Work Text:
Just Not was hanging out in between challenges, just kind of doing whatever they could to pass the time. They played games and went out together, but it seemed like nothing could cure the boredom that Pillow had been experiencing. She wanted to do something but she couldn't figure out what!
Coincidentally, Two seemed to be agitated about something. They could be seen pacing just outside of the hotel, and Pillow was the only one to notice. Her teammates were deep in conversation when she left, nobody but Book really noticing, or caring moreso. This would be more interesting to her than talking to them anyway, so she didn't care.
Two looked to be murmuring something to themself as Pillow approached them, only being able to hear a few words they were saying. She stood there for a moment to see when they would notice, watching as they jumped back after completing another lap around the invisible oval they were pacing.
"Gah-! Pillow! When did you get here!?" Two exclaimed, their hands flying to their head in alarm.
"Don't worry, Two, I didn't hear anything. I just saw you from inside of the hotel, and I wanted to see what you were doing," Pillow said, taking a seat on the ground and gesturing for Two to follow suit. "Why were you pacing?" She inquired, that signature smile on her face. She watched as Two fidgeted with their hands for a moment, almost hesitant to tell her what was going on.
"I just- Sorry, it's kind of silly," Two started, rubbing a hand on the back of their neck nervously. Pillow put a hand out, to tell them to continue. "I dunno how, but I lost track of time before and now I don't have a cake ready for Cake at Stake!" They moved their hands erratically as they spoke, feeling a bit embarrassed about admitting that. They're supposed to be a good host! A good host doesn't forget to provide cake for their contestants!
"Is that it?" She asked, honestly sounding a bit disappointed?
"Wh- What do you mean 'is that it'!? Aren't you at least a little upset that I-"
"Two. I heard that Four apparently used piping hot soup, and threw it at people. He also used specks of dust for cake before. I don't think anyone cares if you have a cake prepared or not."
Two furrowed their brows in confusion. They heard from some of the contestants that Four wasn't a very good host, but they haven't heard about this before! If he used actual dust for cake, they can't imagine what their hosting skills are like!
"Are you sure? I'd hate to have the contestants hate me too! I mean, obviously I'm a better host than Four was, but still! I guess I could just-"
"'Make the next challenge to make a cake for Cake at Stake'? Too predictable. I don't think anyone would want to do that," Pillow interrupted, in normal Pillow fashion of course. She could tell Two was still upset by the whole debacle, and came up with an idea. "If you really do need a cake, I'm sure Book would be more than happy to make one for you! I can go and talk to her about it if you'd like me to."
Two frozen for a moment, unsure if they heard her correctly. "Would you really?!" Is all they could think to ask, receiving a silent nod in reply. They quickly picked Pillow up, standing up and wrapping both arms around her quite tightly. "Thank you! Oh, thank you so much, Pillow! You're a lifesaver!" They rambled on for a bit, not noticing that Pillow had escaped from their arms after the first few sentences.
Finally, something for her to do! Pillow made her way back over to the hotel where her team was immediately, noticing that most of them had gone off somewhere. She paid no mind, instead joyfully making her way over to Book who was currently conversing with Nickel and Bomby.
"I know right!? It was actually so bogus that we had to crank for so long, like, we could've gotten it done so much faster if Match and Pencil helped!" Nickel exclaimed, rolling his eyes as he spoke.
"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad! I mean, if we weren't forced to stay there for as long as we did, we wouldn't have gotten along so well as teammates," Book stated, earning a nod from the others.
Just as Bomby was about to speak, him and Nickel noticed Pillow coming from behind Book's seat. She gave them a confused expression before turning around, spotting Pillow as well.
"Hello! I've come to retrieve Book for something!" Pillow said, not even giving Book a moment to process what she said before grabbing her and walking with her to the kitchen. She could feel Book trying to squirm out of her grasp as they walked.
