˚　 ⋆⁺₊✦⁺₊ 　 ˚　.˚  .　 ☁.　　. 　 ˚　⁺⋆₊　.˚  .　. ✦⋆⁺₊  　 ˚　. ☁ ˚　.˚　 ✩₊˚.   ☾      ⋆      ⁺₊✧  　　˚　⁺₊ . 　 ˚　.　　⁺₊✦₊　　 ☁  　˚　　 . 　⁺₊✧˚　　 . 　 ˚　⁺₊˚  .

Franco Colapinto was certain he'd never been in a situation like this before, but he didn't regret it.

His kitchen had become a warzone. Flour was smeared on the handle of every cupboard and drawer, while the counter was decorated with a great splash of egg yolk, and the floor had a suspicious milk-white stain.

For the better experience, he had bought a cliche apron that said "KISS THE COOK", which was now more white than black, considering how many times he'd wiped his hands on it, the same hands he had gotten every ingredient possible on.

The idea had come to him only the previous day, a day before Evie was supposed to fly in. He'd already gotten her a gift, along with her favourite chocolate, all kept neatly packed in a Pandora bag.

But, that day, while aimlessly scrolling on TikTok, he stumbled upon a red velvet cupcakes recipe. He'd almost scrolled away, before thinking twice about it. The cupcakes looked tasty, while also perfect for the romantic holiday. Plus, the recipe didn't look too hard. Or so Franco thought.

He'd woken up earlier than he'd planned, ran to the nearest supermarket, then got to work.

As he looked at the mess that was now his kitchen, he let out a sigh, contemplating if, or how he should continue. Half the ingredients were spilled out, while the rest were messily mixed, the dough not quite right yet.

In the middle of rethinking his life decisions, Franco heard the door open. He turned, startled at the sudden movement. The door was pushed open and Evie appeared, dragging a suitcase next to her, while balancing a bag that hung on her shoulder.

"Evie!" Franco exclaimed, taking long steps to the door. "I thought I was picking you up, what are you doing here?" With a grin plastered on his face, he wrapped his arms around Evie, leaning back to lift her off the ground, earning a laugh out of her.

"Surprise!" she said, still giggling as Franco squeezed her, before finally putting her down.

Evie was smiling so wide, it looked like her cheeks would burst. She had no makeup on, a dark blue hoodie and black sweatpants for airport attire, while her hair was left down. Casual, yet still so beautiful.

"Come in," Franco urged, rolling her suitcase in with one hand, and grabbing hers with the other.

"Wait. What are you wearing?" Evie asked once she finally registered Franco's clothing.

Before he had the chance to explain himself, or hide the -ruined either way- surprise, she reached the kitchen, seeing the mess he'd created.

"What were you trying to do here?" She turned back to him, the look on her face evidently showing that she was trying not to laugh. Her eyes dropped to his apron, which was enough to make a giggle escape her lips.

"Don't laugh at me." Franco pouted. "I was trying to surprise you."

Evie's look quickly became one of adoration, and it was her turn to pout.

"Really? With what?"

"Red velvet cupcakes."

"Wow, thought you could make that on your own?" She smiled, crossing her arms.

"Hey, I'm more than capable." Franco crossed his own arms.

"Alright. Let's see it. I'll help you," Evie concluded, already rolling up her sleeves and grabbing Franco's phone from where he'd set it on the counter, so she could read the recipe.

ᯓᡣ𐭩

Half an hour later and the kitchen looked even worse than when Franco was attempting this on his own.

Needless to say, even more flour was spilled, and Franco's apron was now covered in red food colouring too. They managed to create a dough, though it still had some bumps that they couldn't be bothered to mix better. Franco didn't own an electric mixer and it was too tiring to mix with a whisk.

"Right, you have cupcake moulds, yeah?" Evie asked, half preparing to hear a negative response. However, Franco surprised her, proving her wrong when he went back to the plastic bag still on the table and took out a packet of paper cupcake moulds, holding them proudly for her to see.

"Proper chef," Evie commented, earning a soft hit with the packet on the back of her head. "Hey! I'm literally helping you."

Franco's lips pulled into a grin, and he leaned in, pressing a quick kiss to her head. "Thank you."

"Was that so hard?" Evie said, grinning back at him. "Give me the moulds."

"So, I have to say thank you, but you can't say please?" he asked, head tilting.

"Well... yeah. But, please."

Franco laughed, but handed her the packet, which she clumsily opened, its contents spilling out on the counter.

"I give up."

ᯓᡣ𐭩

Another fifteen minutes of filling moulds with dough later, they finally put the cupcakes in the oven, setting a timer. Evie let out an exaggerated sigh, dusting her hands off.

"Shitshow, man," she said, joining Franco where he sat in the corner of the couch, sprawled out as if he'd just run a marathon.

Evie sat next to him, resting her head on his shoulder, when her gaze fell back to his apron, making her sit up again.

"Hey," she said, getting his attention. "Nice apron." She wiggled her brows once, hoping he'd get the message. Which he did, since his lips upturned into a smirk.

"Yeah? I think these cupcakes will only be done if you do what it tells you."

Evie grinned, not hesitating before bringing their lips together, clinging on to that stupid apron.

ᯓᡣ𐭩

The timer still had a few minutes before beeping, so Evie got comfortable in Franco's embrace, as the two of them debated which restaurant to go to on Valentine's day.

Evie reassured him she didn't want anything fancy, but he kept insisting, arguing that it was their first February 14th together.

"I'm not taking you to McDonalds," Franco said, turning down Evie's latest suggestion. "The food there isn't even that good."

"I know. But you don't need to spend a fortune."

"What if I want to?"

Evie turned to face him, finding him already looking her way. She immensely appreciated what he was doing, trying to make the day special, even though she'd told him several times it didn't matter. Of course, they'd have it his way in the end, which definitely didn't bother her.

She frowned suddenly, getting a whiff of something wrong.

Still sniffing, she asked "Do you smell something burning?"

Franco's eyes widened in horror, and he quickly got up, careful not to push her. Evie caught on, gasping in response.

Franco ran to the kitchen, crouching to open the oven, which sent a cloud of smoke to his face, making him lean back and cough.

"Oh, God," Evie said, walking up to him to inspect the mess. "They're dead."

Franco turned, looking defeated. But, one look at Evie's saddened face, and he burst out laughing, a contagious laugh that Evie couldn't resist, so she started laughing too.

"Should we just go buy some cupcakes?" she suggested through fits of giggles, clutching her stomach.

"Yes, please."

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dear reader!

i missed these sillies