Tasting Menu

“So, what do you think?” Stella asked. The half of the island that had stayed in the dining hall had only picked at their lunch to satisfy Genet’s requirement to “put yourself in someone else’s fork” as she’d phrased her reasoning for the meal schedule previously, after Felicia told Hel that there’d likely be an accidental buffet. While Stella would normally be dismayed to watch people throw out her food, she’d hardly noticed while focusing on today’s goal.

The chef watched Aubrey pick at the slice of quiche. The blonde was slowly making a mound of bell peppers and green onions on the side of her plate. She seemed stressed as she tried to sample the apparently better looking parts of the dish. “It’s alright.” She lied.

“You don’t like some of the vegetables?”

“It’s a texture thing.”

“Is it certain kinds of textures?” Stella asked. “I’ve worked around certain food sensitivities before. Are there specific vegetables you’re picky about, or is it part of an allergy or condition? If it’s something like- H-h-h-helena?”

Whatever medical issue Stella was about to offer as something she felt comfortable accommodating was left unmentioned as she and everyone was distracted by Helena attempting to get up and then falling to the ground next to the bench. By the time Stella even had time to close her mouth, both blondes were at Helena’s side.

“Are you alright?!” Aubrey asked.

“Y-yes.” Hel groaned.”I’m fine, but I should have thought that through.”

“Why did you try to get up on your own?” Felicia asked, as they helped her back on the bench together. She watched the redhead move both her legs and arms once she was sitting down just to look for any signs of pain before going back to her place on the opposite side of Stella.

“I was trying to get a napkin.” She lied. “I’m sorry to have distracted you two. Aubrey, I think she was asking you if there were any specific vegetables that were easier or harder for you to deal with?”

“I-. It’s kind of a lot. I don’t want to waste everyone’s time.”

“Aubrey. The whole point of this is to find something healthy you like. Come back to the kitchen with me again, and this time point out any ingredients you want me to stay away from?” Aubrey hesitantly nodded, and Stella asked the others: “Do either of you want the rest?”

“I’ll try a slice.” Helena accepted.

Given the amount of cheese in the dish, Felicia just shrugged.

“Do you mind if I drop anything leftover off with my husband?” Genet asked. The whole time, she’d been sitting in the corner watching.

“S-sure.”

“Thank you.” Genet strode over to the pan where the brunch dish was sitting. She pulled a plate and pie knife out of thin air, using it to slice a piece of the quiche and serve it to the billionaire with the comfort of a housewife who’d hosted a million dinner parties. Then she waved her hand over the pan and turned it into a plastic container she took upstairs as she sauntered up to her office.

With the host gone and Stella taking Aubrey into the kitchen, Felicia leaned across the table. “You fell on purpose. Why?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

***

An hour later, everyone was back in the dining hall.

“What do you think?”

“It’s better. I like the soup.”

In front of Aubrey sat a bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich on sourdough cut diagonally.

“Good. I tried to make it creamy so it’d all have the same texture for you.”

“I appreciate that.” The blonde looked down. “It kind of feels weird that you’re all here to fix me."

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m half here to see if she’ll bring out any dishes I haven’t seen before that I can actually have.” Felicia offered.

“About that- the soup has heavy cream, and the sandwich is obviously out of the question.” Stella pointed out apologetically.

“Figures.”

“And I personally don’t believe your diet is a priority to fix." Helena said. “But Maeve wants Hazel and I to occasionally spend time away from each other, and I’m here if lines get crossed.”

“I d-don’t expect anything like that to happen,” Stella promised. “I just want her to eat a little healthier, especially since we have to eat what she does.” Am I doing something wrong?

“I appreciate both of you, either way.” Aubrey said diplomatically, though ignoring Felicia’s answer. She lifted the bowl and took another sip of the soup.

“Is the sandwich alright?”

“It’s…” Aubrey gave up on being diplomatic. “It’s wrong.”

Stella’s brow furrowed. “Wrong? Can you elaborate on that?”

“It tastes thinner, and like there’s something missing. But there’s also kind of a darker taste too? The bread tastes wrong too”

“It’s brie. and sourdough, though the darker taste is probably the small amount of spinach I added.”

“We should probably try something else.”

***

Ninety minutes later, they were back in the dining hall again. Genet had said something about a care package for a fellow host she was worried about before taking the rest of the soup back with her to her office. She’d come back dusting white sand off her heels and sat in the corner by the stairs to be with some of her contestants again.

