The Life of a College Student. (DISCONTINUED)

Level Five: Wingman.

re-written on 04.14.17

The entire house was enriched by wonderful aromas. I was cutting an entire onion while Chance browned some Italian sausage in a large soup pot. The raw onion smell was already swirling in the air with the hint of browning sausage. I could hear the rain starting to grow a bit harsh and even an occasional growl of thunder. Despite how early it was, the sky was blackened with dark clouds. There was no evidence of sun, just angry rain but it was the perfect weather for some hearty, warm soup.

It had been a while since I had made this soup; it was a huge favorite among the house-mates during rainy weather whenever they were craving soup in general. From the kitchen, I could hear the lively game of Monopoly being played in the living room. From the constant bickering and name-calling, I could safely say that Minnie was probably winning (Like always).

"The meat is done," Chance said happy to be helping out, as per usual, and began to gather the browned, Italian ground sausage into a metal strainer to get all the grease juices out. I finished chopping my onion, set it into a bowl, and handed him the large bowl of thick-sliced bacon that I cut up into bite-sized pieces.

He took the bowl and set it beside the soup pot as he began to drain out the remaining grease juices in the pot before dumping the bacon pieces into the pot. "Ricardo is locked up in his room." Chance remarked breezily as he stirred the bacon. Already the kitchen was beginning to smell like smoky bacon and no doubt within seconds, the others would begin to smell it too.

"And that concerns me, how?" I asked a bit rudely—just the mention of that dick's name was enough to make me cranky.

Chance, thankfully not taking any offense to my rudeness, chuckled, "When is Ricardo ever locked in his room, Claire?" He thoughtfully mused out loud.

I frowned as I began to crush some garlic cloves with my knife before peeling and mincing them. "The last time he locked himself in his room was when...he accidentally dropped Minnie's coupons outside and they landed in a puddle of muddy water, I think." Minnie was a bit disappointed but she quickly got over it and reassured Ricardo that it was fine—it just gave her reason to start another Couponing folder.

Ricardo, afterwards, locked himself in his room for the rest of the day.

"So," I pursued my lips, "Are you sure that he feels bad about how much of a dick he was to me earlier?" I asked the suddenly cheeky Chance as I put my minced garlic into a small bowl. The kitchen was now being overpowered by the delicious smell of smoky bacon.

"Is it ready yet?" Leon whined coming into the kitchen with an empty, big bowl that used to be filled with buttery popcorn.

"You already know the answer to that." I chided as I peeked into the soup pot to see how the bacon was cooking. Typically, most people who made this soup would cook the bacon until it was crispy but I liked it with a bit of chew. When I was content with how the bacon looked, I added the whole onion into the soup pot. Chance took a whiff and sighed contently, "Smells amazing and we only have two ingredients in the pot."

Leon was preparing another large bag of popcorn and leaned against the counter, "Any idea why Ricardo is locked up in his room?"

"Probably jacking off." I remarked indifferently as Chance stirred the bacon and onions. I got out the heavy whipping cream from the fridge and set it so it would settle into room temperature. Leon nearly choked on his own salvia at my crude words.

"R-Ricardo jacking off?" Leon looked at me as if I mental, "That's impossible."

Chance remained quiet but he had this knowing smile on his face. I ignored Chance and told Leon, "Why is it impossible? He's a guy, right? Don't guys, like, jack off everyday or something?" I questioned giving Leon a pointed stare.