Desperate Summers (Frerard short fic)

Marinated Meat

The first thing on the list to prove to Mr. Way that I was a man was to host a barbecue. Considering I was a vegetarian, this was going to be a challenge. My father and Mr. Way had barbecues all the time with my mother joining them and a few other friends from the neighborhood.

I looked at the time to see that it was four in the afternoon, meaning I had plenty of time to cook dinner. I smirked to myself and rushed down the stairs. I looked in the kitchen and watched as my mother pulled out a slab of steaks. Perfect.

"Hey, mom?" I said wearily. She looked up and smiled toward me.

"Yeah?"

"Is Dad making streaks tonight?"

"Yeah. The whole neighborhoods coming this week. Do you want me to make you some Raman or something?" She asked kindly. She always offered when they had meat for dinner, which was quite often. Usually I would make my own food so I wouldn't have to disturb her, but today was going to be different.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could cook the steaks?" I asked.

She turned to me, eye wide an questioning. "Excuse me? But did my Frank just say that he wanted to cook meat? The same kid that's been vegetarian since he was thirteen?"

"Yes, actually."

"May I ask why?" She had turned her full attention to me, no longer even thinking about the plate of meat behind her.

"I just- want to try something new?" That was all I had. Honestly, there was no excuse as to why I would suddenly what to cook meat. "I mean, it's not like I'm gonna eat it" I scoffed.

"Your not gonna poison it, right?"

"I'll try not to."

"Then let me show you how to marinade the steaks." She motioned over to where she stood. There were various spiced and sauces next to the steak on the counter.

"I thought Dad did this stuff? He cooks it right?"

My mom scoffed. "Honey, your dad just puts it on the grill and makes sure it doesn't burn. When you grow older, you start to understand that men like to take credit for what women do."

"That's kind of messed up. Everyone in the neighborhood liked his steak." I frowned.

"I know. You think I like taking credit for potato salad? No way. But, no man is going to take credit for any type of salad. So, us women do it." She explained. Soon, she was showing me how to prepare the meat and what spices to use. It was disgusting but I didn't mind so much because my mind was stuck on what she said about men, it just didn't seam fair. I didn't want to be a 'man' if it meant becoming a jerk. But, I thought about what Mr. Way had said and decided that this was what I had to do to win over his heart.

Or cock. Whatever, it didn't matter. Either way I was winning something.

After it was prepared, we were supposed to let it sit out for a while. Which I thought was a bad idea cause I thought that meat wasn't supposed to sit out, but my mom told me otherwise.

When my Dad came home from work, I couldn't wait to just ask him if Mr. Way was coming over for the Friday barbecue, but I withheld. My mother excitedly spoke to my father, telling him all about how I learned to marinade the steak and how I wanted to cook it as well.

"Really?" He turned to me and scrunched his nose up. It looked like I had just told him I gave birth, he was so shocked.

"Um. . . Yeah." I tried to fake my excitement. He shrugged it off though and wrapped his arm around my shoulder, guiding me outside toward the grill. Something deep in my brain told me this was a bad idea.