Modified Food

A few minutes later.

When a pot of bright red, unidentifiable gunk was set down on the table, Rael jumped back about ten feet, covering his nose with one hand, desperately trying to block out that terrifying, choking smell. He yelled, “Damn it! Are you sure this thing is even edible?!”

Leif and Gale both glanced at him at the same time, one tall, one small — but both giving him a sharp, murderous look.

Rael: “…”

That pot of stuff looked and smelled absolutely horrifying. There was a layer of chili peppers floating on top, and Rael was seriously starting to think even a dog wouldn’t touch this mess.

“So… here’s the thing,” Raina began, trying to sound confident. “Pozole Rojo, but with a hotpot twist!” She smiled innocently, hoping they wouldn’t question the unholy fusion bubbling on the table.

Rael stared at her like she was a ghost and said, “What do you mean ‘here’s the thing’? You’re telling me this thing—this thing—is actually safe to eat?!”

Raina: “Of course! It just looks kinda scary, that’s all. Haha. Come on, Mr. Cruz, sit down already. Look, Mr. Vexley and Gale are already sitting. You’re our guest, you can’t be standing all awkward over there. Come on, dinner’s ready!”

Leif and Gale were indeed seated, calm and collected. Leif even casually picked up the food Raina made for them.

Gale shot Leif a glance, then obediently grabbed his own food, ready to dig in.

The pot bubbled and steamed, as if trying to prove it really was food and not some weird science experiment. Without flinching, Leif dropped a piece of something that looked like beef tripe into the pot.

Raina smiled and explained, “Mr. Vexley, this is how you do it… See? Like this… then it’s ready to eat.”

Leif swirled the cooked tripe in his sauce and popped it into his mouth.

Raina watched expectantly, her voice just a little tense, “Well? How is it?”

Leif chewed and swallowed, then said coolly, “Not bad. Just a little salty.”

Raina’s eyes lit up. “Great, great! Mr. Vexley, just hang on, I’ll add some water.”

“Okay,” Leif said.

She dashed to the kitchen, grabbed some hot water, poured it in, stirred it around, and looked even more pleased with the pot.

Then she waved at Rael, “Mr. Cruz, come sit! See? Mr. Vexley already tried it. It’s fine. It just looks a little rough but it actually tastes pretty good.”

Maybe because of Leif’s endorsement, Raina started to believe her own cooking wasn’t so terrible after all.

Rael seemed convinced too. He thought, maybe it really just looked and smelled horrible, but the taste might not be so bad…

Hesitating a bit, Rael shuffled over, but the closer he got, the stronger that awful smell got. The bubbling pot started to look more and more like a pile of — well, you know.

At that moment, Leif calmly dropped something else into the pot. Plop. It disappeared instantly.

Rael: “...”

What made it worse: a few seconds later, Leif fished that thing out of the pot and placed it in Rael's dipping sauce dish.

Raina’s hopeful eyes followed, and she smiled, “Mr. Cruz, want to try?”

Leif smiled too.

Rael’s scalp tingled. Horrified, he picked up his fork and stared down at the unrecognizable lump on his plate.

“This… doesn’t look like Pozole Rojo,” he muttered. “This is an insult to Pozole Rojo. Who the hell shared that recipe?”

After a long moment, he swallowed hard and reluctantly popped it into his mouth — and instantly, a fiery, terrifying heat shot straight up to his brain!

He spat it out violently, gulped water like crazy, rolled his eyes, and shouted, “Holy crap! What is this thing? Are you trying to kill me?! It’s so damn spicy! And what do you mean ‘just a little salty’? How much salt did you dump in here?!”

Chugging down a huge glass of water, Rael's face was bright red. He slumped in his chair, voice hoarse, “Excuse me, but are we eating Pozole Rojo tonight or… crap? If I’m guilty of something, punish me by law, not by making me eat this!”

Raina: “…"

Was her cooking really that scary?

But Leif just ate it like it was nothing!

Just then, Gale quietly grabbed something from the pot, trying to be brave enough to eat it. Raina hurried, “Gale, wait… don’t eat that yet.”

If this stuff really was as bad as Rael said, and Gale was so little, what if something bad happened? That’d be terrible.

Gale’s face fell and he almost started to cry.

Why could Dad eat it but he couldn’t?

Leif seemed not to hear or notice any of this. He calmly cooked more food, saying, “Honestly, it’s fine. Everyone’s taste is different. Rael just usually doesn’t eat spicy stuff, that’s all.”

Rael: “…”

Yeah, right — as if his taste buds were so mild!

And it wasn’t just spicy — it was salty and bitter too. Rael couldn’t believe Leif was eating this stuff without so much as a flinch.

Had Leif lost his sense of taste for love or what?

Seeing Leif still eating, Rael turned pale, clutching his chest. “Mr. Vexley, seriously, stop eating. This stuff, if you eat any more, you’ll—”

He didn’t get to finish before Leif calmly swallowed another bite and said, “Adding water really improves the flavor.”

Rael: “…”

Gale: “…”

Raina glanced at Rael, then at Leif. After a long pause, she finally picked up her fork, fished something out of the pot, dipped it in sauce, and popped it in her mouth.

A few seconds later, she covered her face with one hand and waved her other hand weakly, “…Don’t eat this… cough cough… forget it. Maybe… maybe we should just order takeout?”

Leif said, “I honestly think it’s fine, just a little strong in flavor.”

Rael: “…”

Leif, seriously, do you have any conscience?

Raina pressed her fingers to her forehead. “You really don’t have to force it. I’ll just call for takeout.”

Leif said, "No pressure. But I’ll go make a new one if you all think we should have more food."

***