“What do you think?” Stella asked for the third time that day.

She didn’t get an answer right away, as unlike the other two dishes Aubrey can continued her experimentation long past the first bite. Stella’s last idea had been her mother’s meatloaf recipe. Aubrey appeared to finally be taking a break to breathe, so hopefully she’d have her answer soon.

Whatever the answer was going to be was put off further as the door banged open, Ava walked in jovially. She sat down with a thump in the empty space of the group’s formation of the table.

“I’m glad I didn’t miss the meatloaf. There’s some left, right?”

“I can get you a couple pieces in a few minutes.” Stella agreed.

“I’ll take some too if it’s safe.” Felicia joined in.

“It is.”

Aubrey had taken her breath and seemed determined to clean her plate.

“That’s a good sign, right Helena?”

There was no response.

Stella and Felicia turned to where she’d been sitting. It was empty.

“Should we look for her?” Stella suggested. “She can’t have gone too far, with her walking transformation active it’s hard for her to open doors.”

Ava shrugged. “I’m pretty sure she’s with her girlfriend? Hazel said that they needed to talk about something when she came in with me.”

“Wouldn’t we have noticed if there was anyone with you?” Felicia pointed out.

“I mean, she was right behind me!” Ava insisted.

“So you're saying she’s a ninja in addition to everything else.” Her best friend commented dryly.

Aubrey had been ignoring their conversation, long used to the bodyguard moving in and out of rooms like a ghost. “I know I hadn’t been super comfortable with this idea, but for this it was worth it. This is the best thing I’ve ever had. Is this at your restaurant? It should be.”

Stella shook her head. “It can’t be prepped enough for varying demand. I’m glad you like it though.”

Aubrey nodded eagerly.

The chef turned to their host, still sitting in the corner as she had been all afternoon. “So, did it work then? Will the food next round be replaced?”

“I’m not sure yet. Memories can take time to crystallize.” Genet admitted.

“What do you mean by memories? Isn’t this a schedule made up of our favorite foods?”

“More by association.” The host started to explain. “I use the schedule because I want to use the food to help you understand each other better. Everything on the menu is associated with one of your happiest memories you associate with that meal.”

Was I going about this entirely wrong? Stella turned back to Aubrey. “Can you tell us more about where yours come from? Why is your lunch-” she caught herself before saying bad. “-that kind of grilled cheese?”

The blonde’s smile changed. “My dad made my lunches every day when I was a kid. On school days it’d be peanut butter sandwiches, but on the weekends he’d try to make me grilled cheese. I was even more of a picky eater back then, and so it was one of the best things we could afford.”

“And… what about the pizza?”

“That’s actually Richard. I had been dating someone else, this awful boy named Evan. He kept asking me for favors and I was afraid he’d dump me if I said no. So I spent three months doing everything he asked. Every Saturday afternoon he’d give me some quarters and I’d take both of our clothes down to the laundromat. I came back to his dorm one Saturday to drop off the basket and I found Tiffany's sister in bed with him. I did everything for him, and I couldn’t even keep him.

“I was so panicked at seeing them I ran out still carrying his laundry. Pretty much the whole college stared at me as I was just sitting on the quad crying into a basket of clothes. I looked like I was crazy, and maybe I was. But only one person did anything more than stare.

“Richard sat down next to me and asked what was wrong. We talked, and he listened. After Evan and three months at college away from home I missed someone that wanted to listen without getting anything out of it. He dropped off the basket outside Evan’s door for me and took me somewhere to get dinner. He ordered pizza for us at this bar I’d never been to before, but as I wanted to spend time with him and we became more serious I spent a lot of time at Murphy’s- the real one I mean.”

“He’d never told us that before,” Stella said.

“That’s how I know that we’ll always be together. He’ll never try to hurt me like Evan did.”

Felicia and Stella shared a look. They weren’t as close as others in the group were, but they’d still known each other for almost a decade.

We need to tell her.

Now? Stella’s look was begging for them to wait.

While they were trying to decide what to do, Ava hadn’t noticed either look. As she’d been listening with the others she saw something deeper in Aubrey.

She wasn’t sure why it made her feel a little sad. She’d never really thought about marriage, and the only wedding she’d ever been to was one of Felicia’s older brothers. It didn’t feel like something she should feel sad about, since Aubrey looked so happy. Felicia loves him too, right? Does she want to marry him? I should ask both of them about it. Just… probably not at the same time.