Nuclear 531

Chapter 3

"Hazelnut! Come here! It's time for your favourite, carrot soup!" the older cadet called out to Elixabeth in the distance.

"That is not fair! Elixabeth is getting all the attention!" a faint voice of another boy whined beside her.

☢️ ☢️ ☢️

It's the dawn of a new day for the two. The sunlight beamed through the poorly cut-out window of the truck and onto Eca's face. He felt as if something was on his arm. Something warm and weighted. He peered to the side; Elixabeth was sleeping soundly.

Eca jumped as he saw Elixabeth in his arms, questioning himself. He slowly nudged Elixabeth to the side as he pulled his arm out, but she turned to him and gently pulled on his withdrawing arm as if it were a child seeking comfort. Eca gently caressed her hair before gently moving her to the side, allowing him to get to the kitchen.

Eca stretched out from the long night's rest. He brought out the ingredients from yesterday and started making pastry. A mix of butter, flour, and a bit of sugar, slowly turns into a batter. Eca got into deep thought. He glanced at the sleeping beauty. His gaze softened as she was sleeping soundly. It was a calm moment.

"Some things never changed..." He chuckled to himself.

A scent of buttery and slightly burnt buns with blueberry fillings brimmed the room. Elixabeth groaned as she turned to the side and slowly opened her eyes. She looked at the tall male, taking out the freshly baked batch of buns. She sprung up from the floor, retreating to the corner, seemingly befuddled by the sight as she tried to recall what had happened last night. Eca gave her a teasing smile as she warmed up to her surroundings.

It was unusual for her to wake up at this time, Elixabeth never overslept when she was back in the Space Station. She looked around the place, getting a better look at the small shelter. It was a warm tone of orange and finely decorated with seemingly dead plants hanging from the ceiling. It seemed as though Eca wasn't the best person to do gardening. She immersed herself in observing the room as Eca served breakfast for the both of them.

"Eat up, or you won't have any energy for the day. We have a long journey ahead of us today." Eca nudged the plate with Elixabeth's portion of the meal towards her, speaking with his mouth full while also having a bun in his hand.

Elixabeth felt sceptical; a sense of uneasiness filled her stomach as she walked towards the food. Nevertheless, she took a bite of the sweet-scented bun. Her eyes lit up as the rich sensation filled her taste buds, the sweetness of the blueberry hit just right, and the crunchy outer pastry was perfectly baked. The bun was instantly consumed with a blink of an eye, even Eca was surprised at her appetite.

It has been a long time since Elixabeth had sweets. It was once her favourite type of food.

Elixabeth wiped off the excess blueberry filling that got onto the sides of her lips. Eca smiled at the sight, leaving the brunette ever so sceptical of his intentions as well. He got up from his seat and cleaned up the small dining table.

"All right, time for work!" Eca energetically said. "Now, I have one last important thing to do before I can fully dedicate myself to helping you get that missing guy you are looking for."

Eca walked as Elixabeth followed his pace. "And don't get me started with 'Then I might as well look for him myself' No. I am not letting you do that, and you owe me a favour; I bought you that dagger and I took you in from being devoured by the Infectants so you will also need me for protection and..." Eca took a deep breath before continuing his long jabbering as the two made their way to the Colosseum.

Elixabeth rolled her eyes as she listened to his whole babble of why he was the best person to do the job of guiding her to the missing soldier. Autonomously driven by nature, she followed him and listened to every word he had to say and ended up at the Colosseum, told to sit on the balcony of the room that Elixabeth was woken up in the day before.