The dorm's common room buzzed with conversation as Kaitlyn gave the massive stockpot of curry a few more stirs. Chunks of potato, carrots, and chicken made brief appearances at the surface before sinking beneath the turmeric-colored liquid once again. She closed her eyes, focusing on her taste buds as she tried it one final time. The rich, complex flavors of the carefully balanced spices exploded across her tongue.

  Just right. Good. I think we're just about ready, here…

  Looking down the long counter, her gaze skirted past the three other stockpots simmering away to her left—each containing the same yellow curry base with different kinds of protein inside—and fixed on the small army of rice cookers at the other end. Only half of them were plugged in at the moment, the rest having finished up an hour or so ago. There were only so many outlets available in the common room, after all.

  Got the curry, got the rice, got drinks… Her eyes flicked down to a large cooler sitting along one wall. It was already stocked with pre-portioned cups of mango lassi ready to serve up. …Yeah. We're ready to go.

  "We're all good, Heather!" Kaitlyn called over her shoulder. "Kate's Kitchen is officially open!"

  The blonde flashed her a smile and a thumbs-up before turning to meet the tide of hungry college students waiting in the wings. She would be in charge of handing out the drinks in addition to confirming orders and organizing the line. In moments, the first customers made their way over to Kaitlyn to pick up their food.

  She lost herself in the familiar routine of serving. Generous scoops of curry and rice made their way into insulated to-go bowls as she directed people toward the utensils and lids on a nearby table. Fancy little dispensers, not unlike the ones used at Cappy's, organized the plastics for convenience and lent the entire operation a far more professional air.

  As Kaitlyn worked through the crowd, more than a few compliments and rounds of emphatic praise came her way. She met them all with a polite customer service smile and a "thank you." The words hardly made an impact on her anymore.

  It's not that I don't believe them. But no matter how genuine a person is, the compliment kind of loses its meaning after hearing it for the dozenth time. Not to mention after a few hundred.

  Still, their presence was appreciated. Even if she had more confidence in her cooking than pretty much anything else, it was nice to have that confidence affirmed. Though she knew as well as anyone that college students weren't exactly culinary critics.

  "Wow, Kate. That smells incredible!"

  Eventually, she was drawn out of her routine by a familiar voice. Looking over, she spotted a smiling Esme next in the line of hungry customers coming her way. The dark-haired girl's porcelain skin stood out against a deep emerald sweater that hugged her willowy form. And behind her…

  Kaitlyn blinked. Huh. Elliot's here, too?

  After becoming friends with Esme last loop, Kaitlyn had made more efforts to spend time with the girl this time around as well. She was genuinely nice and fun to hang out with, after all, so why not? That's why she had once again chosen to invite the girl to Kate's Kitchen. But she hadn't spoken to Elliot about it at all. Why would she?

  Maybe I shouldn't be too surprised. I mean, she dragged him along when I mentioned it last loop, too. He just stopped coming because he didn't actually want the food.

  "Hey, you two!" Kaitlyn shot them a cheery wave. "If you like how it smells, you'll love the taste. Chicken, beef, pork, or tofu?"

  "Chicken for me, definitely." Esme nodded sagely. "It's hard to beat in curry."

  Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow toward Elliot, who shook his head. "None for me, thanks."

  She shrugged, not having expected anything different, and deftly served up Esme's bowl. "Here you go. Let me know how you like it."

  "Of course! Thanks so much!"

  The pair moved on, leaving Kaitlyn to handle the rest of the line. Eventually, the opening rush dwindled until only a trickle of occasional customers remained.

  She slumped down into a chair, leaning her head back with a sigh. Wow… just when I thought this couldn't get any bigger, too. I'm exhausted…

  Briefly, she recalled Heather's mom's suggestion of paying someone to help her out. It had seemed so absurd and extra at the time. But now that she was serving literally hundreds of people each week? The workload barely left her with time to prep the spice mixes or try out other new recipes. It was taking everything she had just to make the dinners and desserts that she did.

  Maybe I do need some help. That, or to actually scale back. As much as I enjoy this, it's getting to be a bit much…

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Pulling out her phone, she checked the time. The next rush wouldn't show up until classes let out in about twenty minutes or so. In the meantime, she could afford to take a small rest.

  Her gaze traveled across the room. Is Esme still here? I should totally bug her. I don't think she actually had my curry last time, and I really do want to know what she thinks…

  "Quite the setup you have, here."

  She nearly jumped in surprise, whirling around. Elliot leaned casually against the counter nearby.

  What the… when did he get there?

  "Where's Esme?" She asked before she could stop herself.

  He shrugged. "She forgot something at lab. Had to run and grab it before class. She wanted you to know that the curry was excellent, though."

