George
_ _ 
 *Creaaaaak..—* 

Pressing his back against the lab doors to open to what seemed to be his second home, the mad scientist would enter with two plastic bags and a plate resting on his palm. Cheap meat. Hard, chewy — a quality so questionable he hardly knew if it was edible. The other bag expensive — meat with a price tag so premium many wouldn't be able to afford to taste it. 

He had picked them out carefully. As carefully as you could when you had 10 minutes to deliver on a wheelbarrow of meat (he hadn't gotten a wheelbarrow, but he supposed a wheelbarrow's *Amount* Would suffice) and a plate of mixed fruit. 

He had gotten them mixed fruit. Some he had newly purchased, some from Dae-hyun's bowl. It would be impolite of him to take up what was supposed to be share with the entirety of the dorm, after all. 

"So, you plan to become our personal grill for tonight?" 

Haoran's monotone voice breaks through the silence as he turns to face his partner in crime, most likely chewing on wires behind one of the desks. He wasn't sure how exactly this was going to go, regardless he seemed fascinated at the concept. 

 *<To cook meat purely through electricity...>* 

Perhaps, if it didn't work, their little project tonight would be a mini grill. Placing the plastic bags on the counters, he'd lean against them.

"I'm curious. We can consider this another one of our experiments."

He huffs, just a little — and the edge of his mouth curves in a slight smirk — just a little.
Jesus
Tuna sat on one of the stools in the lab, rocking back and forth While waiting for Haoran. He came much earlier than what was agreed on- mostly because he didn't want to sit still in his room. 

He had brought with him a portable electric stove just in case they couldn't science experiment the bbq and himself. He picked at the sticker label on the mini stove, checking every now and then for a message from Haoran. 

His head perks up as he hears the door creak. 

"So, you plan to become our personal grill for tonight?" 

"You bet," He hummed, getting up from his seat to go help Haoran bring the bags of meat up the table. 

Eyeing the bags of meat, his mouth began to water. The smell of fresh raw beef wafted the air as he dug through the bag of cheap cuts. 

"Ohohohohoho," He took off his muzzle, digging through the bag, "Haoran, I love you, you know that." He probably shouldn't be throwing around such bold words.

"I'm curious. We can consider this another one of our experiments."

"Mhm," He hummed, quickly unwrapping one of the cheap meats. Tearing open the thin layer of plastic enclosing the cut of tough pork shoulder reveals an almost intoxicating smell of blood that wasn't quite washed properly before sealing. "Smells like my childhood." 

Picking up the wad of meat with his hands, he waved it around in the air as he spoke, "If you're doubting my ability to produce enough electricity to cook meat through, dont worry 'cause I do it on a daily basis." It came off a bit boasty, as if the ability cook beef with your teeth is anywhere as desirable as it is scary.

"Watch, watch."

He put a part of the raw wad of meat in his mouth and chewed. Holding the part of the meat sticking out of his mouth with one hand, he looked like a dog chewing a bone. "Ith thafeth a while." He mumbled, the piece of pork still in his mouth. 

After a while of chewing, the smell of cooked meat and metal started to waft the air. A little bit of smoke came out of the part he was chewing. 

Removing the mangled peace of chewed meat from his mouth, he showed it off to Haoran, looking all proud. The pork shoulder looked less like a pork shoulder and more like a smoking piece of chewed gum attached to slimy pork on the end he didnt chew on.

"Sick right?" He hummed, putting the thing back in his mouth to chew and swallow the rest of it. 

"Anyway, I think its possible so get the wires,"
George
Haoran's expression is nothing short of unamused when Tuna digs through the cheaper cuts of meat like a hungry animal, his muzzle left abandoned on the counter. He eyes it just momentarily, his attention dragged back to the bright blue of Tuna's hair when his dialogue catches the scientist by surprise. 

** "Haoran, I love you, you know that."** 

He still doesn't look amused. Opening the other plastic bag to take out the more expensive pieces of raw meat, he'd resume his unpacking after the slightest pause. Letting out a huff that resembled more like a scoff, he'd give the lab rat before him a raised brow. 

