#02 Chocolates (Part I)

"Miss, you mustn't touch that!" The maids stopped me from taking the kitchen knife in the kitchen. I bought all the necessary ingredients to make a chocolate close enough to grandma's and now they wouldn't let me touch a knife. How am I supposed to cut the chocolates into pieces?

I gave up on the knife and went to take a whisk to beat the eggs, but they wouldn't even let me open the cupboard.

"Please, I want to make chocolates."

"We can make it for you, Miss. I implore you to return to your room."

There won't be any meaning if I let them do it, right? Valentine's is all about homemade chocolates from the girls' own two hands, not their maids.

I tried distracting them into doing something else but they just won't let their guard down. 'This was harder than I expected.' They said they were willing to teach me the steps, but not let me handle it. Then what's the point in me learning?

I gave up and returned to my room. I planned to search it up on the Internet and make them tonight when everyone's asleep. I'm a fast learner after all, just watching one or two tutorials is enough.

[How to make chocolate]

[About 1,810,000,000 results]

Heh, that's a lot.

I clicked on the first video shown and memorized the steps.

'Milk, eggs, cocoa powder….' I was too indulged into watching the videos one after another and before I knew it, it was already dinner time. I ate as quickly as possible so the maids and chefs could rest earlier and it will be my turn to conquer the kitchen soon!

I pretended that I was asleep in my room until the lights outside were turned off. I went to the maids' rooms to make sure they were asleep, before heading to the kitchen. It was difficult to tip-toe down the stairs as I might fall over anytime when it was so dark.

When I finally reached the kitchen, I looked around to confirm no one was there before turning on the lights. I took out the ingredients from the refrigerator and opened the cupboard for the utensils needed.

"Finally, let's get to work!" I folded my long sleeves up to my shoulders and started moving my hands. I had all the steps in my head so it was easier….

Clang!

….? What am I doing making such a loud noise?! The maids have keen ears and they definitely heard it!

As expected, I heard footsteps coming towards the kitchen. I tried my best to clean up the place as fast as I could but it was no use. The maids reached faster than I thought.

"Miss, are you alright?!" I was on the floor picking up the bowl I dropped and they seemed to have thought I was the one who fell. They helped me to stand up and tapped my wrinkled pajamas.

I averted my eyes when they asked what I was doing in the kitchen in the middle of the night.

"Miss, please let us handle this! Tell us what you want to make and we'll make it for you in no time!"

I appreciate the help but I really want to make it by myself. What good will come of giving a homemade chocolate that isn't made by yourself?

"At least let me do it while you watch, can't you?" I asked disappointedly but somehow managed to gain their permission.

The maids were amused on how I managed to make everything by myself without a single look at the recipe. I didn't mention that I actually looked it up earlier.

Time flew past and the chocolates were ready. Each of us tried a bite to test if it was good enough and they overwhelmed me with compliments.

"Miss, I never knew you were so talented!"

"Seems like we needn't to worry about her handling the kitchen."

"We're sorry that we underestimated you."

Huh? What's with the sudden change of attitude? Have they been treating me as a kid up until now? I felt offended.

The taste wasn't as I expected but since they were so pleased about it, I guess it's fine then. I looked for a gift box to store the chocolates in.

"Which one is better?" I held two boxes in my hands, one was red and the other was blue. The maids were dumbfounded when they realized the chocolates I made were actually not for myself, but a gift to someone else.

"Now it makes sense why the Miss was so eager about making the chocolates on her own."

"Stop straying from the topic."

"Oh, the gift, that depends on who you will be gifting it to. What is he like?" Well, at least they figured it was for a boy.

"I'm bad at describing especially a living thing." They've been with me since I was little and they still didn't notice that fact? Interesting. I've heard sayings like the person who took care of you the most knows you better than yourself.

I ended up picking the red one since they didn't want to choose it for me.

'We don't know how he is like so letting us pick a color won't do.'...or so they said.

Sigh. Now, time for cleaning up…. Huh? "Jeez, I told you I would clean the kitchen so all of you should go ahead and rest."

I was glad that I didn't need to waste my time cleaning it but I felt guilty having someone else to clean the mess I made. Even if no one found me out, I would need to clean things up by myself.

"I'm sure he will love the chocolates you made, Miss." The maids said with a lovely smile while handing the box of chocolates to me.

"J-Just go to sleep already." I pushed them to their bedrooms and closed the doors. "Now then, I should head back to bed too."

"...da, Amanda!" I heard someone calling my name when I felt like I just lied on my bed not too long ago. I was still sleepy so I groaned in annoyance but that did not last long, not until I felt someone shaking my whole body.

"Amanda! Don't blame me if you're late for school!" Hearing these words from someone who needs to be woken up by me every morning is infuriating. How long have I been asleep?

I forced my eyelids open to see the clock and got out of my bed instantly. I went to bed at 12 and now it's 7?!

I went to the bathroom and took a quick shower before dressing myself into my school attire. I didn't have time to spare so I just went with a simple ponytail. The smell of pancakes on the dining table made me drool so I took a bite before heading to school.

I put my phone and the chocolates in my bag while Alice was taking the car keys. I didn't write any card, it should be fine right?

On my way to school, I couldn't help but grin whenever I imagined how his expression would be when he received it. Should I have made one for Mia too?

"Miss, we have arrived." I got out of the car and entered the school. For some reason, the girls were prettier than usual. Was it just my imagination?

When I entered my classroom, it was unusually quiet. Instead of dragging me to their gossips, they approached me cautiously. They had a faint blush and told me to look at Eric.

Woah! He's dressed up nice and neat. Not just him, the other boys too. Even the girls' hairstyles were different than usual which made me feel bad because I only had a simple ponytail since I woke up late.

"Amanda! That won���t do!" Mia suddenly ran to me and brought me to the washroom. She took off my hair tie and did another hairstyle.

"Mia?"

"Shh. Stay still."

It took quite a while before she was done. I looked into the mirror and was dumbfounded. I couldn't believe my eyes. Mia had a smug on her face when I turned to look at her.

"Consider yourself lucky to have a friend like me." She adjusted my dress a little and we headed back to class.

Some of the girls went to other classes to give their chocolates, some gave to boys in our class. As for me, he came to me by himself.

"Come on, I've been waiting for the whole morning already." He stood in front of my table and had his hand stretched out to me, like he was asking for something from me.

I stared at him for a while before speaking. His hair was nicely gelled up, not bad.

"Bold of you to assume you're receiving some from me."