Dawn of Spring

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Indeed, the food was delicious.

Vivaan has the potential to become a master chef one day if he ever felt inclined to take it seriously. However, his culinary ventures were infrequent, reserved for moments when curiosity struck or when a challenge was thrown his way.

Ahana couldn't fathom him at times.

However, today he wanted to cook because he was positively famished. Listening to Ahana's father about her lack of cooking skills motivated him to place an offer as he was in no mood to eat trial food, having seen and endured his brothers' awful cooking several times.

"Any thoughts?"

Vivaan was grinning from ear to ear spoon feeding Gia, who puckered her tiny face and turned away with a determined twist of her head. Her silent protest seemed to scream, 'Why can't adults ever serve something tasty?'

"It's..." Ahana mumbled, looking the other way. The taste was undeniable, but she swallowed her pride, forcing the words out in a faint mutter. "It's edible."

Vivaan's grin widened. "Edible? That's high praise coming from you," he quipped, scooping a serving onto his own plate.

In some strange sense, she felt a little angry and irritated at how delicious the food tasted, subconsciously comparing her lack of skills with his apparent abundance.

A glimmer of disapproval flickered across her father's face as he took in her words and gave her a questioning look. The slight furrow in his brow made her shrink inwardly.

"It's excellent," he finally said, his tone clipped but genuine as he directed his words at Vivaan. "You've outdone yourself."

"Noooo," Gia spoke out of the blue, shoving the spoon away with all her might.

Vivaan sighed, holding his ground. "I know it's not a five-star meal, but it's protein, kiddo," he said, trying to coax the spoon toward her again. Gia's determined "No!" rang out as he managed to slip the spoon into her mouth.

Her face crumpled immediately, turning into a deep frown before she erupted into a wail.

"Hey, hey! Shush!" He quickly set the bowl down. "Okay, okay, no more protein for you. Truce."

Ahana paused with her spoon suspended midway as she watched the two interact. It was almost comical. Would someone actually cave and stop feeding a toddler just because they cried? Yet, here Vivaan was, clearly flustered.

She stood, washing her hands at the sink before grabbing a banana from the counter. Wordlessly, she peeled it, mashing it into a bowl with practiced ease. It was a trick she'd seen her mother use countless times.

"Here," she said, sliding the bowl toward Vivaan. "Try this instead."

"Lifesaver," Vivaan murmured with a quick, genuine smile before turning back to Gia, who eyed the mashed banana with a cautious pout.

From the other end of the table, her father raised an eyebrow but said nothing, focusing on his plate. 

A new voice broke the silence, light and teasing.

"You told me he doesn't like kids."

Ahana turned to see her mother, who had just returned from her meeting, setting down her bag. The older woman's gaze flicked toward Vivaan, who was now doing his best to make funny faces while feeding Gia the banana.

"People change."

Vivaan, on the other hand, looked like he was about to cry as the toddler started shaking her head fast. To top it off, she had started singing, "No, no, no, no!" in a defiant little melody.