“Wake up…” an irritated voice echoed in the endless darkness.
“Wake up…!” the voice echoed again, this time, it was a bit louder.
“Wake up!” the voice finally broke through the darkness as Elaine opened her eyes in panic. Cold sweat formed on her back as she prepared for the incoming belt or whatever blunt object that was coming her way, but there was no pain that came, instead, she only heard a sympathetic sigh and snort. “You’re finally awake, sleepyhead.”
Elaine opened her squinted eyes and looked up. She saw Rob standing right beside her bed, wearing a light brown apron and a black hair net covering his messy black hair. He flicked her forehead with a teasing smile and turned around 0 an action which she didn’t appreciate as she rubbed her forehead with a frown on her face and a light hiss.
“Get up already. I’ll teach you some simple recipes while it’s still early in the morning. I still have school, you know?” Rob chuckled and left the room.
The girl sat there in a daze. She looked down at her arms, she looked out into the window where the morning sun rose up the horizon, and whispered, “It’s not a dream…”
…
“Good morning, Elaine!” Vivia called out from the kitchen as she skillfully chopped carrots and potatoes into small little chunks. She was making curry for breakfast today, to celebrate Elaine’s successful adoption after the hours of mind-numbing paperwork to be done, like getting her birth certificate since it burned down with the house, her ID, and so many more that Vivia didn’t want to remember it.
“G-Good morning, Mama…” Elaine felt awkward calling Vivia Mama, but Vivia didn’t seem to mind it and instead laughed jovially.
Vivia placed the chunks of potatoes and carrots into a boiling pot of water, and pointed at the bathroom, “You can go brush your teeth already so you can help your brother out in the bakery. Your Papa should be finished taking his morning shower already.”
Elaine nodded her head and followed the hallway toward the bathroom. Upon arrival, she saw the door open and a tall, muscular man with a bald head and a manly beard walked out with a towel over his neck. He smiled when he saw the young girl and approached her with a laugh.
“Good morning!” Herve laughed and patted her on the back. “Hahaha, I know it’s a lot for your first day, but you’ll get used to it. Don’t worry about that introverted brother of yours, even though he dislikes interacting with other people, he still has decent social skills to handle customers that are particularly early.”
“O-Okay, haha…” Elaine wore a wry grin as she inwardly thought, Are you sure he’s introverted?
“Well, you better get going now! Rob’s waiting for you at the bakery.” Herve walked to the side so Elaine can get in.
She nodded her head and entered the bathroom to brush her teeth. As she added a dab of toothpaste and a sprinkle of water, she looked into the mirror.
A beautiful face stared back at her, with undeniably messy and long black hair, along with a pair of creepy crimson eyes. She hated those eyes of hers, it was one of the main reasons her parents abused her, believing she would bring misfortune upon the family. And well, misfortune indeed came in the form of raging flames.
When she looked into the mirror, she found a small grin has crept up on her face without her knowing. She was surprised by this discovery, but the grin grew wider as the warm feeling in her heart bloomed once again.
Her smile widened, revealing a toothy grin.
…
“Aha! You’re finally here!”
The moment Elaine opened the bakery’s door, she heard a slight jingle. From behind the counter, through the open door, she saw a young man walk out with messy black hair covered by a dark net over his head and dark brown eyes, wearing a light brown apron. That was her brother - Rob Fortune.
“Come, come! We better hurry up! I have classes by 8 am, and it’s already 5:35!” Rob urged and pulled at a certain compartment on the counter, and with a light grab, a side of the counter opened up to form a passage for her to walk through.
“Y-Yes!” Elaine straightened her back and rushed towards Rob.
“Here,” Rob said and passed a light brown apron, the same style, and color as the one he wore, with the words Fortune Bakery written in white letters around the chest area.
Elaine grabbed it and was confused on how to wear it. Why would she know how to wear one?
“Oh yeah…” Rob appeared to have realized his mistake and went behind her. He grabbed the apron, and instructed with a smile, “Here, you put your hand here, tie this like this, and you’re done.”
“Thanks,” said Elaine. She looked down at her apron, giggling and fluttering about like a kid. Because of the tightness of the apron, Rob can clearly see just how malnourished she was, with her thin feeble arms and her concave belly.
