#she won't strain the miso right and she doesn't have dashi anyway

[softquietsteadylove]

Hiiii!! I love these rare moments when Thena successfully cooks/bakes something for Gil! So how about she make something for him and it turns out good??

I think it would fit for the Bodyguard AU. If you think it would fit into another AU better please do it!

"Thena?"

Gil walked into the apartment, smelling...quite a few things, really. First and foremost, he could smell the evidence of something burning, which was his main concern.

Thena had told him not to bring food with him when he came over today. Apparently she was 'trying something'. He was pretty sure he had never seen her so much as attempt to use her fancy penthouse kitchen, so he wasn't entirely sure what she was 'trying'.

But she sounded excited, and that alone made him agree to it.

"What, uh," he blinked, on the verge of laughing when he arrived a true disaster in her stunning kitchen. There were bowls and failed attempts still in pans strewn everywhere. That was that weird burnt smell. He smirked, "is going on here?"

"Gil!" Thena emerged from behind the countertop with a bright smile. Her hair was pulled back and there was evidence of stuff all over her flawless skin. But she seemed positively elated to see him. "I'm so glad you're here!"

It was such a simple statement, but it really made his heart start flip-flopping around in his chest with glee. He shirked off his bomber jacket and laid it over the back of one of the counter chairs. "Is this what you've been up to?"

"Okay," she sighed, turning back to the stove.

It was going to take hours to get this place looking presentable again.

"I remember you telling me that you hum in the kitchen because your grandmother would," she narrated as she stirred the pot of...something. "Aren't some of your favourite recipes from her?"

"Uh, yeah," Gil blinked as Thena offered him sparing and fleeting looks over her shoulder as she tasted her creation. He had mentioned it, ever so briefly in passing. He didn't think she had remembered it.

"Well, my grandmother also made me most of my meals in childhood."

Gil blinked; Thena had never brought up her family before. Not much was known about them, and certainly she had never even so much as mentioned them.

"She was quite a good cook, or perhaps everyone else in my family was just so bad that she was the lesser of evils," Thena continued to talk as she added the very last dash of salt to the pot before turning off the burner. "She used to make us a soup called Ukha."

Gil had read about it--Russian or maybe Slavic in origin? It was a fish stew. He raised his brow, "fish?"

"I know," she sighed, finally turning to him and tossing away her hand towel. She tilted her head, "I knew you would catch that."

He chuckled, holding up his hands in surrender, "I'm just saying--you always have some complaint when I make fish for you."

"Because I used to eat Ukha all the time!" she huffed, rolling her eyes. He had never seen this particular light in her eyes, before. But it was quite similar to when she was particularly pleased with her latest performance.

It was pride.

Gil inhaled reflexively as she pushed the bowl in front of him. It was a semi-clear broth, probably a seafood stock, although it didn't smell super fishy. There were large, uneven chunks of carrots and potatoes and onions, and some very whole herbs that probably could have been ground up finer.

It was beautiful.

"You said you were still a little bit stuffy after being sick," she murmured more sheepishly now, toying with the apron she had on over her clothes (an apron he had bought her, since of course she didn't own one before). "I know you like soup--and it's rather hard to mess up broth. So, I thought... "

"It's great!"

Thena sighed at him, "you haven't even tasted it!"

He didn't care. It looked beautiful, and the hopeful eagerness on Thena's face said a thousand words. He picked the bowl up and took a deep, loud slurp.

"Gil!"

He made a nice loud 'ahh' sound too, as if he had taken a deep swig of beer after a hard day. But really...it wasn't bad. It was maybe a little over-seasoned, too many flavours battling it out for dominance. Even after her last dash of salt it could probably use more. He would guess that some of the larger veg pieces might be a little under done in texture.

But none of that mattered because it was the best thing he had ever eaten. "It's not bad."

"Really?"

He smiled, genuinely eager to offer his praise of the simple white fish stew. "I bet your grandma would be proud."

Thena blinked, her eyes going glassy. She sniffled, turning back to the pot for herself. "Well, I wanted to do something for you. Especially since I meant to, and then..."

She was referring to when she came over to his place to take care of him while he was sick and then fell asleep on his bed. He had eventually gotten up and made some miso soup for the both of them, much to Thena's embarrassment and frustration.

"Come on," he chuckled, taking a more civilised spoonful of soup. Actually, it was pretty good on his second taste of it. She had actually cooked the fish just right, which was probably the hardest part of things.

"Hm," she mused, taking only a few spoonfuls for herself in a small tasting bowl. "I suppose I've made much worse."

"It's good," he assuaged, although she still seemed to be ignoring his open praise of it. He tilted his head to try and get a better look at her, "careful, Thena."

She tilted her head at him as well.

"You'll get me hooked on this stuff. Then I'll be asking you to make it for me all the time."

She rolled her eyes at him, now more flustered over his warm reception of her first successful meal attempt. "You will not."

"Why not?" he shrugged, taking another spoonful and chewing the fish. It was actually nice and soft, almost...buttery? His eyes dashed over to the counters again and he spied one of the pans with what was definitely burned butter crusted onto the bottom. That was the smell; she had taken a few tries to get the fish butter basted before adding it to the soup. It was a nice touch, though.

"How are you feeling, by the way?" she peeked up at him, still somewhat shy from his open adoration.

He sniffed the soup again, letting its heavy dill and tarragon scent push through his sinuses. "Much better, now."