STAMP OF APPROVAL - a selection story

"i didn't have time to put on a shirt"

L E V I

round six ||

february 13th

[ 3:13 PM ]

"All I'm saying is I think it's kinda sad that you had your first date when you were thirty." Abri moves smoothly around the kitchen, gathering ingredients for her cookies she said she was going to make and eat in front of me.

"It's not my fault no women have dated me." I wasn't sure how the cooks in the kitchen would have liked me coming down here to chat with Abri, but they haven't so much said boo to me, and they even let me have a spot to roll some dough they already had prepared. I told one of them my dilemma of my younger sister wanting to eat her cookies in front of me, and he happily obliged by letting me have my own cookie to eat.

Abri sends me a look. "You're the man. You ask the woman you like out on a date. It's not that hard." Her apron is now tightly tied around her neck and waist and she leans down close to the screen, flour already coating her one cheek.

She always was a messy cook.

When she cooks.

"Aha. Key word. The woman I like. There haven't been many of those in my life." I nod my thanks to the cook who hands me a spoon.

"Except for me," she says sing-songy. "Wait, are you in the kitchen too?" She peers close to the screen again, eyes narrowed.

I grin mischievously. "Maybe."

"And are you rolling cookie dough balls?" Her tone is incredulous.

I hold up one in answer, then stick it on the tray. She rolls her eyes and grabs her mixing bowl and brings it over to the laptop, where she continues her stirring. We stand in silence, the only sound filling the air is the cooks behind me, who must be already preparing dinner for everyone. Abri seems focused on her task, which usually happens when she's cooking or baking. She's focused on getting it done.

"Did you at least enjoy yourself on the date?" she asks, not even pausing to look up at me.

I nod. "I did. I really liked it."

Now she pauses. "You did?"

My brows lift in question. "Yeah. Why do you look so surprised?"

She goes back to mixing. "I'm not surprised that you liked it. I'm surprised that you gave me a straight answer, no funny business."

"I leave all the funny business up to you," I retort.

She holds her spatula up, pointing it up at the screen. "Who do you think I learned my funny business from?" She gives me a pointed look.

"Onyx."

She laughs. "Okay, that's fair. But it's mostly from you." She begins to roll her cookies into balls. "And all you guys did was skateboard? No wonder you really had a good time." Her wink is impossible to miss.

"We also walked on the boardwalk, had lunch, I bought her some shoes... Then we skateboarded. She was really good actually. She picked up some of the moves fairly quickly. It took me forever when I learned it."

"I bet she thought you were a good teacher," Abri points out. "What else? What else did you like? And I'm liking these straightforward answers, so keep 'em coming." Her tray soon begins to fill up with cookie dough as she waits for me.