Hearty Meal

"I thought they kicked you out of this place? Why are you back?" Clark questioned as Damian brought them to Mikhail's Cafe.

"Oh shut up. I was last in the race last week you suddenly organised during the haunted house before YOU ALL LEFT ME ALONE!" Damian scowled at him. "Besides, I was invited this time and I'll keep the wager of buying lunch."

"We did not know that you're missing. We thought you left us because you got scared," Bruce chuckled but then stopped when he looked at Damian glaring at him.

"I… admit I'm not good with those kinds of things but at least I did not run!" He confessed. "Sigh, whatever. I think they're already waiting for us.

He pushed the glass door open and the bell at the door rang to announce their arrival. Everyone else was already there, sitting at the counter chatting away.

Dexter noticed Damian first. "Welcome! I hope this time this place will create a better memory for all of us." He had invited all of them for lunch but he did not specify the reason.

"Since we're all here, what is the occasion for the meal? Leo could not make it?" Luna finally asked the question.

"Today is the end of my apprenticeship," Dexter grinned.

"Wait, you're not working here because you're poor?" Damian questioned.

"No? I worked here to gain from experience under Mr Mikhail, the owner of this place. He was my dad's close friend when they were studying together. I came here to learn more about the workings of a cafe before I take over the business."

Everyone congratulated him.

"What business does your family do?" Damian asked curiously.

"Uhh, mostly in the food industry, but also branching off to some real estate and distribution. I think some of you might have heard of it. It's called WcBonald."

'Isn't WcBonald one of the giants in the food industry? The heck?' He was aghast, then realised and shook his head. 'How can I be so dumb, obviously only people with some background can enter this school.'

"So… What are we having for lunch?" Damian tried to shift the subject. He didn't want them to remember what he had done before.

"Ah right, I have a special guest for us today," Dexter went back to the kitchen. "You can come out now."

They were astonished at the person who appeared out of the kitchen.

"Hello, everyone!" Leo gave a bright smile. He wore a dark blue button-up shirt and a white apron tied around his waist. He looked like a real professional chef.

"You can cook?" Luna asked in amazement.

"Haha, I'm just a home cook. I was discussing with Dexter about some recipes I have been thinking about lately and he asked me if I wanted to cook for his end of apprenticeship celebrations. I thought it's nice to make some people give their opinions on the taste. Alright, let's start before anyone's stomach starts growling."

He started by adding a few ingredients into a pot to bring it to a simmer. The pot had been boiling since they arrived. The aroma of it smelled like the sea breeze. He then took out the dough from several containers. Each dough had a different colour; orange, red, purple, indigo, blue and green.

All their eyes were on the dough. 'Such strange colours. What is he going to make?'

Their answers were answered immediately as he started to pull the dough and swung it before twirling them together. He repeated it a few times and the dough slowly became individual strands of noodles. His effortless performance entranced his audience.

It only took him a few minutes to complete each dough batches and boil them. Each coloured noodle was arranged neatly in a spiral, it looked like a rainbow. Cucumbers, carrots and seaweed were julienned and placed around the sides of the round ashen-grey ceramic bowl. A clear broth from the earlier pot was poured over the noodles and a poached egg was placed on the top of the noodles as the finishing touch.

"Alright, it's done. Tell me what do you think of it," Leo removed his apron before handing out each bowl. He even had one for himself and he joined the rest at the counter.

Luna looked at the bowl of noodles. 'It looks so pretty!'

The noodle wasn't a soup noodle, the amount of broth meant that it's supposed to be some sort of gravy. She leaned forward to get a whiff of the aroma. 'Is this seaweed? With sesame oil and chilli flakes?'

"Thanks for the meal!"

She broke the yolk and tried the broth first.

'Besides the savoury taste, there's some sourness and spiciness that complements it. Is it vinegar?'

Elma coughed beside her and took some tissues to clear her nose. She did not expect the spice. Luna giggled and proceeded to try the noodles.

'What is this? The springy noodles have a faint sweetness in them, which compliments the myriad flavours of the broth, on top of the colourful visuals. The egg concentrates the taste even more. Such an interesting play on the taste.'

"This is very good," Sylvia commended. She had just finished her meal.

"Hmm, hmm," Damian could only murmur in agreement as he was still stuffing his face with noodles.

"I'm curious. What did you use to make the noodles this colourful?" Luna could not quell her curiosity any longer.

"Ah, I used pumpkins for the orange, beetroot for the red, purple carrot for the purple, purple cabbage for the indigo, butterfly pea for the blue and finally spinach for the green," Leo answered as he was starting to wash the dishes.

"Will you cook for us again after the sports festival?" Elma asked as she wiped her nose. "Maybe less spicy next time."

"Oh right, the sports festival is next month. Any of you participated in any of the events?" Leo realised. "I'm in the sword event."

"Oh, I'm also in the sword event under the House of Lancaster. You're in the House of York, right? I guess we will be facing each other eventually," Damian remarked.

"Elma and I will be facing each other in the equestrian event," Sylvia joined in. "I don't think Dexter is in any of the events." She looked at Dexter and he shook his head.

"And Sylvia isn't joining any too, despite many people trying to recruit her. But if she really joins, it wouldn't be fair right?" Luna continued.

"Want to make a bet to top it off? It would be more fun this way won't it be?" Elma suddenly proposed.

Everyone looked at her.

'Eh?'