Food Is Love!

Recipe 61: Student

Roadtrip Day 22
Location: Butuan City

Alex's POV:

"WAAAAAH!!! SHE FAINTED! SHE FAINTED!!!" Flonne panics as the little girl that we helped lost consciousness. "LEXI, WHAT SHOULD GONNA DO?!?! GIVE HER CPR OR SOMETHING?!?!"

"Hey! Flonne, don't panic. She's fine." I calmed my worried girlfriend down. "She just need a little rest."

"Hey! What the commotion out the-ooh." Danica came out of the truck to see us attending the fainted girl. "Come, I'll help you carry her to your room."

Danica then calls the attention of Azmina and Claire to carry the fainted girl into our room, together with Flonne's cooking equipment so she could start teaching her of cooking skills when the little girl wakes up...

The little girl's POV:

I slowly opened my eyes...and looked around. There's a bright light bulb above me and I was lying on a bed...I don't know where am I right now but I know that I fainted earlier when I catch up with the lady who is very good at tossing food at the wok.

"Oh! You're awake now." Then, a beautiful lady wearing pink show smiles at me. "Alice is worrying so much about you."

"Alice? Who's Alice?" I asked the lady.

"Oh! Ehehehe...sorry about that." The Lady scratches her head in embarrassment. "Alice is the one who is long haired and wears glasses."

Yeah...I remember now! That's the one I am looking for! The lady that masters tossing food in the wok!

"Well, if you're not Alice...then can you tell me who are you?"

"Certainly. Hehehe! My name is Azmina Diamla."

"Wait...are you related to the famous Muhammad Diamla, one of the prominent businessman in Mindanao?" With puppy eyes, I asked Azmina.

"Yep. I'm his daughter!"

"I knew it! I really knew it! Hehehe!" I shook her hand while Azmina has no idea about my fandom to her. "I'm so amazed with you!"

"Oh, re-really? How's about it?"

"Well, my father owes you and your grandfather for giving him a job in your outsourcing company." I simply explain.

"Ooh...your welcome. Hehehe!" I returned the favor and giggled.

And as we continue our conversation, the lady with long hair and wears glasses, the one the Azmina calls Alice, enters the room...

"Azmina, how's the little girl faring right no-ooh." And that's when she saw me awake and talking to Azmina. "Waaah!!! Thank goodness! I'm so worried about you!"

And without hesitation, Alice hugs me very tightly, as she was already calling me her friend. For me, that's an awkward situation until she snaps out of her senses and let go...

"Oh...ehehehe...sorry about that. I even didn't introduce myself to you. My bad! Ehehehe!" She then bows her head as gesture. "My name is Alice Flonne Molina, Alice for short, nice to meet you."

"Hehehe! Nice to meet you, too!" I giggled as I met my idol in cooking. "By the way, my name is Kristine Carpio. You can call me Tina for short. Man, I'm so excited to learn your amazing cooking skills!"

"Hehehe! Glad to hear that." Then Alice offers her hand to me. "Well...if you have rest well, then let's start right now!"

"Sure! Hehehe!"

Alice Flonne's POV:

I hold Tina's hand as we headed to the hotel room's kitchen to start teaching her my cooking skills. Well...Claire, Danica and Lexi are already fallen asleep so I'm sure that nobody will disturb this...umm...what can I call this...aha! A cooking tutorial! Hehehe! By the way, Azmina is also with me so she could help me in this undertaking.

"Okay...to learn my secret...you must learn how to hold the cooking utensil right." Then I lend a random wok to Tina. "Here, try to hold this for ten seconds."

"Whoa! It sooo heavy!" Tina is overwhelmed by the sheer weight of the wok. "I...can't take it...too much...longe-aaaah!!!"

"Gotcha!" I caught the wok after it slipped from Tina's hands. "Let's try again, Tina. If you want to learn my food toss, you must give everything you got to hold this wok."

"But...sniff...bu-but...sniff...I can't..."

The first failed attempt demotivate Tina...and she is already close to tears...as she is trying to tell me she is about to give up. As I watch her tears fell from her eyes...I recall the times that I was close to give up as well...the time that there are no customers that patronize my cooking...the time that everybody is scrutinizing and doesn't accept my cooking...and more recently, when I was stricken by flu and paralyzed for days. I was like Tina before...so close to giving up...but...because of my passion for cooking...because of the motivation of my friends...and...because of the love and compassion that Lexi, the one who started it all, has given to me...look at me now...I have past all the challenges...and make many people smile...it's time to make the miracle...that happened to me...be felt by this little girl...who wants to follow my dreams...

"Tina...you can't give up now!" I sat down and patted her shoulder. "You shouldn't let your dreams hide because of your mistakes. Dreams cannot happen overnight...you need to reach it...whatever the consequences you will be facing. You just need to believe in yourself, okay?"

But...my advice didn't yield any changes on Tina's face...she just keep snuffling...so I decided to show my skill by myself.

"Alright, let me teach you." With a smile in my face, I hold the wok with Tina. "Just distribute the weight over your arms and body then...with some care, toss the wok quickly...you just need to hold on to the wok very tightly..."

After a few moments of demonstration, I let go of the wok so Tina could try it by herself.

"Come on, Tina. You can do it! Hehehe!" I smile and giggle to motivate her. "Don't mind the mistakes you will be doing, just toss it!"

With her head 'held up high', she proceeded. She begun tossing the wok very slowly...there are times that she get outbalanced by the weight of the wok, but Azmina and I always break her fall and motivated to continue. She try...and try...and try again...until...

"Alice! Azmina! Look at this!"

Tina demonstrated at the end that, with extra strength and flawlessness, she tosses the wok quickly...just like my techniques.

"Oh, Alice! Looks like your student has done your technique, doesn't it?" Azmina comments at Tina's progression.

"Yep, yes she is...looks like she is ready for the next stage." Then I turned to my "student". "Alright, Tina. You can stop for a minute now."

Tina complies with my directive...puts down the wok on the stove...and quickly...hugged me tightly.

"Thanks! Thank you so much, teacher Alice!" Tina is visibly grateful to me. "Thanks for teaching me your skill, teacher Alice!"

"Oh...ehehehe...please stop call me teacher. It's making me blush! Hehehe!" Tina and Azmina laughed at my plea. "Alright, but that's just the start. This time, I'm gonna challenge you to cook your favorite dish using the technique you just learned. Dare to accept it?"

"Of course! You should know that I'm a good cook like you." Tina then suggests our dish for tonight. "Hmm...let's cook some beef steak. How's that?"

"No problem! Let's begin then, shall we?"

"Yes, Alice!"