Red Hood

29. Mini-Bake

"5!" The crowd began to countdown as the bakers began to hustle, the final stretch, the finish line in sight.

4...

Danny and Jason were scrambling to get the apple-carrot fritters onto the plate.

3...

He struggled to finish drizzling the glaze on the dessert, Danny wiping any messy excess away.

2...

Everyone watched intensely.

"1!" They all shouted together, Don clapping just as loudly.

"Okay, bakers," he donned his best announcer voice, "time is up, so one by one bring your dishes up for tasting."

Team Oranges were first with mini cake bites, but Danny wasn't' paying any attention to that, staring at Jason with a huge ass grin.

"We did it, huh?" he wiggled his fingers in a jazzy motion.

"Yeah," she breathed, not feeling it had sunk in quite yet, "we did, didn't we?"

"Team Snitches?"

Looking up at the Mayor, the two looked back down at each other before grabbing their plates, holding in their giggles and snorts as they 'subtly' nudged and joked with each other. All the way up to the platform.

Placing the plates atop the table with a soft tap, Jason stepped back, a hand on Danny's shoulder.

"Please," the Mayor's eyes crinkled as a graceful hand gestured to their dessert, "tell us what you made."

"We have made for you today," Jason sounded extremely polite, the sound causing Danny to hide a smile behind her hand, "is a golden and crispy apple carrot fritter with a sweet vanilla glaze."

Looking down at their plate, the Mayor and Don nodded, "Very impressed, Jason and Danny, these look delicious."

And they really did, Danny thought, relieved. The golden fritters were still warm from the crackling oil, Jason pulling them out at the last second, the glaze dripping off of the edges in a taunting way.

He did say her cooking was good, and she knew he didn't give himself nearly enough credit. Though it was ironic considering she didn't think of herself as good enough. And yeah, Danny definitely doubted her own skill, still was. 

But the sense of accomplishment was more than enough to help her feel a little bit of hope.

Picking one up in his fingers, Don lifted it in a 'cheers' motion towards Mayor Eliza, "Here we go, then!"

Jason and Danny's hearts sped up, knowing it was only a mini-round and not the real thing but couldn't help it.

Watching as the two judges chewed, perfect poker faces keeping any emotion or hint of what they were thinking away.

"Do you think they'll like it?" Danny whispered out the side of her mouth, leaning towards Jason.

"I'd think so," he murmured back, a smile threatening to break out, "managed to sneak a taste test from one of the extras."

She would have scolded him if she hadn't done the same thing, laughing, "Yeah, I'd eat them any day, but that just might be my ego talking."

"Team Snitches," they snapped their worried gazes up to Don and Mayor Eliza, "we've decided that your dessert..."

To Be Continued!