She nodded, “Well, if you ever need a sounding board for whatever is going through your head, I’m always here.”

I thanked her and then said goodbye, wanting to have dinner ready by the time Bette got home.

* * * * *

My first real cooking experience. It’s funny how there are certain things that, while you may not want to remember them, will probably stay with you forever. Caramelised chicken melted to the bottom of the cooking dish will always be a sore point for me.

I got chicken, rice, and some veggies from the market and still had some change left over for a new pack of smokes with the $20 Bette had given me. As much as I hated spending it, I knew I would start getting some tips at work the next day which I could pay her back with and would tide me over till the first pay check came in. I got all the food and ingredients together on the counter and opened the recipe book up. Tina had told me to put the chicken and stuff in a plastic bag and put it all in there sealed up so the chicken could marinate a little before I cooked it. I got home early enough that it could sit in the bag for an hour or so before I had to cook it. I put the bag of chicken in the fridge and went out back, took my shoes off and rolled my pant legs up, dipping my feet in the pool and lighting a cigarette. After half an hour, I went back in and started prepping the food. I chopped the veggies and turned the oven on to heat it up. Maybe this whole cooking thing wasn’t so hard. The oven beeped, and the display read the temperature I had set it for, so I got the bag of chicken out, found a baking dish and lid, put the chicken in, popped the lid on top, and put it in the oven. I pulled out from my pocket a piece of paper that Tina had written directions on so I could cook some rice. Putting a pot of water on the stove, I waited for it to start boiling. Then a poured the rice in, put a lid on the pot and checked the instructions Tina had written. According to them, now all I had to really do was wait, occasionally checking on them. I went out back with a beer and lit a cigarette, and laid down on one of the lounge chairs. I watched the clouds float by and relaxed. I don’t remember closing my eyes…