discontinued. The Way We Live Now ⇔ Mileven {3rd - "Wake Up, Mike" Trilogy}

One

Mike.
May 26, 1990

Flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, milk, egg, melted butter. Mix that, then scoop into frying pan. Wait, and then pancakes.

I've followed the recipe at least three times, and I've somehow failed every time. Why can't I just make the damn pancakes? It's not that hard.

"Are you trying to make pancakes?" I heard my mom's voice as she walked into the room, and I laughed a bit. I scooped the pancake out and onto a plate, staring at it for a minute.

"I can't seem to do it correctly. Come try this with me, tell me what I'm doing wrong." I offered, and she walked over to join me near the counter. I tore it in half, handing her one side, and immediately biting into my end. My face scrunched up almost right away, as did hers.

"Mike, what did you put in these?" She laughed, pouring the batter into the sink and rinsing the bowl. I shook my head, throwing away the pancakes.

"I followed a recipe, I put everything in that it said." I huffed, frustrated by how many times I've failed this. She looked at me for a second, then picked up the paper that the recipe was written on. She studied it, then looked back up at me with an amused smile.

"Did you measure anything?" She asked, and I looked at her with a blank expression. "One teaspoon of table salt, one tablespoon of white sugar. Did you actually measure anything?" She asked again, then laughed when I didn't respond. "Mike, these numbers mean something. Why are you trying to make pancakes in the first place?"

"Because I'm not a little kid anymore, Mom! I'm moving out as soon as possible, and I need to learn how to cook." I reminded as if it were obvious, and she smirked a bit at me.

"In case you've forgotten, Eleanor is quite the cook."

"Yeah, but El is good at everything. I have to help with certain things." I insisted, and she just nodded absently. "I'm serious, Mom, she isn't gonna do all the house work."

"I know, Mike, I know." She rolled her eyes as I heard the front door open and slam shut. I looked to the door, where Max walked in, her combat boots clunking loudly on the tiles. She looked at the ingredients sat on the counter, then looked to me with a smirk.

"You know, pancake mix exists, asshat." She teased, chuckling at me. My mom laughed, giving her a look. "Sorry, Mom. Hey, Holly is almost done at her friend's house, right? You said two?" She asked, my mom nodding with a smile.

"Two PM. Will you go get her?"

"Yeah, of course. We gotta be at Will's by five, though. Where is her friend's house?" Max asked, bending down and grabbing her socks, pulling them up fully again. They went a bit above her knees, and I rolled my eyes. I don't understand her weird styles.

"Oh, Mike knows, he'll show you. Bring her back, and then you can head to Will's." My mom ordered, and I groaned, but led the way to the door. I started to grab the keys, but was stopped.

"Let's walk, like old times." Max insisted, smiling wide and stealing my keys. She put them back on our key wrack, then led the way to the door. I rolled my eyes again, following her outside and into the driveway. Her boots continued to clunk loudly on the asphalt, but I tried to ignore it. They're her favorite pair of shoes. "What's the friend's name?" She asked as I stuffed my hands into my jean pockets.

"Lily, but I like to tease and call her Lilian. They've been friends since they were babies, they just don't get to hang out much." I explained, and she nodded along absently. She then smiled deviously, looking at me with a wicked glint in her eye.

"Hey, what do you think Mom and Dad would do if I bought a motorcycle?" She asked, and I gave her a look of disbelief. She kept her smile, letting me know she meant it. I sighed, looking at the sky a bit as I thought.