A Walk in the Rain (Markiplier x Reader)

Chapter 12

Mark stood at the stove, carefully keeping an eye on his soup as if it was his first born. He diligently stirred it, and added pepper or salt as he saw fit. You sat at the bar in the kitchen, watching him cook. You were resting your elbows on the counter with your head propped in your hands. Matt, Ryan, and Jack were outside on the deck next to the pool playing with Chica and Lego. Ryan was mostly playing with his own dog. They were deep into a match of tug-of-war, man VS. German Shepherd. Lego was obviously enjoying himself, he wagged his tail and jumped around quite a bit. Matt and Jack were more or less cuddling Chica. Matt was sitting on the ground with Chica rolling around in his lap as Jack petted her and tickled her face. Chica wriggles around on her back  excitedly before stopping and doing the little snorty- sneeze thing they do when they play.
Mark started to lean back and forth, humming to himself, obviously at peace when at the stove. He hums a little tune to himself as he plops in the dumpling batter to the soup, then places the lid on the pot and turns the heat down, leaving it to simmer and cook the dumplings. He walks over to the sink and you watch as he does so, he notices and talks as he turns the sink on. "That pot contains the secret recipe to achieve true success in life. To you think you are prepared for that responsibility?" He says playfully as he shakes his hands and out and dries them on a towel. You grin and sit up. "I am prepared. I have trained my entire life for this moment. I am ready, Sensei." You say before bowing. Mark immediately joins in and bows back to you. "I believe you young Grasshopper. But only the Chicken and Dumplings may test your skill." He says, throwing an old Japanese man accent in. It causes you to laugh and break character, causing him to break character as well. He stands back up and rested his hand on the counter and crosses his feet on the floor. He seems so relaxed and happy as he stares out the sliding door watching the boys play. The smell of the chicken and dumplings is aromatic, and is heavy in the air. It is a beautiful smell, and you are eager to taste it. He looks from the window to you. "It's really nice having you over." He says suddenly. You are surprised a little at the break in the silence them glance back up at his face. You can tell he really means it. "Thank you Mark. I really enjoy it here too. I am super grateful you invited me." He grins and runs a hand through his cerulean locks. "No problem. Any time. Our doors are always open too you." He  says with sincerity. It was such a great feeling knowing that this could become your home away from home. Finally somewhere besides that rats hole of a apartment you could feel safe. Safer than the apartments. At that moment Matr came bursting through the door. He paused for a second and smelled he air, grinning. "I smell CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS!" He shouts, and causes Ryan and Jack to show up behind him eagerly gazing at the pot on the stove. Matt moves in the allows Ryan and Jack to pass. Mark turns back to the pot and stirs it again. He lifts the spoon to his face and sips it. He gives a satisfactory grin and places the spoon on the counter. Whipping around, he says "Dinner's ready." with a smile. The boy's giddily open the cabinets and start pulling out plates. The table is quickly set, they even set your place. This all happens in the matter of a minute, it appears it was a well rehearsed ceremony. Everyone plops into their place, and watch eagerly as Mark carries the pot from the stove to the table, placing it on a hot pad. He sits down at his place and says "Dig in."