>>"... My mom used to be a caterer, see? She taught me all about cooking."

Ah... Know she knew. "My mother taught me how too cook as well, mostly my grandmothers recipes." Smiling slightly, she turned her head to watch the people outside on the sidewalk pass. One thing she was sure to never understand, was the manners people portrayed when walking on and crossing streets. That and the madness of New York street traffic.

"I checked out a Mystery novel the other day, for the first time might I add." Her gaze turned back to him, "It was a story about a Judge who found himself submerged in a murder and had to figure out who the killer was. I must say, it was vastly entertaining."

She paused, mulling over what to say next. She had never really been one for small talk, her tongue always tied itself in knots before she could get anything interesting out.

>>"My mother taught me how too cook as well, mostly my grandmothers recipes."

"That sounds nice." Aurum replied. He always liked it when parents taught their kids how to cook. So often, it fell down to the children to learn their own cooking skills. Then, horrible creations came about... like middle school science experiments. Goat cheese and tofu pizzas, egg and cream cheese bagels... giant fairground chocolate chip cookies named 'cow drops'. The last one was probably yummy, but the title...

shudder.

>>"I checked out a Mystery novel the other day, for the first time might I add." "It was a story about a Judge who found himself submerged in a murder and had to figure out who the killer was. I must say, it was vastly entertaining."

Traffic bobbled along. "Oh? Sounds fun. Right now, I'm reading one of Agatha Christie's books. Death on the Nile. It's pretty good. Christie has a real way with characters."

>>"Oh? Sounds fun. Right now, I'm reading one of Agatha Christie's books. Death on the Nile. It's pretty good. Christie has a real way with characters."

... "Who's Agatha Christie?" Probably a stupid question, perhaps she should explain. "Forgive me, as I said before, I'm not from here. Back in Greece I didn't read all that much, so most books are fairly new to me."

Like the Guinness book, with all of the records. She loved that book, especially the woman with the long nails and the snake-lizard man.

"I have read the Ephesian Tale, though. And a few other Classics."

>>"Who's Agatha Christie?"

. . . Who. Aurum swung a glance Andrea's way. So, she was from Greece? Interesting. "She's a mystery writer. One of the most important early crime novelists in the development of the genre... she's good. Definitely check her out."

The van turned at the next light, and changed lanes. They were nearly to his apartment now. It was just a little further.

>>"I have read the Ephesian Tale, though. And a few other Classics."

"I haven't read that," Aurum stated. "Mainly mysteries and cookbooks, with the occasional non-fiction worked in." A wry laugh escaped him. "I guess, out of all the people at the Full Circle, I'm the least well-read. Heh. I don't even hold a candle to Shin."

A minute later, they approached the covered parking garage near 71 Broadway. Aurum smiled. "There it is... hold on." He pulled into the parking garage, and rolled down his window to talk to lot security. A minute later, the gate rose and Aurum rolled up the ramp, to find a spot on one of the lower levels. He parked the van, and got out.

Aurum stretched his arms over his head with a yawn.

"Well, here we age."

After Andrea stepped out of the van, he locked it with his remote. Click!

>> "Mainly mysteries and cookbooks, with the occasional non-fiction worked in."

She grinned. Cook books could be quite fun to read. Especially when it was a cook book put together of chicken scratch hand written recipes. Her mother had been particularly fond of those. Which reminded her...

"Oh! I nearly forgot, I printed off a few more recipes for you in case you end up liking the Moussaka." She opened her bag in her lap and shuffled through it for a moment, before she found the papers she was looking for. "One of them is a Dessert, Baklava, ... And the other is a Lamb dish."

She re-zipped her bag and hopped from the car as slipped out himself. The locks clicking into place made her jump slightly, as she tugged her bag back into place on her shoulder, and she maneuvered around the car. She tucked the recipe she had printed for the dish they were to prepare into her apron pocket and adjusted her coat on her arm.

>>"Oh! I nearly forgot, I printed off a few more recipes for you in case you end up liking the Moussaka."

Be still, his heart. Bonus recipes earned bonus points. What was the count, now? Was he keeping score? Whatever. It was awesome. And that was good. Aurum grinned.

>>"One of them is a Dessert, Baklava, ... And the other is a Lamb dish."

