𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐋 𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒 [ 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬 ] ✘

Adventures in Baking

"Diet Mountain Dew, baby, New York City, never was there ever a girl so pretty..." I sang softly as I mixed the cake batter together, effectively smushing the lumps out.

It was Rick's birthday today so Carl and I decided to bake him a cake. Not that he knew it, of course...or that it would even turn out tasting even remotely good but hey, we were going to try at least!

"Hey, Carl?" I called over my shoulder, "How are the eggs coming?"

Silence.

"Carl?" I called again.

He better not have bailed on me. He always did hate cooking, ever since we were kids and Lori wanted us to help out in the kitchen. I'd come over every day back then. We'd been neighbors since we were in diapers. And likewise, I'd had a crush on him about that long, too. He didn't know it though.

I never could find the courage to tell him. Setting the bowl on the counter, I turned around to see what was taking him so long...and I wish I hadn't.

"CARL, WHAT DID YOU DO?!" I shrieked, my eyes round as saucers.

Almost every single egg in the carton was cracked and yellow yolks dripped down the white-tiled counter, seeping into every crack. Bits of white egg-shell were littered around the green bowl. I groaned, briefly holding my head in my hands. He smiled sheepishly, shrugging. Bits of flour stuck to his face and hair, making him look like he'd walked into a snow-storm.

"Carl, how-" I started but cut myself off.

It was hopeless. He was hopeless...at least when it came to baking or cooking of any kind.

"Um..." he said, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand, "Well, see, I started to crack the egg to drain out the...you know, yellow runny stuff-"

"Egg yolk?" I interjected, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah, that. But then a piece of shell got in it so I tried to dig it out but then another piece fell in and maybe another, I'm not sure - it was so tiny. So I was going to start over and just dump it all out and start fresh but then it happened again..." he explained, an embarrassed blush tinting his cheeks.

I sighed, rubbing my temples with my fingertips.

"Did you get any yolk in the bowl at all?" I asked, not sure if I even wanted to know the answer to that question.

"Well...maybe..." he trailed off, biting his lip.

"Meaning?" I pressed him.

"Absolutely none." he admitted, avoiding my eyes.

I let out an exasperated sigh and grabbed a wet wash-cloth from the sink.

"Okay, let's just clean this up and then I'll crack the eggs." I told him as he removed the bowl from the counter.

As Carl washed out the bowl, I wiped down the counter with the soapy towel before cracking the eggs into a clean bowl. Afterward, we transferred the batter to a baking pan and slid it into the oven. Twisting the dials, I set the time and pressed the 'Start' button. Turning around, I smiled at Carl who still looked slightly embarrassed.

"Sorry about the..." he started but trailed off.

I bit back a chuckle, walking over to him. Reaching up my fingers, I brushed a bit of flour from his dark hair.

"Egg yolk?" I offered, grinning.

"Yeah, that." he smirked, making butterflies erupt in my stomach.

He grabbed my hand gently, intertwining our fingers and I looked up at him in confusion. But before I had time to ask why he'd done that, his lips were pressed to mine. It was gentle and soft...so much like him. I smiled into it, cupping his face in my hands as I kissed him back. Just as he deepened the kiss we were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. We jumped apart, scarlet blushes spreading over our faces.

Rick stood in the doorway, hands on his hips and one eyebrow arched.

"What's all this?" he asked, gesturing towards the mess and the two of us so close together.

Suddenly, the timer on the oven dinged and I zipped over to it. I yanked on an Ove-Glove and pulled it out, setting the steaming cake onto the stove-top. Turning around, I smiled over at Rick and Carl did the same.

"Happy Birthday, Rick!" we said in unison, blushes still imprinted on our cheeks.