Imagining Us

Chapter 13

Two hours later, Esi was up to her wrists in flour. Three balls of dough sat on the Corean kitchen island countertop. The apartment had an open concept kitchen with hardwood floors and a high ceiling. 

The kitchen was littered with appliances that she knew the girls hardly used, and her mind briefly flittered to Porte, and she wondered what he would have thought of the design, him studying architecture and all.

Esi turned to the girls and grumbled, "I assumed that a "night in"meant ordering in takeout."

She looked pointedly at Lauren. She and Alicia were sitting on bar stools on the other side of the kitchen island.

" I'm sorry, but Alicia and I were talking—

She cut her off, "You mean colluding..."

"I wouldn't put it that way. We were genuinely saying that we missed your homemade pizza, and we thought maybe you'd like to make some."

Esi pointed the rolling pin to Alicia. "Do you have anything to say?"

She smirked. "It was a spur of the moment thing. Didn't I just suggest it an hour ago?"

Esi shook her head in disbelief. Lauren just sat there fiddling with a long honey-blonde braid hanging over her left shoulder.

"Lo, you're the one that's supposed to have the moral compass in this duo."

She pointed between the two of them. "Am I really supposed to believe that these fresh pizza ingredients weren't bought this week...for this purpose?"

They shook their heads in tandem.

"The two of y'all are ridiculous. Someone left the receipt on the counter...it was dated yesterday," she deadpanned.

Alicia relented. "Fine. We spoke about it yesterday, and Lauren was the one who went to buy the ingredients."

Lauren smacked her on the arm. "Seriously, Alicia? Throw me under the bus."

She laughed at their antics, and went about popping the pies in the oven. Then, she set about putting away the extra ingredients and wiping the counter from the excess flour.

"I've offered to teach you lot how to make the dough many times...it's not that hard."

"Did you? I don't recall." Alicia turned to Lauren, " Do you recall that offer?...no?...exactly"

Esi protested, " You didn't even let her answer." It didn't matter though, she knew Lo would pick Alicia's side.

She popped one of the remaining pepperonis in her mouth and leaned her elbows across the now clean island.

"I wish Lena was here, then I wouldn't be outnumbered like this." Esi furrowed her brows as she really thought about what she said.

Alicia laughed. "I'm glad that realization just hit you. Girl, there's no way she'd have said no to your pizzas."

"Oh whatever,"Esi rumbled and turned to check the pizzas. "Why don't you two at least help by grabbing kitchen towels and taking them out of the oven, ah?"

They just sat staring at her like she grew another head.

"Come on. Allons-y or this will probably be the last time I'll make pizzas for y'all." She slapped the countertop to add some grit to her words.

A satisfied smirk found its way to Esi's face as they quickly dismounted from the bar stools.

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