Kaitlyn chopped an onion in half, setting the flat sides down against her cutting board. She gripped the root side in one hand and, with a flurry of precise movements, a pile of finely and evenly diced cubes appeared before her in record time.

Scarra looked over her work with a grunt. "Not bad. Not bad at all…"

She beamed at the assessment. It had taken her a long time to really master her knife skills. But at this point, she'd had enough practice that prep work was almost as natural as breathing.

I could probably do this blindfolded. I won't – that sounds like an AWFUL idea and I really don't want to know if my fingers will regrow when the loop ends. But I could.

Regardless, showing her skills on that front was the first step toward Scarra letting her cook. Out of everyone she'd met, he was by far the fastest to give her more responsibility once she'd proven herself. Lab always took at least a few weeks to really test her, but Scarra? If she worked well enough, he'd have her on sauces by the end of this first night.

Maybe it would be different if I came in as just a cook. He really seems like the kind of person who would put someone on washing vegetables for a month if they deserved it. But since I'm already washing dishes, maybe that helps me somehow?

"Is there anything else you need?" She asked hopefully. "I'll take care of dishes once we're making more, but until then…"

The burly chef crossed his arms. "Let's see how you handle a few more onions. After that… I need potatoes."

He slammed a massive lumpy sack on the bench next to her. Kaitlyn nodded without complaint. "Are you looking for julienned, sliced, cubed, or just peeled?"

"Hold your horses, there. Just wash and peel 'em for now, then we'll talk."

"Yes, chef!"

With a grin, Kaitlyn wrapped her arms around the sack and began to lift with a grunt. Her arms trembled slightly as she turned toward the sink.

Dang. It's times like this when I remember how weak I am… Maybe I should spend some time going to the gym each loop.

A hairy hand fell atop the bag and the weight suddenly lessened. "You need to build some muscles. How do you expect to be a real chef if you can't even lift your ingredients, eh?"

She stared after Scarra for a moment as he carried the sack over to the sink and set it down. Then he glanced over at her. "What're you smiling about? Get to it!"

"Right! Yes, chef!"

Hurrying over, she began her work of washing the potatoes, the smile still plastered on her face. He's a total softie. A complete and total softie.

Once she had them all washed up, Kaitlyn dragged a trash can over and got to work. She slipped into a comfortable routine, her peeler flying across spud after spud like a washcloth cleaning grime off her dishes. This was pretty basic stuff. And if there was anything she had down by now, it was the basics.

This loop's already off to a pretty good start. A fast one, too. Kate's Kitchen is popping off even more, now that I've got those spice mix recipes ready to go.

Heather had been even more enthusiastic this time around, given that Kaitlyn had already finished R&D for so many of their products. Whether the blonde harbored any questions about Kaitlyn's suspicious amount of market knowledge, she didn't know. The idea of Kaitlyn, a first year, already having products optimized for their local dining hall on the first week also must've felt a little strange. But whatever Heather's thoughts were, they didn't get in the way of their partnership.

The waffle batter mix-ins in particular were a massive hit. Maybe I should go for more sweet stuff and focus on that area this time? It always sells really well…

She hadn't looked too much into it. Most baked goods she knew of needed to be baked in an oven, which was a huge limiting factor. Though she could make some things in her toaster oven, it simply wasn't scalable to the same degree as her other products. But the salted caramels she'd made for Heather last time did spark some ideas.

Those things were easy to make in bulk. I could do it on the stovetop too. Maybe I should experiment with making more candy…

Pain blossomed in her finger. Kaitlyn let out a yelp of surprise and looked down to see a thin slice of skin now missing from her index finger. Hints of red began to well forth, seeping slowly out of the wound.

She hissed. Evidently, she hadn't been paying nearly enough attention to the peeler.

"Oi! You alright?"

"It's ok!" She called back to Scarra, reaching for a paper towel. "Just nicked myself. It's barely bleeding!"

"Well get a damn bandaid on it. And be more careful!"

"Yes, chef!"

She cursed herself for getting distracted. Thankfully, it really wasn't too bad. There was only a little bit of blood, even if it did sting.

It's been a long time since I cut myself like that. I don't know if I should be proud about that or disappointed at breaking my streak.

She kept the towel pressed to the wound as she headed toward the sink. Her hands were coated with starchy potato residue, but she forced herself to wait a little bit before washing. Hopefully the pressure would keep it from bleeding any more than it had to.

"Here."

As she dried her hands off, she looked over to see Philip. The formally-dressed waiter stood before her, his face as expressionless as usual. In one hand, he held a bandage and a small packet of antibacterial cream.

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"Give me your hand."

She blinked. "Are you sure? I mean, I can do it myself…"

"I understand. But it is easier to manipulate a bandage with two hands."

Hesitantly, she held her hand out and let Philip take it gently in his own. The contact felt warm. Despite herself, Kaitlyn felt a slight blush color her cheeks.

He gently took her finger and spread a dab of the cream on the wound before wrapping it firmly. The whole time, Kaitlyn watched his face.

…He really is different, isn't he? The realization struck her again. He's more… gentle. More caring, now. And I don't think it's just rose-colored glasses making me imagine it, either.

She hadn't hurt herself like this around him before. But she got the sense that, if she had, his reaction might have been different before.

"There." He nodded at his work. "I would suggest wearing a glove atop it, to keep the wound dry and to ensure that no bleeding gets through. But if it bothers you and inhibits your ability to do dishes, don't hesitate to let me know. Chella or I will be able to assist."

