✅3️⃣ Treating the Babysitter [Camp NaNoWriMo July 2023]

14. Play with Your Food

Claudia mumbled, glancing away from the screen and down to her hands. They'd been having a lot of fun playing War of Aegis: Forbidden Mission together, and Adam had put off asking her for as long as he felt like he could. At least they had approached something like a convenient stopping point before raiding the pollen factory.

"What was that, little one?" Adam asked again, although he knew exactly what she had said. He could tell that she was embarrassed by the way she was fixing her gaze on her controller rather than meeting his eyes, and he felt that it had to be a good thing if he helped to enhance that feeling just a little. She hesitated for a couple of seconds, summoning the courage to respond, but then she turned to him and scowled as she raised her voice just a little above normal.

"'m hungy!" This time there was no way he couldn't have heard, and she knew it. He could see her blush deepening as well, and that was exactly what he had hoped for. He hadn't expected her to actually mispronounce words, but maybe that was how a child would say it in her mind. The words a child would say could easily be taken to indicate the way that a child would talk as well as the actual words.

"Okay, little one," he said with a little laugh. "Let's get you some lunch, and then we can see about going to the park." Claudia pouted, but followed him. A couple of days ago, he would never have imagined her setting a game aside for anything, especially not one where the plot could keep holding your attention like this. But she was learning to be a well-behaved little girl, and he could see that her rebellious streak was starting to break before his eyes.

"Not a baby," she said, pouting again, and all Adam could do was laugh.

In the kitchen, he decided to show off his new culinary skills. He'd learned a lot about cooking quick and easy dishes since he had started at Birmingham State University the previous year, and he knew that something quick and simple was exactly what the current situation called for. He also saw that the rice cooker in the corner of the room would simplify the task a lot. He weighed rice and poured some vinegar into a measuring cup, and then selected some suitable cold cuts and vegetables from the fridge. It was almost as easy as cooking at home; they had everything he needed right here.

"What's that?" Claudia asked, after watching for a little while. She looked just a little bit frustrated, and he guessed that she had been trying to think of more childish words. She had ended up with a question that wasn't very clear, and he found himself laughing at that just a little. He didn't want her to be uncomfortable, but the way she kept on struggling even with no chance of winning was somehow endearing. It was like she was enjoying the challenge more because she knew she couldn't win, and she wanted to put everything she had into fighting him just to prove to herself how helpless she was.

"This?" he said, pointing at the pile of ingredients. "Just a bunch of toppings and fillings. Really, I should prepare everything to make sure it's perfect, but I don't think your Mummy will mind if I use the leftovers that were there. And the last few bits from last night's dinner, as well. It's what I did a lot at university."

"No, what is..." she repeated, building the embarrassment even higher.

"We're having sushi," he said, guessing what she was saying. "Just rice with toppings. Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah!" she said, and suddenly the humiliation gave way to eyes-wide enthusiasm. "I wanna try a sushi!"

"Just wait a bit, baby," he smirked. "It's not quite ready yet. But you really are a little baby, aren't you? Throwing yourself into the role with only the slightest provocation. I never thought you'd get so carried away with it."

"You..." she started, the paused again to fish through her memory for a word that could say what she meant. "You made me!"

"I only told you that you can't use big girl words," he said. "Getting excited about the things that a little kid would love? I think that's all you. Maybe you didn't even need your special sweeties. Perhaps this is your way of telling me that you're just a good little baby pretending to be a naughty girl, and you're happy to be as excited as a toddler at the slightest provocation?"