Sir Gen's Note:

Dedicates to Yui_Maname and Legit_Hatchu

I publish this chapter early because Lady Rin deserves a day-off. Lady Rin always publish the chapters of our work so it's my turn!

Well, it's her birthday! ^^

Lady Rin, you should deserve a rest today.

Happy birthday, Lady Rin! :)

Anyway, I hope that you will like this chapter, minna-san! Thanks! ^^

Alice's POV:

Phew! That was close! I thought I will be dead in minutes. Good thing that the bystander Alex...who I let him in to have some lunch...rescued me from choking. I feel sorry for scolding me earlier..and so, I decided to make up...

"Umm...Alex...about earlier...sorry if I'm so angry at you. I was just overprotective with myself." I explained to him.

"No, it's fine. I'm already dealing with problems as of this moment..."

As Alex continues to dig in with my dish, his face has grown somber, emphasizing what he had just said. Increasingly concerned about him, I decided to take some action...

"Can you tell me what's wrong?" I kindly asked him. "You know...speaking your problems in front of the dining table will actually benefit you..."

"...sigh...I have a very awful day." Alex replied. "I was thrown out from my job as a frycook, despite doing whatever I can to make cook the most delicious...most ambitious recipes in town...and now, I'm lost...my home is far away from here...I'm not even sure if I'm secured anymore...I don't know if can still have my house...my pet...or even my future, I'm already can't support my siblings for their studies! What should I do?!?!"

Tears fell from Alex's eyes as he quickly finishes my dish out of frustration. I feel his passion...perhaps to be the greatest frycook he could ever imagine...being vanished unexpectedly. That's probably the reason why he is defending that "fast food" thingy when I was arguing with him. And now...when everything seems to be lost...I suddenly snapped an idea. In an attempt to calm his nerves...

"Alex, how about some sweets to calm your nerves?" I fixed my eyeglasses as I told him. "You will never resist this when you tasted it. Hehehe!"

I started to sing a lullaby again while I opened my refrigerator to get all of the remaining eggs in the rack, while retrieving a can of condensed milk in my cupboard. What am I doing, you ask? I'm just doing a serving of leche flan just for him!

And as I separate the egg yolks and mix it with a condensed milk in a bowl to make the mixture...well...promisingly creamy...

"Do you know why I hate fast food? It is because my father died because of it." I explained my side to him. "There is one time that my father is so addicted to it...that it was his only thing that he eats from breakfast, lunch and dinner. Little by little, he becomes frail and fat...and yet he didn't stop from eating...and eating...and eating...until one day, I just saw him die right before my very eyes...a massive heart attack killed my dad, and since then, I began to grudge fast food and vow not to eat those...ugh...disgusting foods again..."

I finished my explanation just as when I placed the leche flan into the steamer...and make a caramel by melting a tablespoon of sugar in a separate saucepan...I then noticed Alex's face...somewhat enlightened...

"Oh...I never thought that something like that might happen..." Alex told me. "It's just I'm doing the best that I could to make the customers happy...I mean fast food is where lively conversation starts...over a order of chicken, burgers and fries...anything can happen...like a date, a birthday party, reunions, get-togethers, or just a simple hangout...it doesn't matter whether you are addicted to fast food or not, the only thing matters is fast food works best when a conversation comes alive..."

"Fair point...but weak argument! Hehehe!!!" I punned at him and giggled as I put out the leche flan from the steamer, sprinkle the caramel and placed it in front of him. "You can also start a lively conversation within the limits of your home, don't you?"

"Alright...you win. But it doesn't mean that I'm not giving up on fast food!" Alex then tasted my leche flan . "Hmmm...it's actually sweeter than ice cream!"

"Hmm? How come? They're my favorite deserts, you know?"

"Well...the combination of milk and eggs actually reminds me of a certain ice cream that used to be my favorite...I don't know but...maybe cheese or something?" Alex explained. "But the difference of it is the syrup...the caramel that you added just now...that tops it all! The sweetness and the tanginess of melted sugar...it completes the recipe! Mmm!!! This is the sweetest thing I ever tasted, not to mention that your leche flan is so fluffy! Hehehe!!!

