𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 | 𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐞

ᴛʜɪʀᴛᴇᴇɴ

"One pan. He likes his toast toasted by the oven. Before you put the eggs in the pan, you whisk them slightly so they become a little fluffy." Annie said over the phone.

Jayden was pacing around the kitchen looking for everything she needs. "Where is the butter?"

"It's not in the utensil drawer Jayden. Try looking in the fridge." Jayden looked at Annie with an annoyed expression on her face.

She realized what she has been doing. Who looks in the utensil drawer for butter?

"Okay now what is this genius thing that you do with these eggs that makes the ice king melt for them?" Jayden sets the pan on the stove and already cracked two eggs in a cup.

"You will need three eggs. Put the heat on high and butter the pan. Make sure you put the bread in the oven now so it will be ready when the eggs are done."

It took Jayden at least five minutes before she figured out how to open the oven. "Which oven opens like this?"

Jayden had switched the call to a FaceTime so she could help Annie throughout her cooking journey. Just the sight of the house made Annie miss her home.

"Every oven does, Jayden. Now when you pour the eggs in the pan, you immediately start stirring the eggs for about thirty seconds. After those thirty seconds, you let the eggs simmer for a minute until they are almost fully cooked. Then you take the pan of the heat and spin it around in circles until the eggs are done. There you go, his favorite eggs are done. Don't forget the toast though."

Jayden nodded the whole way through Annie's story but forgot half of it when she was done. "So the eggs in the pan?" Annie nodded. "You're staying on the phone with me because I can't do this alone."

Annie nodded once again. She had asked Jayden if she should come too but Jayden refused. All Annie wanted to do was make his eggs and leave but Jayden didn't trust it.

She knew that if Annie had stepped one foot in the house, she would not want to leave again. Annie was still too emotionally unstable.

Without Jayden or Annie noticing, Asher was done showering and took place on the kitchen island behind Jayden.

He watched Annie as she sat on her bed in his favorite hoodie of hers. He thought the way it hugged her waist was perfect.

She had her hair up in a messy bun and her hood covered half of her head. The color of her hoodie made her eyes even browner than normal. Asher thought she looked perfect.

He hoped Annie misses him as much as he misses her. He doesn't miss people at all. They exist so why should you miss them? This was his first time really missing someone.

He hated the feeling of it. The constant pain of not having someone close to you, was bringing him down. Every second of every day he had missed her from the day she had left.

"Jeez, Asher. Why did you have to scare me like that?" Jayden puts her hand on her chest.

Asher had a blank expression. He wasn't doing anything, all he did was sit there. It wasn't his fault she had a bad conscience.

"For how long have you been sitting there?"

Asher shrugged his shoulders. He saw Jayden's phone still resting against the stove but Annie was gone. Jayden followed his gaze.

"Long enough apparently." There was a tone of sadness in her tone. She actually thought the shower would brighten him up but the sight of seeing her again ruined it.

"I'm fine, Jayden. I'm thankful for both of you for taking care of me after what I did." Jayden smiled at him but didn't succeed at making eye contact.

"What you did is unforgettable but I hate seeing a human being dragged down like that. I'm not supporting your decisions one bit."

"Neither do I, Jayden." He took a second of silence to swallow his tears. "I don't think any of you realize how much I regret it." He had his head hanging low so Jayden wouldn't see he was in the edge of tears.

Jayden pushed a plate with his favorite breakfast in front of him but he didn't budge. "Eat up. It will make you feel better." He tried to wipe away his tears without Jayden noticing.

He took a minute for himself before he tilted his head. Jayden could clearly see his tear stained face, he looked awful.

He slowly ate his eggs in silence, the only sound to be heard was their breath. He didn't want to feel this way, it broke him. It broke him in ways nothing else could.