Maleval Week 2014
Day 4 Prompt: Cooking for the Other
Title: Lessons in Cooking and Life
Notes: Set in the universe of The Flaw in the Plan (It will make more sense if you've read that particular AU!)
"Oh Mal- Mallory, hey. You're early." Diaval looked like a deer caught in headlights standing in the hallway of Mallory's apartment. He'd immediately run out of the kitchen when he heard the front door open and Mallory call out "Diaval?"
"I didn't fancy going through a laborious dinner service today. I may not be a festive sort of person, but it is my birthday, after all." Mallory replied to his greeting amusedly, shrugging off her coat and setting it down, together with her bag, on the sofa.
"Yeah. Happy birthday, Mal." Diaval said, distracted. She was walking to him and he met her halfway, kissing her on the cheek.
"That's the third time today that you've greeted me." Diaval did not need to look at her to know she was staring at him weirdly.
"Are you okay?" Mallory asked, noticing Diaval's distraught expression.
Accepting the fact that there's no way out, he decided on honesty. "I uhm well- no. Look, Mal-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Mallory crinkled her nose and asked, "What is that smell?"
With his words tumbling one over the other, he anxiously replied, "Mal, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I was only trying to-"
For the second time, Mallory didn't let him finish his explanations; instead, opting to find the source of the pungent smell now pervading their apartment. Upon seeing the kitchen, Mallory exclaimed, "What the hell happened here, Diaval?"
Diaval simply stood there, shamefaced. Mallory frowned, brows furrowing. "Did you try to cook?" She asked incredulously.
"Iwantedtocookforyou" Diaval mumbled hurriedly. He proceeded into the kitchen, resuming the cleaning he had frantically started when he realized this particular endeavor was futile.
"Since when do you cook?" Mallory leaned against the doorway, bemused.
Frustrated, Diaval ran a hand through his hair. "I just wanted to… It's your birthday, Mal. You're supposed to, I don't know, rest, maybe. Enjoy. Sit back."
Gently, Mallory pulled on Diaval's arm, stilling his movements.
"I wouldn't mind cooking today, you know. In fact," she added in jest, "I'd actually like to ensure that my birthday dinner is at least edible." Diaval threw her a half-hearted glare and resumed cleaning. Mallory heard mutters of "bloody incompetent", "can't even do a dumb surprise" from her upset boyfriend.
"It's not a big deal, Diaval." Mallory tried to placate the man.
"I can't even do this thing right, 'course it matters." Diaval resolutely refused to make eye contact with her, focusing on the task at hand.
"You really should have just bought me flowers." Mallory teased, trying to diffuse the tension, but she realized it was the wrong thing to say when he retorted, "but I always do that for you. S'not special anymore."
"And here I thought you were not the sort of person who does things based solely on the value of their uniqueness."
Finally dropping the rag in his hand, Diaval sighed. "I'm not. I'm just trying to step up my game, so to speak."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I just think I should to put more effort into this." Diaval said, grabbing her hand and interlocking his fingers with hers, conveying with his touch that by 'this' he meant 'us'.
Stepping closer to Diaval, she voiced her query. "Why would you think that?"
Diaval's next words rendered her speechless, in a negative way. "I just thought I should at least work on deserving someone like you."
For a while Mallory simply stood there, eyes wide. She kept on opening her mouth as if to give him a piece of her mind, but would then deem the words wrong and so shutting her mouth again.
Finally, she pulled him out of the kitchen and into the living room. "Sit", Mallory patted the space beside her on the couch, "and explain yourself."
Diaval obeyed the first command, but not the second. Sighing, Mallory prompted him, "How could you even insinuate that you don't deserve me?"
Scowling, Diaval looked up at her. "Let's face it Mallory- it's true. Look at you- head chef of a three-michelin starred restaurant, training under one of the best restaurateurs in the world today, with your own writing column and various other media promotions- you're gold, that's what you are. Pretty sure a wedding planner who can't even hire an assistant isn't everyone's bet for you. Your colleagues think the same way."