"Pillow, put me down! Where are you taking me!?" She exclaimed, kicking around a bit before she was placed onto her feet in the kitchen. She blinked a few times in confusion. "Wha- Why'd you bring me in here? It better not be for another experiment or something-!"
"Oh, hush! Two needs a cake for Cake at Stake and I told them you would make one," Pillow explained, walking around the kitchen and gathering a few things they would need to start baking. She barely noticed Book begin complaining again.
"Seriously!? I was in the middle of something, Pillow," Book grumbled, making her way towards the door. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be going back now," She said, placing a hand on the door to open it and beginning to walk out.
Pillow suddenly appeared in front of Book, causing her to yelp and almost fall backwards. But Pillow caught her, standing her upright and leading her back towards the spot she was before. "Do you not want to bake with me? I told Two only you would help, so we could make it together."
Book looked confused for a moment, standing in place looking dumbfounded. "You told Two we'd make a cake for them so you could spend time with me?" She questioned, receiving a nod in reply. This can't be true! She's barely had anyone go out of their way to hang out with her before! "Well, okay, uh," She began again, after a few minutes, fidgeting a bit as she thought over what she should do.
Pillow seemed to notice Book getting anxious, gently placing a hand on hers. "You can start helping by mixing!" She moreso told her rather than suggested, placing the mixing bowl in front of her, along with a few ingredients and something to mix with. She noticed she didn't start moving afterwards, almost seeming frozen in place. "I know you usually like when I hold your hand while you're nervous, but you need both hands to mix, silly! We can hold hands while it's baking instead.
Book nodded, purely out of instinct since her head felt incredibly fuzzy. Pillow always made her feel so warm and tingly! After a few moments, she finally got her body to move again and began putting a few ingredients into the bowl. "Uh, what kind of cake are we making?" She inquired, beginning to mix the ingredients together.
"I don't know," Pillow shrugged, placing a hand to her chin in thought. "Aren't you a recipe book? You should have a recipe for cake in there," She concluded, not even giving Book a second to think before placing her hands on her sides and opening her.
"Wha- Pillow-!" Book shrieked, flapping her arms as she instinctively tried getting out of Pillow's grip.
"Hush! I'm looking for a recipe," Pillow flipped through Book's pages, barely ignoring the ones she wrote, even though she was interested about it. There will be chances to ask later! "Got it!" She exclaimed after finally finding what she was looking for, skimming the page and promptly closing Book.
"Sooooo.. what kind of cake are we making?" Book asked, which Pillow blankly stared at her for. It was like the answer was obvious but she couldn't place her finger on it..
"Cheesecake!" Pillow cheered, walking away and coming back with a few extra ingredients.
Book looked utterly confused, staring for a few moments before she was able to form a comprehensible sentence. "Why? I thought Two already gave us cheesecake for Cake at Stake."
"The last cheesecake they made got ruined, so they'd probably be appreciative to get another one," Pillow mused, placing the ingredients on the counter next to Book.
"That's.. actually really nice of you, Pillow," Book thought aloud, standing there for a moment and staring at the ingredients Pillow brought. "I haven't really baked before, so I have no idea how I'm supposed to do this."
"You can keep mixing it like you were before. I'll tell you which ingredients to put in!"
Book nodded, beginning to mix and putting in the ingredients when she was told to. It was almost a little awkward, since Pillow was basically breathing down her neck as she continued the task. But she's grown a bit fond of her behavior, so they settled into a comfortable silence, besides the occasional instructions from Pillow. She only moved away for a moment to preheat the oven, immediately moving back to the spot she had settled in before.
As this went on, Pillow watched Book closely, observing her every moment. She noticed every small gesture and expression she made, suddenly getting a very huge urge to write about it. But she mustn't! She could feel a small heat rising to her face, and it was almost overwhelming! She found that she only gets like this around Book, but she can't figure out why..
