Talent is a wondrous way to differentiate one from another. There are a multitude of talents for anyone to hone and develop if they have the time and drive for it. There are talents that some are proud of and talents that some are ashamed of. The Louds have an insane talent pool. Ranging from Luna and her rock skills and Lynn with her athletic achievements, there's a geyser of talent spewing outta that two story house.
T.K. is no exception. He also developed a knack for fighting but he believed that's more of a skill, even going far as a necessity to have. His one and true love would always be skateboarding; however, there's another talent that he honed and kept to himself for as long as he remembered..
Sunlight peeked through the small basement window, penetrating T.K.'s eyelids as he mumbled, tossed and turned. It would be a miracle to get the boy outta bed early. He's usually the last one to get up, even on a school day. When he finally wakes up, he won't talk to anyone until he had something to eat. Groaning, he raised slowly to a sitting position. Pulling out his phone, he found out that it was 7:00 in the morning on a Saturday.
Since this was the weekend, everyone was probably sleeping from their busy week. Making sure, T.K. cupped his ear and listened up towards the ceiling. There was not even a peep from where he listened to. "Hmm, guess I'm the first one up. Well, I haven't made breakfast for myself for a long time," T.K. pointed out to the audience, hopping out of bed. He grabbed his headphones along with his MP3 player and walked upstairs. Placing on the headphones, he found a random song and pressed play.
Looking around, the house was still barren. The dreadhead walked to the kitchen and to the fridge. Opening the door, he pulled out an egg carton, a packet of bacon, shredded cheese, and cubed ham. Surely, the others won't mind for the small loss of food will they? T.K. closed the door with a swing of his hips as he set the ingredients on the table. "Alright, lets get to work," T.K. smirked, cracking his fingers.
Meanwhile, in the parents' room…
Lynn Sr.'s eyes fluttered open as he sat up. He let out a deep yawn, "Wow, morning already? I guess flies when one strives to be a mule-yen-aire. Ha ha." He quietly stepped outta bed, careful to not disturb Rita in her sleep. He smiled at her form slowly rising up and down. He is her rock and she is his. Although, Sr. tended to let his emotions get the better of him, Rita will always give him a shoulder to cry on. Even if said shoulder gets covered in snot and tears.
A faint smell gazed Sr.'s nose. It smelt tasty and breathtaking! A thought crossed Sr.'s mind; Lincoln is usually never up so early to cook. Especially on a weekend. "Hmm, I wonder if it's one of the girls," Sr. asked himself, slipping on his slippers and walking out of the door.
At the same time…
A perfectly cooked omelet slid smoothly onto the plate from the skillet. Oh, the smell was soooooo mouth watering, and the texture looked inviting and fluffy! Smiling at his work, T.K. grabbed the salt and pepper shakers from one of the cabinets and sprinkled on a considerable amount of both on the omelet. "Man, I could have cooking as something else to fall back on in case my skateboarding goes down under," T.K. remarked with a grin. He didn't noticed a hand landing on his shoulder, causing him to jump very high. "AHH!" He screamed, nearly dropping the omelet.
"Champ? What are you doing up so early?" Sr. asked curiously. Slowing his panting down, T.K. took off his headphones to look at Sr.
"Um, just cooking myself some breakfast," T.K. answered with a hint of nervousness. At first, he was happy to learned how to cook for himself but as time goes on, so did his anxiety of being found out that he DOES cooks. It would devastating if anyone knew. "What are you doin' up so early?"
"Oh, I just got up. This is the usual time that I wake up," Sr. answered, tilting his head. "Now, you were cooking something?" T.K. hoped that he wouldn't ask him that. The poor boy broke into a cold sweat and his eyes darted all over the place.
"I, uh, uh, uh was makin' an omelet," T.K. stammered, shaking slightly. This usual behavior did not go unnoticed by his adoptive father. Sr.'s eyebrows furrowed upward in worry.
"Is there something wrong, T.K.?" Sr. pried, clutching the boy's shoulder in comforting manner. Gulping heavily, T.K. shook his head.
"No sir. Now, this omelet is gettin' cold," T.K. informed hastily, speed walking into the dining room. He sat down at the table and began eating. Just act natural, boy. Maybe he'll drop it and go away; however. Sr. followed him, the concern still plastered on his face
"Terrence, it just me and you. No one has to know. Unless, you want to," Sr. explained.
Sighing, T.K.'s grip increased on his fork, sounding annoyed. He then realized that blowing up at his adoptive father could spell nothing but bad things for him. Sr. was only trying to help him. It just the constant prodding at his life is downright friggin' irritating! He completely understand how Lincoln feels! Taking a deep breath, smelling the succulent dish before him, as he looked at Sr., "It just that…Yeah, I know how to cook but to me, it's…girly."
Sr. ingested every bit of the explanation that T.K. said until that last part. When the boy said that cooking is girly, it surprised him. Hell, it surprised him to the point that…he started to laugh; however, T.K. wasn't sharing the same mindset as his adoptive father.
"Wow, thanks, father. I REALLY appreciate the support. I really do," T.K. expressed sarcastically. The last thing he need is someone to attack his masculinity. Especially Lynn Sr.
