The sound of Xiangling explaining Scaramouche's job as another one of her kitchen helpers, or chef that couldn't cook to her level, the sound was deaf to the absent minded and now egg proficient (Y/n).

She wasn't sure about it, but it seemed as though only she and Childe knew about Kaeya leaving the café. Certainly, she didn't plan on stopping him but Kaeya was like comical relief to the tension the place has every now and then.

Even though most of the time he just pops in with awkward innuendos.

It was still a joyful day for the rest, celebrating a new employee. Joyful for all but Scaramouche himself, who immediately demanded he gets better pay than the rest.

"Next time ask me that without that awful glare! Is that how you treat manager Qiqi?!" (Y/n) recalled the words of their tiny boss.
  
"Alas! I have come to see the always crabby Scaramouche fail miserably at cooking!" Childe waltzed in the kitchen with his arms raised as if he was announcing his presence at a talk show.

"Who are you calling crabby?" Two pairs of blue eyes narrowed at each other, the darker one gritted his teeth.  "I'm not like the likes of the rest of you. I would never fail at something as simple as cooking."

"Cooking is simple hm?" Xiangling tapped her fingers against the counter.

"Yes and all your explanation on what my duty is, is unnecessary."

"Uh oh..." (Y/n) sighed and took a few steps back from the now angered chef and an egotistical apprentice. "S-say Xiangling! Before taking out the knives, how about just challenging him in a cooking contest. That'll put him in his place! Hopefully." She suggested before the situation escalated and Childe nodded in agreement.

"Wouldn't that be fun to see."

"Tsk. The only place I'm getting put is the place of the highest paid employee." Scaramouche crossed his arms and looked at Xiangling with a glare much sharper than usual. "Lets do this challenge."

"Fine." Xiangling replied sternly. "(Y/n), you choose the dish. Don't choose a simple one, and if possible something we can make with the resources we already have."

"Hmm... Sole meuniére maybe? It should be fine within our circumstances."

"Sole what?" Scaramouche raised his brow. "Nevermind. Hey you, be my assistant for this. I'll waste too much time looking for the necessary equipment. To make it fair the carrot head can assist Xiangling."

"I have a name you know."

"And I don't like it. I could call you mine instead though, it rolls off the tongue better. Right carrot head?" The crabby boy grimaced at Childe. He wondered if he should feel more offended over being called carrot head, or Scaramouche flirting with his girlfriend shamelessly. Either way it made his blood boil.

"Unnecessary. I don't need Childe's help for this. You can get (Y/n) to help gather the things you need and that's it."

Before anything else was said and done, Childe went to (y/n)'s side, grabbing her wrist. "He can do it himself if he's as good as he says he is. Just call us back when you're finished."

Childe was pissed. Dragging his girlfriend out of the kitchen with him where they met with Barbara who seemed to be heading their direction.

"We got three orders of omelettes... Did something happen?" The blonde asked awkwardly, hoping she didn't ruin a moment.

"Scaramouche angered Xiangling and now they're having a cooking contest."

"I see. We should go watch then!"

"No, we need to get those omelettes!" Noelle came from behind Barbara, pinching her cheeks.

Childe pauses to take a deep breath. Right after storming out of the kitchen to calm his nerves he had to return. "I'll cook the omelettes, (Y/n) will take my place for now."

"Eh? Why-" Barbara asked but Childe left without answering. "Did something happen?" She turned to (y/n) who was dumbfounded. No one has seen the orange head acting that way before.

"I'm... Not sure." (Y/n)'s gaze shifted to Kaeya who was preoccupied with cleaning cups. "Anyways I'll help you guys out for now."
 

---

"Do I even need to taste the dish to decide the winner." Childe looked at the two dishes put out infront of him with a poker-face.

Xiangling was undoubtedly the winner. For a dead fish, it was looking far better than it was in it's primes. Glazed in a meticulously made sauce by the masterchef herself.

For Scaramouche, you'd wonder whether he was trying to create a new dish and couldn't decide what he wanted to do with it. The fish was falling apart on the plate, drenched in oil.

"I see the contest is finished." Half of (y/n)'s head peeks into the kitchen, looking at the three huddled together by the yin and yang of sole meuniére. "I guess I'm not that bad at cooking after all." She mumbled upon seeing the sad looking sole.

"Hmph. This is all because you picked a dish that I'm unfamiliar with." Scaramouche backed himself against the wall, leaning on it. "But I'll forgive you because you're cute." His eyes casted down on Childe.

(Y/n) didn't want to pry, but with all this going on she grew more and more curious. Why did Scaramouche want to anger Childe so badly?

"It's your fault for talking so big!" Xiangling placed her hands on her waist. "If anyone dares to defy me in the world of cooking, I will make sure they regret it for the rest of their lives!"

"I'm telling you, there's really something up between Childe and Scaramouche!" Barbara spoke quietly to Noelle. To two were secretly watching what was going on in the kitchen.

"What's the something between Childe and Scaramouche?" Zhongli appeared behind the two. His voice loud enough to make the three in the kitchen notice him with the two girls.

"Why not ask him that. Speaking with such a sly tongue towards my girlfriend right in front of me." Childe walked out of the kitchen without sparing a glance at any of them.

"Childe..." (Y/n) wondered what was the right thing to do. "Scaramouche, please don't talk to me like that. I don't know what your problem with Childe is but if you taint the relationship I've already built with him I won't forgive you."

   

   
+ the second cooking contest +