"I'm fairly concerned if a stack of cheap-cut meat is all that is needed to purchase your affections," 

He pauses, laying out the different types of meat on the counter. 

"Even Gabe sells himself higher than that." 

Haoran bluntly responds, but Tuna of all people would know that it was more of an attempt at a joke than anything else. He doesn't show any sign of being humorous though, his eyes blank and his expression dull as ever as he unpackages some of the meat witnessing Tuna chew a meat until it was cooked. 

. . . 

 *Fascinating.* 

And it's undoubtedly a glint of awe that shines in his dark eyes when he sees the chewed up piece of meat, leaning slightly closer to see the now brown piece of pork. 

**"Sick right?**

"Well, yes, in the sense that eating *That* Would make me sick. If you are referring to the colloquial term 'sick', you would be right as well." 

Haoran offers Tuna as a response, already moving to where he had placed the wires the two used last time to pull them out. 

"Alright. Here they are —" 

 He places them in Tuna's hands, before he tears the thing plastic layer of a more pricey cut of meat. 

 "Go on then. I want to see how you'll cook it properly."
Jesus
"I'm fairly concerned if a stack of cheap-cut meat is all that is needed to purchase your affections," 

"Hey, I'm a simple guy," He scoffed, "I'm not one for the finer things in life. The way through a man's heart is the stomach, after all." 

"Well, yes, in the sense that eating that would make me sick. If you are referring to the colloquial term 'sick', you would be right as well." 

"Thanks for spelling it out for me smart guy." He hummed, rolling his eyes. "And I did mean the colloquial term." Something about Haoran just made him want to tease the guy. It was always in good fun, at least in Tuna's eyes. 

Despite Haoran's unamused tone and his resting bitch face, Tuna found himself quite fond of his presence. He wasn't quite sure why; he found him a bit annoying at first, his uptight demeanor kind of resembled his dad. But something Haoran had that his dad lacked was a great curiosity and amusement for his powers. 

Perhaps he found the boy's curiosity amusing. Here Haoran was; an almost carbon copy of his father that he so deeply despised- but less annoying and who showed great interest in his abilities and a level of interest that he's never experienced before at that. 

"Go on then. I want to see how you'll cook it properly." 

Grinning, he immediately goes to work hoking the wires to his teeth. "You sound like you're doubting me." He adjusted the wire's position with his tongue before looking for aluminium foil, wires dangling out of his mouth.

"I remember heating up canned beans and whatever food we had on hand by encasing it in aluminium and hooking that up to my teeth with wires when I was a kid. Money was tight so if we ran out of gas or electricity, I had to fill in as a powerbank." He reminisced, picking up the roll of aluminium. 

The way he told the story was as if he didn't so much find those though days with his mother sad. Instead he sounded a bit prideful, as if he was boasting about being able to help when they didn't have enough money to even cook food. 

He quickly wrapped the cut of beef in the aluminium tightly, leaving two flat ends of each side of the wrapped meat so he could hook it up to his teeth battery. 

"Takes a while." He hummed, not taking his eyes off the aluminium encased beef. 

 ...
 ... 

 *Sizzle* 

After a while of intense staring, the slightest sizzling sound came from the wrapped meat. 

"Hey it's working!" He said, looking up at Haoran with a toothy grin, the wires in his mouth in full display.
George
Haoran looks him up and down, before nodding with a shrug. He didn't exactly agree, because he didn't find himself falling in love with any chef he hired, nor did he feel anything for Craig, but he figured a few seconds through his train of thought that Tuna was merely being metaphorical. 

His gaze shifts back up again as he witnesses Tuna rolling his eyes, an amused scoff escaping his lips. 

"I couldn't tell by how bad it looked." 

There's nothing negative that's actually implied, their usual short yet frequent banters sparking up again. It was how the two entertained themselves whether it'd be over the intranet or in the lab, and while he found himself more frustrated by Tuna's jests and jokes, he grew to enjoy them a lot more. 

**"You sound like you're doubting me."**

"Well, we've never explored this territory of your abilities thoroughly." 

