The Scrap Tamer - Chapter 154

Chapter 154: Mom’s Cooking!
A couple of minutes later, finally arrived at the mess hall. The place was dimly lit, mostly empty save for a few night shift soldiers too afraid to approach.

The moment they saw Vivian, most of them stiffened and quickly found something incredibly interesting on the floor or ceiling to look at.

Commander Ajax moved quickly, ushering them in. “Everything’s prepped and ready. I’ll, uh, make sure the kitchen is fully at your disposal.”

Vivian clapped her hands once with genuine delight. “Wonderful! It’s been so long since I last cooked for my son.”

Reid quietly prayed that his mom would change her mind and allowed Ellie to take over, but that prayer didn’t seem like it would be answered.

They entered the kitchen, and the moment Vivian laid eyes on the tools, her excitement doubled.

“Oh, look at this!” she said, picking up a comically oversized knife and twirling it with deadly grace. “I haven’t seen one of these in years.”

“You’re not supposed to use that for cooking…” Ellie muttered.

Vivian rolled up her sleeves and started arranging the culinary tools she needed before saying “Time to get cooking.”

Reid immediately stepped forward. “Mom, maybe I should hel—”

“Nonsense,” she interrupted. “You sit down and rest. Let Mama handle this. Besides, Ellie’s here to help me out.”

Reid had no option but to find an empty table and sit with his friends, waiting for whatever his mom would be making.

Vivian hummed a cheerful tune as she moved with a grace, flipping knives, spinning pans, and grabbing ingredients with precision that made everything look choreographed.

“Don’t worry, I have a feeling,” she suddenly said to Ellie who was helping prepare the ingredients while hoping they don’t burn down the kitchen, “that this will be different from my previous attempts.”

Ellie blinked. “What… what do you mean, Mistress?”

“Well, I may or may not have trained under a professional chef for a couple of months.” Vivian paused, her hand resting over a sealed container she had pulled from her inventory.

Reid froze. “Wait. You what?”

“I knew you’d all react like this. That’s why I didn’t say anything earlier. I’ve been learning! Thought it was about time I improved on my… uh, ‘experimental’ recipes” Vivian winked.

“When was this?” Reid asked, but then realized that it might’ve been the time he was still in the Scrapyards.

Vivian hesitated for a while before choosing to answer.

“It was just before your fifteenth birthday,” she said. “Remember? I was supposed to be on vacation.”

Reid understood why his mother hesitated. After all, his 15th birthday was the day he was kicked out of the Fletcher family.

“I was supposed to surprise you with a cake, but by the time I returned, all that mess had happened.” She paused, tears welling up in her eyes before she added, “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to stop your fat— Maximus.”

Reid slowly stood up from his table, and walked towards his mom before giving her a hug.

He silently hugged her for a while before saying,

“We discussed this before, mom..It wasn’t your fault,” he muttered in a voice low. “You weren’t the one who kicked me out.”

Vivian shook her head, her expression pained. “But I should’ve been there. I should’ve stopped him.”

“That’s all past us now right?” Reid said,”what matters is that I’m okay now.”

“You’re right” Vivian nodded, before wiping her tears “I’m sorry for embarrassing you in front of your friends.”

Reid chuckled softly and shook his head, “you didn’t embarrass me, Mom.”

Vivian also chuckled before gently pulling away from the hug,

“Thank you, son.” She said with a grateful smile, before turning her attention back to the stove.

“Alright, go and take a seat while I finish making your breakfast” Vivian said and went back to preparing breakfast for them.

Reid slowly walked back to an empty seat, his mind still debating whether his dad deserved his forgiveness at all.

He then sat down right beside Lisa without even realizing it. He only did when he felt a small hand wrapping around his.

Looking down, he saw Lisa’s hand gently intertwined with his.

She didn’t say anything—didn’t need to. Her grip was soft, warm, and reassuring.

“…Thanks,” he whispered.

Lisa leaned in a little closer and murmured, “You’re not alone, Reid. Not anymore.”

A small smile tugged at the corner of Reid’s lips as he squeezed her hand in return. That simple gesture from Lisa said more than any words could.

Across the table, Clara was watching with a soft expression, nudging the sleepy Dean beside her.

“Bet you five credits they’re dating before the month ends,” she whispered with a mischievous glint in her eye.

Dean shook his head, “They basically already are, they just haven’t realized it yet.”

Clara grinned. “Still taking that bet?”

“I’m not stupid.”

A couple of minutes later, a surprisingly pleasant aroma wafted from the kitchen, catching Reid off guard. He had half-expected to hear an explosion.

‘Guess Mom wasn’t joking about those professional classes.’ he thought.

The two soon walked out of the kitchen with trays in hand.

Vivian carried a platter stacked high with golden-brown pancakes, perfectly fluffy with crisp edges .

The scent of vanilla and cinnamon filled the air as she set it down.

“Ta-da!” she announced, beaming with pride. “Behold – edible food!”

Ellie followed behind with a tray of sizzling bacon, eggs cooked three different ways, and fresh fruits, they had brought along, arranged in a spiral.

The spread looked like something from a five-star restaurant.

“Smells delicious” Clara said. At this point, her mouth was practically watering from the scent alone.

They set down the trays and started serving the food, starting with Reid.

Reid cautiously took a bite, fully prepared to just force himself to swallow it, but when the flavor hit his tongue, his eyes widened.

“…It’s good,” he mumbled, then a bit louder, “It’s really good.”

Vivian stood there, beaming with pride, her hands on her hips. “Told you I was getting better.”

“Alright everyone, dig in” she added “you too commander.”