Baked Love

Chapter 1

Baked Love: Hot cross buns

The scent of freshly baked waffles and toasted loaves of pumpkin bread wafted into my bedroom at early six in the morning—

Such a daily occurrence wasn't something that I had taken into much consideration, since it was due to the fact that my family owned a bakery downstairs.

Simply put; I didn't get to eat the tasty waffles that they brought out on trays.

"Muffins!" Rose called through the door, rapping her knuckles sharply on the weak wood. I jerked awake.

With the thought of muffins for breakfast at the back of my head, I managed to drag myself away from soft pillows—proceeding to the only bathroom in my house.

It was, obviously, occupied.

"Gretel!" Coco, the second oldest, had her hands banging on door of the bathroom; calling impatiently as she tapped her foot.   

"What?" The girl in the bathroom shouted back, "I'm busy!"

"And that's what you say all the time!" Coco crossed her arms across her chest and rolled her eyes— then, without another word, she stormed away.

I heard the vague sound of her complaining to Rosemary, snapping about Gretel's makeup routine. It so happens that we tended to go to Rose for backup, since she was the eldest sister.

It was only after a good fifteen minutes when Gretel finally decided that she was looking good enough to come out of the bathroom, all prepped for school.

"Took you long enough," I grinned, slipping past her in the narrow entrance.  

She stuck her tongue out in reply.

"The face wash is running out. I bet Hansel's the one squeezing a handful each time," My sister wriggled her nose in disgust at her twin.   

I poked the side of her cheek. "Hypocrite. I'll run by the convenience store and get it."

"Great!" Gretel's eyes lit up, as if she was waiting for that answer all along. "While you're there, why don't you grab two bottles instead? With seven people using it—it's bound to deplete rapidly so..."

Yeap, four sisters and two brothers. Well, including me, that's three.

I nodded vaguely, shutting the door quickly so that my sister would stop with the requests as soon as possible.

After jumping into the shower for a minute or two, I dried myself and slipped on some dark jeans and a white long-sleeved shirt. I took a quick check in the mirror; tidying up my blonde hair, then slipping on my overly-huge glasses.

Well...they weren't exactly mine. They were Coco's; before she started wearing contacts.

And coincidentally, I started getting short-sighted.

"Chip! The muffins are getting cold!" Rose called from downstairs.

"Coming," I hurried down the creaky wooden stairs to the bakery, grabbing my book bag along the way.

We live in a tiny shop house above our family business, which Rose handles most of at the present time, since Mom's away. I help out every day after school; and it's kind of how I developed a love for sweet things—and my passion for baking.