21. "I made dinner. Surprise!"

Dmitry went through the door to find the apartment smothered in black smoke. The entire situation was chaotic: he couldn't see more than six feet in front of him, the smoke alarm was blaring, and he heard aggressive coughing from deeper inside the apartment.

"Anya? Anya?" Dmitry called out desperately. He used his memory to the best of his ability to find her.

"Dmitry?" cough cough, "is that you?"

"Anya?"

Dmitry felt around for the walls of the apartment but failed to look down and stubbed his toe on the corner. He yelped in pain but recovered quickly to continue his mission. When he entered the kitchen, he saw the burning pan. Reacting on instinct, he turned off the stove and threw the pan in the sink, running cold water over it.

Then he grabbed a cook book on the counter and began waving the smoke out of the apartment. Once the smoke had cleared, he saw Anya standing across the room with a concerned look.

They rushed to each other, holding onto each other's arms.

"Anya, are you okay? What happened?" the questions poured out of Dmitry's mouth.

Looking ashamed, Anya turned away from him, avoiding eye contact. She twiddled her fingers and bit her lip.

"Anya?"

"I made dinner. Surprise!" she gave an embarrassed smile, trying to lighten the mood.

"Come here," Dmitry sighed, wrapping her in his arms and kissing the top of her head, "I'm glad you're okay."

That night, Dmitry and Anya worked on clearing the remaining smoke and refreshing the smell of their apartment. For dinner, they settled on ordering food from their favorite Italian restaurant.

"Anya, what were you trying to make for dinner?"

"Um…" she paused, looking embarrassed, "steak and eggs. I thought I would surprise you to celebrate your promotion."

He wrapped one arm around her and brought her closer. "Next time, why don't we make it together?"

Glancing up at him, she gave him a look of admiration. "I'd like that."

Thank you for reading! Reviews are much appreciated!

~Jazzy Euphonium