25 CERES MAKING MOVES

The next morning, Eli woke up to the sound of his alarm. He took a cold shower to wake him up from his groggy state, brushed his teeth, put on his clothes, and picked up his phone, wallet, and keys – just like how he normally did when he was alone in his house.

The moment he got out of his room, he heard a faint noise coming from the kitchen. Slowly, he walked to the kitchen to see what she was doing early this morning.

Ceres was wearing an apron while putting something on the plate. She had her back facing him while she concentrated herself to cook something for breakfast and for lunch. She planned to make a bento for both of them.

"Good morning, Eli," she greeted as soon as she turned around and saw him. She wasn't even surprised to see him standing there. "Have breakfast first. I remembered your mom said you like to grab food on the way which isn't very healthy. So, I decided to make food for us instead. It's kind of my way to repay you for helping me."

"Uhh...Sure. I don't mind." He said after a long moment of silence. "Are you still cooking something?"

"Yeah. Just go ahead and eat. I still need to finish frying these fish for lunch."

"We'll have bento for lunch?"

"Yup. I actually like making bento for Neon but since he's out somewhere with your mom, I made a bento for ourselves instead. You have so many ingredients that are about to expire. Why did you even buy them when you're not going to cook them."

Eli just scratched his head with her question because he didn't want to tell her he used them for practice. When his father's house helper finished making side dishes for him, Eli liked to experiment on his own but they always turned out horrible. He didn't want to ask for help either because he felt embarrassed to ask someone about cooking when he was all grown up.

Supposedly, she would be making bento but Ceres soon realized that Eli didn't have bento boxes. Fortunately, he has a lot of disposable plastic containers and they were microwaveable, too. She used them to store the dishes separately as well as the rice.

[Wait!] Ceres paused her hand midair and Eli noticed it, too. She was hesitating whether to continue her plan or not. She was so absorbed with what she was doing that she forgot to ask something very important. [Does he even eat home-cooked food in the hospital?]

(I don't remember so.) Belle retorted and this caused Ceres to feel ashamed.

"Is there a problem?" Eli asked her because she looked like a statue in front of him. "You should eat soon or the food will become cold. Why are you still standing there?"

Ceres finally smiled faintly and looked at Eli reluctantly. "Eli."

"Hm?"

"Do you even eat bento in the hospital?"

"Of course." He answered instantly without any hesitation. "Were you worried that I won't eat the food you make?"

"Hn."

"Silly," he said and ruffled her hair. "In the past, my mom would always make bento for me and my sister. After I live separately from them, I rarely got the chance to have her bento. There were times that she would make one for me but a lot of things happened and it probably slipped out of her mind. Anyway, I'm not a picky eater. Just so you know, I didn't grow up in a rich family. We just started living a little better when my older started to work."

"I see." Ceres breathed a sigh of relief after knowing he was fine with the food she made. "Let's drop by at the nearest mall on our way home later. We have to buy bento boxes for our food. It's a hassle to bring a lot of things with us."

"Okay. Eat now. I'm almost done."

Since she cooked for their breakfast and for their lunch later, and she still have to change to go to the hospital, Eli told her that he could wash the utensils. By the time she finished, he was already in the living room waiting for her.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

"It's fine. We still have so much time. As you mentioned, I like to grab food on the way. It was the reason why I would wake up early. Since you can cook for us, maybe I should spend time sleeping a little longer."

"Why not? After all, you will be working all day long and I won't be doing as much as you."

Eli didn't say anything to comment on that because something else was bugging him. "You hold them for me." He said and gave the bag which contain the food containers. "I'm afraid that they would spill if we put them at the back."

"I don't mind holding them."

Eli opened the door of the car for her and once she seated herself, he helped her with the seatbelt since she could not do it with the bag hindering her action. "By the way, you called me Eli earlier." Ceres stiffened and didn't make a sound. "Last time you called me doc. Why are you not consistent?"

[I told you. You should call him, Eli, too.]

(No! You have to call him doc. That's rude to call his name.)

[You are being so distant by calling him doc.]

And off they go. The two souls started arguing early in the morning and Eli has no idea about it.