fandomhigh | Cupcake Skirmishes, Period 3, Friday 6/18

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cupcakes

Cupcake Skirmishes, Period 3, Friday 6/18

As always, cupcake class was held in the Home Ec room. Where else would you bake?

“Today,” Stark said from his usual spot at the front of the room, “I hope everyone likes chocolate.” If you didn’t like chocolate, Stark didn’t want to hear about it. “Because I have a lot of chocolate.” He stopped, considering the box in front of him. “At least I think I do? It was chocolate the last time I looked but you never know here. Good, yes, still chocolate.”

“I have dark chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, and ruby chocolate,” Stark continued, holding examples up each type in turn. “I didn’t know there was that fourth type, before. It’s new. It tastes different. There’s enough here if you want to try some first.” There was enough of every type of chocolate for eating. Stark wasn’t a monster.

“I have recipes for each type. You could try changing the frostings around.” Mix it up a little, kids! It might be fun. And delicious.

Ruby chocolate cupcakes
White chocolate cupcakes
Milk chocolate cupcakes
Dark chocolate cupcakes

“I can help, if you like.” Or you can just eat chocolate, honestly. It’s not like Stark would stop anyone from doing that.

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Yeah, Faye was mostly just eating chocolate, here. She wasn't even choosy normally -- like, white chocolate was fake news, everyone knew that, but she'd still eat it. This ruby chocolate thing was interesting, though.

And you know what, he'd said he'd help, so she was also just going to be kind of a brat. "I need heeeeelp," she called, putting her hand up and smiling over at Stark.

Spoilers: she didn't need help. She needed attention.

"Help eating your chocolate?" Stark asked because that had not been a terribly convincing request for assistance.

Did he still walk over? Of course.

"No, help baking my cupcakes," Faye said, tsking at him.

She hadn't even started. Like, she didn't even have liners out.

"I didn't know they were making chocolate discoveries, still," she added, lest he point out how she had not remotely started on this, at all. "Here I was prepared for the weirdness of white chocolate, but this pink stuff is wild."

"I like it," Stark said, but then he'd never met a chocolate he didn't like. "It's still new. I hadn't heard of it until I was looking for recipes. Which are you going to make?"

That was a subtle way of pointing out she hadn't started, right?

"Haven't decided yet," Faye told him cheerfully, breaking off another piece of the pink chocolate and popping it into her mouth. "Have you gotten any more details on this party we're going to tomorrow?"

Look, if she just changed the subject, maybe she could just avoid making actual cupcakes all class period.

"Still mostly a mystery," Stark said. "She did say there would be karaoke. And live performances?" Which could mean anything, coming from Summer.

"And she said gifts weren't necessary."

But maybe she'd appreciate pink cupcakes! If anyone ever baked any.

"Are you going to sing?" Faye asked, wide-eyed as she reached over to seize Stark's arm with an urgency that, like, this question did not require. At all. But also, "You should definitely sing."

No one was going to bake any cupcakes here, no. Maybe Summer would enjoy some raw baking chocolate, as Faye was.

"I don't usually sing," Stark said warily. He wasn't making any move to pull away though even as he had a sinking feeling that somehow he might end up singing tomorrow. "Not where people can hear."

Summer could have a nicely packaged pink chocolate bar or 2!

"Karaoke's so fun, though," Faye insisted. One might even call the tone she'd adopted wheedling. "Especially since once you've had enough to drink, pretty much everyone sounds good."

Not true, Faye. Super not true.

"You could sing," Stark countered. "I don't like that many people looking at me."

He didn't usually enjoy that much attention! But maybe after enough drinks?

Faye softened, just a teeny bit. Not because she liked how he was kind of shy, or anything.

"I could," she agreed. "Maybe I'd sing if you did."

No one wanted Faye to sing, for the record. This was a bad idea.

"We could just watch everyone else," Stark suggested. "And not sing at all."

That seemed like the best choice. They should avoid any ill-advised duets.