Sr. wiped a tear from his eye, "Oh no, son. Woo. It's just that is the most ridiculous thing that I ever heard! From my time of cooking, Rita, the girls, and Lincoln never thought of me any different whenever I step into the kitchen. It's perfectly natural for a guy to cook for his family. You have nothing to be ashamed of, champ. Heck, girls find a guy that can cook more attractive," Sr. winked with a smirk.
T.K. returned the smirk tenfold, "That how you and Mama Loud hooked up?" He knew how they both got together. The boy just wanted to bring some humor in this conversation.
"Well, that among other things," Sr. answered with a shy blush. The two males shared a warm laugh, lighting up the mood. T.K. felt significantly better now that it was ok to have one girly trait. Baby steps are the way to go right now in his case. Knitting would be the next thing on his list.
Looking at Lynn Sr., he tugged his bathrobe sleeve, catching his attention. "What's up, champ?"
"Can I, uh, cook dinner tonight? There's this dish I saw online and I really want to try it," T.K. asked with a burst of confidence. It couldn't hurt to begin somewhere.
Sr. arched his eyebrow, "Are you sure, champ? There's a lot of us to serve. I'm for it one hundred percent but I just don't want you to be overwhelmed."
"I'm sure, Papa Loud," T.K. nodded.
Later at night…
"And now, for the grand finale!" T.K. declared, placing a bowl of sour cream. Crossing his arms, he gave a proud smile to his creation on the table. It was a large plate full of 24 stuffed croissants. Said croissants were stuffed with taco beef and cheese. Alongside the plate, there were bowls of assorted sides like shredded cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, beans, rice, etc. The boy was happy to cook for his family, but the real question will they like it?
T.K. went to wash his hands while secretly listened for everyone come in. Various questions began to rise in the dining room about the change in dinner for the night. Tossing the paper towel in the trash, T.K. went to join the others.
"This is, like, new," Leni commented, sitting down.
Lori nodded, "Yeah, this isn't what dad usually cooks."
"I know right?" Lynn asked.
Lola looked towards T.K., "Terri, did you know abut this?" The boy in question shook his head and shrugged. Sr. and Rita walked in and everyone sat down.
"Oh, this is a nice surprise. Trying something new, Lynn?" Rita asked her husband.
Sr. rubbed his knuckles on his chest smoothly, "Well, I thought that I put a spin on this week's schedule. Just giving succotash a breather with this one."
"It smells divine! What is this dish, father unit?" Lisa questioned with a hint of rare optimism.
"Taco rings, my dear, brainy daughter. Enjoy, everyone! Pick any side that you like!" Sr. urged happily. As so, everyone began to pick up a ring along with one, two or in Lynn's case, five sides. Soon as they dug in, the kids, Lynn Sr., and Rita hummed in pure contentment, loving T.K.' s cooking. Maybe Sr. was onto something about T.K. not having to be ashamed of cooking. In fact, he want to do this again tomorrow.
"Wow, dad! This is really good!" Lincoln praised, eating the last of his first ring.
"Yeah, this is literally one of your best dishes ever!" Lori commented, chomping on her lettuce.
"Totes!" Leni grinned.
Sr. smiled thankfully, "Thank you, kids." He gave a subtle wink to T.K., who nodded in response.
Fifteen minutes later…
"So, how did it feel, champ?" Sr. asked, sitting on the couch with T.K. as they both watch the football game.
"It felt great and self empowerin'. You all really loved my cooking. Thank you," T.K. expressed with a warm smile. Now that everyone is unknowingly on board with his skills in the kitchen, the boy wanted to keep going. "Can I cook again tomorrow?"
Sr.'s mouth curved upward, "I'd be happy if you do, champ."
"Thanks," T.K. grinned, happy for getting another chance. On T.V., T.K.'s team gained an interception, causing the boy to leap out his seat. "YES! KEEP GOING! TOUCHDOWN!"
Sr.'s jaw dropped at the play, "Aw, dang it! They both shared a blank look with each other before laughing hard. "Next time, I'm sure of it."
"I'll believe it when I see it," T.K. joked with a cocky grin.
The next night…
"And the cheese sticks go over here annnd done!" T.K. punctuated, placing the plate full of cheese sticks along side with two large pizzas. Who knew that hand tossed pizza could be soooo friggin' difficult!? The boy went through three piles of dough by dropping them on the ground. Eventually, he found a steady pace and safely finished the process. "Now, that's two fine pieces of pizza and cheese sticks. Well, the cheese sticks were store brought. Kinda got lazy after finishing the pizzas so I took those out from the freezer," T.K. recalled to the audience.
He went to the kitchen to wash his hands as everyone came to the table. A loud gasp sounded out as T.K. turned off the water. Walking back into the dining room, he see his siblings marveled with stars in there eyes at his creation. He forgot how much they all LOVE pizza; however, he could argue that burgers are the true heaven sent.
"Oh emm gosh! Pizza! And it's all pepperoni too! I can sooo do without those tuna fishes!" Leni gagged, sticking her tongue out.
Luna took her seat with an half lidded look, "I think you mean anchovies, dudette."
"Anchovies? Is that, like, a new fashion designer?" Leni chirped, jumping up and down in excitement. Luna only groaned and shook her head.
