Foreigner of Fire

18 - Bake a Cake

The whisk moved along the batter, whirring away and it twisted and turned, mixing the chocolate mix. The smell of cocoa wafted through the air. The entire kitchen cabin was filled with the aroma of milk and cake batter as all the pairs worked to make the perfect cake.

Ash worked on perfecting the chocolate glaze and frosting he was determined to put on the cake. He had a special talent of making things turn out better than one thought. Lily, however, had never baked a cake before. Her talents in baking amounted to a little knowledge she had from the pastries her mother taught her how to fold – and the cookies, of course.

Lily stopped the mixer and lifted up the mixer head, spooning the batter stuck on the whisk down onto the bowl again. She and Ash weren't exactly on speaking terms that day and it slightly hurt to be treated differently. He was being annoyingly polite to her – even going as far as to address her as 'Ms. Powell', and refusing to even offer a smile.

Lily read the cook book and began to tilt the batter bowl onto a pan. Ash stopped hedr without saying anything, took the bowl from her hands and dusted the pan with cocoa powder before pouring the batter in. Lily pouted in frustration.

Ash put the pan into the oven and continued to make the glaze. She tried to pitch in and converse but he kept dismissing her.

The oven pinged as soon as the timer was up and Lily bent down to look into the oven. Ash ignored her as he crouched down, opened the oven, and stuck a tooth pick into the center of the cake. When it came out clear, he took two mittens, put them on, and took the cake pan out.

"Ms. Powell..." He suddenly piped up slowly.

"Hm?" Lily frowned, turning to him. He held up a transparent bag, full of white powder. "Oh..." She had forgotten to use the sugar when she mixed the batter. "Oh dear..." She gulped. Ash sighed before setting the pan to cool on a cooking rack. "I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize, Ms. Powell. It can be overlooked." Ash said quietly. He looked around at everyone as he waited for the cake to cook. One of the pairs had even finished icing their butter cake. He started humming a tune to himself as he waited.

Lily watched as his muscles tensed up when he was in deep thought. She wondered how exactly it was that he was feeling then. She didn't have a definite answer as she couldn't read him.

She thought back to her incomplete poem. She still hadn't been able to come up with a line that fit.

Time had flown by without her noticing. She had wandered off into day dream land, only waking up from it when she saw Ash tossing some bags into the dustbin. She was worried for a second that he had thrown the cake but her eyes sparkled and she sighed in relief once she noticed that he had already glazed and iced it – and it sat on the counter.

The counsellors began to pile into the hall, announcing the judging. They began to taste each cake prepared, writing down on their clip boards. When they got to Lily and Ash's cake, they both cringed as the judges tasted their cake. Two of the judges nodded and complimented with smiles, one of them had to spit the spoonful out.

"Alright campers." Head counsellor Wallace began loudly. Everyone turned their attention towards him. "The judges have given me their results," he looked down at the clipboard in his hand. "And the winning pair is..."

"Not us for sure." Lily groaned quietly.

"Team Aliyah and Gunther!"

"Their cake looks pretty good, don't you think?" Lily turned to face Ash.

"Why don't you ask Jesus." Ash's face was impassive. Lily's jaw dropped at his rude comment.

"You are such a jerk. I wish I had never been paired with you." Lily spat.

"Yeah? Well, it's your fault we were paired up in the first place." Ash hissed.

"It would have never happened if you had just not talked to me like I asked."

"You asked?" Ash raised his eyebrows. "Good bye, Lily." He sighed before turning on his heel and leaving her behind. She was so frustrated until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey!" Aliyah's smiling face greeted her when she turned around. "Hey! Come try some cake!" She offered.

"Sure." Lily smiled back, blinking away the tears.

"Where's Ash?" Aliyah frowned, looking around."

"I think he friendzoned me." Lily gave a weak smile.

"That boy is so confused, I tell you." Aliyah grinned. "But come on! Try our cake! Gunther's a great baker!" Aliyah dragged Lily away, where she left the shell of her horrid thoughts and frustrations behind. They were halfway towards Aliyah's counter when a hand landed on Lily's shoulder, halting the two.

"Hey." Hecate began. "I'm...Sorry. For how I treated you the past few days. I hope we can put that behind us and maybe start over, as friends?" The blonde offered a smile. Lily was caught back.

"Oh..." Lily smiled back. "Sure. I'd love to be friends."

"Great."