AN: Thanks to all of you who favourited this story, followed or left a review, I'm so glad you guys are enjoying ^^
So, this chapter is a birthday gift for my friend xMelodyx, I know I'm a bit late but I hope you'll still like it :3
Chocolate cake...
(England x fem!Portugal)
...
It was already afternoon when Arthur leaned against the kitchen counter, letting out a tired sigh as he glanced at the mess he had made inside the sink. He had been avoiding cooking while spending the weekend at Maria's house but that afternoon he couldn't bring himself to stay away from the kitchen. It was her birthday and he wanted to make something nice. Now if only the oven would cooperate with his efforts...
"Maybe I should have asked Francis in the end..." he muttered, frowning at his own words as he crossed both arms over his chest.
Francis offer to help had been tempting but his pride wouldn't let him accept, he wanted to make the cake by himself. Maria always cooked delicious meals for his birthday so he wanted to return it with her favourite cake. But now, as he watched the strange mess inside the oven, he highly regretted the decision.
"Arthur? Where are you?"
Green eyes widened in surprise when Arthur recognized Maria's voice coming from the living room. Wasn't she supposed to spend the afternoon with Antonio? He swore he would have enough time to finish the cake before she got back home.
"W-Welcome home, love..." he said, rushing to the living room before she could reach the kitchen, "I thought you would be shopping with your brother..."
"I was... but he got a phone call from his boss and had to go home," Maria smiled and dropped her bags over the couch, pulling a light blue dress from inside it as she turned to look at Arthur, "Look what he bought for my birthday..."
The Portuguese blinked in surprise and let her voice trail off when she realized that Arthur was wearing one of her aprons. She pursed her lips to hold back a chuckle and looked at him from head to toes when she saw that he had flour on his cheeks and arms.
"Are you cooking...?"
Arthur opened his mouth to speak but couldn't utter a sound as he glanced down at his clothes, wanting to slap himself for being caught dressed like that. "Well, you see... I..." he trailed off, widening his eyes when he heard a beeping sound coming from the kitchen, "Damn...!"
The Briton jumped in startle and dashed inside the kitchen, leaving a confused Maria staring at the kitchen door with a raised eyebrow.
Chuckling, Maria put the dress back inside the bag and made her way toward the kitchen. She opened a small crack on the door and peeked inside to see what Arthur was doing in there. "What's wrong...?" she asked, smiling when she saw the small pout on Arthur's lips.
"I... I'm sorry, I just wanted to make a surprise..." he mumbled while scratching the back of his head, "I should have asked first before using the kitchen..."
"A surprise for me?"
"Yeah, for your birthday... but it looks like I messed up again," he sighed and pointed at the baking pan, squinting his eyes when he saw the burnt edges of the dough.
"No, look... it's not completely burnt," she said, walking toward the Briton to take a closer look on the cake, "We can cut off these parts and eat the rest, it looks delicious."
Arthur blinked surprised and peeked again at the baking pan, trying to understand what Maria found so delicious about that mess of chocolate and flour, "Are you sure? I can go to the bakery and buy a cake..."
"No, I want this cake... you made it for me, right?"
"Yeah..."
"Then it's the perfect birthday cake..." she said, pressing a smacking kiss on his cheek as she stood on her tip toes, "Now let's eat it because I'm hungry~"
Arthur nodded and walked toward the fridge to pick the whipped cream he had made earlier, which thankfully had turned out alright. With a silly smile on his lips, he started covering the cake with the cream just like he had seen in the recipe book.
"What...?" he asked, noticing that Maria was staring at him with an amused expression.
"Nothing... you look cute when you're concentrating~"
The Briton widened his eyes when he heard that and quickly averted his gaze to the side, knowing that soon he would be looking as red as a tomato, "I-I'm not cute, Maria..."
"Yes, you are," she mused, pressing a sweet kiss on his lips before walking toward the cupboard to pick a pair of plates, "You won't change my mind, amor..."
Arthur sighed in defeat and leaned a hand against the counter as he gazed at Maria with a soft expression, "I know I won't... and then you call me stubborn."
"And it's true, isn't it?" Maria said, winking to him when she finished arranging the table with the plates and cutlery, "You can put the cake here."
Arthur nodded and picked the tray with care, placing it over the spot Maria had left between their plates. He sighed when he felt her warm gaze over him and started cutting the cake, feeling a twinge of nervousness when he served their plates. He just hoped it wouldn't taste so bad like in the last time he tried to cook.
"So...?" he muttered, watching anxiously as Maria picked her fork and took a bite of the cake.
"Arthur... I have to congratulate you in this one," she smiled and took another bite while looking up at him, "It's really good..."
Arthur widened his eyes and let out the breath he had been holding without even noticing, "R-Really?"
"Yes, try a bit yourself."
Maria smiled and waited till Arthur was sitting by her side before holding the fork closer to his lips. She chuckled and watched as the Briton chewed the food with a pensive expression, "Do you believe me now?"
"Well... it's better than the last one, I think..." he said, can't helping but feeling a little proud of himself. Smiling, he leaned closer to Maria and ran a hand through her smooth hair, gazing into her eyes as she turned to look at him, "Happy birthday, love..." he whispered, caressing her left cheek with his thumb as he leaned in for a kiss.
They chuckled when they could taste the sweet chocolate in each other's lips, and their eyes were closed slowly as they enjoyed the soothing silence inside the kitchen. Later that day, as they slept into a tight embrace after a night of love, Maria swore to herself that for Arthur's next birthday, she would prepare the most delicious fish and chips he had ever ate.
...~...*...~...