  "Ah… that makes sense." Kaitlyn relaxed slightly, though she remained confused about the ginger's presence. Did he really just stick around to tell me that? She could have texted me or something.

  Elliot looked around, nodding at the line of stockpots. "I assume you bought a lot of this stuff with your advance, too?"

  She nodded. "Yeah. Cooking's always been a hobby of mine, so I figured why not?"

  He raised an eyebrow. "Sure. Though I'll admit, when I suggested 'investing in a business,' this wasn't exactly what I expected. I'll give it to you, though, you really do go all in with your hobbies."

  She blushed a little at that. Well, ok, maybe this might seem unreasonable to most people. But the route to get here made total sense to me. Besides, you're one to talk, mister hobbies-should-stay-hobbies.

  "I'm honestly surprised," he continued speaking, heedless of her internal commentary. "With the amount of stuff you have here, you might as well just rent out a commercial kitchen."

  Kaitlyn opened her mouth to reply, then closed it again. "Wait… do you think I could do that? Do they have any around here?"

  "No idea.." He shrugged noncommittally. "Probably? You can find all sorts of stuff around campus if you look hard enough."

  A low grumble interrupted her thoughts. Surprisingly, it wasn't her own stomach protesting for once. The sound instead came from Elliot's direction. She tilted her head at him. "Have you eaten yet?"

  "No," Elliot admitted, waving off her concern. "But I'm fine. I can swing by Cappy's after."

  "You sure?" Kaitlyn gestured toward the counter. "I know you don't want the curry, but I can always get you a bowl of rice if you just want that. I've got plenty."

  He blinked. "That's… I suppose I wouldn't mind that. Sure."

  Rising from her seat, Kaitlyn quickly dished up a bowl of plain white rice for the guy. "Any toppings? Soy sauce, green onions, anything? I might have some other stuff in my room…"

  "Nah. Salt if you've got it, but I'm good with just this."

  He took it with a grateful nod, settling in at the table across from her to enjoy the meal. She tried to hide her bemused expression as she watched him eat.

  Seriously? Just salt, nothing else? That can't taste good. How in the world can he stand eating something so basic?

  As she internally judged the guy's food and life choices, he looked up and spoke. "So. What other hobbies do you have?"

  Ok, seriously. Why are you asking? Where's this sudden interest coming from?

  Kaitlyn calmed herself. It was probably just a way of making conversation as he ate. That was all. There was nothing strange about that.

  "Well… I really like playing piano. But that's really the only one I have time for nowadays, other than cooking. I used to be really into Bash Bros, but…"

  He lit up at the mention of the game, his emerald eyes sparkling with interest. "Bash Bros? I used to love that game. Me and Esme would play it all the time. At least, until I got good. Now she refuses to even look at it."

  He latches onto that, but not the piano stuff? Come on… She stifled a sigh. All that work learning piano felt like it had been for naught. But he mentioned liking Bash Bros last loop, too. I never played him, though, so I never got to see how good he actually was…

  Still, she could empathize. "Yeah, I can imagine. I've scared off more than a few people in my time."

  "Really? Well, if you go as overboard there as you do with this," he gestured toward the portable kitchen, "Then I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. We should play sometime."

  That caught her off guard. Blinking in surprise, Kaitlyn couldn't help but stare. "I mean… sure? But…"

  She managed to stop herself just short of asking "why." Why was Elliot suddenly acting all friendly with her? Why was he not only agreeing to, but suggesting a hangout now, when he had seemed to specifically dodge them for the entirety of the previous loop? What had changed?

  It would be nice to know for the future. This is still a rest loop for me, even if it's going… not the way I expected, Kaitlyn promised herself internally. But do I have any real reason to say no? How would I justify turning him down?

  "What's wrong? Scared you'll lose to a master like me?"

  The ginger stared at her with a cocky smirk. Normally, she might have taken that as an insult, assuming that he was underestimating her. But the clear amusement in his expression seemed to indicate he was goading her intentionally.

  She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. You already said you're rusty, so I don't think I have to worry. Besides, I bet you've never even been to a tournament."

  "A tournament? I didn't even realize they had those."

  Kaitlyn's grin widened. "Oh, yeah. They do. And don't worry, I'll take you on anytime. Just let me know when you want to get stomped."

  His eyebrows shot up in amusement. "Those are fighting words, there. Didn't you say you haven't touched it in a while, either?"

  "True. But I'm willing to bet my rustiest character would take you down anytime, even in peak form."

  Elliot blinked in surprise at her sudden confidence, then chuckled. "Fine. I guess I'll have to take you up on that. No getting mad when I cream you though, understand?"

  "Same to you, Elli. Same to you."