𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐍𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐍 𝐁𝐔𝐓𝐓𝐎𝐍 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 ━ five hargreeves¹

9│THE MORNING AFTER

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❛ ᴛʜᴇ ʙ. ʙ. ᴇꜰꜰᴇᴄᴛ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏʀɴɪɴɢ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ꒱　


❝ I CAN'T BELIEVE
YOU BURNED EGGS! ❞

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Alexa wanted to make a snack for her and Five. It was a while before dinner and Grace was busy cleaning so the twelve-year-old took it upon herself to try her hand at cooking. Their father was away for the weekend on a business trip with some Mayor or other which was the only reason Alexa felt comfortable to stretch the rules. It wasn't technically forbidden and after all, she'd seen her mother do it plenty of times, so how hard could it be?

Poking around in the kitchen for something to eat, Alexa found a bag of marshmallows, bread, eggs and peanut butter. It was a strange combination but she supposed that it was never too late to have a second breakfast. Taking a pan out of the cabinet, she placed it on the stove and carefully turned it on. Deciding that she'd passed the hard part without incident, Alexa turned away to crack the eggs in a bowl and made sure to keep their yokes whole— Five always said scrambled eggs were for babies so they'd be having them fried.

Placing the bread in the toaster, she turned it to medium brownness before she turned back to the pan. Remembering that Grace sprinkled water on the pan to make sure it was hot, Alexa did the same. When it sizzled, she slid the eggs onto the pan. As the toast popped up, Alexa carefully spread peanut butter on the bread and then, shrugging, she sprinkled marshmallows on top.

There was a flash of blue and Five was next to her, but the girl didn't jump as she was used to his sudden appearances. "What are you doing?" he asked.

Glancing at him, she answered, "making a snack."

His gaze travelled to the stove and he smirked. "Does the snack involve fire?"

Alexa gave him a confused look. "I'm using the stove, yes."

"Do you know how to use a stove?"

She scoffed. "Of course I do. I've seen Mom do it all the time."

Noticing the leftover shells on the counter, Five asked, "are the eggs supposed to be on fire?"

Whirling around, Alexa's eyes grew wide at the two-foot high flames that were rising from the pan, which caused the boy next to her to crack up with laughter. She glared at him furiously as her cheeks turned pink.

"I can't believe you burned eggs!"

"Well I'd like to see you do better."

They were interrupted by Grace entering the room since her programming had detected a hazard in the house. Seeing the flames, she expertly doused them before she turned to the two children. She could easily tell who the culprit was as one was still laughing. Alexa's eyes darted to the floor in embarrassment.

Giving her daughter a soft smile, Grace said, "it's alright, dear. Next time just ask me if you need something, alright?"

Alexa nodded mutely and her mother left the room. A few chuckles were still escaping Five's mouth, causing the blonde to hit him harshly on the arm. "Shut up!"

He grinned at her. "You're a horrible cook."

Tugging on her long blonde hair— a sure sign she was either quietly irritated or anxious—the girl bit her lip before she said softly, "I was trying to do something nice."