215 Making Curry

We finished peeling the carrots and the potatoes, setting them in the metallic bowl container on the counter top. The occasional streaks of water droplets were visible on them as they slowly moved down the length of the vegetables due to gravity. They reflected the lights of the world, making it so that they each contain a mirror of this reality. Even the peeled onions, stripped of their protective outer skin, rested in the container as they are prepared to be transported over to the foldable table near the campsite where the others are setting up the pot and preparing for a fire.

"We're not using a portable stove?" Noah asked as he piled the stone he had found in a circle so as to build a makeshift encirclement for a campfire.

"Now where would the fun be in that?" Mura said as she watched Noah and Zaksus piece together the natural stove. "We already have restrooms and showers here, so we need to at least have some hints of camping on this trip."

"But still," Noah sighed. "It's a hassle to build this."

"This damn rock won't stay still..." Zaksus sighed with frustration as he tried to balance a round rock such that it stood by itself next to the other rocks in a circle.

"Stop with the complaining," Mura said with an amused smile on her face. Then, she looked in my direction as she saw me with the bowl containing the prepared vegetables and seasoning spices. "All done?" she asked Irina and I.

"Yeah," Irina said, pressing her hands together.

My response wasn't as energetic nor enthusiastic as her's. With an apathetic nod, I placed the bowl on the foldable table and took a step back. Loyd had placed two cutting board on the other side of the table and two kitchen knife on the cutting board. It appears that the vegetables will be cut here.

Mura walked over to one of the two cutting boards and picked up the kitchen knife. "Anyone want to help me cut the vegetables?"

"I will," Muria immediately volunteered, making her way over before anyone else could. She also picked up the kitchen knife that rested on her cutting board.

"Thanks," Mura smiled as she grabbed a peeled onion from the container and handed it to her sister before taking one herself. "We'll need to get the onion in the pot first. Can you boys start the fire?"

"Us?" Noah whined and complained.

He was sitting on the ground, arms locked as they supported him up while he leaned back. He appeared to be resting from his earlier task of setting up the stove. Standing next to him was Zaksus, and nearby, there was Loyd.

"Yeah," Mura nodded her head.

"What about them?" Noah looked over at Erith, Luna, and Alvelyn, all three girls who were simply standing around after finished populating each tent with the correct number of sleeping bags.

"Alvelyn is cooking the curry," Mura explained. "Erith and Luna will be helping her."

"What?" Noah whined as he looked up at the sky.

"We'll help you start the fire," Erith sighed. "Is that better now?"

"I guess," Noah sighed as he forced himself up from the ground. "Zaksus, go grab the lighter."

"Me?" Zaksus whined in a voice that seemed to be filled with surprise and doubt.

"Yeah you," Noah nodded as he pointed over at him. "You're the youngest."

"How's that an excuse?" Zaksus muttered to himself quietly, something that I often see in his interactions with Noah. "Fine..."

"You know where it is?" Loyd asked as he started walking with Zaksus over to the car. "I'll help look for it."

The sound of knives cutting vegetables and making contact with the cutting board persisted as Zaksus and Loyd walked back from the car after successfully locating the lighter. The sound also continued as they piled up the wood they had gathered earlier in a manner that they were all leaning against each other.

"You know how to start a fire?" Luna asked as she stared at what Noah was doing, inserting into the empty space beneath the small, dead branches, they inserted small twigs and other easily ignitable objects such as paper.

"How hard could it be?" Erith commented. "You just light the firewood and it's done."

"That's how you know you don't know anything about making a campfire," Noah commented as he continued to stuff the empty space beneath the tent of firewood.

"You need to first light something easily ignitable first and have that ignite the larger firewood," Loyd calmly explained. "You need a constant and hot enough fire to ignite the firewood or else they won't burn."

"Oh," Luna nodded her head as if she had learned something new.

"Girls and all their shopping," Noah shook his head in disbelief as he finally got up from the ground and rose to a kneel. "That's why you won't know anything about making a campfire."

"I bet you searched it up earlier," Erith intentionally half-covered her mocking smile.

