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The sun was beginning to get low in the sky. Jere reached to move the curtain a little farther in so that the sun wouldn’t blind him anymore. As he leaned over, his stomach growled loudly.
“We should probably start thinking about dinner, huh?” Bojan asked from across the room at this. Jere felt himself blush at the recognition, and Bojan shot him a grin. In their house, “we should start thinking about dinner” really meant that they should decide if Jere was going to cook or if they wanted takeout, and then if they decided that Jere would cook, what he was cooking. Jere didn’t really mind it so much; he liked cooking. But it was a bit annoying any time he was feeling lazy and wanted a home-cooked meal.
why dont you cook 🤨 i am always cook
Jere showed his message to Bojan. He immediately got defensive.
“You don’t have to cook tonight if you don’t want to! We can order in. Plus, you know I can’t cook. Remember that one time I messed up plain pasta?” Jere considered this. Bojan was right. Somehow, in his 25 years of living no one told him that you needed more than a cup of water to cook a whole box of noodles. But who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?
i teach 🧑🏫what you want to eat? 😋
At this, most of the color drained from Bojan’s face. Jere nearly laughed out loud.
“How about rice?” he suggested.
rice and?
Bojan clarified. He meant plain rice. Jere wanted to smack him.
you cannot escape cooking 👻👻 we make meatball and little bread 🍖 🍞
After some damage control (“Jere I’m going to burn the kitchen down, please don’t trust me with the stove!”), the two of them finally ended up in the kitchen, each with his own apron. Bojan’s was white, as it was Jere’s normal one that he found easier to bleach, but Jere was in a novelty apron that read “caution: extremely hot” in big letters, and then in smaller letters underneath “and so is the food.” It was a compromise.
They started by getting out all of the ingredients. Jere brought the recipe up on Bojan’s phone so that his was free for typing. Then, they really got started. Jere watched closely as Bojan added the ground meat, bread crumbs, an egg, diced onion and spices to a large bowl. Jere was sure he couldn’t mess that part up, but then he was reminded of the pasta.
okei now you mix 🥣i will make sauce base
Jere showed his message to Bojan. Then Jere turned to get the ingredients for the sauce. He paused, though, when he heard the sound of Bojan beginning to mix the meat.
“Am I doing it wrong?” he asked, apprehension clear in his voice. Jere was quick to type his response.
no no you are mixing veri good 😀 i just forget the sound 😖😖
Jere watched as the fear melted out of Bojan’s expression and posture. He had truly forgotten about the sound. He supposed that the last time he had to mix meat or stir something that made a similar sound he wasn’t wearing his hearing aids. Truly quite a shock.
The sauce was a quick thing to put together while Bojan mixed the meat. Some butter, broth, worcestershire sauce, heavy cream, and flour to thicken it. Jere also liked to add some of the juice from the meatballs after they were done cooking. He set the unheated sauce-mix aside and checked back in with Bojan.
“Is this good?” he asked. Jere checked. It seemed to be pretty thoroughly mixed. He gave Bojan a thumbs up. Then, he grabbed a plate from the cabinet and began to roll out balls of the meat-mix. He motioned for Bojan to do the same. Now that Jere had meat all over his hands, he didn’t really want to touch his phone. So when Bojan made a ball too big or too small, Jere simply pulled some off or stuck more on. It seemed to be an effective method of communication. Eventually the two of them got through all of the mix. They washed their hands, and Jere pulled out a new plate and a pan. Now that his hands were clean (but not for long) he took this opportunity to do some explaining.
now you cook the balls 🍳 make sure there is no pink inside or else 🤮
Bojan didn’t miss the use of “you” instead of “we”
“Are you not going to help me?” he asked nervously. He fidgeted with his hair and the ties on his apron as Jere typed as fast as he could.
i am right here 🧍i just cook bread at the same time so it go fast ⏩⏩
Again, Bojan’s relief was noticeable. The two got started on their respective tasks. Once Bojan got into the swing of things, he began to relax. He even started to whistle. Jere found it incredibly endearing. So endearing, in fact, that he stopped kneading the dough to listen to Bojan’s song.
“Everything ok?”
Of course it wouldn’t go unnoticed. Jere nodded and turned back to the dough. He didn’t miss Bojan’s chuckle. He felt his face burn, and silently thanked the powers that be that the stove was opposite the counter he was working at.
Eventually, the rolls were ready to go into the oven. Jere had almost forgotten to preheat the oven, having to reach over Bojan and the meatballs with his doughy hand to bring it up to temperature. Tray in hand, he shooed Bojan out of the way while he slid the little dough balls onto the top rack.
The meatballs were taking a deceptively long time to cook. Bojan kept asking if they were ready, and Jere would have to tell him no. Finally, this time, when Jere checked, they were ready. Bojan tried to slowly slide a fork underneath one of the meatballs, but he just ended up pushing it around. Then he tried to stab it, but it sort of fell apart. Jere wanted to be able to tell him exactly how to do it, but he couldn’t So he did the next best thing.
“What are you doing?” Bojan asked. Jere came up behind him, aligning his arm with Bojan’s and grabbing around his fingers, and by extension the fork. Then he jerked their hands forward under the meatball, and carried it on the flat of the tines to a clean plate. Bojan gave a murmur of realization. He repeated the action on his own, and found, to his delight, that it worked much better than chasing or stabbing.
Jere set up a pan alongside Bojan’s with the sauce he had set aside earlier. Now that the meatballs were ready, it was time to heat everything up together. Bojan would finish cooking a meatball, and then Jere would take it and add it to the sauce. After what felt like forever of just moving meatballs, though, they were done. They pulled the rolls out of the oven and let them cool just as everything was getting homogenous.
Finally, Jere and Bojan stripped themselves of their aprons and brushed off any remaining cooking debris. Jere brought the food over to their sitting area and the two sat down heavily. Bojan let out a sigh.
long time to cook but now we eat!! 😋😋😋
Jere showed Bojan his message. Bojan smiled.
“I can’t wait,” he said.
The food did not stand a chance. They ate, and they ate well. When he got a moment, Jere typed another message.
meatballs are veri good! 👏👏👏
Bojan rubbed the back of his neck and the tips of his ears began to tinge red.
“I mean, you told me what to do the whole time,” he said, trying to shift the praise.
no ❌ you did by yourself
Jere cursed his limited English. If he had known the phrase “accept the damn compliment” he would have said it. Eventually Bojan accepted that he made the meatballs, and he made them well.
“Well the buns are good too,” he remarked, seemingly wanting joint responsibility to be taken for the meal.
dinner tonight is veri yummi yummi 😋😋😋
Bojan laughed when he saw the message.
“Thanks for teaching me how to do this,” he said quietly. Jere smiled at him softly. He would teach Bojan everything he knew if it meant that he could have moments like this, and like the ones back in the kitchen. Even though there was stress, and trial and error, cooking with a partner was fun, and the payoff was better than anything.
maybe one day you cook without me
Jere typed out the message, but quickly deleted it. He didn’t even want to think about that day, both for fear that that would be the day his house burnt down, but also for fear that he wouldn’t have this anymore. He made an amendment.
we cook together more
“Yes, let’s cook more together,” Bojan agreed. Jere was glad that he was able to teach Bojan the joys of cooking. He was even happier, though, to reveal once again to Bojan that things really are not always doomed from the start.