"What?" Mallory sputtered.
"Heard your junior chefs gossiping one time." Diaval grunted, jaw tight and eyes stormy.
"Since when do you care what everybody else says, Diaval?" Mallory's voice became shriller in disbelief.
. "I don't. I wouldn't care, except this time they've got a point. I'm not stupid, Mal. I'm not gonna leave you just because some people don't approve. I'm here for as long as you'll have me. But that doesn't mean that I should get complacent, you know?" Diaval attempted insouciance, as if he's merely stating a matter of fact, but his body language gave him away.
Indignant and exasperated, Mallory massaged her temple with nimble fingers. "I cannot believe these things are coming from you of all people, Diaval."
"It's not an unreasonable thought, Mal."
"So you think, because of my recent career successes, that I've become out of reach?" What do you want me to do, quit?"
"What? No!" Diaval almost bellowed in disagreement. "I really don't think there is somebody prouder of your achievements that I am, Mal. This isn't- it's not a matter of me wanting to be on equal footing with you career-wise. I'm happy where you and I stand now. I just think that someone as amazing as you deserves so much more than what I can give, so I want to be better- as a person, as a partner, whatever. I just want to be better, for you."
At Diaval's last statement, Mallory's face softened. Gently, she said, "I wonder if you've forgotten I wouldn't even be where I am now if I hadn't met you."
"Don't be-"
"Let me finish, Diaval. I've given it a lot of thought, and I honestly don't know whether I would have been able to put my life back on track on my own volition. Don't listen to what other people say behind our backs. What do they know anyway? I'm telling you as it is right now- I like you. I like being with you, and somehow you've already wormed your way into becoming important to me. Don't let anybody tell you different, okay?" Mallory squeezed his hand, emphasizing her point.
"As for the whole 'deserving' spiel, well, I'm speaking from experience here. I'm not saying you shouldn't grow as a person, because you should. All humans should eventually seek the betterment of themselves. However, don't do it because you think it will make you more deserving of someone. It was my mistake with Stefan. I changed myself to become better suited for him. I let him become the center of my world. In reality all a relationship means is that you choose to let somebody else be there to witness and gently guide your growth as a person. You don't grow for, you grow with."
Seeing that her words finally dispelled Diaval's bad mood, she added, "It's not even as if you're doing something wrong. So you can't cook, big deal! Leila's never cooked for me and we've been friends since high school. I did mean it when I said you should have just bought me flowers. You do the romance thing right as long as you stick to what you know."
Smiling sheepishly, Diaval leaned back on the sofa. "I suppose you're right. I can be overreaching at times."
"You also have a tendency to blow things out of proportion."
In faux haughtiness, Diaval retorted, "For your information, Miss Moor, we've both had episodes like this before."
Laughing, Mallory nodded. "Very true."
After a few moments of silence, Diaval sighed. "So… I've made a mess of your kitchen and almost ruined your day with my insecurities. Forgive me?"
"As long as you make sure that kitchen returns to its pristine condition, then of course."
Diaval grinned. "Okay, love." He moved forward to give her a quick kiss, but she pulled him closer when he was about to disentangle himself. A few minutes later, Diaval stood up, looking thoroughly snogged. In a daze, he set out for the kitchen. He was already a few steps down the hallway when Mallory called his name.
"Diaval?"
"Yeah?"
"It's a happy birthday indeed."
A/N: Hello again! I got so incredibly attached to The Flaw in the Plan that I wrote spin-off one-shots for it- one for today, another for day 6. So yeah, if you haven't read it, I'd be delighted if you did!
I might not write anything anymore after Maleval Week, because I'm starting med school the 5th of August, and I need to do a lot of things for prep. So this is sort of my last hurrah. And anyway, my reader and review counts are dropping (they've been on a downward spiral since Hurricane) so I think that either you're getting tired of me, or this fandom is bleeding out. Anyway, I guess this is as good a time as any to clock out.
What do you think of this one-shot?
Cheers!
