Chương 15: Cooked

A large problem with sharing a meal within a sauna was the mess it made. A steamy, hot, mess.

Even though the meal was simple, it was leagues beyond what anyone had experienced in this world.

'How fucking dumb are these guys to have not invented the most basic concept of life's best enjoyments?'

Everyone gathered around while Lilo passed out pieces of his bread and they dipped it into the tomato sauce.

These wipers were not used to this level of pleasure. Food was a resource, a sacred part of the day used to refuel themselves, much like sleeping.

Sure, raw foods each had distinct flavors, some were even potent, such as fruits; but no one had ever thought to use heat or to mix ingredients.

Cooking was an alien concept in this world and Lilo was baffled that no one had thought of this.

"Well... It's not that no one has thought to do it... It's more that it is forbidden." Soda's brother said.

'Forbidden? Also, what's your brother's name? I'm tired of the author referring to him as Soda's brother.'

"Author? Well, his name was Chalant... but they might have changed it when he got enslaved by the spire."

Lilo dug into his food, savoring each bite of his hard earned meal.

"Ayo you got enslaved?" Lilo turned to Chalant nonchalantly. "Me personally, I wouldn't let that happen."

Chalant looked at him with utter shock written all over his face. Soda's jaw dropped to the floor and he nearly fainted... well, I'm not really sure ghosts can faint, but he certainly lost cognitive functions.

"Listen... We have a lot to catch up on but I don't think this is the place to-" Chalant retorted but was cut off by Lilo's hand on his shoulder.

"C'mon, we're family." Lilo looked around the sauna full of wipers who were enjoying the meal. "And I fed these people, they're practically family too."

"Y'all aren't going to snitch, right y'all? Lilo nodded at the dozen wipers who also nodded in response.

"See?" Lilo put an arm around Chalant and grabbed another piece of bread with his other hand. "So tell me brother. How have you been?"

For a moment both Soda and Chalant stayed frozen, not sure how to react to Lilo's strange demeanor.

Lilo was not sure if Soda and Chalant had a good relationship; in fact he had no clue about who Soda was as a person before he died.

But he didn't care. He accepted where he was and he chose to be present in the moment. In his past he was distant with his family.

He had tunnel vision and only focused on his career. Now that he had a new life and a family member that was alive; he figured the past didn't matter.

Right now, in the present, he wanted to care for his brother; even if Soda felt differently about it.

Chalant was a wiper. His hands were callused from hard labor and his eyes were baggy from sleepless nights.

Although they had basic needs met and even a sauna to relax in, they were the lowest tier in status here, just barely above a craver.

Lilo studied Chalant's features. He looked to be around 16 years old, but his face seemed more rugged and aged from all the labor he had been forced to do.

There was still a sense of pride and self respect in his dark yellow eyes. Freckles littered his high cheek bones and his sharp jawline was clean without facial hair.

To Soda, this was his older brother. To Lilo, it was just a child in captivity. Chalant's eyes softened as he felt the embrace of Lilo and tasted the wonderful food.

To Lilo's surprise, tears started to brim Chalant's eyes and stream down his face. A soft, quite sob escaped Sam's lips.

"Whoa there... was the food really that amazing?" Lilo tried to brighten the mood.

Sam shakes his head and bites his lip to stop himself from stuttering as he spoke.

"It's been so long since we left... I miss home. I miss our family. I missed you." Chalant turned to face Lilo and a look of pity reflected in his eyes. "I'm so sorry for what we did to you... How did you survive? What have you... become? You're so different. It's like you're a totally new person."

'Yeah... funny you say that.'

Before Lilo could respond, Soda interrupted him, floating between Lilo and Chalant .

"He doesn't deserve an explanation." Soda's face was stern, cold and unnerving.

'Why?'

"They buried me alive." Soda's voice trembled as those harrowing words left his mouth. "Do you know what it feels like to have your own cries for help being muffled by dirt that is being shoveled onto you by your loved ones?"

Lilo retracted his arm from around Chalant and looked down at the damp floor. The food he was enjoying now lost taste in his mouth.

What Soda just revealed was sobering.

"I didn't even drink it because I succumbed to cravings. It was an accident!" Soda said, his voice distant to Lilo.

"Please don't push me away brother." Chalant put his arm around Lilo. "Listen... I know what we did to you might have seemed wrong but... what else were we supposed to do? We were scared... and we didn't want you to go through what would have happened to you eventually."

Lilo looked deep into Chalant's eyes. Would Lilo have done anything differently if he had known that his family was infected? Was it wrong of them to do what they did to Soda? Was it Soda's fault? Was Chalant really a good person?

"Well I didn't turn into a glutton did I?" Lilo smiled at his brother.

Yes, his brother. This was not Soda's brother anymore. Soda may have harbored negative emotions towards his older brother, and it was justifiable too; but Lilo didn't share that past with him.

He had only just met him, and felt sympathy for the guy. Chalant smiled back and embraced his younger brother, unbeknownst to him that Lilo was the man behind the forgiveness, not Soda.

Soda was floating off in the distance, rage boiling in his heart for the decision Lilo made without his consent. It was still his body, and to him it was capital betrayal to have caused his brother to believe that he was forgiven.

"So what happened? How did you end up here?" Lilo asked.

"I'm really much more interested in how you got here little brother." Chalant said matter of factly. "My story is simple really. Mom died of heartbreak not long after we buried you. Dad abandoned me in the outskirts. I got picked up by some shepherds and a handler deemed me to be a wiper."

"Oh..." Lilo scratched his chin. In his past life he had a luscious beard, and he would stroke it out of habit when pondering something; but now all he had was his smooth chin.

Lilo briefly filled Chalant in on what he knew of how he ended up at the spire and why he was so different. He didn't tell Chalant the true nature of how he was reincarnated.

He only told him of the events that happened as if he were Soda explaining this himself. Soda was listening to this and was even more infuriated that Lilo would abuse his ability to use his body to seel the impression that it was Soda himself.

It was an odd ordeal but Lilo didn't feel any remorse or guilt. All these moments of him abusing his right to Soda's body was kept tabs of by Soda; who was awaiting the day he could plot his revenge.

Once Lilo finished catching Chalant up to speed, he asked the question that had been brewing in his mind when listening to Chalant's story.

"Hey, I get that you were placed as a wiper but why? Weren't you guys part of a spire before you buried me? What jobs did you guys have there?"

Sam's face was contorted in confusion, prompting Lilo to think he asked a wrong question; but before Soda or Chalant could answer that question, suddenly one of the wipers in the sauna barfed.

And then another one followed. And another, and another.

'What the hell?'

Lilo watched as the steamy room turned into a disgusting pool of... blegh

'Wait... I didn't use any expired ingredients did I? Hold on a second... Soda! You told me it was forbidden to cook. Why?'

A devious smile appeared on Soda's face, relishing this small taste of revenge for Lilo.

"Each food here serves a purpose. We eat it raw because every ingredient is sacred and specializes in providing something for our health." Soda shook his head in a mocking manner.

'Even the regular foods here are supernatural?'

"You mix those potent super foods together and... the concoction usually ends up being poisonous. You can't meddle with the science of magic foods."

Immediately after Soda finished explaining, Lilo emptied his bowls.