Chapter Text
Manon had one rule in the apartment.
Actually, that was a lie. Manon had a lot of rules. No shoes on the rug. No leaving wet towels on the bed. No putting metal in the microwave because apparently that was “common sense, Sophia, please.” But the most sacred, non-negotiable, borderline emotional rule?
Do not touch her snacks.
Specifically, do not touch her flaming hot Cheetos.
It was a quiet Saturday afternoon, the kind where the sunlight came in too bright through the thin curtains and made everything feel a little too real. The kind of afternoon where neither of them had plans, but both of them also refused to admit they were bored. So naturally, they were occupying the same space in completely different ways.
Manon was sprawled across the couch like she paid rent specifically for that position, one leg dangling off the edge, phone in hand, occasionally snorting at whatever she was watching. Next to her sat a dangerously crinkled, half-destroyed bag of flaming hot Cheetos, glowing like a warning sign.
Sophia was on the floor, surrounded by chaos that she insisted was “organized vibes.” She had notebooks open, colored pens everywhere, a random candle she hadn’t lit, and a hoodie that wasn’t hers draped over her shoulders like she was starring in a coming-of-age film.
She wasn’t studying. She was aggressively pretending to.
Every few minutes, she would sigh dramatically, write one word, then stare off into space like she had just discovered the meaning of life. Manon didn’t question it. She’d learned not to.
Crunch.
Crunch crunch.
Crunch.
Sophia froze mid-sigh.
Her eyes slowly shifted toward the couch.
The bag.
The bright red, slightly threatening bag.
Crunch.
Manon didn’t even look up. She just kept eating like she was being paid to.
Sophia tried to resist. She really did.
But curiosity? Temptation? The audacity of that crunchy sound?
It was too much.
“Sooo…” Sophia started, dragging the word out like she was testing the waters of a very dangerous ocean.
Manon didn’t respond.
Crunch.
Sophia turned fully now, chin resting on her knee, watching her like a cat stalking something it probably shouldn’t.
“What are you eating?” she asked, even though she absolutely knew.
Manon finally glanced at her, eyebrow slightly raised.
“Air,” she said flatly, then went back to her phone.
Sophia blinked.
“Crunchy air?”
“Yeah. Limited edition.”
Sophia narrowed her eyes. “You’re so annoying.”
Manon smiled just a little, like she’d been waiting for that.
Sophia looked back at her notes. She lasted maybe twelve seconds.
“…Are they good?”
Manon let out a quiet laugh through her nose. “No, I’m just eating them for decoration.”
Sophia scooted a little closer. Subtle. Casual. Totally not obvious.
“I’ve never had those before,” she said, voice soft, like she was confessing something vulnerable.
Manon paused.
Slowly, she turned her head.
“You’ve never had flaming hot Cheetos?”
Sophia shook her head.
Manon stared at her like she had just admitted she didn’t believe in gravity.
“How?”
“I don’t know!” Sophia laughed defensively. “They just look… aggressive.”
“They are aggressive.”
“That’s not reassuring.”
Manon shrugged and grabbed another handful. “More for me.”
Sophia watched her eat them.
Every crunch felt personal now.
“Can I try one?”
There it was.
The question.
The one Manon had been waiting for and dreading at the same time.
She looked at Sophia again. Really looked this time. The hopeful expression. The slightly tilted head. The way she was already smiling like she expected a yes.
Manon sighed dramatically.
“You’re not built for this.”
Sophia gasped. “Excuse me?”
“I’m serious,” Manon said, sitting up slightly. “You cried because your pasta had too much black pepper.”
“That was different! It was unexpected.”
“This is literally labeled flaming hot.”
Sophia crossed her arms. “Okay, first of all, don’t underestimate me. Second of all, I’ve grown.”
Manon snorted. “Since when?”
“Since like… last week.”
“Wow. Incredible character development.”
Sophia scooted even closer, now right next to the couch.
“Please,” she said, dragging the word out in the most dramatic, over-the-top way possible. “Let me experience culture.”
Manon stared at her.
There was a pause.
Then she reached into the bag, pulled out a single Cheeto, and held it up like it was a sacred object.
“One,” she said.
Sophia beamed. “One is all I need.”
“That’s what they all say.”
Sophia took it carefully, like it might explode.
It stained her fingers immediately.
“Oh my god,” she whispered. “It’s… glowing.”