"Ugh, I've been dying for some pizza lately," Lana sighed happily, patting her stomach.
Lincoln nodded, "Yeah, dad has been on fire with dinner lately!'
"Facts, cuz!" T.K. agreed. They began to eat, with T.K. gauging everyone's reaction for his pizza. Luckily for the second time, they were positive and in bliss from the flavor. He nodded in contentment as he wolfed down his own pizza. Now, with his confidence fully strengthen by his family's critique, he'll tell them all after he cook the next dinner.
The next afternoon…
With a pleased sigh, T.K. relaxed on the couch, taking a nice nap. Although, he should go to sleep earlier at night; however, the boy considered himself a nocturnal person. A firm shake woke him from his sensational nap time. It was Sr., who was wearing his work uniform. "Sorry to wake you, champ. My boss called me in because he was lacking one man. Think you could handle dinner by yourself again?"
"Yeah, it's no problem, Papa Loud," T.K. answered with a heavy yawn.
Sr. clutched his shoulder warmly, "Atta boy. Here's some money for you to get some ingredients for whatever you're cooking." He handed him a twenty and a five dollar bills. With that deed done, Sr. began to head to the front door. "I'll see you late tonight, T.K. Love you!" The man was out the door, leaving T.K. all by his lonesome.
"Alright then. Off to the store!" T.K. exclaimed, grabbing his skateboard and jetting out of the house.
Later that night…
Lincoln lounged in his underwear, reading one of his comics. A faint smell came from under the door and traveled up his nostrils. "Wow, what's that smell?" He took a deep whiff, taking a more vibrant scent. It had a smoky, spicy smell to it. "Chili? Huh, Dad is really experimenting with dinner lately." Lincoln spoke, getting up from his bed. Peeking out of his doorway, he saw that his sisters were peeking outside of their rooms too. "You guys smell that too?"
Lori nodded, "Yeah. I haven't had chili in a long time. Although, I'm literally concerned that if it's going to make me break out or not."
"Well, nonetheless, it's smells great! I wonder if it's ready?" Lana questioned, beginning her trek downstairs. Lola, however, stop her in her tracks with furrowed brows and a sharp frown.
"Uh, no! We don't want to break Daddy's concentration," Lola hissed, strengthening her glare.
Lana snatched her shoulder away from Lola with her own glare, "It's not like the world gonna blow up. Besides, I'm just taking a peek."
"It is a bad thing, Lana!" Lola snapped.
"Is not!" Lana responded fiercely.
"IS!"
"IS NOT!"
"Enough, little dudettes! Let all of us just go sneak a little peek and go wash up," Luna defused, separating the two bickering twins.
"Fine!" Lana and Lola replied, turning away from each other. They all began to go downstairs until Lynn stopped Lincoln.
"What gives?" Lincoln demanded, shrugging his shoulders.
Lynn lowered her eyelids, "Bro, go put your clothes on."
"Oh, right. Dang it," Lincoln cursed, running back to his room.
Five minutes later…
Taking two steps at a time downstairs, Lincoln met up with his sisters, who were silently perched around the kitchen doorway. By the look of their faces, it's safe to say that they all are surprised from what they are witnessing. Lincoln was confused by their lack of chatter. "What's wrong, guys?"
Lori placed a finger on Lincoln's mouth, silencing him, "Don't talk. Look!" Lincoln followed her pointer finger to…T.K. listening to music with his headphones, dancing, and pouring spaghetti pasta into a pot of boiling water. Right next to the pot, there were two smaller pots filled with cheese and chili, bubbling with extreme heat.
"Hold the phone. T.K. can cook?!" Lincoln exclaimed, scratching his hair.
Leni gasped, "Then, like, that means…"
"He was the one that cooked the taco rings!" Lola and Lana remembered.
Luan snapped her fingers in realization, "And the pizza too! I doughn't believe it! Hehehe!"
"But why would he literally let Dad take the credit for both times?" Lori pried, placing her hand underneath her chin.
Lucy tilted her head, "Maybe he's ashamed of it."
"Could be a possibility," Lisa added, rubbing her chin with a squinty eyed look.
Lincoln moved himself through the female roadblock, "Only one way to find out." Walking up to his brother, Lincoln stopped right behind him. "T.K.?" No response. "T?" Yet again, no one was home. Muttering in annoyance, Lincoln grabbed T.K.'s shoulders and gave him a firm shake, "Terrence!"
The shaking helped as T.K. stopped dancing. Opening his eyes, he looked towards Lincoln and the girls. "AHH!" T.K. screeched, leaping upward from the scare. Landing, he zipped in front of the spaghetti, cheese, and chili with a sheepish smile. "Sooooooo, what's…up?"
"What's up is you, bro. Why are you sneakin' around, cookin' dinner for all of us? Don't get me wrong, dude. It's mad tasty but I'm confused that you're keeping this under wraps," Luna retorted, crossing her arms with a frown.
"Also, the additional fact that you are willing to let father unit have all the credit that you rightfully deserve," Lisa piped.
T.K.'s eyes darted all over the room, avoiding everyone's gaze. "Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh." Kinda hard to say things when you put on the spot. Maybe a white lie could throw them off? "I just, erm, wanna to do somethin' nice for y'all. Is that a crime?" He turned away with a frown and a light blush. Yeah, that's should do it.
