The Lady's Everyman

-CH 9-

"Ugh. Why is this so hard?! It’s like trying to pull a massive fish out of a rushing stream!" Zach grumbled under his breath as he fell backward onto the dirt ground, exhausted after failing to pull a weed from its roots for what seemed like the hundredth time that day.

The sun beat down heavily from above as his forehead pooled with sweat. "Man, why can't this just be easy." Zach wiped his brow dry with his arm as he stood up to overlook the progress he had made. The yard was far from finished and he had only been able to free less than a third of the space from weeds and dead grass.

It was a slow process but the payout would be worth it. Seeing Amanda's smile after he revived the yard would be more than enough for him to continue on.

"Well, time to get back to it then." He mumbled softly before reaching bending down to wrap his glove covered fingers around another long stalk. "One. two... three!" He tugged at it sharply which caused the plant to begin to rise off the soil that surrounded it. After using all of his strength to yank at the weed, it was stripped from the ground along with a good amount of dirt and roots.

Zach quickly tossed it aside into a nearby trash can while he focused his eyes on the next. "This is going to be a long day."

Minutes turned to hours as Zach toiled away in the garden. His muscles shone under the rays of the summer sun. It wasn't until well after nightfall that Zach finally called it quits after being worn out completely. He slumped against the shed wall as sweat dripped from his chin onto the concrete floor beneath him. "Man..." He let out an exhausted sigh as he stared blankly at the stars that were visible through the skylights set above him.

It made him think about where he would be now if he hadn't gotten mixed up with Amanda. And as if the universe knew exactly what he was thinking, he saw the shine of headlights coming down the driveway toward him. Seeing the familiar vehicle pulling in, Zach ran over to the door to greet her.

He opened it for her, smiling and waving. "Amanda! How was work?"

She climbed out of the car with an exhausted expression on her face. She walked forward to meet him and gave him a tired smile. "It was fine Mr. Parker. You don't need to worry." Her voice was strained by fatigue. Amanda looked like she had just been through a workout instead of spending a day at her desk doing paperwork as Zach had assumed.

"But you look so... tuckered out." He noted. "Are you alright? Would you like me to help with anything?" He offered before stepping closer, holding his hand out expectantly. He wanted nothing more than to make her feel better after all the stress she must have gone through that day.

"I'm perfectly fine!" Amanda assured with another forced grin as she ignored his hand. "Just let me rest for a while." The woman brushed past Zach's arm as he stood there dumbfounded by her behavior as he watched her walk inside. She was acting much colder than she had been earlier today. Things must have been really tough for her.

The house seemed even quieter than usual without Amanda here to lighten it up. It was almost too quiet in fact. it made Zach uncomfortable but he wasn't about to give up that easily on helping her.

He glanced toward the unused kitchen when an idea came across his mind. It was clear that Amanda's cooking skills left quite a bit to be desired but Zach was no slouch in the kitchen. He had always had to take care of himself growing up. If anything, people would be surprised if they knew how good of a cook he could be despite not having any formal teachings. And so, he decided to see if Amanda would accept the food prepared by him in order to brighten her mood.

While Amanda rested in her room, Zach entered the kitchen and took a look around at all of the ingredients available to him. "Hmm..." His eyes wandered over everything as he reveled in the abundance of choice at his fingertips. "I think I can manage something tasty tonight."

He felt as though he was staring into an endless void of culinary options as he wondered what kind of dish to prepare. The question only added to his excitement. After some consideration, He decided that he should go with something simple for now. He didn't want to risk messing up his first attempt at cooking for her. Besides, it wouldn't hurt to start small before moving on to more difficult things later down the road.

"What should I make?" He muttered quietly as he found his way to a plate of fresh Halibut steaks just begging to be cooked. Now he just needed to figure out what to pair them with.

After a brief period of deliberation, Zach stepped into the walk-in pantry and gathered a container of orzo, along with tomatoes and cucumbers. Finally, he went ahead and took out a bottle of expensive wine before grabbing one of Amanda's knives which were hanging on the wall beside her stove.

With all the necessary components in hand, Zach quickly set about preparing dinner. He started by Setting a pot of chicken broth to boil before adding the orzo grains into the water after checking to ensure that it was well salted. Once they had been mixed together, he poured in three cups worth of white wine to finish off the liquid base that was going to flavor everything else.

Next, he began slicing up the tomato and cucumbers into wedges and setting them aside for the finished product. While the orzo was cooking away, he grabbed the halibut filets and dusted them with seasonings before carefully frying them up over high heat. A combination of butter, lemon juice, oregano, paprika, and sea salt created a savory scent that filled the kitchen as soon as the fish hit the pan.

The scent was enough to even drag Amanda from the confines of her room to watch as her partner cooked. Still, his focus was unbroken as he put his all into creating the perfect meal. And when the orzo was ready Zach hastily drained the liquid from the pot leaving only the flavor enhanced grains behind. He added in the sliced vegetables along with some fresh herbs before mixing it all together with a cilantro lime dressing until it resembled a pasta salad.

By this time, Zach had already prepared two plates of halibut and plated them alongside a small portion of orzo. Amanda looked on intently at each plate while he set them aside to retrieve two wine glasses. filling each glass with the previously acquired wine, Zach took a step back to admire his handiwork. "There we go." He said proudly. He wasn't sure if she would like it but hopefully, the taste would win her over. After all, who could resist a good meal? He couldn't wait to see her reaction.