◈A D R I A N◈

The electric kettle whistled, notifying Logan to turn it off. He turned his back to me and pressed on the switch before reaching for the cabinet above his head. The cabinet door gave a low creak and his hands fumbled blindly looking for something. He pulled out a box of earl grey and started pouring the boiling water into two mugs with a tea bag steeping in each of them.

My mind completely blanked out when he mentioned his ex-wife. Ex-wife? Is he going to tell me he has a kid, too?

Logan snapped his fingers at me, pulling me out from my daze. He then settled both mugs on the countertop, pushing the red mug within my reach while he sipped from his.

I accepted the tea and gulped it down to wash away the sour tang in my mouth without blowing on it. The hot tea burned the roof of my mouth, pain and the bitterness of earl grey replaced the sourness.

"Ex-wife, huh?" I started, trying to bait him into telling me more about his life--his past.

"Hmm," Logan grunted, "Been divorced for thirteen years now. God knows why she decided to drop by and say hello after so many years," he continued.

I let that sink in. All of a sudden, I don't feel so bad anymore. They've been apart for thirteen years. Maybe they're the type who stays as friends even after a breakup, I mused silently.

Or...she came to patch things up, my inner demon countered.

The thought didn't sit well with me and left a vile taste in my mouth. My grip tightened on the mug, heat warming through my damp cold skin.

Then I'll make sure she fails splendidly, I retorted indignantly.

"So, what brings you here exactly?" Logan asked while he reached for the strawberries.

"I told you. Repayment," I replied tensely as I jerked my chin at the wicker basket. "They're in season."

He clearly didn't believe a word I said because he was staring intently at me while rolling a strawberry between his fingers. A trait I'd became so familiar with when he saw through my lies.

"Bullshit," he grumbled and popped the red fruit into his mouth. His face scrunched up in distaste as the sourness burst in his mouth. Cool, sexy Logan was gone, replaced with this childish man who puckered his lips from the sour attack.

Unable to hold it in any longer, I burst out laughing. Logan glared at me as he quickly downed his tea to wash away the taste.

"You've been duped, you dumbass! This doesn't count as repayment, you hear me?" he snapped as he turned to the fridge and pulled out a tub of chocolate and mint ice cream from the freezer.

My laughter slowly died down and I had to clutch on my stomach because it hurt so much. I've never laughed so hard in my life.

In the meantime, Logan attacked the ice cream with a metal spoon-not bothered by the fact that it was raining icy droplets outside. He pushed the tub away after a few mouthfuls, letting the minty sweetness soothe his taste buds.

I looked at the green creamy goodness before me and ran a finger along the rim. My finger catching on the condensation and sticky remnants.

"May I?" I asked.

Logan glanced at my finger and shrugged. "I'll just add that to your debt," he replied nonchalantly as he collected our empty mugs and deposited them in the sink. He left them unwashed and strolled to his room, shutting the door behind him.

I hurriedly grabbed the cold spoon and dug a big scoop. The ice cream took longer to melt in my mouth, the minty taste was refreshing and the chocolate chips added a crunchy texture to it. Logan didn't strike me as a guy with a sweet tooth. He looked like a coffee and pizza guy.

Well, the pizza part was spot on.

As I dug another scoop of the dessert, my gaze flitted to the strawberries in the basket-looking innocent despite the sour punch they packed. I looked back at the tub of ice cream. There was a dent in the middle-a habit I had as I tend to carve out and eat the middle part where it was frozen solid instead of the melting top.

I stole a quick glance at the door, making sure Logan was still in his room. My left hand grabbed a bunch of the fruit and I quickly pulled out the stems before arranging them in the dent. The crimson contrasted with the mint green. It looked oddly aesthetic.

Once done, I covered the tub with its lid and kindly returned it back to the freezer, ready to surprise Logan. I heard the door knob twisted open the same moment I shut the fridge door. I quickly turned and put on an awkward smile. Logan narrowed his eyes at me, curious as to why I was acting like I was caught red-handed.

"What were you doing?" he interrogated.

"Just putting the ice cream back to the freezer," I explained.

He strode over to the kitchen and stood before me. "You finished it, didn't you?"

I gave an incredulous look and opened my mouth to defend, "Of course n-"

He pushed me aside and yanked the fridge door open before I could finish my sentence.

Please don't open it, please don't open it, please don't open it.

Logan curled his fingers under the lid and peeled it open, his eyes flared like burning forests when he saw the strawberries sitting in the middle of his ice cream.

Busted, my inner demon mocked in a singsong voice.

✈

Author's note

I just realized I like to name my chapters with food lol.

What do you think about their interaction? How do you eat your ice cream? Like Adrian, I like to carve a big hole in the middle because I hate eating melted ice cream. Also, it's a great way to trick my sister into thinking the tub was full😂

{Song: My Thoughts On You by The Band CAMINO}