“Yeah. That’s usually a sign you shouldn’t eat it.”
Sophia ignored her.
She looked at the Cheeto.
Then at Manon.
Then back at the Cheeto.
“You’re being so dramatic,” Manon said.
“I’m preparing myself.”
“It’s not a life-altering decision.”
“It could be.”
Manon rolled her eyes. “Just eat it.”
Sophia took a deep breath.
And then, with the confidence of someone who had no idea what they were about to go through, she put the entire thing in her mouth.
There was a moment.
A very small, very quiet moment.
Crunch.
Sophia chewed.
Manon watched.
Sophia’s face stayed neutral.
For about two seconds.
Then—
Her eyes widened.
“Oh.”
Manon leaned back, already grinning.
“Oh?” she echoed.
Sophia swallowed.
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
There was another pause.
Sophia blinked.
Her lips parted slightly.
“Oh my god.”
Manon lost it.
She started laughing immediately, doubling over as Sophia’s expression shifted from confusion to betrayal to full-blown panic.
“It’s spicy!” Sophia said, voice already climbing.
“I told you!”
“Why is it getting worse?!”
“Because you ate it!”
Sophia grabbed her own face like that would somehow help.
“It’s still going!”
“Yeah, that’s kind of the whole thing!”
Sophia stood up abruptly, pacing like she was trying to escape her own mouth.
“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god—”
She fanned her tongue with her hand.
“This is a prank,” she said, pointing at Manon. “You set me up.”
Manon could barely breathe from laughing. “I gave you one!”
“It’s attacking me!”
“It’s a Cheeto!”
“It’s evil!”
Sophia’s eyes started watering.
And then—
The tears came.
Actual tears.
Manon wheezed. “No way. No way you’re crying.”
“I’m not crying!” Sophia insisted, even as tears rolled down her face. “My eyes are just— reacting!”
“To the consequences of your actions?”
“Shut up!”
Sophia stumbled toward the kitchen like a tragic heroine.
“Water,” she said. “I need water.”
Manon tried to speak through her laughter. “Water makes it worse!”
“You’re lying!”
“I’m not!”
Sophia was already at the sink.
She grabbed a glass, filled it, and chugged it like she was in a survival movie.
There was another pause.
Hope flickered.
Then—
“It’s worse!”
Manon fell sideways on the couch, fully losing it.
“I told you!”
“You wanted this to happen!” Sophia accused, clutching the counter. “You wanted me to suffer!”
“I warned you!”
“You said one!”
“Yeah, one too many!”
Sophia grabbed another glass, then stopped.
“What do I do?!”
“Milk!”
“We don’t have milk!”
“Then… bread?”
Sophia looked around like the kitchen had personally betrayed her.
“We have… crackers?”
“Eat them!”
Sophia shoved a cracker into her mouth like it was medicine.
She chewed aggressively.
Her face was still red.
Her eyes were still watering.
“This is a nightmare,” she said.
Manon wiped tears from her own eyes. “You look like you just fought a dragon.”
“I did fight a dragon. It was in snack form.”
Sophia leaned against the counter, breathing heavily.
There was a long pause.
Manon watched her, still smiling.
“You good?” she asked, softer now.
Sophia looked at her.
There was a moment where she clearly considered being dramatic again.
But instead, she just… laughed.
A shaky, slightly exhausted laugh.
“That was horrible.”
Manon grinned. “Yeah.”
“Why do you eat those?”
“They’re good.”
“They’re dangerous.”
“Same thing.”
Sophia shook her head, walking back over slowly.
She plopped down next to Manon, still a little flushed.
“I trusted you,” she said.
“That was your first mistake.”
Sophia leaned against her shoulder anyway.
“You’re so mean.”
Manon huffed out a quiet laugh.
“Yeah, yeah.”
There was a comfortable silence.
Then Sophia glanced at the bag again.
Manon noticed immediately.
“Don’t even think about it.”
Sophia gasped. “I wasn’t!”
“You were literally looking at it.”
“I was reflecting.”
“Reflect somewhere else.”
Sophia smiled, resting her head more firmly against Manon.
“You’re lucky I love you,” she said.
Manon froze for half a second.
Just a tiny one.
Then she scoffed, looking away.
“Yeah, you clearly have terrible judgment.”
Sophia just laughed.
And after a moment, Manon quietly nudged the bag a little farther away from her.
Just in case.