"Hm... woo woo?"
An indistinct sound came from behind.
George was startled and quickly turned around, raising a finger to his lips and softly shushing.
"Hey Macaron, keep it down, go back to sleep!"
The golden retriever blinked drowsily, struggling to stay awake as it sat on the floor, tilting its little head toward its owner, wondering why anyone would be up in the middle of the night scavenging for food.
Fearing the little guy might ruin his plan, George had to go to the living room first, grab a chew-toy bone, and stuff it into Macaron's mouth, before returning to the kitchen.
The fridge was packed to the brim, and at a glance, there were many takeout boxes filled with what looked like white noodles, while the rest were stuffed with colorful vegetables.
"Just one to try the taste."
George thought this because, after counting, he found there were ten noodle boxes in the outermost layer. If he ate one, it would be obvious that something was missing.
Marian's memory wasn't that bad; she just couldn't remember recipes or little things.
"Let's see...boil water, cook the noodles for a minute, scoop them out, heat the ingredients in the microwave, mix everything together with the noodles, quite simple!"
He began by boiling water and heating the dishes, cleverly leaving the microwave with a few seconds left to avoid any beeping noise.
However, he soon realized another inescapable major issue.
These noodles... were way too long!
After taking one out, it was visibly clear that a third of the contents had disappeared from the box.
Upon counting carefully, there were only three strands per box!
With a conflicted expression that alternated between different faces for a while, he quickly came up with a good idea.
He decided to hide the box he ate from back in the fridge and find a chance to finish it off later himself!
There were over forty boxes; Marian couldn't possibly check each one, could she?
Soon, the noodles and dishes were all heated up.
First, he stirred the dishes evenly and tossed the noodles in a few times, the faint aroma of noodles mixed with the never-before-smelled spices wafted up his nose.
The wide noodles were fully coated with the sauce, bright red, dotted with small fragments of eggs and tomatoes, making them appear particularly tempting.
Forking the noodles, he stuffed them into his mouth in big bites.
"Hmm?!"
The texture of the noodles surprised him, not only were they incredibly elastic but also full of chewiness, akin to a wider version of the freshly made wide flat pasta.
The sauce was sour, salty, with a subtle spicy kick that had a lingering sweetness, paired with the just-cooked diced potatoes and carrots, the combination of different flavors created an exquisite taste experience.
He licked the corner of his lips with satisfaction, his gaze falling upon the two remaining strands in the box.
"Just one more, just one more; as long as the box isn't moved, Marian won't notice!"
The dishes were ready-made, the hot water was ready, just drop the noodles in for a minute of boiling and they're ready, how convenient.
Five minutes later.
George silently stuffed the two empty takeout boxes back into the fridge, remembering to adjust their position, stashing them in the far most bottom to avoid exposure.
"Burp~"
Satisfied, he let out a burp, took a few sips of soda, and patted his round belly.
Now he finally could sleep soundly~
He slept exceptionally well, even dreaming of being surrounded by endless meat buns and noodles, especially the aroma of the noodles, it felt so real.
"Dear George, how long do you plan to sleep? Time to eat."
He opened his eyes, blearily seeing Marian eating a bowl of noodles, realizing the aroma from his dream was actually real!
The thought of being able to openly eat the noodles made the man spring up from bed like a fish leaping out of water; he quickly got off, not bothering to dress, and dashed into the kitchen.
Opening the fridge, he took out a bag of chilled milk, poured himself a glass, as his eyes scanned over the boxes left in the fridge ensuring nothing was amiss, only then did he sit contentedly at the dining table with his noodles.
Having already tasted the delicious noodles yesterday, Richard was up earlier than anyone else, already finished and ready to head to school.
"Don't forget your sushi, dear."
His expression froze.
Damn, how did he forget about that!
If he brought sushi, how could he tempt Lisa with the aroma of noodles?
He had it all planned out!
His eyes spun around for a moment before he looked up.
"Oh, dear Marian, but this box of sushi isn't enough for me, can I bring a portion of noodles too?"
"What? You want to bring noodles? But you can't cook them."
"It's okay, I have a way, just add some hot water and microwave it on high and it should be fine."
Marian nodded, "Alright then, you can take it, eating your fill is the most important."
The morning classes went by in agony, and lunch break finally arrived.
As he watched his classmates pull out various sandwiches or salads from their bags, Richard's gaze landed on Lisa at the adjacent table, noticing she was unpacking a citrus beef salad.
Smiling, he turned around and pulled out an exquisite box of sushi to offer her.
"Lisa, help me out with some, I brought too much lunch today, can't finish it all."
"?"
Lisa's delicate face flashed with confusion and she instinctively looked at the sushi box.
Upon seeing it, she was stunned.
"Oh my, this logo, isn't it from that particularly famous shop in the city?"
Richard proudly raised his chin, with an expression for praise, nodded, "Yes, this box is worth over forty euros. If it weren't for us being desk mates for a year, I wouldn't share it with anyone else."
For working folks, anything over forty euros was a decent meal, for students, that's basically an extravagant meal.
The way Lisa looked at Richard instantly changed, and she sweetly said, "Richard, you are so nice!"
That smile almost captivated his soul, his face flushing deep red on the spot.
"What?"
"A gourmet sushi worth over forty euros??"
All the nearby students were drawn in, their eyes full of desire as they peered at the elegant sushi.
Richard furrowed his brow, pushing the sushi box closer to Lisa, eyeing everyone suspiciously.
"This is our lunch, don't even think about it!"
Receiving such special treatment, Lisa's face too turned a shade of pink, she discreetly glanced at Richard and pushed her own salad over towards the sushi.
"Th-then my salad too, let's share."
"You start first, I'm going to heat up the meal."
Nobody expected Richard to take out two more disposable dinner boxes from his bag and head out of the classroom.
"???"
"Wait, did this guy bring three meals?"
"Even bringing such expensive sushi, there's more?"
"Hey Lisa, could it be that guy's trying to woo you?"
Being the class beauty, Lisa had many admirers, every boy in class liked her.
Though she knew Richard was surely scheming to boost his favor, she couldn't possibly refuse such a pretty and tasty premium sushi.