"S-shut up!" Noah barked back, blushing somewhat from having his secrets exposed.

After that brief exchange, Noah used the lighter to light a small twig and inserted it into the small pile underneath all the firewood. The fire from the first twig soon spread to the other twigs and papers in the pile, which then ignited the larger firewood. Soon, the campfire finally came alive, crackling as it burned away the fuel sitting in the pile.

"It's so relaxing to stare at," Irina commented.

"Be careful and don't get too close," Mura called over.

"Don't you think so too?" Irina looked over and asked me.

"Well..."

I paused for a second and stared at the flickering flame. It was so small and yet it was filled with so much energy. However, no matter how bright or hot this flame burned, it'll eventually burn out. The firewood isn't enough fuel to sustain this fire for ever. This fire...it'll eventually extinguish, and hopefully, Irina's feelings for me would one day extinguish as well.

"It's just a fire," I finally commented.

"You're so boring," Irina pouted her face somewhat at my realist response.

"That's why you don't have a girlfriend," Noah teased.

"As if you have one," I calmly responded back, not feeling any flux in emotion. "Besides, I'm not even looking for one at the moment."

"Are you one of those people?" Zaksus stopped by and commented. "Are you the type of people that thinks your younger sister is the cutest?"

"Where the hell did you learn that?" I shook my head and said in disbelief. "Did Noah teach you that?"

"I didn't tell him anything!" Noah quickly explained himself. "Zaksus, you hidden pervert."

"Wait, how?" Zaksus's eyes were opened wide as he looked around at us in disbelief.

"Don't mind what he just said, Alvelyn," Luna gently patted Alvelyn on her back.

"Or maybe it is true," Erith also approached Alvelyn and gestured for her to look over in my direction. She intentionally did a half-minded job in covering her mouth and whispered out loud in a volume that was completely audible, and I believe she intended for it to be audible by me. "Alevian might actually have a sister complex."

"Who would?" I stared at them blankly in disbelief.

"Let's not waste the fire and heat the pan," Alvelyn calmly and maturely dug us out of the situation as she walked between Erith and Luna and grabbed the pot from the surface of the table. She then made her way over to the campfire and started setting the put onto the pot hanger that Loyd had set up over the fire.

"Let me help you with that," Loyd said with a smile on his face as he reached a hand out, palm facing up, to accept the pot from Alvelyn. "It's very hot. You might burn yourself."

"Thank you," Alvelyn nodded as she handed Loyd the pot, placing the handle in his hands.

"No problem," Loyd smiled once again as he went to work with the pot. He cautiously avoided burning himself with the campfire and hooked the pot to the pot hanger that stood over the campfire. "There."

Alvelyn nodded as she went back over to the table and grabbed the oil as well as a spatula.

"Can someone bring me the onions?" she said out loud.

"I got it," Luna said as she made her way back over to the table and grabbed the bowl of diced onions that Mura and Muria had prepared.

"Thanks," Alvelyn smiled as she accepted the bowl from Luna.

Alvelyn then waited momentarily for the oil that she had drizzled into the pot to dry up before dumping in the onion. Then, she had Erith bring over some of the spices which was what Alvelyn added in next into the pot.

"We'll cook the chicken and vegetables in here first," she explained. "Then we can add in water and make the curry.

"You look like you know what you're doing," Irina said as she peered over Alvelyn's shoulder. "Do you cook at home?"

"Occasionally," Alvelyn answered. "It's mostly Alev that is cooking."

"Alevian?" Irina looked over at me as if surprised.

"Did I tell you I know how to cook?" I said in an apathetic voice.

"I'm just kinda surprised," Irina explained.

"No once can imagine you with an apron around your waist, cooking by the stove," Muria added in from the cutting station. Her cutting board was cleared of vegetables as Mura took on that job. Now, she was cutting the chicken meat into similar-sized, rectangular cubes.

"That's rather rude," I sighed.

"How come you've never invited me over for dinner?" Noah asked me.

"Why would I?" I asked him.

"I don't know," he said with a blank look on his face. "Just because."

"That's not really a reason," Luna smiled and chuckled.