Solid GrounD (MxM)

When Your Sight Shifts

(Yay it's midnight again. If there are any errors, I'll get to them tomorrow.) 

Eyeing the stove, Austin licked his lips and nervously tugged at the bottom of his Pittsburgh Steelers shirt. You looked a the recipe a million times between classes today and bought exactly what the list said to, right down to the brand, even though that was just advertising. 

It was just a simple recipe with kimchi and fried rice. He'd picked it because there wasn't a whole lot of specifics to do. It was just cook the rice, cook the extra stuff, and mix it all together. At least, that's what he'd thought. 

He decided to try the rice first and see what he got, so he filled a big sauce pan with water, then stirred in rice and set it to the temperature the recipe required. He then set a timer, but realized after hearing the water boil over onto the stovetop a bit later, that he hadn't added nearly enough rice compared to the amount of water he'd put into the pan. 

I guess the measurements were important...

Since he didn't know exactly how much rice he'd added the first time, he decided to just add a good bit more, then pull up the stool that they now left in the kitchen for Roh-Ahn and went about surfing the internet on his phone as he waited. 

When it looked done, he scooped out a small spoonful and after blowing on it for a few seconds, tried a bite. Okay. Bland as hell, but it doesn't taste bad. He had no idea how it would taste after he was done, but he had a hard time thinking that he could turn something so flavorless into something as delicious as what Roh-Ahn consistently cooked each night. 

He's spoiling me and I swear he's using magic to make our dinners. 

Shaking his head, he set the pan aside and got another out. He added a little sesame oil, but quickly realized that he had needed to cut up the vegetables and chicken before heating up the oil. Scowling at the pan, he removed it from the heat and turned off the burner, then got busy chopping up the onions, carrots and chicken he'd bought. 

His eyes were sore from the onions within seconds, but he persevered and gladly threw everything into the pan about twenty minutes later with a good bit of hot spices. The sizzle that accompanied that action made him feel a little confidence. 

While that cooked, he opened the jar of kimchi he'd bought and after double checking the recipe, added it and the rice to the pan. The sound of the lock turning in the door a few feet away was drowned out by the sound of the food cooking in front of him, so when Roh-Ahn stepped next to him and leaned over to smell the food, Austin jumped, unintentionally knocking into him. 

Without a second thought Austin wrapped his arms around Roh-Ahn's middle, stopping his fall for only a brief moment before they both went down. Even though he desperately tried, Austin couldn't keep from landing partially on Roh-Ahn. He scrambled onto his hands and knees the second he was able to, only to see his roommate quietly laughing. 

"Are you okay?" Austin asked, noticing that Roh-Ahn had to have hit his head on the lower cabinet. 

Roh-Ahn smiled, the simple gesture making Austin fidget where he leaned over him. When neither of them spoke for a few moments, Roh-Ahn glanced past Austin and pointed up toward the stove. 

"You are burning your food." 

Oh shit.

Jumping up, Austin turned toward the stove, but then looked back down as Roh-Ahn started pushing himself up. Glancing back and forth a few times, he decided to just reach over and switch off the heat and move the pan, before dropping to his knees and carefully helping Roh-Ahn up. Once he was safely holding onto the counter, Austin reached back down and grabbed his cane and bag.