"Tee hee, why thank you! Hehehe!!!" I giggled on his comment. "Actually, this is the first time somebody actually complimented...even for a simple dish..."

"Huh? Why is that so?"

"Well...I'm alone here in my house for a very long time." My voice lowers as I tell my story. "My mother passed to me all knowledge that she has when it comes to cooking and excelled to be the best cook of my family, knowing all the combinations of ingredients to make the most perfect and most delicious cooking they will ever seen. My day will not be complete without making parents and my two older siblings happy with my cooking. Whenever they are down and facing with problems, it's always my delicious and scrumptious food that sets it aside and lighten their mood. With my food, lively conversation, laughter and happiness binds all of us together..."

I continued my story as tears unnoticeably fell from my eyes. "Everything was alright...my family was so proud of me and my cooking...until it happens. When my father died, my family started to fall apart...my mother falls into depression... my two brothers spilt up because of money and rivalry over girls...day and night they fight over the table...they didn't care about my cooking...which suppose to keep us together...they care about themselves...one by one they left me here...I even don't know where are they now...sniff...what's wrong with my cooking?! Is my cooking useless?! Does it can't smile everyone anymore?! Please tell me!!! Please...sniff...please...sniff...huhuhuhu!!!"

I found myself bursting into tears...as I remember who I was forsaken by my own family...I don't know...if I can cook anymore with this...I'm...useless...

"Here..." Suddenly, Alex smiled and offered me the leftover leche flan. "If you don't believe on my compliment, why don't you try it for yourself?"

Huh? I don't understand...why Alex wanted me to taste my own cooking? It doesn't make any sense at all! But...if this will calm my nerves...why not?

I scooped a bit of the desert...take a bite and then...mmm!!! My taste buds reacts to the...aaah...refreshing taste of my own leche flan. Alex is right...the tanginess of the caramel makes this simple pudding of milk and eggs into the sweetest desert that I've ever tasted. I never thought that after all these years...after being seperated with my family...I'm still cook such good food. But...what Alex wanted to tell me?

"Alice, you didn't taste your own cooking, don't you?"

"Yes...I mean it..."

"I knew it. You're so focused on making people happy with your dishes that you actually didn't think about yourself." Alex advised me. "Think about it, if cooking is your passion, you should follow it! Continue to make people around you happy with your food, whatever the consequences may be. One day, they will understand how your cooking can turn the frown upside down..."

With his piece of advice, something struck me. I remember one of the last things that my mother said before she gone insane...something that I shouldn't forgot a long time ago...

"Alice, sweetie. Life always has all the tastes in the world: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and spicy. Everyone who tried everything to overcome this tastes ended up burned to the crisp, for they always missing one element: themselves. Always remember, sweetie, food is love. If you want to overcome all tastes of life, you need to savour all of the tastes by yourself. You will never understand your passion for cooking if you only think about the contentment of others. By savouring the tastes by yourself, that's the only time you learn how to overcome it...and use it to inspire others...and make them happy."

Food is love...savour the tastes by myself...that's what I'm missing right now! I got to regain into my senses, step out of my comfort zone and show to the world all that I got...that my cooking will be one of the best!

"Are you fine now, Alice? I hope that I get you a little be-whoa!!!"

Alex didn't finished on what he is saying...when I hugged him in gratitude...

"Yep, I'm fine. Thank you for lifting me up, Alex! Hehehe!" I regained my confidence and giggled. "Let's be good friends, OK?"

"Sure! Why not!" Alex smiled back at me. "Oh yeah, I was planning to treat you tomorrow in a fast food restaurant that I once worked, wanna come?"

"Hmmm........OK!" I thinked about it for a moment before I agreed. "It's not bad eating something different every now and then, right?"

"Ha! Look who's talking! Hehehe!!!"