Kaitlyn refocused. This was no time to reminisce. "Right. Thanks."

"Of course."

With that, Philip turned on his heel and left, heading to prepare breadbaskets once more. As he walked away, Kaitlyn couldn't help the rueful smile that came to her face. It had been a small interaction. A tiny, seemingly meaningless one. But it wasn't, not quite.

Thank you, Philip. For everything.

***

The first Bash Bros tournament didn't happen until week three of the loop. Because of that, Kaitlyn had plenty of time to establish her presence in Ian's Intro to Programming class and build up whatever kind of rapport she could. It was a slow process, as expected, but not nearly as uncomfortable as she'd feared. It mostly consisted of sitting next to each other and exchanging brief, short conversations before and after class.

She obviously wished that she'd found some magic way to make Ian more comfortable around her, of course. But in a way, she already had. And that was why she was here.

Stepping into the Bash Bros tournament, she immediately spotted him and John at a setup in the corner. They were already in the middle of a game and chatting companionably as they played.

Perfect. Just like usual.

Straightening, Kaitlyn headed for them with a cheerful expression. "Ian?"

The chestnut-haired boy glanced up, his eyes going wide. "Oh! Hey! What're you doing here?"

John's eyes flashed with devious malice. He tried to take advantage of Ian's momentary distraction by dashing forward and swiping at his opponent. Unfortunately, Ian's CinnaBun leapt over the strike and kicked the opposing swordsman into the ground like he had eyes in the back of his head. With a tch of annoyance, John found himself fending off a combo as Ian returned his attention to the game for a moment.

Ok, that was pretty impressive.

"Sorry about that," Ian apologized as John's swordsman sailed into the abyss. "Had to teach someone a lesson about not being a jerk."

He shot a pointed look at his pimply friend as he sighed. "Dang… thought that would get you."

"Nope. You're way too predictable."

Kaitlyn giggled. "Mind if I join you guys?"

"Sure!"

She pulled up a chair and settled in as Ian introduced them. "This is John. He's the TO here. John, this is… Kaitlyn," he hesitated for a brief moment at the name. "She's in my Intro to Programming class."

"Nice to meet you!" John waved jovially. "You need a cont– oh, nope, looks like you're covered!"

That's right I am. Kaitlyn shot him a confident look as she pulled the silver controller from her hoodie pocket. This thing is part of my start-of-loop shopping list now.

"Well, I'll sit this one out then." John crossed his arms behind his head. "Time to scope out my competition."

Ian rolled his eyes. Kaitlyn plugged in and picked Corgo as her character, eliciting a raised eyebrow from both guys. A moment later, they loaded into their first game.

Alright. Here we go.

The first game with Ian was always a special one. Not only was it theoretically the least practiced he could be in a loop, but it also was her best shot at taking him by surprise. Those two factors combined meant it wasn't exactly the most even playing field. But with her record against the guy, she would take whatever wins she could get.

Kaitlyn decided to hold her cards close to her chest at first. She kept her movement reserved and defensive, punishing CinnaBun's mistakes and advances but otherwise staying back. It was a far more passive game than she usually played, but one that served her well in certain matchups.

Ian mirrored her tactics at first, feeling the situation out until they'd each lost a life. At that point, he got a little more comfortable and began to predict Kaitlyn's moves better. CinnaBun rushed in for grab attempts on her shield and began taking advantage of her positioning to corner Corgo in losing situations. The ninja rabbit took another stock with Ian's bolder tactics, and Kaitlyn saw him relax a little.

That was when she turned on the jets.

As soon as Corgo respawned, he went wild. Kaitlyn abandoned her previously defensive strategies in favor of full-tilt aggression. She attacked where she would have shielded, approached where she would have kept distance, and took trades where they weren't even the best option. All in an attempt to completely throw her opponent off.

Ian scrambled to keep up with the sudden change. The previous few minutes of conditioning paid off as her onslaught kept CinnaBun on the back foot and ruined what would have otherwise been solid reactive reads. The switchup scored Kaitlyn another one of Ian's lives and plenty of extra damage besides. By the time he'd figured things out enough to stabilize, she once again threw him off by mixing and matching her offensive and defensive styles. That earned her his third of four lives.

One more. Just one more.

It was a testament to her friend's skill that the game was this close. Even when faced with a situation like this, Ian was no slouch. He leaned forward in his chair with intense focus, working to absorb her patterns as he had so many times before. To his credit, it did work. Kaitlyn found herself getting caught out of position or getting read more often than expected. But at the end of the day, he just didn't have enough time to figure her out.

A victory screen splashed across the monitor. Corgo's comically long tongue lolled out of an adorable face, his cybernetic arms hefting a laser pistol aloft in victory.

Kaitlyn sat back in her chair with a sigh. Dang. That was just one game and I'm already exhausted…

Glancing over, she saw that Ian's posture mirrored her own. One of his hands ran through his curly brown hair as he blew out a breath.

…But it was totally worth it.

"Damn." John interrupted. "That was intense!"

"Right?"

"Did you see that edgeguard?"

She blinked and looked around their setup. John was staring at her alright, but it wasn't just him. They'd evidently gathered a little bit of a crowd over the course of their game.

Whoops. Well, guess there's no helping that…

Turning back to Ian, she extended her fist. "Good game,"

Ian's blue eyes flicked to her, then to her fist. Behind them, she saw something spark. There was determination there, definitely, but also something else. It might have been respect.

"Yeah," he met her fist with his own. "Good game."