Snowed in with the Barista

I am a chef

I stand outside the coffee shop, phone in hand searching for the closest store. The best one I could find and I knew from my hometown was Loblaws.

I type that into Google maps and search for the directions. I was in luck to find out one was a 10-minute walk away.

Before beginning to walk, I could hear laughter from behind me.

I turned my head to the side and spotted the barista from the night before trying to cover her laughter as the girl who helped me with my burn punched her arm. Then I caught them both looking over my way, but they quickly avoided eye contact as the barista started laughing more.

I shake my head and begin to follow the directions on my phone. I was mainly going straight, for the first time in my life, until I approached the crossing that led to the entry of Loblaws.

I head in, making sure to grab a small basket and start to pile up some vegetables, fruits, a few drinks, a box of ribs, BBQ sauce, and a few spices. I make sure to grab a bag of chips and grab a bag of potatoes that I hold in my arms.

I scan each item separately at self checkout and tightly pack it into 2 bags.

Walking out of the store with the grocery bags in my right hand and the bag of potatoes in my left, I speed walk across the crosswalk before the timer runs out.

I then continued down the road till eventually arrived at my apartment.
I unlock the door and quickly run over to the counter where I place the bags and potatoes in the kitchen.

I was about to start preparing my meal until I remembered not closing and locking the door.

Step 1: Close and lock the door

Laughing at my stupidness, I walk back over to the kitchen, shaking my head.

I wash my hands and then begin the process of cooking. I preheat the oven to 400°c and open the package of pork ribs. I place them into the pan and place salt, pepper, and a few other spieces onto the meat. Then, into the oven. Letting them cook for 2 hours, I return to the couch to watch TV while setting a timer on my phone.

****

My phone begins to rings and I immediately wake up and get off the couch. I grab a dish towel and pull the pan of ribs out of the oven, placing them onto the stove top.

I glide the brush gently across the ribs, smearing the sweet barbecue sauce. I slide the pan back into the oven, waiting for the meat to tenderize and become moist and soft.

During the 30 minutes, I begin by setting a pot of water onto the stove while turning up the heat. I wash my hands and peel 2 potatoes, then chop them. When the water has begun to boil, I quickly pour the potatoes into the pot and let it cook under a medium low heat with the lid on top for 15 minutes.

After the potatoes were done, I drained the excess water and let them sit in the pot on the stove. I turned off the element, and I finally knew the ribs were done. I carefully slid the pan out of the oven and onto the top of the stove, letting it cool down, to not risk another burn.

When placing the ribs and potatoes onto the coffee table, I start to drool over the gracious scent of the ribs. I sit down at the table, placing a proportion of potatoes and ribs on my plate. I take my first bite shocked with how tender the meat is as it falls off the bone with ease. My face is covered in barbecue sauce as I devour my whole meal in less than 10 minutes, forcing me to get up from the table to grab a napkin.

I went to the bathroom to grab some toilet paper instead because I forgot I didn't buy any napkins, then went back to sit down.

I leaned back into the couch with a stuffed stomach, then started to search for ideas of what to stream next.

The rest of the night went by quickly till I got the sudden craving for a cup of coffee.

It was only 6 pm, but it was pitch black outside. I put on my jacket and boots and grabbed my wallet, keys, and my phone, then headed out the door.

I walk down the steps and out the door. It was snowing again. Going to my left, I head back into the coffee shop and walk up to the cashier, ordering a medium 2 sugar and 2 cream coffee, then paying. After 2 minutes, I received the coffee, and before snatching it off the counter, I picked up a napkin and wrapped it around the cup.

I leave the store coffee in hand and head back into my apartment.

*****
12AM came quickly. My eyes started to become droopy, so I walked over to my bed and layed down. As soon as I got under the covers, I no longer felt tired. Out of boredom, I decided to scroll through the Playstore app on my phone, looking for a new game to download. After a few minutes of searching, I still couldn't find games till I came across the app "Tinder."

I've heard about it before from school friends but never had the urge to download it. Why is it that all of a sudden I do? Starring at the app, I click the button to "proceed download"

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and have a goodnight/day/afternoon. Also, feel free to give me feedback.