“Uncle Ace!” Taiga called out softly the moment he saw him.
“Good afternoon, little Taiga.” Ace scooped him up instantly. “Did you miss your uncle?”
“I did! I missed you a whole lot,” Taiga said, wrapping his arms around Ace’s neck. “Uncle Ace, what are we eating later?”
“Oh, you little rascal all you think about is food,” Ace teased, poking Taiga’s forehead. “We’ll stop by the supermarket with Zett and the others to buy groceries, and then I’ll cook for you all.”
“Hooray!” Taiga cheered happily.
When Ace arrived with Taiga, Zero was busy reading a picture book to Zett. Zett was sprawled on the floor, leaning in close to see the pages, while Zero pointed at the illustrations and narrated the story.
“Zero, Zett,” Ace called out. “It’s time to head home.”
“Okay!” Zett scrambled up with a hop and waved at Taiga. “Hi, Taiga!”
“Hi, Zett,” Taiga said with a smile.
“Uncle Ace, you’re the one picking me up today? Is the old man working overtime again?” Zero asked after putting the book back.
“Yes. Brother Seven has to stay at the Bureau tonight to monitor some solar activity,” Ace explained.
“Figures,” Zero grunted, then turned to make a face at Taiga. “Taiga, you’re getting carried again? Do you actually even have legs?”
“Pfft! Mean big brother!” Taiga stuck his tongue out right back at him.
“Oh, you’ve got guts!” Zero jumped up to pat Taiga on the head, but Ace lifted Taiga higher, and Zero only managed to swat his leg.
“Hey! Uncle Ace, you’re playing favorites!” Zero complained.
“Alright, alright, that’s enough. Let’s head to the supermarket, and then I’ll make you all dinner,” Ace said good-naturedly.
“Fine,” Zero muttered, still a bit grumpy.
“Yay! Master, Master, let’s go to the store together! What do you want to eat? Tomatoes?” Zett asked excitedly, pouncing on Zero.
“Whatever’s fine,” Zero said, somewhat dismissively peeling the “puppy” off his back, though he took Zett’s hand as they walked out. “Let’s go, Uncle Ace.”
At the supermarket, Ace placed Taiga in the child seat of the shopping cart, while Zero held Zett’s hand to make sure the hyperactive kid didn’t get lost. Ace pushed the cart along, consulting the three little ones as they picked out snacks and ingredients for dinner.
After checking out, Ace led the way to the parking lot, carrying Taiga in one arm and the grocery bags in the other. Zero and Zett followed closely behind.
Ace’s car definitely had the most child seats out of all the brothers’ vehicles one in the front and two in the back. This was because Seven and Taro were often too busy to pick up their kids and would ask Ace to help; if they could stay over for the night and be dropped off at school the next day, all the better.
Ace counted his blessings that Mebius was already in elementary school and lived on campus, only coming home on weekends; otherwise, his car would need yet another seat.
Zett chattered away in the back, constantly firing questions at Zero and then at Taiga. Truth be told, having Zett between Zero and Taiga made the atmosphere much better; at the very least, those two wouldn’t start a fight.
It was strange, considering how well Taro and Seven got along. (That is, if you count Taro secretly slipping his reports into Seven’s pile and nearly getting beaten up for it as “getting along.”)
When cooking for children, the presentation is just as important as the taste. The table was a colorful spread:
Garlic Chicken Wings
Chestnut and Tofu Stir-fry
Kung Pao Chicken
Shrimp Balls
Pumpkin with Salted Egg Yolk
Multi-colored Rice Rolls
Emerald Vegetable Wraps
Lotus Root, Corn, and Pork Rib Soup
Ace served each of the three a bowl of soup and plated up some wings, rice rolls, vegetable wraps, and shrimp balls for them.
Taiga picked up a piece of corn with both hands, biting into it with total focus. He was eating so uninhibitedly that a few kernels ended up on his face. He set the cob aside, polished off the stray kernels from his cheek, and moved on to the ribs. Since the meal was for kids, Ace had braised the meat until it was incredibly tender. Taiga’s little teeth made short work of it, easily stripping the bone clean. He tossed the bone aside, ate the meat bite by bite, and then took a long, satisfying sip of soup.
Wow, that feels good. Taiga was so happy he couldn’t stop swinging his legs.
He noticed the rice rolls they looked beautiful and delicious. He saw sweet carrots, crunchy asparagus, and yellow egg shreds. Holding a roll with both hands, he took a giant bite. It was fragrant with toasted sesame, and the seaweed and asparagus were perfectly crunchy. Listening to the sound of himself chewing, he started bobbing his head in delight.
Zett’s eating style was a bit more boisterous. He popped shrimp balls into his mouth one after another, taking occasional bites of his rice rolls.
“So good!” Zett squinted his eyes in bliss, completely unaware of the rice grain stuck to his face. When he got thirsty, he set down the roll and slurped his soup noisily. Crunch, crunch, Zett was tackling the vegetable wraps next. The sweetness of the vegetables quickly won him over. He even stood up to scoop some Kung Pao chicken with a small spoon. Ace saw him struggling and served a large spoonful into his bowl. Zett sat back down, eating the chicken with his right hand while holding a vegetable wrap in his left. The juice from the wrap dripped onto his plate and his hands, but he didn’t care one bit.
Zero, being slightly older, had a bit more decorum. He ate his chicken wings with rice, adding some stir-fried tofu to his bowl to scoop up with his spoon. He used a fork for the pumpkin, finishing it in a few bites. Wings, wings Zero really loved the chicken wings. As soon as he finished one, he went for another. The ribs were also a hit; once his bowl was empty, he held it out to Ace, signaling for more.
Ace added more ribs to Zero’s bowl but reminded him, “Zero, you need to eat some vegetables too.” Zero relented, deciding to finish his vegetable wrap before going back to the ribs.
Ace looked after the three little ones while eating his own meal. He refilled Zero’s rice, kept an eye on Zett’s love for the vegetable wraps and chicken, and checked in on Taiga, who liked everything but was a slower eater. Eating with them, Ace felt he could easily manage an extra bowl of rice himself.
In the end, he actually did.
By the time they were done, the plates were polished clean and the rice was gone. It looked like there wouldn’t be any leftovers for fried rice the next morning. The three little ones slumped back in their chairs, contentedly rubbing their bellies.
Ace felt a bit stuffed himself, but he stood up to clear the table and wash the dishes. He still had to take the three of them out for a walk, give them their baths, and get them all settled into bed.