LOVERBOY [bennett x razor]

chapter 26: puppy paw hashbrowns

art credit: @dazaiichi on twt! (GUYS THIS FANART IS SO GOOD OMGG)

the front door creaked as razor pushed it open, leading his brother inside. kylee's car was nowhere in sight, so it was safe to assume she wasn't home, and probably wouldn't be home for a while. razor had gone to go pick up his brother, and the two had just arrived home. he told elliot to go wash up, while he prepared food. not much else had been said between the two.

elliot peered at him with inquisitive eyes. "hmm..."

"what?"

"you're being weird today, razor." with no other explanation, he ran off to his room.

sighing lightly, razor collected his hair behind him, tying it up in a ponytail and tucking his bangs behind his ears. he put on an apron, washed his hands, and got to work.

he started by heating up oil in a skillet. next, razor took out a frozen mold, one he had prepared earlier in the week. he let the mold thaw while he washed broccoli, making sure to remove any dirt. he placed it on a cutting board; next filling a large pot with water. the pot was then set on the stove, and with a dash of salt, it was left to slowly boil. by then, the oil was ready and hot, so razor carefully removed the hash browns from the mold. one by one, he gently set a couple of them into the oil to fry. it was a quick process, and each batch only took about five minutes. he scooped out each one carefully, and plopped them onto a plate with a paper towel on it. once he had finished frying enough for two, razor turned off the oil filled skillet. he stepped over to the broccoli and brought out a knife. with it, he sliced off small florets of the vegetable. razor gathered them together, placed a steamer basket in the boiling water, and dropped the broccoli in. a lid was placed on the pot not a second later, and razor went around to clean whatever tools he used. after tidying the kitchen, he removed the pot from the stove and fished out the broccoli. he grabbed two plates from the cupboard, and arranged the hash browns and broccoli on them. finally, he went to the fridge and took out a homemade jam, scooping some of it into a small bowl.

content with his work, razor took the two plates to the counter where they ate, along with the jam and some napkins. he removed his apron as he called out for his brother, "elliot! come eat!"

a small voice responded from within the house: "okay, coming!" the sound of little footsteps quickly followed.

elliot's hair was still damp, and little droplets of water fell onto his shirt. razor frowned. he could have at least used a towel to dry it. "did you forget to dry your hair again?"

instead of responding, elliot gasped. "you made my favorite, hash browns! and they're shaped like puppy paws too!" excited, he jumped onto the stool and immediately dug in, dipping one paw into the sweet jam.

"they're my favorite, too," razor smiled, dipping his into the jam as well. "hey, wanna see who can eat the most broccoli?"

his little brother swallowed his food before responding. razor had raised him well. "no way! that's just a way to get me to eat broccoli, and i'm not falling for it!"

"tsk, since when were you so smart? that's too bad, i was thinking of buying you ice cream if you beat me."

forgetting all manners (maybe razor hadn't raised as well as he thought), elliot whipped his head around with a mouth full of food and crumbs, speaking with his cheeks full like a chipmunk. "ice cream?" quickly, he chewed and swallowed his food and picked out a broccoli. he scrunched his nose in disgust before scarfing it down, gulping it down as if it were the grossest thing in the world. which, in his mind, it was.

razor let out a small laugh. "okay, fine, i know you don't like broccoli too much, so as long as you eat three pieces, you'll get your ice cream."

"really?!"