A Recipe for Disaster

                  

"I was thinking we could just go out for dinner." I tell my best friend Sarah about my plans for my boyfriend and me tonight, Valentine's Day. We are both sitting on my small twin sized bed in my cramped room. The bed is strewn with clothes and Sarah is painting her nails next to me. I walk over to open the window because the fumes are suffocating.

"No! Jade, you absolutely cannot just go out to dinner. This is your 2nd Valentine's Day with him! Do something extravagant, or something that comes from the heart!" Sarah exclaims.

"This is from the heart. I'm taking him out to dinner." I told her. Inside, I start to think about her words. Should I actually do something bigger this year? Last year he brought me on a picnic. I guess a dinner does sound lame.

"Okay, fine, maybe dinner is a little lame." I say in defeat after thinking about it.

"Exactly. How about you guys go roller blading?" Sarah suggests. I scrunch up my face.

"No, I'm horrid at roller skating." I say. "I'll just fall on him."

"That's the point! So he can catch you, and then you guys can look into each other's eyes and cuddle!" She rambles. I just roll my eyes.

"I'd rather do something else." I tell her. She just grumbles in response. Sarah and I have different visions on how a date should go. I think of dates as just something simple, where you can spend time with who you love. It doesn't have to be extravagant or costly. Sarah, on the other hand, loves big surprises. She loves it when guys plan huge parties for her, or make great plans for her. To me, those ideas just sound foolish.

"You should just cook for him." Sarah says sarcastically. I gasp in surprise.

"That's it! I'll bake Valentine's Day cookies for him! He loves cookies, especially chocolate chip!" I say, thinking out loud. Sarah just stares at me with her mouth gaping open.

"I didn't actually mean that!" She says, but my mind is running to fast to hear her.

"It will be perfect! I'll bake the cookies, show up at his doorstep, and we can watch movies while enjoying my delicious cookies made from my heart!" I finish triumphantly.

"Uh, Jade, I think you're forgetting about the part where you can't bake. At all." Sarah tells me.

"It's no matter. I can just look up some YouTube videos and search up the recipes. How hard can it be?" I wave my hand, as if waving the problem away.

Apparently baking is harder than I thought. Two hours later, I'm sitting in my kitchen, egg shells scattered across the countertops, flour dusting every crevice, and water spilled in a puddle on the ground. Sarah had left an hour ago, after me constantly reassuring her that I would be fine and wouldn't burn the house down. I haven't burned the house down yet, but right now everything is a mess.

"How did I manage to make an easy task of baking cookies into such a daunting job?" I mutter to myself, cleaning up. I finally manage to get a decent looking batter, and after plopping globs onto a baking sheet, I slide them into the oven. Hopefully those will turn out okay.

I wash my hands and sit down, setting the timer on my phone. Then I scroll through my social media apps, getting caught up on what is happening in the high school world. My phone buzzes when I get a text from Asher, my boyfriend.

Hey, what are we doing tonight? His text says.

It's a surprise. Just stay at home ;) I text him back. He just sends a heart in response.

I get up and decide to take a shower and get ready to head over to Asher's house. I'm relaxing in the shower, the hot water pounding onto my tense muscles when I hear the fire alarm go off. Screaming, I turn off the water and run out while wrapping a towel around my dripping body. I run downstairs to see the oven snorting smoke out like an angry bull. I let out a yelp before turning off the oven, and opening it. I wave the first magazine I find frantically in hopes of turning off the fire alarm. I'm definitely a sight to see. My towel is loosely wrapped around me, hanging precariously, while I'm waving a Playboy magazine left by my older brother around in the air, swatting at nothing but invisible smoke.