Chapter 5): The Perfect Taco!
{I own nothing but my own Ideas, all other rights go to the creator of the books which was possible for the show: Caroline Kepnes.}
{Spoiler Alert if you haven't watched Season 2! Watch it before hand or don't, I am going to keep making this either way.}
{Skill Rankings: SSS, SS, S, A, B, C, D, F}
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Joe locked the door and followed Love down the stairs, "So, how exactly are you going to convert me?"
She turned around walking backwards towards the gate, Joe was quick to reach out and hold her shoulders to guide her, he was rewarded with a smile, "I have this theory. Well, it isn't my theory, it's the late, great Johnathan Gold's, whose life mission was to know Los Angeles the best way: through food. And, uh, he said, "There exist for us each a perfect taco" Point is, we are going to go get and find yours."
"Alright, my car or yours?" He asked as they walked out the gate, he waved to Ellie who had been watching them from the window of her apartment. Delilah was still someone he didn't see very often.
"We can take yours, if it makes you feel safer." She joked as she waited for him to walk over to it.
He nodded and led her to his new jeep; he opened the door for her before they took off moment later her giving him directions. Along the way they made small idle chatter, it was nothing super important, but it was fun conversation, nonetheless.
She was happy to talk about the perfect taco, which even if they weren't looking for it, he didn't think that it actually existed. He had a lot of them in his life, and he could say with certainty that he didn't really find one that just set him off to say it was perfect.
{A/N: Really it is a coincidence, but Tacos is what I had for dinner as I wrote this.}
He even told her this which only made her chuckle as she told him he was dead wrong, he shrugged and let it continue. Along the way she also tried to talk books, which he was able to keep up with, but he didn't hold the same passion that the old Joe did.
She seemed to notice this and brought up different topics, from some things she brought up it was obvious she was born in Los Angeles, she was a health nut like them. Not that he had anything against that, he just figured that maybe he could find on that was born here that wasn't a complete health nut.
He did like to eat nonhealthy food every now and then, with her being a baker she was also someone who technically pushed sweets and other things that weren't. Which caused her to laugh as he told her that.
Finally, they arrived at a group of food trucks which she determined would be their first stop, he followed her to a truck and waited as she ordered. "Well, here you go, the first taco of the night." she said as she looked at him egaerly.
With a raised brow he went head and took a bite, he didn't let it show on his face but even with everything they did to it he didn't taste much of a difference. "So how is it?" She asked after seeing him bite into it.
He shrugged, "Not really the best or perfect taco. It is okay, I guess."
She nodded, "Well put that down then, on to the next spot."
Laughing he set it down and allowed her to take his hand and lead him out of the area, they got back into his car before she told him the next location. The drive wasn't long before they were at a bigger restaurant, which he didn't really care about as they moved in line to get inside.
"Do we really need to wait in this line to get inside?" He asked while looking at the long line in front of him.
"Of course, we are looking for the perfect taco for you, and they make great ones here." She said while holding him place as he was getting ready to leave.
"Well, if you say so." He shrugged as he allowed himself to stay in line with her.
"So, Joe, want to tell me a little about your taste buds? That might help us a little more on this search." She asked looking at him excitedly, no doubt she loved this.
He thought about it, but he didn't really know what to say about his taste, he didn't really have many thoughts about what he did and didn't like. Joe was just someone who enjoyed food, he had grown up poor in both lives and didn't get many chances to try high class stuff.
Why would he really care about his food preferences, but he wasn't going to tell her this, she is Love Quinn an heiress who could have anything she wanted. Meaning she didn't really have to struggle like him when it came to taste, she got to try all the most expensive meals and paly with her palate.
While the best he had ever really done was eat something that was better than 99-cent ramen, he was able to eat ramen that was at least three or four dollars.
She must have seen something in his eyes or expression because she spoke before he got the chance too, "Or maybe we just keep looking for your favorite taco." She put a hand on his arm with a thoughtful smile.
He nodded and before he knew it, they were in the door, she asked him to grab seats while she went and ordered at the counter which he was surprised about. She came back ten minutes later with their tacos and placed his in front of him, he went took a bite and thought it was good, but still just a taco.
"Well?" She asked expectantly.
"I mean, it still is just a taco to me." He said while he did enjoy the sauce, but they put too much on it, so he didn't really like it all that much.
"You really didn't like it?" She asked looking a bit down, but she was also looking determined as she asked him.
"No! No, no, no. I would bathe in that sauce." He answered wanting to bring up her spirits but all it did was make her look more determined as she moved his plate away from him.
She dragged him out of the restaurant and to his jeep, following where she said to go, they made it to another place where she jumped out to get their order to go. Getting back in she refused to give him his food and instead she pointed him in the direction to where they were going to eat.
They made it to basically what she said was make-out point for teens in the area, he just shrugged and followed her as she led him to a ledge to sit on. As they sat, she handed him his portion of the take-out, he dug into it, but he still didn't really taste much different, though it was good.
She looked over to his face as he ate some more, "So close, don't ask how I know but I know this means I am closer." She said with a smile as she took out the earbud from his ear, "Come on follow me."
Shrugging he got up and followed her, he would follow her forever if she asked him too, she was amazing like that plus he didn't mind a little crazy. Getting into the jeep she told him to go to Anavrin which he had no problem with knowing she was going to cook for him.
The drive was silent as he could see her thinking over what to make him, her thinking face was cute, so cute in fact that he almost crashed once. When she turned to look at him all he could do was smile sheepishly at her before putting his eyes back on the road and not on her.
He missed the smirk that was on her own face.
