A Summer Fling (Aris x Reader AU)

29) Paybacked Teasing

“So why are desserts a two-day thing this time?”

“Because there's a lot of timely pies to make. So we spend today baking and finish them all tomorrow night,”she said like it was obvious.

“And I’m not allowed to touch any of them before then?”

She stopped mid-stir to give me a deadpan expression, silently scolding my impatience. I could only stand there with a half done bowl of banana cream filling in my hands, still requesting permission.

“You’ll get your own pie.”

“I’m confused on what that has to do with the pies right now?”

Rolling her eyes, she turned back to the other half of the filling, a love for the chaos and specific requirements of it all more than likely in her gaze. It was always clear that she would be an artist. Her and I were always in that classroom longer than any other kid, me with a meh painting that I didn't really care about and her focused on every small detail for whatever she had decided to pick up. My lunch was the same peanut butter and jelly, fruit snacks, and apple in a blue lunchbox while she shoved whatever she could in her mouth just to get back to her passion. Every Christmas and every birthday had a wrapped box or colorful bag of art supplies. My first birthday money was spent on a paint pallet in the shape of a cat. Baking seemed completely out of left field.

She's good at it though. Really good.

“Oh! My phone's on the other counter. Do you mind finding a playlist?”

“On it,”I agreed, setting the bowl down to grab it. The white case with hand-painted doodles made it impossible to mistake for anyone else's. Between the flowers to the sketchbook with figure in it, it's clear who it belongs to. The crack in the corner was the cherry on top, the image of it falling out of her pocket while being busy making so much sense.

“No password?”

“No need for one.”

“If you say so,”I shrugged, swiping to Spotify while she was combining both bowls, brows furrowed in concentration, not because that step was hard, but because she was determined for it to be absolutely perfect.

I found the most cheerful playlist, which was relatively easy seeing as she only has three downers. I’m not sure whether that makes me strange for having seventeen collections of songs that make me want to lay on the floor and scream or her for the happy-go-lucky music taste.

“Because everyone just had to be different, there's seven flavors. We could knock out three of fillings, maybe four, and bake two, hopefully three. If we could stay up a little later tonight though, then maybe we could get past that,”she explained. Seeing as I’m certainly no baker, I nodded. My credentials for being here are basic meals that anybody over the age of thirteen should be able to make. Hers are apparently extravagant desserts that break up families.

“Here. Roll out the first crust,”she instructed, handing me a pin. I accepted it as I went to my assigned station, having gone from supportive boyfriend to taking orders from a drill Sargent. Not that I really mind. Other than the heat from the oven burning the already hellish room, the blinds and curtains doing nothing to cease the sun, it's nice. The sweet scents in the air made it insane to not ask for a bite. I, like most people, am not usually a fan of too many smells. The ones in this category are just right though, working together to blend into one. Sort of like Y/N and I but with less of an “I lead, you follow” thing. Then again, that depends on what exactly is going on.

“I take it you still know my favorite one?”

“That depends,”she shrugged, a teasing undertone in her voice.