"Well, no. It's great that you took the time to cook for all of us for the past two nights," Lincoln smiled.
Lori raised an eyebrow, "But that literally doesn't answer our two questions." God…damn it. They all are WAY too persistent for T.K.'s liking. Well, there's always asking. That could work.
Groaning, T.K. rubbed his temple in an attempt to soothe himself, "Can we just drop this? I'm just cookin'. Honestly, that's nothin' to react over." He all out of ideas at this point. Maybe then everyone will back off.
"No, it is!" Lincoln and the girls answered irritably in perfect synchronization. Talk about a hive mind. Fine, he gave them two chances. So, T.K. pulled his headband over his face, shutting himself off from the others. Leni stepped out from the group and walked over to the dreadhead.
"I've got it, guys," She reassured. Leni turned towards T.K. and pulled his headband up, revealing his closed eyes, rosy red cheeks, and a strong frown. "Terri, we just, like, want to know why are you so shy about your totes awesome cooking skills." Forming a warm smile on her face, she awaited his response patiently. Squinting one eye opened, T.K. could see her smile and everyone else's smiles.
Sighing, T.K. poised himself with a deep breath. "You wanna know why. Fine. I'm so shy about my cookin' is because that it is…girly,"
"What?" Everyone asked, not quite hearing the last word.
"It's girly," T.K. repeated with a bit more volume.
Leni pursed her lips, "We're still not hearing you, T.K."
"Oh my-it's girly, ok? There!" T.K. snapped, turning away and crossing his arms once again. Any second now will bring the HUGE outrage of the girls. Yep, just waiting on the maelstrom of females wanting T.K.'s head for basically stereotyping. …Wait, why there's silence. They should be stomping him to the ground by-Oh, they're group hugging him while d'awwing. …Well, then. "Wait. Huh? Why aren't y'all beating me up?" He asked, trying to shake his arms free.
"Why the heck would we do that?" Lynn pried, moving her head from his cheek with wide eyes.
Lola looked up at the boy with a raised brow, "Yeah, silly. It's perfectly fine for a guy to cook. Ask Linky. He cooked breakfast for us a buncha times."
"She's right you know. Also, Dad cooked dinner for us many times and we don't think any different of him. Now that we know that you cooked all those past two dinners for us, we don't think any different of you," Lincoln advised, clutching T.K. tighter.
T.K. relaxed against their group hug, slowly feeling less and less conflicted. Although, there's the girly comment he said. He should apologize for that post haste. "Uh, sorry about the comment that cookin' is girly."
"It's fine. That was just your feeble, young brain going off on what you deemed masculine and feminine. I suppose you have learned that mentality from your biological father, adoptive sibling?" Lisa inquired.
"Actually, no. He can cook too whenever he was home," T.K. responded with a shake of his head.
Lori crossed her arms in confusion, "Then where?"
"Action movies," T.K. answered, smiling sheepishly.
The girls rolled their eyes, "Figures."
"Terri, those movies are literally over exaggerated with testosterone-inducing big guns, muscle bound men, and an unhealthy amount of explosions. That wouldn't be the ideal way to form your lifestyle. Lincoln would know," Lori smirked, proud of her roast directly towards Lincoln.
Lincoln frowned and stomped his foot, "HEY!"
"I'm just messing with you, Linc." Lori chuckled, ruffling his hair. "Anyway, now that is literally over. What are you cooking?" Lori questioned, pointing to the various pots cooking on the stove. The others voiced their curiosity as well.
"Oh, umm, just a little spin on spaghetti and meatballs," T.K. replied coolly, shrugging his shoulders.
"Like what?" Lucy pried.
"Instead of tomato sauce, it's chili and cheese. Now, the pasta's almost done and I need to work on the meatballs. Everyone who's not me, out!" T.K. shooed flatly, gesturing his arm towards the doorway. If he hurry, he could make 'em before the pasta burns.
"Way ahead of you, T. Let the master work on his craft, girls," Lincoln ushered, motioning the ladies out of kitchen.
Twenty five minutes later…
"Make way for your snarky, neighborhood chef and his new take on a loved classic!" T.K. announced, zipping out of the kitchen on his skateboard. He quickly handed everyone a plate with a generous helping, "One for you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, annnnnnd you!" Dropping the last plate for Lily, he gave her a boop on her nose, inciting a giggle from her. The boy took his own seat as everyone began dinner. As they ate, their taste buds struck practically gold for the third time as the sweetness of the chili and the creaminess of cheese created a tasteful synchronization of flavor for the pasta.
T.K.'s lips curled into a tiny smile as his ears were blessed with his siblings' pleased moans thrice again. Three for three! T.K. knew that he was onto something when he chose chili instead of sour cream. He wonder if he should enter a cooking contest? A warm blush crept his face as he ate quietly, "So, like it?"
The answer was unanimous, "Yes!"
"Thank you, everyone," T.K expressed with a smile, chomping down on his pasta. Well, that settles it. He will just make this a regular thing if Sr. not feeling up to cooking. Everyone was making his pride go on cloud nine. Rita walked in from work, smelling the tasty and zesty concotion.
