“No thanks. Let’s start from scratch without those instructions.” Lara rolled the sleeves of her ¾ shirt just above the elbow and rubbed her palms together. “We’ll follow the one I learned from my grandmother. I know that one by heart.”

“Hey, thanks. I’ll get more chocolate, butter, and eggs from the fridge.”

“All right. I’ll just wash a couple of these bowls and the saucepan. Wait, what chocolate are we gonna use? ‘Cause, it’ll be even better if you have some dark chocolate stored in there.” Lara suggested while taking the bowls to the sink.

“Yep. Here it is. Ghirardelli.”

“Excellent.”

“So… How come you’re good at this stuff…?” Dana asked Lara in curiosity.

“Well… I don’t exactly fit the bill just ‘cause I play lacrosse right? Lacrosse is a hobby. Cooking or baking is my passion. See the difference?” Lara passed a sweet smile then dried the bowls and saucepan with a paper towel. “These things are ready. Are you?” She said playfully.

“Hell, yeah. The only thing to satisfy my craving is to sink my teeth into these lovelies.” Dana went over to the counter in the middle to help Lara prepare the ingredients that they need to make the chocolate muffins. “I’ll let you take the wheel. You’ve already seen and tasted what I’ve done… So… What do we do first?”

“Okay.” Strands of hair fell forward and into Lara’s face. Using her forearm, she moved her hair out of the way, then reached for the measuring cup near Dana with her other hand.

Poetry in motion. It was all in slow activity for Dana. She didn’t even try to understand what was occurring during that time. She didn’t care much about her sadness or her disappointments or her anger. Instincts. That was all there was. “No… Hey… Don’t do that.”

“Don’t do what, Dana?” Lara was baffled but still smiled at Dana. She poured some flour onto the measuring cup.

“Your hair. You looked really nice with some strands of hair in front of your face…” A step forward was all it took for their lips to meet. It was a short, soft kiss.