When they got to Anavrin Love took his hand and led him in through the back, she was smiling the entire way as she took him into the kitchen. "Let me tell you about yourself Joe Angel. You are not a snob. You're just old-fashioned. You like things that are real, things that have no gimmicks made by people with care."
"Oh, do I?" He asked with a raised brow.
"You like things with strong flavors." She said faintly.
He watched as she made him roast chicken, he wasn't exactly a chef, so he didn't know everything she had done but he was impressed by the smell. As she drizzled some sauce on to it, she pushed it towards him with a wide smile, "Roast Chicken. In cooking school, they used to tell us that you could tell everything about a cook based on their roast chicken, so I became a bit obsessive. And you are gonna benefit from that."
He raised a brow but took his fork and knife and cut it while gently placing it in his mouth, he was not ashamed as she moaned as it was cooked and seasoned perfectly. As he swallowed, he looked at her in a new light, although some of the show described her cooking it didn't do it justice.
"What?" She asked looking slightly nervous.
"Nothing, you just surprise me." He said while taking another bite of the food, "So, why cooking?"
She sighed and seemed to brush off his words as she said something completely off topic which threw him, "I have to tell you something, and... I'm just gonna come out and say it. The community garden that we walked by? I got married there... three years ago."
Well, that was way out of left field, he blinked as she looked at her, "Um..."
"We met in school, and we were young, but... I just knew..." She said sadly while messing with his fork which he had set down to listen to her story.
"I'm sorry if I sent the wrong signals, look you don't need to worry about me..." He started but she cut him off.
"Yeah, conversation killer. He got sick. And they, um... they tried to figure it out. But... they did not." She gave a half smile which wasn't a smile at all.
Joe didn't think as he pulled her into his chest and hugged her, she didn't seem to mind either as she hugged him back leaning into it, and sniffing him? It might have been that she was just sniffling from being sad, but he honestly wasn't so sure about that.
After holding her for a moment he pulled back and smiled sadly at her, "I am sorry to hear that."
"No, it's fine. I mean who really gets married at our age just to be widowed so young." She mentioned offhandedly, "Ever since it happened, I've been able to see this thing in people... who've been through it. I see that every time I look in your eyes." She said next gaining some more passion in her voice as she spoke.
He went quiet as he thought that over, he was sure he did know what loss was, because at the moment he was living it as he was in this TV show. Well, he couldn't really call it a TV show anymore, instead it was his life now that he would be living until, he was caught, or someone killed him.
Which might happen, depending on how he decided to live his life.
He nodded at her, "Yeah, things in my life haven't always been great. I had to grow up quickly."
"So did you fall in love?"
"With LA?" He asked while thinking it over, he had never been to California before and since he had been there, he has loved it, "Yeah, there are things that I am starting to see which are making me really like it here."
The entire time he looked right into her eyes so that she knew that it was him. She smiled happily at that, "I am glad to hear that then. Oh, wait a moment! I forgot I got you a parting gift."
She walked to the side and took a white bag before handing it over to him, he opened it to see the same book she had gotten the original Joe. 'Joan Didion' he thought to himself, he also had no clue who this was.
"Let's face it, what you're more interested in is something... smart and complex. A little... dark. Right? That's what makes you feel at home." She spoke looking him right in the eye.
Joe chuckled slightly at that, he knew that she was completely right, even before he became Joe he had a hidden dark side, not as dark as Joe's but it was still there. Now with the combined mind of John Kramer that made it even darker, his thoughts had been swirling with ideas all day after all.
He smiled down at her wanting to reach out and push a strand of hair behind her ear, but he didn't, "So, do you need a ride back?"
She chuckled, "No, I actually walked to your place earlier. So, I am just going to take an Uber back home, I think I have taken up enough of your time tonight."
He didn't insist on taking her as he nodded and led her out of the shop after cleaning, jumping in his jeep he didn't take off until she was safely driving away. He made it back to his apartments around two in the morning tired, he really needed some sleep, which is why he might have broken some speed limits as he reached there.
Joe couldn't help but to smile as he pulled up while taking the book with him as he entered the code to get into his complex. Going straight for his stairs he smiled down at the book until he heard, "Blow."
Looking up he saw Ellie sitting there sticking out her foot as she painted her nails, "You can't sleep either?" He asked while leaning against the wall.
"I just have insomnia. From the 14 Frappuccinos." She mentioned offhandedly with a small smile on her face.
"Whoa, are you sure you should..."
"Chill out dad. I am going to sleep soon, plus my sister is right down there so don't worry about it." She joked shaking her head.
Shaking his head he went to move around her, but she stopped him, "Oh Will, a friend of yours was around looking for you earlier. Said his name was Jasper."
Joe looked at the photo and sighed, it seemed that the whole Jasper and Will plot was about to take place, this led Joe down a rabbit hole which he shouldn't have been a part of. Plus, he really needed to tell Delilah and Ellie about the name change, they were still going off of Will which he still hadn't tried to correct.
"Also, it's Joe, Ellie. I got a name change earlier today, didn't want to be called Will anymore that was my dad's name and I hated him." Joe said before walking away.
"Well, he looked like a perv." She said before he could get to far.
"What can I say, some of my friends give off the perv vibes." He chuckled as he walked to his door.
"EW!" He could hear her shout as she packed her things to go downstairs.
Joe didn't worry about the whole Jasper thing, he would take care of that himself quicker than it was done in the show, he didn't want his pinky cut at all.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
[Name: Joe Goldberg (Joe Angel)
Age: 26
Skills: Hacker (SSS)
Minds: John Kramer (A)]