"Hi, kids! Starting dinner without me?" She joked, drawing a few laughs from the kids. Lori lifted her plate towards her mother with eagerness.
"O-M-Gosh, Mom! You literally have to try this!" Lori urged with a grin. Rita chuckled at her daughter's positive energy. Lori's never usually like this.
"Oh really? Who made this?" Rita pried, humoring her.
"T.K., Mom," Luan answered, pointing at the boy, who waved his hand with a coy smile.
Rita raised a eyebrow curiously, "T.K.? He can cook?" This was a surprise.
"Yeah, mom! He also cooked, like, the last two dinners as well!" Leni added, finishing the last of her spaghetti.
Rita's lips curved into a grin, sharing her kids' joy, "Well, well. I'm hungry anyway. Terri, do you mind fixing me a plate?"
"Way ahead you, Mom," Lucy responded, scaring her mother with her sudden appearance. "He fixed an extra plate for you." She handed Rita her plate, after the grown woman calmed down from her mini heart attack. Rita took the plate and took a generous bite. The flavor zapped her taste buds as well as she let out a blissful moan.
"Oooooh, honey! This is wonderful! You really know you way around the kitchen!" Rita praised, taking more bites. T.K. gave a pleased grin and nodded in gradtitude. Anymore of this and T.K. might began to feel himself with cockiness.
"Oh, Terri! I almost forgot!" Leni exclaimed, reaching into her bra and pulling out a folded piece of paper. She unfolded and showed it to the dreadhead. "They're having a junior's cooking contest over at Aloha Comrade tomorrow night! You should totes enter!" Everyone else chimed in as well, urging him to join.
Although T.K. was considering it, there was one thing that straight up baffled him, "And you kept that in your bra because of why?!"
"Duh, it's where I keep all of my stuff, silly," Leni giggled at his confusion.
T.K. shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, "You'd just lost me."
"She's right. It literally came in handy whenever I forget my purse," Lori vouched.
"Yep, it saved me from being locked out of the house," Rita pointed out as well. The other three elder girls also voiced their thanks to their bras, which made T.K. very uncomfortable.
"Alright! Enough about keeping whatever in your bras!" T.K. blushed, covering his ears. That drew a few giggles from the older women. The contest is a good way to get his name out there and he could definitely use the $1,000 cash prize. "Anywho...I'll join." Everyone cheered in happiness at his announcement.
The next day...
"Dis is it, little man. Many have come and gone with this show of cooking excellence. Only one will walk away with bragging rights and one thousand dollars! Or will you go down in flames like all others that have attempted this challenge! Friendships were broken, siblings stabbed each other in the back for money! What awaits you and you alone!?" Sergei boasted dramatically at the signup table. Seriously, it's just a cook out for kids. This guy made it seem like everything was on the line, which was not in any particular way.
T.K.'s eyelids lowered as he frowned at the showy display, "Cuz, just show me where to sign so that I can be on my way."
"Oh. ...My apologies. Here," Sergei apologized, handing T.K. the sign up sheet, which the boy quickly signed. "The contest starts tonight at 6. Come prepared or don't come at all," Sergei informed sternly.
T.K. placed his flat hand to the top of his head as a salute, "Aie, aie, Ruskie!" He began to make his trek back home in order to prepare.
Soon that evening...
"Ladies and gentlemen, the Royal Woods Junior Cook-Out will begin in less than five minutes. Watch these young, bright chefs of the future bedazzle us with their creative dishes. Once one chef is left standing after the two elimination rounds, they will take home $1,000!" The announcer bellowed through the loudspeaker, causing the crowd to scream in excitement. The main floor of the restaurant was cleared for three big tables that has the chef's name on it. Everyone else sat in the booths so that they can see the contest. That also included T.K.'s too. There was another table but it was packed to the brim with ingredients that the chefs can use for their dishes. The rest of the restaurant was decorated with streamers, balloons, and a giant banner that said 'Tenth Annual Royal Woods Junior Cook-Out.'
At one of the three tables, T.K. leaned coolly against the middle one. He was fully decked out in a navy blue chef's outfit with a hat; courtesy of Leni of course. Lincoln and everyone else walked up to him with grins of eagerness. "So, T. Are you ready?" Lincoln pried. As there was any need to ask. T.K. always felt calm. The last thing he needed was to be plagued with anxiety.
T.K. slowly nodded, demeanor fully relaxed and mellow. "As I'll ever be."
"Are you nervous?" Lori questioned with a hint of worry.
"Naw. Too zen to be nervous," T.K. responded with a shake of his head. He was suddenly caught off guard by a pink blur, which it turned out to be Lola who was using her best puppy dog look on the dreadhead.
"Biiiig brother! Surely, you won't mind sharing the thousand dollars with me, do you?" Lola asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes rapidly. The others rolled their eyes at this display. Nonentheless, T.K. decided to play along.
T.K. mimicked her look, "Noooo, I don't!"
Lola gasped with stars in her eyes, "Really?!"
"Pssssh, yeah I do! Nice try, lil' one," T.K. chuckled, pinching her cheek.
Lola deflated into a pouty frown, "Dang it." As everyone else stifled their laughter, another boy walked up to T.K. and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around to see a portly, light skinned boy with freckles and short, black curly hair. The boy was dressed in a red chef uniform like T.K.'s but less decorated.
