, digging for shrimp, she took them out, and started to run hot water on them to thaw them. Soon enough they thawed. Internally thankful they were already peeled she added them to the pot. Putting the lid on the mixture, she then checked the rice. The rice almost done, she smiled.

(10 minutes later)

The kitchen smelled heavenly, the great smell of fresh cooked white rice, along with the simmering vegetables and shrimp. She took the lid off, which let even more mouth-watering smells in the kitchen. She added the chopped parsley and green onion, and then stirred slowly for a bit. Covering the pot for a few minutes, she waited patiently. While the guys, looked as if they were starved for months. Scout practically drooling, even Spy was having trouble concentrating on his book. Engie was fiddling with a small machine, while Heavy was sleeping.

Taking the lid off she turned off the heat. Hearing the click of the stove-top got everyones attention.

"Oh thank god!" Scout whined, "It smells so fucking good"

Annie laughed softly, and then softly fluffed the rice. She found 9 bowls for everyone, and added the rice first, which, smelled amazing. She then scooped a hefty serving of the Étouffée. Filling the bowls, she added spoons, and turned with some bowls. The men quickly rose from their seats and gathered around Annie.

"Heres shrimp étouffée" she smiled heartily, "enjoy!"

"Oh we will" Scout said enthusiastically. Grabbing each a bowl, the men settled down to eat. Annie waited for everyone to sit down before she grabbed her bowl. Grabbing it and a spoon she sat near Medic.

As everyone was eating she heard groans of happiness, the guys obviously hungry. She smiled at her skill. Annie was bombarded by questions and compliments.

"Pyro, this is amazing" Scout exclaimed, stuffing more into his face, smiling.

"Little Pyro did extremely well" Heavy included.

"She did better than most of you," Spy complimented cooly, nodding his head at her.

"Good Lord i haven't had a meal this good since i was a boy!" Engie exclaimed, looking like he was going to cry.

Demoman said some type of compliment, but had his mouth stuffed. Everyone laughed at him, and he swallowed and spoked again.

"Good bloody job lass, absolutely amazing" he winked, or blinked, since the Scotsman only had one eye.

Annie had a huge warm smile on her face.

"Thanks guys, it means a lot" she beamed, eating quietly.

"You are an amazing chef," Medic congratulated her, patting her shoulder.

Annie thought this was great. A good evening, with her coworkers.. No. Her family, good food, and good hearts. She smiled at the thought of her living here with the guys.

dont forget to vote!! :D
AU: i totally didnt tell you guys a recipe for Étouffée 👀
I mainly used my knowledge of the recipe i learned over time and a website. heres the website if you are interested!
⬇️
website: https://www.acadiacrawfish.com/crawfish-etouffee-recipe/
(just copy v paste since Wattpad wont let me copy v paste links ;-;)

word count: 1114