The Exchange

Chapter 47

"What at you doing?" Niall asks as he blatantly walks into my bedroom.

"Just homework."  I nod, staring at the last verb on my french worksheet.  

"At least you actually do your homework."  Niall chuckles.  I can hear him pacing around the room behind my chair.  

"You never did?"  I question, quickly scribbling down the answer.  

"Not really."  He replies shrugging.  I giggle with him and turn in my chair.  

"I feel like something."  I say looking at him.  Sure enough, my tongue craves something thats sweet and decadent.  

"What?"  He asks looking quizzically at me.  

"I'm not sure."  I tilt my head.  

"Wait, say 'sure' again Mira."  Niall commands.  His eyes are wide like I just did an impossible magic trick.  

"Sure?"  I repeat confused.  Why is Niall making me do this?  

"Your 'sure' sounds British."  Niall giggles.  

"Does it?"  I giggle dumbly and amazed.  The word repeats itself in my head.  Sure, sure, sure.  

"Well, you've spent enough time here..."  Niall trails.  What's that supposed to mean?  He says it lightly,like he means he expected my words to change a long time ago.  

My shoulders slum in my chair.  The word 'sure' permanently sticks to the back wall of my mind and duplicates itself.  

"I want something with chocolate."  I decide.  My brain racks through every chocolate recipe I've ever known.  Chocolate cookies, chocolate cake, chocolate fudge pie...

"Chocolate pudding?"  Niall suggests from the edge of the bed.  His head is hanging over the side and looking at me upside down.  I process the idea for a moment.  Warm, sweet, decadent, chocolate.  

"Niall, you're a genius."  I chuckle.  I can't help the grin that creeps on my face while I watch him hang off the bed like a bat.

"Does that mean I get to be sous chef again?" 

"You're always my sous chef."  I reply with a wink.  Niall smiles, stands and brushes himself off.  I quickly open the closed, bedroom door and stand in the hallway for a moment.  Niall catches up with me and we pass everyone on our way to the kitchen.  I've never been so eager to bake before but something about this chocolate pudding idea has me excited.  

***

"Keep stirring and I'll pour in the milk."  I dictate.  Niall nods and I carefully pour the six cups of milk into the double batch of chocolate pudding we are making on the stove.  The milk instantly turns a light brown colour as Niall mixes it with the other ingredients.  Now is when my mother added in a secret.  Some sort of Je ne sais quoi.  Vanilla beans, cinnamon powder and brewed espresso have been some of the best ones but I want to make this batch my own.  Add my own idea to it.  Make up my own Je ne sais quoi.  

The pudding is thickening before my eyes and I know I have to think fast.  I look around the kitchen for that perfect thing.  My eyes scan over almost everything on the counter for an idea.  Then my eyes land on a big, juicy orange placed on the top of the fruit basket like it was meant to be.

 I quickly cross over to the island and pull the orange off the pile of fruit.  It's orange-like aroma increases as soon as I pick it up.  A smell so citrusy sweet it makes me sick.  It's perfect.  

I grab the zesting tool from the drawer without wasting any more time and zest the rind into the big, chocolatey pot on the stove.  Niall looks at me with one eye brow raised.  I raise my finger to my lips in a secret motion and finish zesting the large, heavenly fruit.  

"Done!"  I announce, removing the pot from the stove and placing it on the cool burner next to the hot one we just used.  The chocolate swirls in the pot and coats the back of the wooden spoon in a perfect thickness.  Even I must admit that this looks good.  

"Is it done yet?"  Harry pops his head into the kitchen, making Niall and I jump.  

"Yup, just let it cool for a few minutes and it's all good."  I reply.  I can see Harry eyeing the pot before backing away from the kitchen and returning to his respective seat in the living room.  

"So what made you crave chocolate?"  Niall asks leaning on the counter.  I look from him to the chocolate pudding next to us and shrug.  What did make me crave chocolate so much?  The only time I can remember my mother making chocolate pudding is around Easter time every year.  Wait...

"Niall, when's easter?"  I ask quickly.  When is Easter?  How many weeks are left?  

"Like a week from Sunday."  He replies casually.  I nod.  How have the weeks slipped by me so quickly?  How have I not fully realized the budding changes of the seasons?  How did this not make sense to me before?  When did I let myself get so oblivious to what's so obvious?  

"Everything okay Mira?"  Niall asks concerned.   I didn't realize I've been staring at the counter in deep thought for the past five minutes or so.  

"Yeah, yeah, fine."  I reply with a chuckle.  I turn around and take some small, glass bowls out of the cupboard.  Niall reaches for the ladle and carefully spoons a spoonful into each cup.  

"Come and get it!"  He calls just as I'm about to turn and carry them to the living room.  Harry is the first one at the island to lay eyes on the stiff dessert before him.  

"That looks really good."  He announces, leaning over the counter.  

"See if it tastes really good."  I tell him, sliding over a bowl.  He gratefully accepts it and tastes it with his spoon.  His eyes widen at first, then relax as the warm dessert travels through his mouth and down his throat.  

"That's really good."  He says after he gets over the first bite.  Liam and Louis instantly dig into theirs and hold the spoons up to their mouths.  Their reactions are quite similar.  

"Damn that's good."  Zayn says, scooping more from his bowl onto his spoon.  

"Thank-you."  Niall and I reply, his more confidently than my own which is nothing but casualty.  Niall scoops the rest into the last two bowls and holds one out to me with a spoon.  We try it together.  At first, the rich, chocolate taste touches my tongue and melts on the spot, then the warmth kicks in as it travels down my throat.  Lastly, the slight orange taste leaves a lingering flavor in my mouth that is there but invisible.  A perfect Je ne sais quoi.  I look around at the other boys as I spoon another bit into my mouth.  This one tastes even better because it's not only the taste that's great, it's being surrounded by great people which, now that I think about it, is always what homemade chocolate pudding did to us in my mothers house.  Once again though.  This tastes even better.