"Hey, you're in this cook-out too, right?" He asked with a innocent smile.
T.K. nodded, "Yeah. T.K."
"Donny. May the best win, T.K.," Donny declared, extending his hand outward to the skater. T.K. returned with a nod of his head. An alarm went off, signaling everyone to take their seats or stations. Donny walked to his own station, hiding a smirk that belies anything but good intentions.
"Good luck, lil' bro!" Luna cheered, walking away from T.K.
Rita waved at T.K. happily, "We're rooting for you!"
T.K. nodded as he took his place. "Welcome, competitors to the tenth annual Royal Woods Junior Cook-Out! Now, lets quickly get underway! Now, your first dish is breakfast and the second and final dish is dinner. You may use whatever ingredients that is available on the big table for both dishes. Good luck and have fun!" The referee shouted, causing another round of cheers. "You have thirty minutes for both part of the contest starting in 3...2...1...GO!"
T.K. Donny, and the third chef, whose name is Troy took off in order to grab whatever ingredients essential to their dish. T.K. grabbed a carton of eggs, shredded cheese, chili, cubed ham, bacon, and jalapenos. "Well, John. I say that this is gonna be a grrrreat competition between these three gentlemen tonight." Tim deemed excited, nudging his announcing partner.
John nodded, "Right you are, Tim! Shall we give a brief bio for each of the chefs?"
"Righto, pal!" Tim responded happily.
"Alright. Donald Russell hails from Detroit. This big guy sports a big heart as well as BIG flavor with his dishes. Especially his Western gumbo which consists of smoked sausage, bell peppers, carrots, and black eyed peas," John listed, looking on a piece of paper.
"Oh-hohohohoho! Delicious!" Tim compliemented, licking his lips.
"Agreed! Next is Troy Baliey! This one is from Hazeltucky, which is no stranger when it comes to food. He sure to blow away his rivals with his Hazel's Finest Burrito! The behemoth is made of rice, beef, beans, cheese, chicken, guacomole, and rrrrrrrred hot salsa!" John grinned, rolling his r's.
"Caliente, mi amigo!" Tim nodded as well.
"Finally, Terrence Mutombo-Loud. ...Erm, there's seems to not be much on this particular fellow," John pointed out, looking over the list numerous times.
Tum gave that notion some thought, "Ah, he's more of a show then tell kind of kid huh, John?"
"No, Tim. There's literally nothing on the kid. See?" John stated, showing Tim T.K.'s bio.
"Ooooooh, gotcha. ...Well then. ...On with the contest!" Tim bellowed hastily.
Eggs cracked, check. The yolk poured into the bowl and whisked, check. The other ingredients heat ed, check. The yolk poured into the buttery skillet and now cooking, check. Eveything was looking good for the omelet. T.K. looked over to the other tables to find that Donny was cooking white and dark chocolate chip pancakes and Troy was cooking a double decker breakfast sandwich. Donny himself was heading over to Troy's booth to make small conversation. 'I'm guessin' that he want to gauge what he is up against. Try not to tell him too much.' T.K. thought as he heard someone go 'PSSSHT!'
He looked over to his left and saw Leni waving at him. She then pointed to her cup, which was a chocolate vanilla swirl smoothie. T.K. tilted his head, "Yeah, a smoothie. And?" She then silently mouthed a few random words, which T.K. was scratching his head as tried to decipher her phrase. "Great smoothie? I guess even though I don't know what flavor you're having." She mouthed the phrase again. "Rake smoothie? Ok, I know that you're messin' with me," T.K muttered to the audience. One more time, Leni mouthed the phrase slowly for him. "Ahhh! MAKE a smoothie! Gotcha," T.K nodded as beaten his chest with his fist and pointed to her in agreement.
Leni grinned and nodded rapidly, grateful for him taking her suggestion. T.K. grabbed a few berries, apples, and grapes and rushed to the blender. He set them down and began to chop them calmly but quickly as he's a bit low on time.
At the same time...
"I wonder what smoothie he's makin'," Lana wondered, peering over the booth chair.
Lisa hummed in thought, hand under her chin, "It appears to be a mixed assortment of fruit."
"Yeah, I'm guessing that the other two chefs took the good ingrdients from the big table," Lynn hypothesized.
"Poo poo!" Lily suddenly cried out, standing on Rita's lap and pointng with a firm glare. The other audience members gave looks of frustration at the loud baby.
"Heh, sorry. She probably hasn't been fed yet," Sr. apologized, giving an embarrassed smile.
Lincoln rubbed the baby as he gave her a concerned frown, "What's wrong, Lily?"
"Poo, Inkin!" Lily replied, still pointing on.
"She's saying to look, guys," Luan translated, following her baby sister's stubby finger. Everyone else trailed their gazes to find Donny, who was talking to Troy, secretly place some dirt underneath Troy's breakfast sandwich. They all gasped in shock from this display of underhanded play.
"Why that dirty cheater!" Lynn growled, pounding the table.
Lana shrugged, "To be honest, I wouldn't blame him. There is a thousand dollars on the line."
"Yeah, but that's still dirty. Even for me," Lola critiqued, shaking her head.
