Chapter Text
"Hey, Autumn?"
"Yeah?"
"I know I've been weirded out by modern-day food combinations, but I think this one takes the cake."
Autumn and Morro stood on opposite sides of the island in the monastery's kitchen. Morro leaned against the counter, his head resting in his hand, while Autumn stood over a plate and a few ingredients.
"And explain to me how this is weirder than the pizza Lloyd and I had last week."
"That was weird. You had pineapple on something savory. But you told me you were making us a snack for later, told me to come with you, and pulled out a banana, peanut butter, and I don't even know what the hell that is."
Autumn turned the container Morro pointed at so the label faced him. "Read the damn label."
"My point stands. I don't know what the hell Nutella is."
"Chocolate hazelnut spread. You'll like it."
"Just because I told you once years ago that I like hazelnut doesn't mean I'll like everything with hazelnut."
Autumn rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Would you stop being a baby? Lloyd says you're only eating crackers, granola bars, and pizza. That's not good. And I guarantee you're still not drinking enough water."
Morro glanced over at the half-empty glass of water he had gotten for himself earlier. "I've gotten better."
"I don't want you dehydrating yourself! Drink. Now." Autumn picked up the glass and held it in front of Morro.
He begrudgingly took the glass and brought it to his mouth. "You're an ass."
"And who do you think I learned from, you dick?" Morro chuckled, causing him to spill water all over himself. After a brief moment of panic at having water on him, Autumn laughed. Morro chuckled moments later.
"Can you get me a towel?" Morro asked between chuckles. Autumn reached behind her and handed him a towel.
"Is everything okay in here?" Autumn and Morro looked to the doorway to see Lloyd standing just outside the kitchen.
"Yeah, he spilled water all over himself." Autumn continued laughing while Morro attempted to dry off his shirt. Lloyd snickered and joined Autumn and Morro beside them.
"You good, Morro?" Lloyd asked.
Morro nodded and tossed the now-damp towel onto the table behind him. "Yeah, just have a wet shirt now."
Lloyd chuckled before making eye contact with the ingredients on the counter. "Is Autumn making one of her weird foods again?" Autumn glared at Lloyd before flicking him on the head.
"I'm going to kick you both. Just watch." Lloyd and Morro looked at each other nervously as Autumn pulled out a knife from the cutlery drawer.
Autumn peeled the banana, cut it long way, and then cut it in thirds. She then smeared peanut butter and Nutella on the cut side of each banana piece. "Do you have mini chocolate chips?"
"Cole only puts them on every cake made. Top left shelf." Autumn opened the refrigerator, pulled out the mini chocolate chips, and sprinkled them over the peanut butter and Nutella bananas.
"Aaaand done! Now just to—" Autumn was interrupted when her phone rang. She pulled out her phone and answered it."Hey Taylor... I'm just finishing up making a snack for me and the boys... Ugh, are you serious?... Fuck... Why can't this whole damn process be easier?... I know, I know... Alright, I'll be home in a few minutes... Bye." Autumn hung up the phone and groaned.
"Gotta go back?" Lloyd asked. Autumn sighed and clenched her jaw.
"Have I mentioned that I hate my social worker?"
"About fifteen times in the past week," Morro said.
"What did Taylor say?" Lloyd asked.
"She said that because I received several injuries while under my 'biological parents' supervision, my social worker wants to do a thorough investigation to make sure it's safe for reunification," Autumn said, using air quotes around biological parents.
"I mean, I understand that the foster agency wants to ensure your safety, but from what you've told us over the past week, this guy is making things unnecessarily difficult," Lloyd said.
Autumn groaned and buried her face in her hands. "He doesn't believe you're my family and won't even approve a fucking DNA test." She leaned over the counter, looking down at the banana treats sorrowfully. "These go in the freezer for a few hours. You guys can enjoy them later. I gotta go."
Autumn hugged Lloyd and Morro before leaving the kitchen to retrieve her belongings. Lloyd sighed, picked up the plate with the bananas, and put them in the freezer. He leaned against the counter, running his hand over his face.
"Hey, we know this is going to take time," Morro said.
"I know... I just don't want to lose her again."
———
Lloyd lounged on the couch in the den while Morro sat on the floor in front of him. It was late at night, and neither of them felt like sleeping quite yet, so they sat in front of the TV and let it play for hours. Autumn had called a little while ago, still sounding frustrated, mostly to complain. Not that either of them blamed her for it.
Morro didn't really know what he was watching, but it seemed to make Lloyd feel a little better. Lloyd had been mostly quiet since Autumn left, but he did chuckle at the show here and there. Morro tried distracting himself, but the uncomfortable rumbling in his stomach couldn't be ignored.
Morro sighed and stood up. "I'm going to find something to eat. You want anything?"
Lloyd shrugged. "I don't know. Just bring something back, and maybe I'll snack." Morro nodded and headed out of the den, leaving Lloyd alone.
Lloyd pulled out his phone and opened his photos. He and Autumn made quick work of taking as many pictures together as they possibly could. Seeing every stupid face Autumn would make put a smile on his face. He knew she was impatient; hell, so was he. He spent four and a half years apart from her; he didn't want it to become five. He just wanted everything to work out.
After a few minutes, Lloyd heard footsteps reentering the den. "Figured we should try these." Morro sat back on the floor in front of Lloyd with the plate of frozen banana treats Autumn had made earlier.
"Oh damn, forgot about those."
"Me too. Here, take one." Morro held the plate up to Lloyd, and Lloyd picked up one of the frozen bananas. Morro picked one up for himself and stared at it. "Still a bit skeptical of these."
"We'll try them at the same time. On three, one, two, three." Lloyd and Morro bit into their frozen bananas and smiled after a few moments.
"Alright, these are pretty good," Morro said.
"I should've guessed that I would like these. Autumn and I like all the same things."
"That's not entirely true."
"Oh yeah? Name one thing I like that she doesn't or vice versa."
Morro turned to face Lloyd with a smirk. "Mushrooms."
Lloyd recoiled and stuck out his tongue. "Gross!"
Morro laughed. "Told you. Well, congratulations, Autumn. You've gotten me to eat one more thing. I will now be making these every day."
"I don't think that's what she was intending." They both laughed.