I call my manager to call out sick from my evening shift, she isn't happy especially with all I missed two weeks ago, but what can she do. I apologize and rush through my work at the farm and scroll through the system store on my way to the grocery store after a lot of him hawing, I make a painful set of purchases.
From ESO: Chicken breasts recipe, stros M'Kai Grilled Seagull recipe, Capone Tomato-Beet Casserole recipe, Cooking Mastery.
From Fallout 76: Chicken Soup Recipe
From Fallout New Vegas: The wasteland Survival Guide
Something hits the ground in front of me ...seeing what I bought I look up....nothing. Someday I'll see how it does this. Reading the recipes they vanish and flood my mind with info. Reading the cooking mastery book, it flashes I get the info but it doesn't disappear... HOLY SHIT!!! I have an unlimited use skill book, I can only use it once but still. Books in elder scrolls don't vanish so it makes sense, I can build a small library that boosts the skills for an army if I grind all the Elderscrolls games, and Morrowwind has more skills, a boost in athleticism and short blades could be exactly what I need right now, unarmed, unarmored. Focus Dinner you idiot! Okay, glad I read the recipes first I feel like the skill books just elevated what I already had, making my own chicken broth lets me do way more and so long as I avoid the chicken skin shortcut it'll be way better....dang so much cooking makes better sense now and I can't help but think of chopping carrots just to gauge my skills.
Alright let's see pepper and onion broth for easy digestion and to break down weak fats...what are weak fats? Ok that actually makes sense not all fat in the same, but all fat is softer and rots faster it's an easy access point for infection so removing fat especially softened or weak fat is a good way to raise the safety and quality of a dish. But it means I have to waste some veggies.
At the store I can't help but feel abit strange about the new knowledge, the wasteland survival guide and cooking mastery skill books gave me incomparable knowledge and perspectives towards cooking but the little boost they each gave to the knowledge I got from the recipes and my recent cooking feels like a ton, it's like a had a provesional, no 2 professionals give me a crash course on what I was already doing. Some knowledge and terms are definitely new but most, it's just 2 drastically different, more experienced perspectives adding to what I already knew. Still feels weird and I don't know whether to feel smarter or not, definitely stupid for never trying a system skill book or recipe sooner.
I buy a box of tri rotini, a bag of bell peppers, a jalapeno, a bag of onions, a pack of baby bellas, a pack of chicken breasts, a butternut squash, 2 jars of chicken carrots and peas gerber, and a large jar of Prego mushroom. Finally after a lot of internal debate 3 gallons of distilled water, a pack of blueberries, a box of blueberry tea, and a bottle of blackberry wine. After checking out grumbling about the bill and my hunch that the stupid water is important I head back to our apartment.
Once inside I get to work I rinse and poke the blueberries with a wooden skewer then fill the coffee pot with them, put six bags of blueberry tea where the coffee grounds go, and fill the reserve with distilled water then run it. Next I struggle and put half tap water half distilled, I'm going to toss it anyways. I set the water to boil and rapidly mince 2 bellpeppers and 2 onions adding them to the water, make a couple attempts at paper thin slices of the squash, mince them and toss them in, add some garlic and black pepper, cube the chicken and toss it in finally the jalapeno, noticing spicy V8 in the fridge I add a splash. I take abit to breath and look at the blueberry water, it feels ridiculous.
Twenty minutes I stir the chicken for a few minutes then drain it, toss the veggies and add more of the same this time with lots more of the squash, the baby food, and the mushrooms thin sliced, I use just distilled water, stirring it often, it reduces very slowly and I keep it on high, then take the coffee pot out and pour it in a couple ice trays and get them in the freezer. It takes over an hour for the soup to feel...right? So I stop adding water and wait for it to reduce once more, it reduces slowly, once there's not enough thick broth to cook the pasta I add the pasta and stir it in, I stir constantly, dangit this cooks slowly it's so thick the pasta is struggling to absorb it but it feels right damnit my arms are getting tired. Persisting for about half an hour I start adding Prego to the pot, stirring furiously, the pasta's not fully cooked but it'll be packed with flavor and nutrience and finishing it in the sauce with help thicken the sauce further, dangit it the sauce is popping! Stirring furiously I wipe of any splatters that hit me and keep stirring it has to be cooked on high, I'm certain of it. I keep adding sauce as it reduces, it's a painful fight literally but the sauce cooks and...changes? In a way I just know is better. An hour long fight later it's done. I take the pot off the eye and cover it, what's on the bottom will burn but I'm too tired to care. I look over.
"Shit!"
Ashley watches with a grin as I jump out of my skin. Looking at the clock it's...8:30?!? What how!?! I starting cooking around 5? What the hell?
"Umm, surprise?"
After a short pause she grins "You certainly were."
"Guess I lost track of time. How long have you been there?"
"An hour"
"Fuck"
She laughs. "So what are you making for me it looked like chicken soup until you went nuts with the red sauce?"
"I call it red chicken pasta. This is stupid but can you go to your room? I had a plan and I wanna see it through, even if it's stupid."
She looks at me for a moment, then stands and leaves. I sigh and clear the dining room table, wipe it down. Then scramble for candles, she has scented ones fuck that. A few minutes later I have a crude bunch of flowers in a clean salsa jar, and a pair of Christian fish candles on the table. The only non scented ones we seem to have, unless she has some in her room...FOCUS IDIOT!
Damnit I forgot to chill the glasses. I check the ice, not frozen, fuck, perfect. I pour some fluid from the ice trays in the glasses swirl it the put it all away in the freezer. 10 minutes later I call her out and...woah.
She grins as she comes out in a shirt and jeans but...something... I stare awestruck. She smiles loving the effect she's having and I can't figure out what's different. Damnit I've seen this woman naked, how!?! She steps close and starts leans in to kiss me but pulls back laughing as I return it.
Fuck it, I can enjoy this moment.