Lori gave a determined glare, "Focus, you two. We literally have to warn T.K.!"
"Not to worry. I have a plan," Lincoln informed, taking his phone out.
Five minutes later...
"Chefs, you may now bring your dishes to the judging table," The referee instructed, blowing his whistle. The three proceeded as told, placing their food on the table for the judges to rank. As they consumed Donny's pancakes, T.K.'s phone buzzed in his pocket. He grabbed his phone and looked at his alerts. It was a message from Lincoln, who is inviting him to a group chat room. "Hmm, I got time to spare. Why not." He accepted the invitation as a orange message box that said, 'Watch out for Donny.' The boy raised an eyebrow at this. Donny seemed like a normal guy; there isn't anything to be worried about him. "Why is that?" T.K. typed before sending the message.
A purple text box appeared, indicating that Luna was speaking to him. 'Because that jerk just placed dirt in that other dude's sandwich. Seriously jank, bro!"
"Huh? Where in the world you get that notion from, girl?" T.K. typed in pure confusion.
A light blue box from Lori said, 'Lily literally seen Donny toss dirt onto his sandwich as he was talking to Troy!"
T.K. squinted his eyes in unamusement. He knows that Lily is a smart baby but it's kinda hard to take her word for it when she's, you know, a baby. Then again, there's a lot of money on the line; T.K. had to take that also into consideration. He was about to type a response when a loud, disgusted yelp echoed throughout the restaurant.
"BLLLLLLLEH! Who made this dish!?" One of the judges, a snooty male, demanded furiously.
Troy meekly rose his hand up, "M-me, sir."
"How dare you serve...this...THIS gruel to me!? You are automatically disqualified!" The snooty male judge declared as he dry heaved. "Ack! I think that I ate a worm! You'll be hearing from my lawyer!"
That prompted Troy to run out of the restaurant in tears. As that happened, a red text box from Lynn appeared saying, 'Now do you believe us?' T.K. glared at Donny, who was silently chuckling at Troy's reaction.
"I keep an eye out. 'Preciate the heads up," T.K. typed before placing his phone away.
Ten minutes later...
While T.K. was cooking his chili cheese spaghetti, he kept a look out for whenever Donny was going to strike. Lincoln and the girls were hiding nearby after letting their parents know about what was going on. He did not know when but he knew it was coming. His ears twitched at the sound of footsteps. Turning his head, he saw Donny walking towards him. Giving a false smile to greet him, T.K. stretched and yawned. "Whew, boy. I need to go to the restroom. I deserve a break."
"Oh. Want me to watch your spaghetti for you?" Donny proposed happily, excited that T.K. was leaving his post for a good while.
T.K. nodded, "Sure. Go ahead." He walked away, leaving his dish at the hands of Donny. Turning around the corner, T.K stopped and peeked. Donny was digging into his pockets for more dirt to use. Seeing his opponent was focused on that endeavor, T.K. calmly snuck up on him and grabbed his wrist roughly.
"Hey, what the?!" Donny demanded, trying to pry his hand away.
T.K. harden his glare, "Nice try, tubby! My brother and sisters gave me info about your tricks. You ain't winnin' jack on my watch!" At this, Lincoln and girls hopped out of their hiding spots.
"Yeah, bub!" Lana snapped, gritting her teeth.
"If anyone deserves to win, it's T.K.," Lucy frowned.
"Is that so?" Donny glared back.
"Yeah!" T.K shouted, getting into his face. Quickly, Donny threw the dirt to T.K.'s eyes to blind him. "Ahh, my eyes!" T.K. screamed, rubbing his eyes frantically. The others tended to the blinded dreadhead The referee came over to the boys from hearing the shouting.
"What going on here?!" The ref asked.
As everyone else was more preoccupied with T.K., Donny was first to answer, "I caught him trying to put dirt in my dish!" From that lie, everyone's eyes widened.
"What!? That's bull! That kid tried to sabotage my little brother's spaghetti! Heck, he did the same to the boy before him!" Lynn argued, touching noses with Donny furiously.
Despite this intrusion, Donny kept his cool, "Lies. T.K. and his siblings are all in this ploy to sabotage my dish so they can help him win the $1,000!"
"I'll show you a THOUSAND ways to maim you, kid!" Lynn threatened, raising her sleeve.
TWEEEEEET!
"Enough! With enough evidence at hand, I hereby declare Terrence Mutombo disqualified and Donald Russell the winner!" The referee announced, shocking the Loud kids.
"WHAT!?"
The referee pointed to the exit, "Please leave the restaurant or be banned!" The referee walked off, leaving T.K. utterly dismayed and disheartened. Donny let out an annoying chuckle at his achievement.
"It's like this, T.K.: it isn't cheating until you get caught," Donny gloated, walking off. The Louds glared at the boy before comforting the dreadhead, who was eerily calm.
Luna rubbed his back, "Dude?"
"Are you ok, Terri?" Lola pried nervously, nuzzling him in comfort.
T.K. grabbed her and gently pushed her off, "I'm fine." This is not good; by that tone of voice, that could only mean one thing. T.K. stood up and took a deep breath. The others crowd around him nervously.
"Are you?" They all asked in concern.