"I.. think I'm done..?" Book suddenly said, placing the mixer down. Pillow moved forward to inspect the batter; Book scooched over to put some distance between them, her own face getting hot upon realizing how close they were. She cleared her throat awkwardly while the other peered into the bowl, watching as she put her hand on her chin in thought.
"Looks good!" Pillow exclaimed, giving Book a thumbs up. "Now to just.." She trailed off, walking away again and getting a few other things. She came back with a pre-made crust in hand, setting it carefully onto the table so it wouldn't crack. "It'd take too much time to make one ourselves," She explained, taking off the wrapper. She placed it inside of a pie tin she previously brought over, slightly sticking her tongue out as she focused on settling it down gently. "There!"
Book watched in awe as Pillow did the hard work for her, blinking a few times to snap herself out of the trance once she was done. She looked at her nervously. "So, I just have to..?" She asked, pointing to the batter and then the crust. She was met with a nod, and Pillow moved away a bit so Book could position herself in front of it better.
"Okay..!" Book lifted up the bowl, tilting it to the side and letting the batter start going into the pie crust. She made sure to keep her hands steady as most of it stuck together and immediately dripped into it, seeing Pillow pick something up out of the corner of her eye. Before she could process it, she came closer and began scooping out some of the batter. Book almost lost her grip on the bowl, gripping onto it tighter since Pillow wasn't exactly being gentle..
This continued for a minute or so, before Pillow took matters into her own hands, literally, and snatched the bowl from Book. She finished getting the rest of the batter into the crust, leaning down towards it to make sure it was even. She deemed it decent enough, picking it up and forgetting to open the oven. She was confused for a second when she moved to place it inside, blinking a few times at the door. Book seemed to notice the problem, opening the oven door and gesturing for Pillow to place the dish inside.
"Thanks," Pillow mumbled, a small blush settling on her face as she finally put the cheesecake into the oven. She shuffled a bit before sitting on the ground, patting the spot next to her. Book took a seat, looking the other way and hesitating before grabbing Pillow's hand. She felt the heat rise in her face as their fingers intertwined, a familiar feeling making that nervousness settle in her chest again.
It was silent again for a few minutes, only because Pillow felt a bit overwhelmed for once. She was almost lost in her thoughts, trying to think about why exactly she feels this way around Book. She thinks about why she chose her in particular to make this cake with; why she chooses to spend so much time around her. She gets pulled away from her thoughts after hearing Book clear her throat.
"Um," Book began, her hands beginning to sweat a bit from how nervous she is. She gets more nervous as she feels Pillow stare at her. "Thanks for.. hanging out with me, it really means a lot. I know I can be a pain sometimes."
"Nonsense!" Pillow exclaims, making Book turn to look at her. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be," She concluded, giving the other a brighter smile than usual. Book couldn't find the right words to say, instead just nodding and leaning onto Pillow.
☆ ☆ ☆
The cheesecake was finally done about an hour later, and Pillow brought it out and put it onto the counter. She could hear Book breathe a sigh of relief as she saw it wasn't burnt or anything.
"The recipe said to let it cool until it settles, so it'll have to be checked on later," Pillow explained. She thought for a moment before continuing, "I think it'd be easier to just come back tomorrow. I'll just tell Four to check on it and put it into the refrigerator."
Book looked bewildered, barely processing what Pillow was saying. "Wait," She began, making the other raise an eyebrow at her. "You remember the recipe even though you looked at it once, like, an hour ago?" She inquired, getting even more confused as Pillow shrugged.
"I can usually remember a lot of words I see," Pillow said, beginning to make her way out of the kitchen. She hummed as she walked, almost making her way to the door before Book grabbed her arm. "Book? Do you-?" She started, cutting herself off as Book licked her face. She made a small noise in surprise, standing there idly for a few moments before realizing Book had run off somewhere.
"Wait! Book!" She practically yelled, speed walking and looking around for the other. She doesn't know why she did that and wants to know why!