“Sigh…” Rob suddenly gave a sigh which caused Elaine to slightly turn anxious.
Why did he sigh? Is he angry at me? Did I do something wrong? Is he going to beat me up?
“Follow me, follow me. Be sure to keep this a secret between us, okay?” Rob pointed with his chin at the door as Elaine calmed down. She nodded her head and shut her lips tight, then followed Rob into the kitchen.
Rob looked out at the door, to see whether there were any incoming customers, closed it, locked it, and silently walked toward a certain corner of the room. When Rob paused, he stretched out his hand, and strangely enough, a glowing magic circle suddenly appeared!
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On the wall, a large hole suddenly appeared and Elaine saw many loaves of bread stored inside, even meat, and deserts! The hole also had strange glowing walls, as if there were some sort of mystical energy flowing inside that kept the food from spoiling.
“Here, eat up. This won’t be too filling so you can still eat breakfast like normal, but it’s pretty calorie-dense.” Rob explained to her as he gave her a few slices of strangely small biscuits. “If you’re curious, this is my food storage, for bulking purposes.”
“Calorie-dense? Bulking?” Elaine looked at him, confused by the terms he had used.
“Ah, right, you wouldn’t know about something like that.” Rob shook his head. “Calories is like the amount of energy inside your food. The more calories you take, the bigger your body would be, and if you eat beyond your caloric maintenance, you’ll start gaining more weight.”
“And bulking… You don’t have to know about it.” Rob looked back at the wall and activated the magic circle in place.
“So… I’ll gain more weight if I eat this?” Elaine looked at the packet of biscuits in her hand, and at her skinny arms and legs. “Is this so I can…”
“Of course, you dummy.” Rob chuckled and snapped her awake from her dazed state. “And before you go crying on me, you better drink this first.”
Elaine sniffed and looked away, “Who said I was about to cry? It’s just water, okay?”
Rob chuckled at her pitiful appearance and pulled out a strange vial from his pocket. Inside it, colorless liquid swirled around with no odor or taste.
Elaine eyed the vial and waited for Rob to explain what it was.
“It’s a potion.” Rob smiled mysteriously and opened the cap of the vial. “Its worth is in gold, so you better treasure this and drink it daily, you little brat.”
“G-Gold? You’re joking, right?” Elaine stared at the vial and looked at Rob in the eyes, but he was dead serious. “R-Right?…”
“Just drink it already. This potion’s gonna help you not get too fat when you eat from my snack hole, which is like every person’s dream.” Rob smiled. “If I sold it to the market, I’d be filthy rich!”
“You’re an alchemist?” Elaine was surprised by this discovery as she grabbed the vial from Rob’s hands. “I thought you were a mage!”
“Hey, a person can have their secret hobbies, okay?” said Rob. He crossed his arms and watched Elaine drink the potion in one go.
“It tastes like water… Are you sure it’s a potion?” Elaine gave the vial back to Rob with skepticism.
“It’s a potion!” Rob snorted and placed the vial back inside his pocket. “You better be grateful a week later once you have more meat on your body, you walking skeleton!”
“Fine, fine. I’m grateful, okay?” Elaine giggled.
“Now, eat those biscuits so you can finally start your journey to becoming a proper baker!” Rob instructed, washed his hands, and prepared the ingredients on the table.
…
“Ugh…” Elaine rubbed her forehead as she felt a slight headache. Not was only she physically tired, with sore arms, but her mind was exhausted by the constant stream of information she had to remember.
“Hahaha, was baking fun?” Herve laughed with a big wide smile as he sat down on his seat.
Vivia placed the bowl of curry on the table as she giggled and also sat on her seat. “Well, did you learn a lot from your brother?”
“A lot…,” Elaine mumbled with a groan. “Yeah, I learned a lot.”
“That’s only for the first day.” Rob also sat on his seat after he washed his hands. “You still have a lot to learn, like dealing with customers, or baking different types of bread.”
“Ugh…!” Elaine slumped her shoulders as she felt utter despair.