Cracking the cartilage in his neck, T.K. gave a glare of immeasurable hatred towards Donny's direction, "No." Before anyone could stop him, T.K. leaped onto the table and sprinted angrily towards Donny and took a mighty leap to him.
Looking back in confusion, Donny's eyes widened in pure pertrification as T.K. pounced him and mercilessly pounded him with every fiber of his fury. Everyone quickly caught to T.K. and tried to pull him off.
"T, no!" Lincoln shouted, trying to get a good grip.
Lori wasn't faring any better, "I know that he literally deserves the worst to him but not like this!"
"Bro, that baguette does NOT go there!" Lynn screamed. Successfully, they were able to pull the rabid T.K. off of Donny with the help of their parents. As they dragged him out of the restaurant, T.K. gave Donny a fair, frightening warning.
"IF I EVER SEE YOU OUTSIDE THIS RESTAURANT, I WILL FINISH WHAT I'VE STARTED!"
The next day...
T.K. was perched quietly on the couch, watching T.V. with a angry pout. He was still mad from the upsetting fix of a loss but the anger has gone down somewhat. If he was only quick enough to plea his case, he would of been swimming in money right now; however, at least that he knocked a couple of Donny's teeth out. That's something to go to sleep with a huge smile for him. He felt the couch quaked from an unknown source. Looking towards his left, he saw Sr. sitting beside him. "Hey, son. How are you feeling?" Sr. pried, curving his mouth into a comforting smile.
T.K. snorted some air from his nose and shook his head, "Still ticked off to be honest. Ugh, that tub of lard friggin' weaseled away $1,000 from me!" Taking a breath to calm himself, he fixed his gaze back on the T.V.
"I know that's hard for you to take in, Terrence. At least Sergei only banned you for two months," Sr. reminded, rubbing his shoulder reassuringly.
T.K. rolled his eyes, "Oh joy. How could I forget about that?" Sr. took his arm away awkwardly. They sat in silence for a while; the only sound are everyone else tending to their own business. "Sorry, I know that you're just tryin' to check up on me," He sighed. "Besides, I'm not quittin' cookin'. It's gonna take more than that to do me in!"
Sr. grinned pridefully at his adoptive son's determination, "That's my boy!" He gave T.K. an affectionate ruffle on his hair, which the boy let out an amused snort.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"I'll get it," T.K assured as he hopped off the couch and walked to the door. Opening the door, he saw the last person that he wanted to see: Donny along with his parents. "You," T.K. growled darkly, gripping the doorknob to restrain himself from attacking Donny.
Donny's father shoved him forward with a glare, "Go on. Say it, boy!" Nodding timidly, Donny stepped forward and cleared his throat.
"I'm sorry. So sorry! After you and your family left, I told the referee everything. You won fair and square. Here's the trophy and the $1,000. I think that's the concussion talking but you are the better chef" Donny apologized as he held out the trophy and money to him.
As he frowned, T.K gave an unamused snort, "Took you long enough. Besides, I'm a better person overall." He gave a trophy a good look before shaking his head. "Keep the trophy. Let it be a mark of shame for you."
"What? What do you mean?" Donny questioned in confusion as he tilted his head.
"A mark of shame. Mine is gettin' banned from Aloha Comrade because of our fight, which was more one sided. Yours is that there trophy for bein' a cheatin' snake. Now, if we're done here, you can git off of my porch!" T.K. snapped as he closed the door. As he let what just happened sink in, T.K. forgot one important thing. Reopening the door, the dreadhead snatched the money from the trophy in one swipe, "I will take the $1,000 though." ...What? He wasn't letting Donny leave with the sole factor that actually mattered to T.K.!
SLAM!
Shoving the money into his pocket, he saw his siblings gazed on the conversation. "Suppose that y'all heard everything?"
"Yeah. I'm surprised that he had the cajones to apologize," Lynn stated in mild shock.
T.K. nodded, "Same here, sporty." Looking alittle to his left, he saw Leni looking back at him nervously as she fidgeted her dress as a force of habit. "What's wrong, Leni?" T.K. called out of concern.
"I feel really bad because I and the others were the one that, like, gassed you up to enter the contest and now you're banned from the restaurant. I'm totes sorry, Tee Kee," Leni apologized, avoiding his gaze.
Raising an eyebrow, T.K. walked over to her. He cupped her chin with his hand and guided her head towards his calm gaze. "Lenora, you ain't got nothin' to be sorry for. You were only tryin' to help, hun. I won't even think to fault you. I promise. Besides, it could of happen to anyone." Leni gave a small but warm smile at his gentle reassurance. He wasn't Lincoln but he had his small moments of maturity. She gave him a tight hug and everyone else joined in quickly.
"Thank you, Terri," Leni expressed warmly, rubbing her cheek against his.
"No prob. Now, who wants pie?" T.K. grinned for the first time in the day. Everyone gasped sharply and raised their hands.
"ME!" They yelled excitedly as they crowded T.K. to say what flavor to make. Although, it will take a few tries. T.K. know that he can do it; especially with his family at his side to keep his confidence.
A/N: Well, another story done. Another episode over and out. For time being, my phone is off so I don't when it will come back on. See you soon. ;(
I guess all I'm sayin' that anybody can be somebody.