He responds, plainly, before he silently listened to Tuna's past. He was aware of the gist of where he came from, pieces of the puzzle forming what was his understanding of the lab rat's background. Yet, it seemed as if he had enjoyed his past life in rags more so than he did in riches, judging from how Tuna reminisced about his mother. 

"You sound proud of it. It's rare for someone to carry their badge of.. Hm, becoming a portable powerbank for electricity, if that's any honorable." 

 Perhaps, being so useful.. 

 Was that the energy that drove him forward? 

 Not the electricity that his jaws could manifest, but the people who needed it. 

 *<Fascinating.>* 

Haoran comments after a moment of silence, watching as the food slowly cooked. It seemed uneventful at first, but — 

 *Sizzle!* 

 *Sizzle!* 

**"Hey it's working!" **

He tilts his head, before nodding approval as he continued to lean against the counter. 

"That it is. Focus."
Jesus
"You sound proud of it. It's rare for someone to carry their badge of.. Hm, becoming a portable powerbank for electricity, if that's any honorable." 

"Hey its plenty honorable," He scoffed, "I don't know about you, but I've experienced both sides of the spectrum. I've had to sleep on the sidewalk, I've also had days where I'd have to rummage the bins to find something my mother could eat." 

He looks down at the aluminium wrapped meat in front of him, a smile forming on his face. Reminiscing, his expression turns more docile and calm, giving off a different air than what he's normally like. 

The sound of sizzling brings him back. 

"That it is. Focus."

His smile widens into a crossbreed of a smirk and a grin as he puts his attention back onto the wrapped meat. 

"Man this brings me back," He mumbled barely audible enough for Haoran to hear. 

After a while of sizzling and smoking, Tuna reaches his finger to poke at the foil. 

A little spark of electricity popped from where the foil contacted Tuna's skin but he doesnt flinch. "Think it's done." He said, looking back up at Haoran. He unwraps the foil like its a present on christmas day, odd sparks flying every time he touches the foil. 

It was probably a better idea to remove the foil once he's unhooked his teeth, but Tuna was never one for good ideas. 

Unearthing the slab of meat from the foil reveals a grey, almost brown wad of meat. It was cooked! Just not very appetizingly. 

And right below where the Foil touched the counter was a dark brown burn mark that Tuna chose to ignore.

"Hey it's cooked!" He cheeers, removing the wires from his teeth. 

Searching around the room, his eyes lands on the pair of scissors he used to cut the foil. Grabbing the scissors on one hand and the cut of steak on the other he cuts the piece of meat into bite sized pieces for the two of them to share. 

"I'll wash it later." He comments, expecting an expression of disgust from his lab mate's face. 

The steak was not *Grossly* Undercooked. It was medium rare, a bit approaching the rare side of the spectrum, but if Tuna had let it sit for another couple of minutes it'll probably turn out okay. But nonetheless, it was edible.

He took a cut of the steak and put it in his mouth. Haoran probably had utensils in that big bag of his, but it was bold of anyone to assume he'd wait long enough for him to take it out. 

"Hey it needs some salt, but shit it ain't bad!" He said through a laugh after swallowing. 

"God I feel like a kid again." He muttered, taking another cut and eating it leaning back at the counter. "Man."

He crouched down till he was sitting on the floor of the lab, his back leaning on the counter. "I remember," He hummed, looking up at Haoran, "As a kid I would be so excited when the gas ran out. Because whenever it did, we'd pull up the tinfoil and wires. And when we ate that sad plate of beans I warmed up myself, my mother would pat my head and tell me how lucky she was to have a kid like me." 

Silence ran through the room after Tuna's nostalgia induced rant. 

"Ah, but anyway," He hummed, standing back up and patting his pants, "Have a bite of that and we can have a proper barbeque with this porta stove I got after you write down your notes."
George
DAMN IT WHY U ALRDY RESOPND
Jesus
Because im a whore for consistency 😁
George
Oh shit I forgot mb
Today today

_ _ 
"Yes. And I suddenly felt more gratitude for my situation when you told me the first time," 

He looks at Tuna, watching him silently as he cooked the meat. His hand would absent-mindedly reach for his notepad, his pen already dancing across the page as he jotted down the details of what he was witnessing. A voltmeter would be connected to the setup, the readings written down as Tuna continued to reminisce. Haoran, of course, couldn't exactly relate to his situation — wealth was all he had grown to know, so hearing Tuna talk so positively about the one matter he was told to be grateful to not have to go through..