"Sounds fantastic," Aurum replied.

"Follow me, my apartment's this way." He said after a moment. He led her out of the parking garage, to an elevator, and ultimately, to his apartment. A few minutes later, he turned the key in his lock. He stepped in, and she followed.

His apartment building was nice. There wasn't any other way to say it. The view was nice, the front area with the doorman was friendly, the elevators all worked, and the apartment itself was simple and clean. White painted walls, brown floor tiles, a humble, yet professional, kitchen. A round table sat near the kitchen, perfect for eating, and the living room area was tidy, with its glass coffee table, its gray couch, and the television in the entertainment system.

Aurum gestured to the couch. "Have a seat. Let's talk recipes." He pulled up a kitchen chair, and sat across from her, on the other side of the coffee table. He folded his hands, and leaned forwards slightly. He was on the edge of his seat with anticipation.

The walk to his apartment was a quick, as was waiting for him to open the door. But once it was open, and she was whisked inside, she had to admit... it was a rather cute place. It reminded her of the quaint little homes she saw in magazine pictures... except it was missing big vases full of flowers, and fine exotic linens....

>>"Have a seat. Let's talk recipes."

She sat, and wiggled for a moment until she felt comfortable. Her bag was set along side her feet, and her coat was folded in her lap after she removed the recipe she needed. With a peek towards the expectant Aurum, she had to admit, the seating felt a little bit like her job interview had... She was just lacking her resume papers. Andrea Coughed quietly and crossed her hands in her lap.

"Which one were you interested in talking about?"

She plopped the three papers down, side by side, on the table in front of her and poked at the first one. "Moussaka?" Now that she thought about it... it was rather a silly question, she was here to show him how to cook it after all..

Aurum smirked at the near-formality of it all. ""Moussaka sounds fine," He commented. "Though, if we really wanted to be rebels and mix things up, we could go with dessert first." His eyes ran up and down the recipes she'd set out. They all looked interesting.

He paused. Suddenly, he realized he was feeling kind of thirsty. Aurum glanced towards the kitchen "I'm going to get a glass of water. You thirsty? I've also got cola and lemon lime soda." Aurum rose from his seat. If he was going to get something for himself, he might as well be a good host.

"Oh, Um Lemon soda sounds good." She smiled, twisted around on the sofa to peer over at the kitchen, then shifted back to pick up the recipe for dessert.

Wait... first? She arched an eyebrow. They were cooking something first? That implied a second... A peek at the cooking times for both recipes told her the estimated time it would take for both.

Well, if they started on the main dish as soon as they started the dessert, there woulden't be too long of a gap between them. "Dessert sounds good to start with.... are you sure you have all of the things we would need?" She picked up the paper from the table and muttered to herself, "I should have brought groceries..." Then read off the ingredients. "We would need Phyllo dough, and walnuts... lemon juice too. Though... if you have flour we could probably substitute the Phyllo dough..."

Her nose scrunched in thought. What else could she scrounge up from memory to make in case one or more item was missing? She had recently learned to make No bake cookies... which were rather quick and simple- but needed oatmeal, and she knew how to make Butter cookies too, though she was a bit rusty with that recipe... They would have to do for substitutes on such short notice.

Satisfied, Andrea plopped the paper back down and tucked a leg under her on the couch, glancing around curiously. She thought back to what Aurum had said about not having heard of Moussaka... "Have you ever cooked Eggplant in a dish, Aurum? As a main course, that is...."

>>"Oh, Um Lemon soda sounds good."

Aurum nodded. He walked over to the fridge to grab a cold can of lemon lime. He pulled a glass down from the cupboard, and filled it with water. A few ice cubes from the tray in the freezer later, he made his way back to the coffee table. He shifted a coaster down under his glass, and offered her the can.

"Not sure if I have Phyllo dough, though I have walnuts and lemon juice and flour. " He sipped his glass as he thought. Personally, Aurum didn't like the idea of substituting ingredients. He liked to have everything he needed, and exactly what the recipe called for. The less guessing in cooking, the better, he figured. Maybe they'd start with what they'd initially set out to make, instead... though, maybe he could teach her to make something first? The glass sat back down on the coaster as she asked him a question.

