The Witch's Ichor

Romantic Tension [7]

Several missiles fly across the screen, destroying a cloaked mech in seconds. Theo lets out an irritated groan as Ryker flies past the wreckage of his mech. Derek's round mech crashes into Ryker's mech half a second later, ending the match suddenly.

"God, you are so annoying!" Ryker growls.

"He's annoying? You figured out how to kill me while I'm invisible!" Theo complains.

Ryker giggles cheekily as Derek basks in his victory. Jamison glances at his phone, checking the time. He sets his controller on the table and stands up.

"I think it's time we have some real food, and maybe watch a movie?" Jamison offers.

The other three all nod in agreement. Gaming with your friends for a couple hours works up an appetite that chips and soda cannot quench. Jamison moves into the kitchen, preparing the countertop grill. Derek snags a couple hot dogs from the fridge and puts them on the grill eagerly.

"Dude, it's not even hot yet." Jamison says.

"It won't take long. You got any condiments?" Derek replies.

Derek opens the fridge with a hungry glint in his eyes. The mustard, ketchup, and relish are all there. Derek sets them all out on the counter.

"Help yourself." Jamison replies dryly.

Theo and Ryker enter the kitchen with hungry looks on their faces.

"It'll be a bit before they're ready." Jamison says.

Theo takes a seat at the dining table without complaint, but Ryker lets out an annoyed groan. The pout on his feminine features brings a small smile to Jamison's face. He opens the pantry and hands Ryker a chocolate chip cookie.

"Wait- You've got the good kind!?" Ryker says excitedly.

"Yup, the good kind. Think of it as an appetizer." Jamison says.

Ryker takes a small bite of the cookie as he sits down with Theo at the table. Theo watches him eat with a thoughtful expression. Ryker swallows, raising his brow at Theo.

"What're you staring at me for?" Ryker asks.

Theo pulls out his notepad and pen, flipping to a new page. Ryker gets a brief peek at the previous page. Several bullet points and a sketch of a girl are visible for a half second.

"I'm curious if your transformation is affecting your taste buds. You always liked those kind of cookies, but is there anything different you've noticed?" Theo inquires.

Ryker looks down at the cookie in his hands with a conflicted expression. Ryker listens to the soft sound of the hotdogs sizzling on the grill as he thinks. He looks back up at Theo, and continues.

"Honestly some things do taste a little different, but not that much. I think it might be messing with my head, though." Ryker wrinkles his nose in disgust.

Theo writes down something on his notepad. He looks back up from the notepad, studying Ryker's face. Derek takes a seat at the table with a set of four hot dogs on his plate. Each one is lined with a heavy dose of mustard, ketchup, and relish.

"What makes you think that?" Theo prods.

"Honestly I keep having these weird dreams, and stuff just feels... different." Ryker says softly.

Ryker's introspection is put to a stop when Jamison sets down a plateful of hotdogs in front of Ryker. The wavy lines of ketchup topping the hotdogs puts an excited smile on Ryker's face. Jamison seats himself to the left of Ryker, digging into his own food. Ryker takes a bite before answering Theo.