Faye might literally run away if a duet was suggested, so that was wise. Especially given the height of the heels she was planning to wear.

"I guess we could," she agreed with a heavy sigh, soothing herself with more chocolate. "Maybe I can try daring someone. Like I did to Jessica."

That had been really satisfying, as far as revenge went.

"Will that work without the game?"

Again, probably if enough drinks were consumed.

"I'm sure some people will sing willingly. They did in Japan."

He reached out to take a piece of the chocolate for himself then. It clearly wasn't going in any baked goods. It would be a shame to waste it.

"I mean, a dare is a dare no matter what. Honor's on the line," Faye informed him, like there were rules for dares that she hadn't just made up. "People did sing in Japan, didn't they?"

Faye had actually not stayed for long at the karaoke party, but she didn't need to get into that. (There had been a dire shortage of beds, one of her fellow teachers had come up with an enterprising solution, et cetera.)

"People sang," Stark confirmed, nodding. He was not mentioning that he had, in fact, done one song at the end of the night.

"I'm sure Summer will, at least."

See, that would have been worth staying for. Even if sleeping in a bed (and other stuff) had been very nice.

"If we don't get enough alcohol in her that she wants to sing, I think we've failed as party guests," Faye informed him.

Stark hadn't slept in a bed the whole week! He'd just made a little nest out of luggage.

"Wouldn't want to fail at being a guest," Stark said seriously. "She did say we could buy drinks instead of a gift. I don't think it will be a problem to convince her to sing. Or for her to have enough alcohol."

Maybe Stark should have investigated Japanese love hotels, as Faye had! (Or, really, as Constantine had, and then shared with Faye.) Then he, too, could have slept in a bed, maybe with Faye, and maybe this whole thing that wasn't anything at all might have started all the way back in February.

"I'll do a shot or three with her," Faye decided. And it was also very possible that she'd lift a wallet or a clutch off someone at one of these bars and present that to Summer, too. (Cash removed, naturally.)

There was probably no universe in which Stark would have done that. It wouldn't have occurred to him even if the pollen had struck on that trip.

"I'm sure she'll appreciate it." Maybe not the stolen goods so much? But maybe! As long as nobody got arrested. "Just three? There will be more than three stops. I think."

Psh, Faye would never get arrested on someone else's birthday, please. That was just bad form.

"At least one shot at each location, but you're gonna end up carrying me home if I'm not careful," Faye warned.

Whether she meant to her own home or his was entirely irrelevant, honestly, considering her drunk self would tote Stark off to whichever bed or couch or floor was closest, anyway.

Good, because Stark wouldn't have any idea how to post bail and it would get very awkward.

"If you need to be carried I'll carry you."

Unless that was too much like cuddling!

Cuddling rules maybe changed when there was drinking, anyway. Who could say.

Faye sure couldn't, considering she was giving him a kind of dorky look before she caught herself. "Would you really?"

She could hold her liquor pretty okay and it probably wouldn't actually be necessary, but it made her feel all squishy in a way she was absolutely not going to engage with that he'd just agreed to that.

"I'd do my best." Look, Stark might also be rather intoxicated by that point so it might be more 'holding up' than carrying. "If you needed help. I wouldn't just leave you."

It could be mutual holding up. They could help each other! Drunk teamwork.

"Good. I won't leave you, either," Faye replied, and much as her pancakes had probably enjoyed being told that she would look out for Stark a couple weeks back, now her chocolate was probably really enjoying that admission, as well.

At least, not this time. Not at this particular party.

Edited 2021-06-18 22:58 (UTC)

Mutual holding up would be a fine plan. It was just good sense to have a buddy on a bar crawl, right?

Stark smiled a little and reached for another piece of chocolate. "Good. Then neither of us gets left behind in any bars. Or anywhere else Summer might be taking us." Because who knew, really?

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Cupcake Skirmishes, Period 3, Friday 6/18

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