Soufflé Pancakes

After a long day, I rested my body on the comfy bed. It didn't take me long to fall asleep like a dead log. What a crazy day it was filled with surprises. But looks like the surprises are yet to come.

My eyes opened with a faint sound of someone calling out my name. Rubbing the droopy eyes with my fingers I looked up to see who it was.

" What it is Aalto?" I mumbled in a sleepy voice.

" Can I sleep here..... in your room?" He asked me in a meek voice, holding the pillow tightly. I looked at the alarm clock near the bedside table. It was 12:45 AM in the night.

No wonder why I'm so pissed!

" Why? What's the matter?" I asked him while yawning.

" It's just .... .. I feel scared." He said timidly while looking at me helplessly. But my mood was already cranky.

" Ugh! Fine, sleep on the floor and don't disturb me." Grinding my teeth inward, I yelled at him raucously. It's so annoying when someone wakes me up. I went back to sleep without listening to any of his nonsense requests.

When I woke up from my deep slumber, my eyes fell on the sleeping body underneath my bed. His body was curled up in a ball. Judging by the facial expression, he's definitely feeling uncomfortable. Oh god!

The sense of guilt hit me like wall of brick. Last night, Aalto stayed in my room and slept on the hard floor. He didn't even had any blanket. It may be late summer but the nights are chilly, thanks to the ocean.

I covered him with my blanket, letting him sleep for some time. When he wakes up I'll apologise for my rudeness.

The sun hasn't come out yet. I must start getting ready for the day. Around 7 o'clock Aalto came down searching for me. I was putting the buns in the oven.

" Good morning." I greeted him with a smile.

" Good morning. I'm sorry I slept too much. Uh... I'll help you."

" It's fine. But first I should apologise for being rude to you last night." My shoulder felt slump as I thought of last night.

" It's okay. I really didn't mind it." His heartwarming smile remained undefiled.

" Still, you had to sleep uncomfortably. Why did you come to my room anyway?" I asked him with furrowed brows.

" I was scared." He replied tilting his head in shame. Ah! I shouldn't ask him further about it. I guess being scared is kind of normal for him. After all he's in an unknown place.

" Then you can sleep in my room. I'll make a comfy bed for you." Rather than asking him more about his fears, I decided to let him sleep in my room.

" Sorry for all the trouble." His bright smile was back, making his cheeks puff up nicely. Aalto is like a open book. His expressions are so easy to read.

" Go get ready. You're already running late." Grinning at his callous face, I reminded him about the time. He went upstairs hurriedly, without giving me a reply.

Aalto came back after freshening up. He wore a white shirt tucked inside his black pant. The shirt was complementing his sturdy body so nicely. His long hair was tied back, so that it won't bother him while working. I gave him a apron to wear.

" For now your job is to welcome the customers and take their orders. Be nice to them, always act politely."

" Okay."

" Just memorised the stuffs I told you."

"Okay."

I opened the cafe on the usual time. Our first customer was Mr. Han who lives nearby. He usually comes here for breakfast. I went to his seat along with Aalto.

" Welcome sir. What would you like to order?"

" Soufflé pancakes and black coffee." He orders this often in my cafe.

" Okay then, I'll be right back with your order."

" So, who's this new fellow?" Mr. Han asked me with a smile, pointing at Aalto.

" He's my friend, Aalto. From now on he'll be working in here." I introduced him with Aalto.

" That's great. It must be hard for you to run this place alone." Mr. Han knows me very well since he comes here often. He's a nice guy. We went to the kitchen to prepare the soufflé.

Taking two bowls, I separated the egg yolks from the whites.

" Aalto, whisk the egg whites until they're like fluffy clouds."

" Hmm." He took the bowl from me.

I begun to work on the egg yolks. With the help of my whisker, I beat them up. Then I added 1 tablespoon milk, mixing it gently with the yolks. Next goes in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Ah! the smell of vanilla is so sweet.

" It's Done." I lifted my head to check on Aalto. To my surprise he whisked the egg whites without the hand blender. He used the normal whisk. That's really hard to do in such short time.

" You're suppose to use the machine. Anyway add 1 and half tablespoon of sugar in the mix and keep beating." My eyes fell on his biceps. No wonder he can beat those eggs so easily without the hand blender.

How can I forget that he's a freaking merman?

I started to sieve the soft flour in the egg yolks mix. Five teaspoon is enough. Then I added one teaspoon of baking powder so that it can make the pancakes fluffy. My mixing was done. Now I gotta add the egg whites.

" Aalto bring the egg whites." He passes me the bowl. I fold in the two mixtures together without breaking the air bubbles. It should be done carefully and gently. Aalto was standing beside me, watching every steps.

" It looks so fluffy." He sounded like a earnest child.

" Yeah right— oh dear! You got some egg whites sticking on your face." When I lifted my head, Aalto's face made me laugh. He somehow managed to get the egg whites on his face. Grabbing onto the kitchen cloth I wiped it off.

" I-I will d-do it." He was avoiding eye contacts with me even though our faces were so close.

" There." I let go of his face. It became little reddish ? Or maybe just my imagination.

I heat up the large non stick frying pan over the lowest heat. The temperature should be kept at 300 ºF or 150 ºC. Brush the cooking oil on the pan and lightly remove any visible oil. With a small ladle, I scoop the batter, placing it on the frying pan. Each pancake needs four scoops of batter. I stacked up the pancakes without pressing them too much. Now it's time to let them cook. Before covering it with a lid, I added 1 Tablespoon water in the empty spaces inside the pan. Water keeps the pancake moist.

After 6-7 minutes later, using the offset spatula, I lift the pancake carefully. Since they firm up a little I can easily flip them . Using brute force will crack up the pancake. So it's best to be extra gentle. The pancakes are ready. The tops are crisped and bottom is fluffy. I served them on the white plate with some butter and a nice drizzle of honey. Usually we serve it with fruit varieties but Mr. Han doesn't prefer fruits.

" Go serve it to Mr. Han."

" Alone?" Pulling his brows together in a frown Aalto asked timidly.

" Yes. There's nothing to worry, you can do it, Aalto. Don't be so shy." I gave a pat on his shoulder and handed him the plate. As he left, I popped up my head to check on him. He served the plate in front of Mr. Han then retuned back to me.

" So? Was it hard?" I made a smug face to tease him a little.

" No. It felt good." The sweet innocent smile reflected his true feelings, so did his ocean like blue eyes.

The rest of the day continued. Aalto did a great job while serving the customers. He even helped me with cooking too. I was happy to find a companion. Honestly, feels nice to have someone here. I guess I won't be lonely anymore.

~ to be continued