"Hey Vell, let us go get something to eat. I am starving!" His little cousin ran over with a big smile.
He looked down at her clinging to his arm, and he could not help but feel a small spark of happiness. She was the only thing in his troubled life that made it worth getting out of bed each day.
"Fine. What do you want to eat?" He asked, trying to sound bothered even though he was already reaching for his wallet.
Maya tapped her chin, pretending to think hard. "Ice cream first, then real food."
"That is not how meals work."
"It is how my meals work," she said with a grin.
He sighed. "Your teeth will fall out."
"Then you can buy me fake ones. Gold ones! I will look cool."
"You will look ridiculous."
"Still better looking than you," she said, skipping ahead.
---
Her parents had died in a car crash.
They were not good people. Their whole family talked about them like they were something to be ashamed of, so when they were gone, no one wanted to take care of her.
Not even Vell's parents.
At the funeral, she stood alone, crying hard. She had nobody. Everyone walked away like it did not matter. Like she was not even standing there with tears all over her face, sniffling as if she had lost everything.
Vell could not stand it.
He watched her walk up to people, begging them with her eyes, only to be turned away. One person even pushed her down. That was when Vell lost his temper.
He ran over, helped her up, and asked if she wanted to come with him. Her eyes lit up when he asked, as if she had not heard a kind word in weeks. She nodded, too scared to say anything.
"Do you know who I am?" he had asked her gently.
She nodded slowly. "Cousin Vell."
"That is right. And do you want to come stay with me for a while?"
Her eyes had grown wide. "Really? You would let me?"
"Yes. Just until things get sorted out," he said, not knowing then that "sorted out" would mean forever.
They lived together from that day on.
It was not easy.
She was not well-behaved at first. She fought against taking baths, refused to study, and often smelled bad.
Most people would have given up. But Vell did not. He stayed with her, even when she made it very hard.
"I do not want to take a bath!" she had screamed one day, hiding under the bed.
"Maya, you smell like old cheese. The neighbors are complaining."
"Let them complain! I hate water!"
He had to drag her out, kicking and yelling. "You are not a cat! Humans need baths!"
"I want to be a cat then! Cats are better!"
"Fine, be a cat. Cats still clean themselves. You do not even do that!"
Slowly, she started to trust him, and she began to listen. Three years later, she became the top student in the whole region.
She grew into a smart and well-mannered, beautiful girl.
---
They arrived at the ice cream truck, and she began to scan the menu, trying to choose between many flavors as she always did. Vell watched her and felt a smile form on his lips. He could not help himself.
"Maybe you should eat fewer sweets. You might get even fatter."
She froze and narrowed her eyes at him. Inside, she was smiling. He always did this, always took the bait. It was too easy.
She kept a straight face. "Oh really? I look like a princess, thank you very much."
"Sure, a princess who eats too much."
There it was. She pretended to be upset and turned around with great drama.
"I am not hungry anymore."
She walked away with her shoulders stiff, counting in her head. Three... two... one...
Right when she expected it, his laughter broke through. She had tricked him. She always did.
"Come on, I am just joking with you, don't get mad. I will buy you two ice creams. How about that?"
She stopped, hardly able to hide her smile. She could picture him standing there, worried that she was angry.
"Two?"
She turned around slowly, keeping her face innocent while her mind celebrated. She had played him perfectly.
"Yes, two."
"Make it three and I will forgive you," she said, testing her luck.
He crossed his arms. "Don't push it."
"Fine, two and a half."
"How do you even get half an ice cream?"
She grinned. "You buy three and eat half of one."
"That is the worst math I have ever heard."
"I got perfect grades in math. My teacher says I am a genius."
"Your teacher has not seen you try to split a bill."
She laughed and walked back to the ice cream truck. "I want chocolate and strawberry. With extra sprinkles."
"Your stomach will hurt later."
"Worth it."
She walked back over, smiling wide, while he let out a breath of relief. He did not know she was tricking him... actually, he knew but always fell for it anyway.
---
The next morning, Vell found Maya in the kitchen, surrounded by a mess of flour, eggs, and what might have been butter once.
"What happened here? Did the refrigerator explode?" He asked, still half asleep.
Maya stood in the middle of it all, a cooking book in her flour-covered hands. "I am making you breakfast. It is pancakes. Or it will be pancakes. Maybe."
He looked at the bowl of lumpy batter. "That looks like cement."
"It will taste better, I promise." She stirred harder, sending flour into the air.
"Why are you doing this?" He grabbed a towel to wipe flour off the counter.
"Because you always cook for me. I wanted to do something nice." Her face was serious and determined.
He felt a warmth in his chest. "That is... thank you."
"Do not thank me yet. You have not tasted them." She poured the batter into the pan, where it landed with a sad plop.
Twenty minutes later, they sat looking at burned discs that only somewhat resembled pancakes.
"They look a bit dark," Maya said, poking one with her fork.
"Dark? They look like hockey pucks."
She frowned. "Just try one."
He cut a piece and chewed. And chewed. And chewed some more.
"Well?" she asked, hopeful.
He swallowed hard. "They are... crunchy."
"Is that good?"
"Pancakes are not supposed to be crunchy."
Her face fell.
"But," he added quickly, "they are not bad for a first try."
Her smile returned. "Really?"
"Yes. Next time we will make them together. I will show you how."
"Deal." She dumped syrup over the burned pancakes. "More syrup fixes everything."