 Fascinating. 

"If I knew grilling with your own teeth held so much sentimental value to you, I would've prepared better." 

Haoran comments as Tuna's murmur is just barely caught by his ears, a raised brow on his expression when the taller male opens the foil to reveal the.. Er.. 

He wasn't so sure what he was looking at. Was this what Tuna and his mother used to eat as a New Year's delicacy? Even he knew where to buy better meat.. And for relatively cheaper. His eyes drift to the burn mark before he looks back at the exuberant Tuna, sliding a piece of paper swiftly over the permanent damage to hide it from the cameras. 

**"Hey it's cooked!"**

"..Right. And we're *Both* Eating this?" 

Haoran questions, but it's merely a jest — a pair of chopsticks later and he would gingerly pick up one cut himself to eat. 

.... It tasted bland. Horribly bland. But it *Was* Edible. 

**"Hey it needs some salt, but shit it ain't bad."**

"I suppose so. Whatever 'ain't bad' implies." 

He nods with mute approval, closing up his notepad to slide elsewhere across the counter. Yet his eyes return to the now sunken figure of his friend, who seemed to be more glad about the grilling itself than the meat's taste. 

**"As a kid I would be so excited when the gas ran out. Because whenever it did, we'd pull up the tinfoil and wires. And when we ate that sad plate of beans I warmed up myself, my mother would pat my head and tell me how lucky she was to have a kid like me." **

"What an interesting way to put such bleak conditions into bright situations. You would do well befriending Uriel. I only wonder if you enjoyed the food itself, or the praise that came with it." 

He says, already taking the portable stove to plug it in. This time, thankfully, they would be able to grill more than just tasteless cheap meat. 

 "I must warn you, however," 

 Haoran has his back turned against Tuna as he plugs the appliance in, the plastic bags by his side. 

"I don't know how to cook. You'll have to chef."
Jesus
"Yes. And I suddenly felt more gratitude for my situation when you told me the first time,"

The sentence made him purse his lips to an almost angry pout. "Spare the pity talk," He huffed, "I'm grateful to be able to enjoy the finer things in life now but if you asked me if I'd rather stay with my rich old hag of a dad or live with my mom like we did before moving, I would take the latter option in a heartbeat."

He was always the slightest bit bothered when someone expressed pity for his previous living conditions. In his mind he really couldn't find anything in the past to feel pitied for. Sure, it was draining for the two of them to constantly worry about having food for dinner or if they would still have a roof over their heads tomorrow. 

But he had his mother and a cause. 

Perhaps his dreams and wishes of going back to their old life is a bit selfish. He might not mind it, but his mother who has been fighting poverty and homelessness all her life would probably like a break from having to dig dumpsters for food. Who was Tuna to take her away from the comfort of the home his father has built for her. 

"..Right. And we're both eating this?" 

"You betcha," He hummed, leaning over the counter, staring at Haoran, afraid he might miss a reaction. 

He watches as Haoran's face morph from that of subtle curiosity to that of unamusement. And as quickly as it appears, his face falls back to monotony. He chuckles at his friend's reaction, His head resting on his palm as Haoran continues to jot down god knows what on his notebook. 

"What an interesting way to put such bleak conditions into bright situations. You would do well befriending Uriel. I only wonder if you enjoyed the food itself, or the praise that came with it."

"I don't remember those memories ever being bleak though." He hummed. "And I mean, I'll eat just about anything, raw or cooked so,"

Uriel was an unfamiliar name. This was likely the first time Haoran has mentioned someone else other than his roommate. Perhaps he had more friends than he led on. Tuna couldn't say anything though, considering Haoran is probably the only person he really hangs around. 

"I don't know how to cook. You'll have to chef."

"Huh." He says, picking up the non stick pan and putting it on the lit stove. "I kinda figured, not gonna lie." He hummed, searching through the bag of cheap meats. 