Vivia giggled at the playful sight of the two siblings, two siblings not related by blood, and thought, Those two… I’m glad Rob is taking care of her so much. I’m even slightly shocked at how Rob appears so… sociable with her. Is he perhaps finally breaking out of his shell?
Elaine shook her head and stared at the bowl of curry and steaming hot rice with a glimmer in her eyes. Food! Actual food, so much food! Even though she had stayed in the hospital for a week, the food there was a bit of a letdown even for her, a girl who had faced abuse for years and ate food that can be considered dogshit.
She slowly scooped up some rice, poured some curry onto her plate, and blew at her spoonful of rice and curry. With a chomp, her eyes glowed brightly as she savored the burst of flavor in her mouth.
“Ohoho, do you like your mom’s curry?” Herve laughed heartily from the side as he observed Elaine’s reactions.
“Mmm, mmm!” Elaine nodded her head as she ate more and more of the curry without pause.
“Hehehe, you better slow down, dear. We don’t want you choking now, do we? Here, have some more, you can always take seconds till you have your fill… Like a certain duo here.” Vivia eyed her two boys and giggled.
“You know that I have to eat a lot!” Herve chuckled and grabbed more rice and curry from the bowl for his second plate.
Rob did the same, and inevitably, Elaine also took her second plate.
When Rob finished his meal, he gulped down a glass of cold water, placed his dishes in the sink, and walked toward the door.
“You’re leaving already?” Vivia asked with a warm smile.
“Yep! We have a test this morning so I gotta review for those stocks, you know?” Rob pointed at his head and knelt down on the ground to put on his shoes.
“Hmph, back in my day, I never reviewed for any old quiz!” Herve said with a proud tone.
“And that’s why you had to become an adventurer.” Vivia wore a slightly threatening smile as if she had remembered some very unpleasant memories. “Elaine, dear, don’t be like your father when you start going to school. Risking your life fighting inside dungeons isn’t as honorable as you might think.”
Elaine nodded her head and looked back at the door.
Rob stood at the entrance, wearing a wide grin on his face. “I’m going out now!”
“Good luck, honey!” Vivia shouted from the dining room.
“You better not fail that exam, or else I’m cutting down your paycheck!” Herve threatened with a smile.
Elaine didn’t know what to say. There was a voice inside her, urging her to do something, whatever that something was, but she still felt a bit shy of doing whatever she wanted to do around this family of hers - people who she considered only as very close acquaintances, but when she looked back at Vivia and Herve grinning at her with encouraging gazes that seemed to see through her thoughts, she gritted her teeth, took a deep breath, and stood up in a hurry.
Fuck it. She’s gonna do it. Regret be damned, that’s for later! If she doesn’t do this, it feels like she’s gonna miss out on something big, something that she would regret later not doing. So, she ran, she ran towards the entrance of the house, towards Rob, and leaped forward with arms spread out in preparation for a hug.
Rob was surprised by the sudden hug, but he soon calmed down and patted her back with a laugh.
“You better do your best, okay?” Elaine looked up at Rob’s face with teary eyes.
“Yes, yes. I’ll do my best for you.” Rob patted her head and took a step back. “See you soon. And just so you know, it would take a lot more than any accident to just kill me, so don’t act like I’ll die so soon.”
“You… can’t you be nice for once?!” said Elaine snarkily. “But… yeah, see you soon,”
And so, with their goodbyes given and received, Rob closed the door with an audible click, while Elaine wiped her eyes and then grinned wryly. Fuck, that was embarrassing as hell.
“I better help Mama with the dishes…” she strained the smile on her face and walked back to the dining room with Vivia and Herve laughing, perhaps at her, or perhaps at another thing - all she could care about the moment was erasing that memory and putting it into the deepest corners of her mind.
She didn’t even know what kind of devilish compulsion had tempted her to do something so cringe, but alas… she had done something irreversible. She’ll have to live with that forever.
AHHHHHHH! FUCK! WHY DID I DO THAT?! ELAINE, YOU STUPID LITTLE FUCKING STUPID! WHAT SORT OF DEVIL WOULD HAVE MADE ME DO SOMETHING SO DAMNABLE?!