Perception

Part 16

Sang POV:

Note to self, leave an ear bud out if I plan to listen to music! I snort at my thoughts and turn on the water for a quick bath. I wash everything but my hair, climb out and wrap up in a towel, then crack the door open.

"Meanie? Do you want to wash my hair?" I say as I peek through the small opening.

"Of course, Trouble. What did I tell you?" Gabriel asks with an eye roll evident in his voice. He pushes his way in and points me at the sink. After a few seconds of the water running, he helps me lower my head under the faucet. After fully wetting my hair, I feel him begin rubbing shampoo through the soggy locks. His fingers are slightly firmer in their massaging, and he pauses on occasion like he was lost in thought. I wonder if he needs to tell me something, because he's quiet. Meanie is not quiet. Even when he's not talking, he usually has a song he's humming under his breath.

"You okay, Meanie?" I ask cautiously.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he says with a lack of friendliness. I want to push him for more, but if he's grouchy, I may be better off letting him come to me when he's ready to talk about it. He finishes off rinsing the conditioner I didn't even notice him using while I was lost in my rumination.

"Alright, Touble. Let's get out there and eat before Silas eats our shares," he says with a bit more cheer. He swats my butt, then heads out. He didn't even comb out my hair. I stay to get dressed quickly, use the hair brush, then follow.

In the kitchen everyone is awake and plowing through the pancakes and bacon. North is fussing at Luke for eating all those chocolate chip pancakes, and jabbering about how Luke needs more protein and less sweets. Luke looks at the empty bacon platter, then at the plate that I'm assuming they've set aside for me.

"Do you want me to eat Sang's food then? Because the only bacon left is on her plate," he says with snark.

"NO! Leave Sang Baby's food alone. She needs to eat more," North shouts but looks like he realized his own verbal trap. I look around and see that everyone is hiding a smirk, except Luke who just looks triumphant. Luke looks up to see me, and I wink at him before turning to North.

"It's okay, I actually made two packs of bacon today," I say then turn to Luke. "Let me just grab the other batch," I add with a wink. I stroll to the pantry and grab the cookie sheet lined with and covered by wax paper. I see Kota giving me a particularly curious look, and I barely manage to keep a straight face.

"Why's it on that pan like that, Princess?" Victor asks. I just smile, the lay the pan down furthest from North, but closest to Luke. Nathan pops up from his seat and shuffles to that side of the table. He slowly lifts a corner of the wax paper and leans close to see. Luke, already seated there realizes exactly what was there, and laughs so hard I was afraid he'd  choke on his own saliva.

The natives are getting restless with their curiosity, so I whip the paper off, grab my plate, then sit on North's lap before he even has a chance to bellow. Thunderclouds! I swear his dark eyes wanted to shoot lightning! I demurely eat a forkful of pancake, and grab his cup of milk to take a sip. He's watching me have my breakfast the entire time the boys are fighting over whether chocolate dipped bacon should be considered a breakfast food or a dessert.