Cup Noodles

"People eat these?"

Eliza, Jane, and George sat inside George's car, they looked down at the three unopened cups of dried noodles with a mixture of confusion and disgust on their faces.

"It's interesting how the poor live eating such undignified food..." Jane added in after a moment of silence, she took the receipt from the bag, "And it's cheap too. 100 dollars for all of these"

Eliza rolled her eyes, "Whatever. Let's just get this over with so we can tell Toman how it tastes. George, drive." She commanded. George nodded, shifting the gear stick in his car and driving away from Duckmart.

--

They arrived back at Eliza's mansion in the evening. Eliza unlocked the doors with her keys, pushing it open, "I swear I'm gonna kill Toman for this" she cursed, entering her house with Jane and George.

"Why did we buy this again?" George asked, walking to the kitchen. He pulled the three cups out of the bag and placed them on the bar table, turning to the stove and filling the kettle with water.

Jane sat on one of the bar stools sighing, "Eliza lost a bet to Toman so Toman told her, and by association, us, to eat the cheapest cup noodles we could find." she explained, putting both arms on the table, "It's quite silly, really"

"Yes, it is" George agreed, heating up the water in the kettle while reading the instructions on one of the cups.

"I hope you know that I'm right here," Eliza spoke up behind him, arms crossed and a brow raised, "And I don't like being talked about behind my back".

George jumped in surprise, turning around quickly, "Apologies, Miss Eliza." he said, placing a hand on his chest as if attempting to calm his heart down.

Jane laughed, "We're just poking fun of the situation that's all". She grabbed one of the cups, "It says to take out the seasonings and add hot water." she read out loud.

George obeyed, opening up the cups. The dust of the noodles causing him to cough violently, "Not really good for asthmatic people," he muttered, clearing his throat. Eliza leaned over the bar table, "Go on, add the water" she ordered. George nodded, removing the packets of seasoning in the cups and taking out the kettle from the stove, pouring the water on each cup.

Eliza eyed him, "I heard from Toman that you're supposed to stop at this line," she said, pointing at the dent inside the cup. George listened closely, focusing on the water poured on the cups. He stopped pouring, placing the kettle back on the stove, "What's next?" he asked. Jane leaned down to continue reading, "We have to add the seasoning and cover it for three minutes."

"Why three?"

"To make the noodles loose so we can eat it"

"Why bother making them dry in the first place?" George sighed, opening the packets of seasoning and sprinkling them in the cups. He promptly covered the cups, pushing them to the side, "And now, we wait" he said, putting a timer on his phone.

Eliza groaned, "Couldn't people just cook noodles at normal way? It's not that hard to cook you know"

Jane raised a brow, "You cook?"

"I do, but sparingly. Only when mother and father aren't around," Eliza said, sitting on top of the table.

"Why?"

"Well, if I had to rephrase my father's words," Eliza cleared her throat, speaking up in a much deeper voice, "why bother cooking when we have personal chefs to do it for us? You shouldn't burden yourself with all these measly tasks"

George chuckled, "He must really be set on making you a proper lady"

"Right? And it's not like I don't want to either, I just want a bit more freedom from the rules of my father"

"On the bright side, he doesn't seem to care about what you do outside of your estate," Jane reasoned.

Eliza scoffed, "As if. Do you know how many times he's sent bodyguards to stalk me?"

Ring! Ring!

"Ah, it's time" George muted his alarm, opening the cups once more. The savory aroma of the noodles filled the room, "Surprisingly, it smells good"

"I'll go get the chopsticks!" Jane offered, standing up and walking to the cutlery drawer, coming back to her seat with three pairs of chopsticks.

The three hesitantly held the noodles to their lips, "Okay...one, two..." and in unison, they slurped up the noodles.

The Tea Timers stayed silent for a while, chewing the noodles and swallowing it clean. Eliza set her chopsticks down in deep thought while Jane and George watched her, ignoring their own thoughts on the food.

"This..." she raised her chopsticks back up, "Is..." Jane and George saw Eliza's eyes lit up, "Incredible!" they heard her squeal. Jane nodded enthusiastically, "I know, right? It's delicious!"

"Like a culinary masterpiece in a cup!" George agreed with a small smile. The three slurped up the rest of the noodles, completely forgetting their etiquettes as they drank the rest of the soup within the cup.

Eliza put down her cup and chopsticks, a satisfied smile on her face, "That was...a pleasantly surprising experience" she said awkwardly. Jane nodded, "I guess you'll have to tell Toman it was delicious" she teased playfully, grinning.

Eliza glared at her, "Never. Do you know how much gossip that'll stir? 'Socialite Eliza, told to enjoy thirty dollar cup noodles from duckmart'? As if" she scoffed, taking out her phone, "I'll just say it was awful" she hummed, texting Toman.