STRIS Bits

Full Belly

"Man, lunches are getting so expensive. It's ridiculous!" Street lamented frustrated, reading his ticket in disgust.

"Tell me about it! Three tacos at Lupe's were just five bucks." Luca paused, "Yesterday I paid eight, and they weren't even stacked like they used to!"

"Oh, I know that cart! Lupe sold it to her brother, Carlos! He up'ed the prices of everything!" Tan added.

"Passion fruit lemonade used to be three bucks, man! My favorite!" Street demanded frustrated.

"I hear ya! I absolutely love their mango slushy, but...it went from five bucks for an 18 ounce cup, to a 7 for a 12 ounce one with no refill!" Luca responded.

SLAM

The door slammed opened and a rushed Deacon came inside. He quietly nodded to everyone and took a seat at the corner of one of the tables int he kitchen. He placed down a small black lunch bag and proceeded to open it and place on the table its components.

"No refills. I hate that!" Street snapped annoyed.

Cabrera swallowed a big gulp of water and added, "An Açai bowl at Fruit-licious went from eight fifty, to almost twelve bucks now!" she finished shaking her head slowly, completely disappointed.

"Ouch!" Luca responded, with a disappointing look.

"An order of fried rice, dumplings and one meat went up five bucks at the Chinese place across the street from our place!" Tan shared, also shaking his head slowly.

Silently, Deacon rose from his spot int he table with a bowl in hand and headed to the microwave. He opened the door, placed the bowl inside, dialed up some digits and turned on the machine.

"What?" Street asked extremely surprised, "You mean Yao's place? That's the best Chinese spot in a mile radius!"

"Yup!" Luca agreed, nodding his head slowly, as he took a big bite of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"And don't get me started on the prices in restaurants!" Cabrera said annoyed, "Last week I went out to dinner and.. geez!" she paused, to take a spoonful of her meal, "Ended up spending almost a hundred dollars on just three of us! And not all of us ordered a full meal!"

"Woah!" Tan and Luca responded, eyebrows up.

"Everything is going up. Damn inflation!" Street added disappointingly.

UH HMMM

A common sound of agreement was heard as the officers enjoyed their varied lunches in silence. Street laid back against the counter top, downing his protein smoothie, while Cabrera sat across Tan, both enjoying bowl meals and  Luca stood by the small fridge enjoying a bag of chips and a soda.

TIIIIIIIIN

After some seconds of silence, the microwave was heard. Deacon silently retrieved his lunch and turned to the group. The smell immediately captivated the rest of the officers, who turned to him.

"Smells good!" Street whispered, making Cabrera chuckle lightly and Tan shake his head slowly. 

"Guys!"Deacon called, taking advantage of the fact that he already had their attention, "Why don't you just meal prep?"

"Huh?" the group responded collectively, showing frowns intrigued.

"Prepare meals for the week." Deacon explained, as he headed for his spot int he table. "Groceries are expensive, but at least you can reuse ingredients in different ways to make different meals and...you know? Get more for your buck!"