>>"Have you ever cooked Eggplant in a dish, Aurum? As a main course, that is...."

"I've had eggplant parmesan. It's good. I've also had stuffed eggplants, and eggplant casseroles. My mom also makes a terrific Italian Vegetable Bake." He smiled. "With tomatoes, and onions, and okra, and all sorts of good stuff." He supposed she could call him an eggplant aficionado. Though, did that list come off braggish? He didn't want to come off like a braggard. Aurum reeled back the grin. "What did you have in mind?"

"Thank you." Andrea gladly accepting the pop from him, she wiped the top of the can off with her sleeve and popped the tab.

>>"What did you have in mind?"

Pausing, she thought about that for a moment while she sipped her freshly opened soda. The bubbling tickled her nose. "why don't we... swap recipes?" Andrea plopped her can back down onto the table softly, making sure it didn't , then maneuvered her leg out from under her.

"I'll teach you how to make Moussaka, and you can teach me how to make something your familiar with. A dessert maybe?"

It sounded like a fun enough plan to her, both would walk away from the experience with new knowledge of... well, cooking. She found herself wondering what he knew how to cook, with his experience as a chef. She had recently read an article in a magazine on Thanksgiving dinners... and all of the things one made to feed the family. Mashed potatoes sounded lovely with garlic and butter right about now. She pressed a hand over her softly gurgling stomach and attempted to silence it with another sip of her drink.

Swapping recipes sounded like a fine idea. As for what he'd swap, hmm... he paused to contemplate. There were several good desserts he knew how to make. Chocolate chip cookies, toffee brownies (Paula Deen-style, with entire candy bars in the mix), Snickerdoodles, drop cookies, lemon meringue... what did he have in the cupboards to make things with, he wondered...

More importantly, what did he feel like baking? It hit him.

"Alright. That's decided, then. I'll teach you how to make some gooey butter cake, and you can teach me how to make Moussaka."

Gooey Butter Cake... It certainly would fatten them both right up. Maybe next time, he'd try and have the stuff for the Golden Bee's signature honey cake on-hand. That'd be even better.

>>"Alright. That's decided, then. I'll teach you how to make some gooey butter cake, and you can teach me how to make Moussaka."

Gooey butter cake? She couldn't even comprehend what that would look, or taste like. never the less, she nodded and stacked her small handful of recipes together on the table. Gooey butter cake it was!

"So, how does one go about preparing this cake?" She blinked curiously, and tucked her hands into her apron. Gooey cake... She had made regular cake before.. and it hadn't proved to hard. Maybe the addition of 'butter' in the name was a hint. Would it be like cheese cake? soft and cold and delicious? or possibly the consistency of a pie?

She could recall quite easily having eaten a slice of coconut cream pie, that had a texture not unlike butter.... If that was was case, she was more than certain to like whatever came about as the finished product...

>>"So, how does one go about preparing this cake?"

"It really isn't that hard. Hold on. I'll go snag the recipe book so you can have a look." Aurum rose, and walked over to a small bookcase near the kitchen. He searched for a moment, fingers trailing across the spines of several cookbooks, then settled on one with a blue cover. He lifted it up out of the case, and held it up in his hands for a single shake.

The title on the cover was in gold lettering that spelled out The Paula Deen Family Cookbook. "Paula Deen. Ever hear of her?"

Aurum slid back into his chair, and sat the cookbook down on the table for Andrea's perusal. "The recipe is on," he stated the page. It was marked with a single golden post-it note. She couldn't miss it. Aurum smiled. "It's simple enough, and it's good." How could one go wrong?

>>"It's simple enough, and it's good."

Accepting the book happily, she started skimming. The picture certainly was a plus... it gave her a tasty looking image to put with the list of ingredients. so.. they would be using eggs and cream cheese, and vanilla and cake mix. It sounded simple enough...

But then again... She glanced up from the book quickly, "My, this does look good. I can't say i've ever made anything like it before." Nor eaten anything, for that matter. She couldn't recall ever having tried something that looked melted on the inside. "Lead the way I suppose, since you will be donning the chef hat first." A soft smile curved her lips, and she stood, waiting for him to lead her into the kitchen so she could make a mess of his drawers and cupboards. She had discovered that she had a knack of sorts for that sort of thing....