Best of Both Worlds

Chapter Thirteen

It'd been a while since I'd cooked anything. After investing all my energy at the hospital, there was none left to come home and make a meal. Whitney used to be the main chef in the house but now, she was spending more hours at the hospital. There was only so much takeout one could order without growing sick of it.

Now, I stood in my small kitchen, making spaghetti and fried chicken. Nicholas had turned up at my door and claimed he wanted to spend time, getting to know about me. I linked this sudden appearance as an attempt to initiate his promise to be more mindful of his actions. For the first time, I was bare-faced and had my natural hair out, around him. It was, after all, my home appearance; a huge t-shirt and loose shorts with my hair pulled up in a high puff. He sat on my counter and micromanaged every move I made like I was a child who needed to be watched and guided. Although, that only happened when he didn't have his head buried in his phone.

I closed the lid of my pot and allowed the sauce to simmer. I stepped away from the burner and rested an arm on my waist. "You do know that's not the best way to get to know me"

Nicholas looked up from his phone. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're mostly on your phone whenever we're together" I waved my cooking spoon at his phone. "You want to get to know me better, right? Nicholas, that won't happen if you're on your phone"

He nodded and placed his phone down beside him, on the counter. "If we are going to make this co-parenting work, we have to know what irks each other and what we fancy. I agree"

"Yeah"

"Okay, how about you ask me what you want to know about me and I'll do the same," he said

"Like the 'twenty questions' game?" I asked

He nodded. "Yeah, but we don't have to stop at twenty. And, you can call me Nick. You don't need to call me by my full name"

"Oh great. Nicholas was a mouthful for me" I chuckled as I clasped my hands together. "Okay, you go first"

While he tried to rack up questions for me, I took the opportunity to check on my sauce. Some steam hit my face as I opened the lid. The sauce bubbled at the top and the aroma filled the air, I stirred the pot and scoop a tiny bit to taste. I held out the spoon to Nicholas to have a taste, for a second opinion.

He looked confused for a moment then searched for a tablespoon to taste it.

"Just swipe your finger across the spoon" I pushed the spoon towards him and with slight hesitation, he did as I said.

"It's good," he nodded and took another swipe.

I poured my already parboiled spaghetti into the sauce, added a little water, and stirred it till the sauce was evenly spread out on the spaghetti. I closed the pot and increased the flame a tad bit.

"Okay, go ahead," I turned back to him.

"Let's start with the basics. What's your favourite colour?" he hopped down from the counter and leaned against it.

I picked up a bowl of cooked chicken and placed it on the counter, near the stove burner. "Brown. All shades of brown. I love how they come out on fabrics. What about you?"

"Is that your question for me?"

I fished out a deep fry pan from one of the bottom cupboards. "Well, no but you can't ask a question like that and not expect me to want to know your answer." I rinsed out the pan in the sink. "We're both getting to know each other"

"You're right. Okay, for every question asked, we'd both answer it" His phone vibrated and the screen came alive. He peered at the over his shoulder and clicked it off. "I'm not sure I have a favourite colour. I prefer dark colours"