[attr="class","matias"]for whatever reason, he isn't expecting her to be critical, so her concern is surprising when it really shouldn't be.

"i do, i do. i just didn't have time today."

will it be enough to appease her? he hopes so.

"five on a good day."

he chuckles, eyeing the groceries.

"guess we have a fifty-fifty chance of making it good."

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

She’s concerned because she cares. Perhaps overly concerned at times. It comes as naturally as breathing with him. It’s one of the many feelings that he draws out of her. She’s a bit skeptical but accepts it for now. Sometimes she didn’t have time to eat either or just simply forgets about it. Eva has a knack for being hypocritical.

“Yikes, fifty-fifty, huh?” decent odds, but probably not ideal for two adults making something as simple as tacos, “We’ll just give it a shot, I guess,” her smile is optimistic and she gives a gentle tug to pull him around the counter and into the kitchen, “We should probably start with the meat then chop some stuff while it cooks, yeah?” efficient.

She peeks over the edge of the tote bag and starts taking items out, “I think I have some pans down there,” she points towards a cabinet. Even she doesn’t know where everything in her own kitchen lives.

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]definitely not ideal for two adults making something as simple as tacos, but who has the time?

matias nods, agreeing.

"sounds like a plan."

he circles around the counter and opens one of the cabinets to reveal a stack of pans. lifting a few up, he pulls one out that he deems to be the most appropriate and sets it down on the stovetop.

"where do you keep the uh...oil and seasoning and stuff?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

They certainly didn’t have the time. It would be an adventure, and if it failed take out is always a suitable option.

He finds the pans easily enough. Off to a great start! His next question makes her think. She spins on her heels to survey her kitchen for a moment, “I think it’s over here next to the stove,” Again, she doesn’t cook much. She opens one cabinet, wrong one. She quickly slides over to the other side to try that cabinet, “Ahhh here’s some oil,” she opens the drawer beside the stove to reveal a rather small collection of seasonings, “Hopefully I have what you need,” she didn’t think about scanning over the seasonings before he stopped at the grocery store. She pulls out some spices to glance at. Plenty to make things spicy. That should work, right?

“I’m just gonna leave you in charge of this,” she smiles, relieving herself of that responsibility and pushing the spices towards him, “I’ll chop some stuff,” an easier task.

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]"i'm not sure what i need to be honest."

with a laugh, he reaches for the oil and the seasoning, placing them close to the stove. he rounds the counter, reaches into the tote bag for the meat (a plant-based alternative), and rips the packaging open as he returns to the stove.

"uhh...meat first or salsa first?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

A pause. She slightly turns back towards the small collection of spices. She has no idea what he needs either. She was hoping he would know, “I guess just . . . throw whatever sounds good together,” There weren’t that many so it couldn’t go terrible wrong. At least, that’s what she hopes.

She pulls out a cutting board and knife in preparation to chop some ingredients for a fresh pico de gallo. The Tomato berries find their way to the cutting board first. Before starting she looks back towards Matia, “Oh, um . . . I don’t know,” She thinks for a moment, “Meat first, I guess?” that would make the most sense, “Maybe we should like . . . look up a recipe or something,” she sets the knife down and summons the Rotom phone with a clap. Having been privy to the conversation, the device already knew what she wanted. It springs to life and hovers in front of her with the search results of several suitable recipes.

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]"meat first makes sense. i think i read somewhere once about brown meat?"

hopeless and lost, matias fires up the stove and waits for the pan to come to a suitable heat. he pours oil in, waits another moment, then slides the plant-based meat in. it sizzles, cooking.

"damn it actually smells good."

but now it's time to season. kinda. salt and pepper, anyways.

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

Eva nods along while reading the recipe the sentient phone pulled up for her, “Uhhh yeah, brown, like . . . cook it,” she at least knows that much. Matias is already well on his way to accomplishing that by firing up the stove and starting the actual cooking process.

Suddenly, she feels far behind.

A quick glance down at the ingredients gives her an idea of what spices he should use. She doesn’t have everything but enough to keep it from tasting bland (hopefully).

In addition to salt and pepper, she pushes some spicy seasonings towards the pan with a smile, “These too.”

With that (maybe?) taken care of, the skilled hands of a surgeon start to quickly dice the veggies, “It does smell good,” she agrees, taking a moment to savor it with a deep breath.

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]matias twists, scattering salt and over the meat right as she pushes some more seasoning over his way. he glances down at them, nodding.

"right."

then the pepper, then the rest of the spice, though he's careful not to put too much in. they didn't need to experience hell while eating tacos.

"guess i'm a natural at this."

or is it beginner's luck? only time will tell.

with the meat now browned and seasoned and cooked, he moves the pan off to the side, then reaches for another.

"let me guess...i have to warm the taco shells next?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

The fresh pico starts to come together quite nicely. It’s just a bunch of fresh stuff chopped up and mixed together, after all. Matias definitely had the harder job. Eva totally didn’t plan that.

“Oh yeah?” she pauses for a moment to glance over at his handy work, “That does look good. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised,” she smiles, letting it curl into a grin as she glances towards him. Matias seems to be good at a lot of things.

Eva slides of tortillas across the counter towards him in response, “Yeah I guess so,” Seems like a logical next step. Pretty much done with her duties, she opts to be a distraction instead. Not on purpose, of course.

An arm gently wraps around his waist as she creeps closer, “Need anything?”

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]a new pan heats in front of him as he tears open the pack of tortillas. he pulls one out, then lays it across the pan. now all there's left to do is wait, really, and what better way to pass the time?

he grins, feeling her arm gently wrap around his waist.

"just you."

and he means it.

he peers down, leaning in to kiss her forehead.

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales

It’s been a whole like . . . 15 minutes since she last touched him. Unacceptable. It’s overdue and she gravitates towards him like a magnet. She’s small enough to tuck herself in beside him without getting in the way too much. He can work around her just fine.

Just you. She can’t tell if its him or the heat from the stove that causes the warmth to rise in her chest. Regardless, she grins as he leans down to kiss her forehead. She’s sure there’s something else, but she plays along, “Well, you’ve already got that,” and she means it.

MATIAS SILPH

[attr="class","matias"]has it really been that long? the thought has him chuckling as his hands find her waist, pulling her closer. naturally, he leans further down to dote kisses against her neck, pausing only once to peer up at the tortilla in the pan.

"how hungry are you?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Eva Morales