The Cupcake Queen

Chapter 1

    Another day, another lab report.
    I sat at my desk in my bedroom of the apartment, staring at the computer screen. Notes spread across my floor, the desk, and my lap stared up at me, waiting to be included in this stupid 14-page lab report. The problem wasn't even that the lab report was difficult to put together. It was easy, actually. The problem is that I would rather be doing anything else instead of putting the boring thing together.
    Why is it that I chose to major in chemistry again?
    Oh, right. My parents. Specifically my mother. While my father also has high expectations of me and wants me to get a university degree, he was accepting and even semi-supportive when my brother Landon dropped out. Mind you, neither my father nor mother truly expected Landon to finish university anyways. He's not a dumb guy, it's just that he has never had any interest in school. The only reason he applied for university was because of Mom. Mom was not so happy when he dropped out. Threatened to kick him out and everything. She didn't have to actually drop the hammer down though and do it. Since Landon doesn't give two shits, he packed his stuff that day and moved in with a friend who had an extra room in his apartment.
    I can't say I blame him.
    The amount of times I have considered dropping out is insane. It's not a thought that crosses my mind a few times every couple months, it crosses my mind a few times every day. I just don't know what I would do if I did drop out. I wish I had taken a gap year to figure out what I wanted to do instead of sitting here, forty-thousand dollars later, hating my life.
    I sighed, and picked up all of the notes scattered around. I shut my laptop and threw the notes on top of it, and plopped myself down on my bed. Digging my phone out of my pocket, I shot a quick text to Maisy.

    you busy?

    I scrolled through TikTok waiting for a response. After about ten minutes of mind goop, my phone buzzed.
   
    not really. ill be over in a few xo

    I smiled. Maisy can make anybody's day better, especially mine. While we have only been officially dating for 6 months, we have known each other since the first day of university. A lot of our classes overlapped in the first year which caused us to really develop a connection. Now, I don't know what I would do without her.
    I jumped up and checked myself out in the mirror. My unruly red curls were sticking out every which way. I opened up my cabinet and grabbed some anti-frizz gel, hoping it would help. It just made my hair look weirdly wet and greasy. I laughed, and threw it up into a ponytail. I examined my current outfit. Black sweatpants and a white tee. Comfy, but I would say it's rather cute. Not something I'd wear to class, but around Maisy I don't really care what I wear. Just as I was about to go put some socks on, I heard a knock at the door.
    "Come in!" I yelled. We typically keep the apartment doors unlocked just in case one of us forgets our keys. By one of us, I mean either me, Simon, or Bella; some other friends that I met in my first year.
    I heard the door swing open and shut again, and walked out to meet Maisy in the kitchen. "Hey!" I smiled, planting a kiss on her cheek.
    "Hey Aurelie, how's it going? You look tired." She told me. I laughed.
    "Geez, thanks. It's going okay. I was just working on a lab report." I responded. Maisy raised her eyebrows.
    "Did you get it done? Is that the one that's due tomorrow?"
    "Well, no, and yes. I'll finish it later though. Wanna be my taste tester?" I dug into the fridge and pulled out some fruit muffins that I had made yesterday. After unwrapping it, I handed it to Maisy; already knowing what her answer would be.
    "Mmm, these are delicious." She complimented me with her mouth full. I smiled and grabbed my apron.
    "I'm gonna try a new recipe today. It's a new one that I found online for peanut butter cookies. It's supposed to make them even more sugary if you can believe that, so I'm sure you'll like them." I told her. She laughed.
    "Are you sure you shouldn't finish your lab report first?" I shook my head.
    "I'd rather jump off a bridge. Like, genuinely Maisy. I'm miserable. I'm in my third year and still hate what I'm doing. I'm starting to feel extremely jealous of Landon," I started gathering the ingredients from under the cupboards. "It's just like, you know when you're on a ride at the carnival, and it's so bad that you physically cannot wait to get off of it? Yeah, it's that bad. I feel like I've been on a fucking carnival ride since my first day three years ago. I remember when I kept complaining my first year and people kept telling me all about how your second year will be better, and just be patient. Well, guess what? Second was worse than the first and the third is even worse than the second. I can't imagine what the fourth will look like. Well, I can, and it's not pretty." I ranted. Maisy looked at me with concern.
    "You can't keep doing this. You've been miserable since year one, and it's only getting worse." She advised me. I laughed.
    "That's what I'm saying. I need to drop out. I know I've joked about it a lot, but in all seriousness, I can't do this anymore," I paused, and shook my head. "I can't do that though, Mom would actually kill me. She keeps telling me how I'm her 'last hope' since Landon dropped out. Talk about pressure."
    "That's kinda fucked up. Landon's doing quite well for himself."
    "Yeah well, not in Mom's eyes. In her eyes, she's her 'little failure'. Can you imagine what she would say to me if I dropped out in my third year? I can hear her now; 'oh my god look at all the money you've wasted, I'm so disappointed in you, have we not raised you better, blah blah blah'. I know she wants me to finish university but is it really worth it if I have to sacrifice my mental health for the rest of my life? I HATE chemistry. I hate working in a lab. But, I guess this is the path that I'm meant to go according to Mom, so I'll have to suck it up for the next 40 years." I felt a tear drip down my face. I quickly wiped it away so it wouldn't contaminate my peanut butter cookie batter. Maisy came up behind me and hugged me.
    "It'll be okay. You don't have to do what she wants you to do, Aurelie. We all hate seeing you miserable, and if you need us to sit down and have a serious chat with your parents, we will." She reassured me. I laughed, and wiped more tears away.
    "Thanks. I don't want that to be necessary. I'll figure it out. Even if I end up having to keep my mouth shut and do as she wants for the next year and a half. At least this lab report is the last thing I'll have to do before Christmas break. How did you make out on your exams?" I asked her.
    "Decent, I think. How about you?" She asked. I shook my head.
    "Oh, just dandy. Nah, they weren't actually that bad. I'm glad they're over."
    "Are you going home for Christmas break?" Maisy asked me. I sighed.
    "Well, yes and no. I'm staying here for the majority of the break, but I'll go home Christmas Eve and stay for a couple days. Not looking forward to it." I explained to her. I would've asked the same question to Maisy, but her parents live so close to the university that she's been living with them while studying.
    Maisy and I continued talking about random stuff while I finished up the peanut butter cookies. Once they were done, of course I got her to try one. She was licking her lips once she finished it. "Delicious."
    Baking makes everything okay.