The Donut Shop ✔️

'T' Stands for 'Trouble'

"Ma! I'm home!" Ethan yelled as he kicked off his shoes in the mudroom and slipped on his house shoes, promenading inside to the smell of steamed dumplings, his favorite. 

He prayed that she didn't get a call from Tweed's grandparents about their little escapade, but it seemed that she didn't know anything because her face was congenial and neutral when he spotted her. Then again, she could always hit him with the minority-mom sneak attack. Lulling you into a false sense of security before... snap! She springs the accusation on you like a bear trap in the dark forest.

"Come eat while it's hot," his mother beckoned, already grabbing his bowl from the cupboard. He sat at the table and watched as she fixed his plate. She placed the dumplings into the bowl, along with a smaller bowl filled with dipping sauce, then grabbed chopsticks and rested them in front of Ethan, giving him a pat on his back.

"Eat up, so you'll grow," she said, taking a seat at the table next to him. He thanked his mother before he scooped up the chopsticks and began digging in.

"How does it taste?" she asked him a few seconds after he popped one in his mouth, and Ethan nearly choked on his food, resisting his laughter. This was a trick question. If he said that it was good, she would fill his plate with more, and he would be at the table the whole night, or until his stomach burst. If he said no, he risked the chance of getting mauled with a kitchen towel. 

It was a trap, but also a cliche phrase. Almost every time his mom cooked, she had the same sayings and questions for him. This was one of the ones guaranteed to be used if she made the recipe a tad bit differently.

"It's good," he murmured, taking his chances on the former rather than the latter, as he continued eating quickly, trying to scarf down as much as he could without making it overt that he was trying to rush through his meal to work on researching Red's Doughnuts. 

When he finished the dumplings, he excused himself from the table and rushed into his room with his laptop in hand. Ultimately, after an hour or so of scouring the web, he found nothing notable, except for the name of the CEO, which was Thomas Red.

Ethan sighed, tucking away his phone until he paused, deciding to text Tweed to see if he was okay.

Hey man, you alright? Ethan asked him, and he almost immediately started typing back.

Nah man, I'm so dead. My abuelita is glaring at me from across the living room.

Ethan chuckled at his friend's misfortune, grateful that Tweed didn't rat him out and have his grandparents call their home.

Maybe she just wants to tell you how you should eat more, he said, trying to reassure his friend, but Tweed wasn't having it. 

Maybe she just wants to skewer my body on the barbeque grill and feed it to piranhas.

To be fair... it was your idea to sneak inside, Ethan said. 

Yeah, yeah, I know. But seriously, can I come over? I need to get out of this house.

Lemme ask Ma.

No, don't- But it was too late, and Ethan had already called for his mother.

"Mom! Can Tweed come over?" Ethan yelled from his room.

"Weren't you just at Sol Bakery with him?" Ethan's mother called back. He felt the slightest pang of guilt for lying to his mom, but he shoved that feeling deep down and continued on with his request.

"Yeah, but now we want to play video games. We were working on homework at the bakery!" Ethan lied. He heard his mother sigh from the living room.

"Fine. But only for two hours, and then it's time to finish your chores," his mother murmured, barely loud enough to hear, and she went back to her drama. He never did understand why his mother and sister loved Asian dramas so much. After all, they were just families feuding against each other, forbidden love, and basic remakes of the same thing. But, he supposed that it was better than him having to live them.