Chapter 21

When I woke, I was starving again. “What time is it?” I asked.

‘It is Sunday September 4th at 12:43pm,’ Adam answered, pretending to be Alexa, despite his deeper voice.

“Funny, my Dad is at work?”

‘Yes, he will be home again just after midnight.’

“Anything important happening today?” I asked as I stumbled out of bed.

Adam stretched out from his cube shape, and encircled my body, laying flat under the t-shirt I had slept in. He replied, ‘I’ve been monitoring the bond and it should complete in the next four hours. I suggest food then a shower.’

“It’s there even any food in the house?”

‘Your Dad suggested you go grocery shopping before he gets home from work Monday afternoon.’

“You talked to my Dad!”

‘No, he left you a note. There are eggs and cheese sufficient for a large omelet,’ Adam suggested.

“That sounds good, what can you do to help?” I asked as I left the bathroom, and headed downstairs.

I was suddenly holding a spatula in my right hand, ‘I can offer services such as a nonstick spatula, that won’t need washing afterwards.’

“Great, I don’t remember, is there stuff in the washer or dryer?”

‘Yes, your gym clothes are still in the washer. I’ve just restarted it, they got a little bit of a mold smell sitting there since Friday.’

“Won’t that need more soap?” I asked as I pulled the package of eggs and the cheddar cheese out of the fridge.

‘No, I suggest changing to a less pervasive soap, or starting to run an extra rinse when doing laundry.’

“Extra rinse is fine, I like that this soap doesn’t have any odor. We started using it when Mom had to go fragrance free because of the cancer.”

‘Ok, you load, add soap, and unload, I’ll handle the rest,’ Adam suggested.

I broke all the eggs and dropped them in a bowl that hadn’t been there earlier. “Wow, you really are going to help with the dishes,” I said, when I realized it was Adam.

I started to get the whisk out of the drawer, when he said, ‘Allow me.’

I watched as an appendage extended from the bowl, turning into a whisk, that rapidly beat the eggs in the bowl. I set a pan on the stove, and added butter to it. I turned on the induction burner to low, and waited for the butter to melt.

When it was ready, I poured in the eggs, and the bowl transformed into a cheese grater. I stood it on the counter, and started grating. I did about half a cup, then put the cheese away. When I returned, Adam had cheekily transformed into a clear container filled with the grated cheese.

I wiggled the pan to see if it was time, it wasn’t. Adam said, ‘I can let you know when it’s time to add the cheese.’

“Sure,” I said, as I busied myself making coffee.

‘It’s time,’ he warned.

I dumped the cheese across the top, then flipped half of it over with an Adam spatula, it reshaped into a half circle, exactly the size of the pan, as I slid it under the eggs. A simple flip with the perfect spatula, and I moved the omelet to the center of the pan.

‘Time to flip again.’

I slid the tool under the omelet, and flipped it over. I poured the coffee into a cup, and added sugar as I was out of chocolate milk again.

I was sipping the hot brew, when Adam let me know it was almost time. I grabbed a plate, and then slid it out of the pan. I moved to the stool at the kitchen island, and dug in. It was perfectly cooked.

“Any advice on timing, or tool assistance, will always be welcome while I’m cooking.”

‘Happy to assist, Sam.’

We went silent as I ate and drank coffee. I glanced at the clock and saw it was now almost one. I really needed to write my solution to the big brass hand. Adam had been right though, I needed a shower first.

Adam had returned to a position under my t-shirt, and I wondered how we were going to shower. I went up to the bathroom, and pulled off my clothes. I could see him faintly there, where the t-shirt had been.

“Are you showering with me, or what?”

‘Actually, I’d prefer not to, but I thought in front of the mirror I could better demonstrate shield mode.’

“Go ahead,” I told him.

He rapidly, like nearly instantly, covered my entire body, then went opaque. He then shifted so that it appeared I was wearing the same clothes I had earlier. Then he shifted again to appear to be a formal suit and tie, then a nice tux, the Darth Vader full suit with cape, and finally, presumably for comedic effect, a hot pink bikini.

“I appreciate that you didn’t go skin tight on my junk, but gave me a cup instead,” I said, fully impressed but ignoring it all for now. I was just too tired.

‘Skin tight isn’t very aerodynamic,’ he said, and he poured himself off of me into the counter where he became a crystal clear cube.

I climbed into the shower, and started the water, when he gave me one last warning, ‘I wouldn’t use the Orb for any monkey business until you get used to your grip strength.’

I hadn’t intended to, but I still appreciated the warning. I didn’t bother replying, and a few minutes later was stepping out and drying off.

“So the outfits you created, was that real, or some sort of hologram?”