"Uh, you'd be glad, or maybe disappointed to know that I also do not cook." He laughs, pulling out a cut of cheap steak. "I don't really need to in account of my teeth. I just eat everything raw or through a straw." 

"But I've seen my mom cook beef a couple of times before so uhh." 

Not quite sure what to do, he placed the slab of meat onto the pan, a little too enthusiastically, a big *Thunk* Sound came from the flesh hitting the hot pan. The sound of sizzling followed a little after, which Tuna was much more proud than he should be given credit for. 

Throwing a 'whatever' amount of salt (a bit much) into the pan and a heaping crack of ground pepper, he put the seasoning aside to admire his work. 

"I'm doing it right, right?" The sentence came out less like a question and more like him trying to convince himself he did it correctly. "Yeah." 

Flipping the thing with much struggle, he finally got the piece of meat flipped kind of still in the pan. "See I'm doing great."

After a while of cooking, he plopped the meat into the paper plates Haoran had brought for them to use, the colour a little dark in some parts. 

"Well," He said through a nervous smile, looking at the funny coloured meat. "I mean, doesn't look *That* Bad ."

... 

"Hey your roommate cooks for you everyday right can he teach u-"

 *Fshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh* 

 *POP* *POP*

 *WOOSH* 

The sounds of fireworks outside interrupt Tuna's speech. 

"Ahhh fuck we missed the countdown??" He clicked his tongue, his words barely audible from the sound of the fireworks. He reaches for his beat up phone held together with tape to check the time. 

"Oh well, " He hummed, showing his phone to Haoran, the time written on his homescreen. 

"Happy new year, dude." He said, a wide smile on his face.
George
"I'm not pitying you." 

Haoran quickly jumps to clarify when he looks at the angry yet strangely amusing pout, tilting his head just slightly to the side when Tuna expresses his distaste for his father. He can understand it — it wasn't as if Haoran was any close to his own, but it was clear which one of the two valued higher quality of happiness over higher quality of life. 

"I just found it fascinating. Oddly honorable. Strangely.. A respectable belief. One that I don't share, but at the very least you have such a strong bond with your mother. That's a good thing." 

Haoran only stares back at him as Tuna watches him eat. 

 .... Definitely needs more salt.

**"I don't remember those memories ever being bleak though."** 

He nods in approval, closing the notebook to slide it back into his bag neatly. Of course such a life would have its downsides, but he couldn't help but wonder how he would change as a person had he lived both ways of life — perhaps he would be more casual, like Tuna? Another part of him said otherwise; he wouldn't be himself at all if it weren't for his upbringing. 

"Your digestive system is one of the most impressive things I've ever seen. You may be fine, but I'll have to send myself to the A&E department if this goes wrong." 

Haoran huffs, before he watches Tuna pick up a cheap cut of meat to begin cooking it. 

 He also doesn't know how to cook. 

 It's not exactly the most wonderful revelation he's had tonight. 

"....Surprised, yet at the same time, not much so. It would only make sense that you knew how to cook if you fed yourself better dishes than metal wires and cheap raw meat." 

He isn't sure if tonight's get-together will really induce food poisoning, but it comforts him to know that at least only one of them is getting sick tonight, and it wouldn't be his good friend (He's lying to himself. He feels himself inching towards sickness every passing second). Haoran only lets out a snort — which sounds more like a scoff — when Tuna reaffirms himself. 

"It looks edible. Good enough." 

He nods as he puts down a more expensive cut of meat on the pan this time, and then moving on to cut a small piece of his friend's "Masterpiece" Before him to try as Tuna continued — 

 *POP* *POP* 

 ***BOOM!*** 

**Ahh fuck we missed the countdown??"** 

Haoran silently turns to face the windows outside, watching colors fill the sky. It dawns upon him, the realization, that he's spending the New Years with cheap barbecue in a lab, and not the lavish dinners he used to attend. There's a certain warmth that comes not from the flames underneath the pan but from enjoying the new years like this — not without the snow that came with winter, but the sheer cold from his family. It's no Lunar New Year, but it's something. 

.
.

 "I suppose we did." 

He turns to face him, a slight curve in his lips. 

"Happy new year, Tuna."