Chapter 26: Succulent Meat
"W-What?" My mother blinked, her smile fading as her brain took a moment to catch up. "What did you just say?...Emergency rations?"
"Yeah, I gotta keep my emergency food warm until it's time to...you know, eat it." I shot her a quick look, still keeping my voice casual.
For a moment, she just stared at me, completely confused, her eyebrows furrowed in genuine confusion. Her lips parted as she tried to process what I'd just said...Then, it clicked.
The moment it did, her face turned bright red, and the colour drained from her eyes as realisation struck her like a lightning bolt. She gasped, her hand flying to her chest as she exclaimed while looking at me in an exasperated manner,
"Wait...Y-You...You mean I'm your emergency food?! Your own mother is the emergency dinner you're talking about?!" Her eyes then shot wide open, and she stared at me in shock, mouth agape. "You—You're actually thinking of eating me?!" She shrieked.
"Well, yeah. I mean, if we're stuck in the mountains and there's nothing to eat, I got to go for the next best option, right, since, you know, survival of the fittest and all?" I gave her a nonchalant look, as though the idea were the most logical thing in the world.
Her eyes bulged, her mouth working in shock as her hands trembled. "You... traitorous son!" She screeched, pointing at me with a finger shaking from both fury and disbelief. "How could you think of turning your own mother into a meal?! Other sons would sacrifice themselves to save their mothers, and you, on the other hand, are plotting to eat me?!"
"I'm just being realistic, Mom. If I have to survive, I have to think about these things." I blinked at her, unfazed. "And I'm pretty sure that you'd want your darling son to live on as well, so I think it's a win-win for both of us."
"I can't believe this!" Her body jerked abruptly, backing away from me with wide eyes, as though I might pounce on her at any moment. "You've gone from caring to cooking in one sentence! I can't believe I raised a son who's willing to feast on his own mother!"
Seeing her stare at me with her face still pale, eyes wide in shock, I couldn't help but want to tease her more, so I added,
"Well, I mean, it's only inevitable, Mom...Like if it were anyone else, I wouldn't even bother. I'd just accept my fate, starve, and freeze to death like a normal person."
She opened her mouth to retort, but I kept going, slowly glancing her up and down with mock consideration. "But you, on the other hand…" I let my eyes linger, exaggeratedly scanning her plump figure. "You'd make a perfect meal. All that juicy, tender meat...Just thinking about how flavourful you'd be has me drooling."
"What?! You're not just planning to roast me, but you're calling me fat as well, now?!" Her eyes went wide, and her mouth fell open as she sputtered in disbelief.
I shrugged nonchalantly, putting my hands behind my head as I said, "Hey, I'm just being honest. I mean, you've got the kind of body that screams 'delicious.', Mom...I just have dreams about how succulent your flesh will be with all that melted fat."
Her face flushed bright red, and she pointed a finger at me with an icy glare and exclaimed, "That's it, Luca! I don't care what you think anymore!"
And then, before I could even react, she grabbed my arm, yanking it toward her and pulling herself into me for an exaggerated hug, practically squeezing my arm like it was the only thing she could do to make up for the insult.
"This is how you'll compensate, young man." She muttered with a strict frown. "You'll hold me while I forgive you for calling me a meal, and there's no way around it."
I opened my mouth to retort, but she instantly cut me off. "Don't even think about arguing." She warned, her eyes narrowing and her lips curling into a mischievous smile. "If you do, I'll eat you up right here and now."
Her teeth were bared in a playful but terrifying way, her grin stretched as though she really might just take a bite out of me. It was enough to make me freeze, instantly backing down and raising my hands in surrender.
"Okay, okay. You win." I said, trying to shake off the unease.
But just as I was about to relax and think about how I'd prepare my mother as a joke—maybe a slow roast with some seasoning—something sharp dug into my arm.
I flinched and looked down, only to see her nibbling on my arm like it was a chew toy. She saw me looking at her, but she didn't bother and continued savouring my hand like a puppy with a bone.
"What exactly are you doing, Mom?" I blinked, narrowing my eyes at her.
She paused mid-nibble, looking up at me with innocent eyes, her teeth still lightly grazing my skin. "Well, I wasn't going to do anything at first." She admitted, sounding a little guilty. "But after hearing you talk about tasting each other, I got curious. I thought I'd have a little taste of your arm...You know, since I'm a chef and all. You should understand, right? A chef's gotta try everything."
"You're kidding." I stared at her, my mind completely boggled. "You're really nibbling on my arm just because of that?"
"Hey, I couldn't resist. You mentioned it first, after all." She grinned sheepishly. Her eyes twinkled as she continued, "Besides, you don't really taste that good anyway. Your arm's too firm—no tenderness at all...I wouldn't use you as an ingredient even if I was forced to."
"Oh, thanks for the review, Chef...I'll keep it in mind the next time I try to cook myself into a steak." I levelled a cold, unamused stare at her, my jaw clenching.
Sensing she might've pushed me a little too far and not wanting me to stomp off to bed, she quickly added, "Alright, alright! How about this—you can take a bite out of me to make it even!"
With that, she tilted her head to the side, exposing her fair, slender neck, her finger playfully tracing along the curve. "Go ahead. Right here." Her tone was teasing, but there was a glint of mischief in her eyes...She knew exactly what she was doing.
I froze, my eyes flicking to her neck, my brain short-circuiting for a moment. My mouth opened, but no words came out.
"See? You can't do it. My shy little Luca...Even if you mother offers you a bite, you can't take it." She smirked, clearly enjoying my hesitation, already knowing that there was no way I would do something that was basically a kiss on her neck.
Her smugness was absolutely infuriating, especially since I really did want to take a bite out of her neck and leave a hickey there and was only holding myself back.
I knew she thought she had me cornered, like always...But two could play this game.
"Sure.." I slowly said, my lips curling into a smirk of my own. "I'll bite you back. But…" I let my gaze drift deliberately downward towards her plump chest that was either full of fat or milk to be that large. "...It'll have to be somewhere with a bit more fatty flesh so that I could have a more flavourful bite."
My mother's cheeks went from pale to crimson in a split second when she heard my shameless words. "LUCA!" She screeched, flustered, her hands flying up to cover herself as though I'd actually made a move.
I leaned back with a low chuckle, enjoying her reaction way too much. "What? You're the one who suggested it." I said, my tone infuriatingly calm. "Besides, you should know by now—I'm not someone you can afford to fight with, Mom, since I like to play dirty. So, if you don't want to lose a chunk of flesh before you even realise it, you'd better be quiet and just watch the movie."
Her jaw dropped, eyes blazing with indignation. She opened her mouth to shoot back a retort but clamped it shut just as quickly. Her lips pressed into a thin line, and she inhaled sharply through her nose.
I could almost see the thoughts turning in her head, the storm of insults she wanted to hurl at me. But she knew. She knew she'd never win when it came to my shamelessness and cheap tricks.
A frustrated groan escaped her, and she gave me a look that could curdle milk.
And finally, instead of arguing, she chose the path of silent retribution, stubbornly snuggling closer, gripping my arm tightly like it was her last line of defense. Her head settled onto my shoulder with a determined huff, as if to say, You might have won this round, but I'm still not letting go.
"Accepting your loss, huh?" I chuckled, shaking my head slightly.
"Shut up, you ungrateful son!" She grumbled, her eyes fixed stubbornly on the screen.
The warmth of her soft breasts spread through my arm, and despite the teasing and bickering, the air settled into something softer, something familiar. I let out a quiet sigh, my smirk easing into a small smile.
Yeah, I'd won the battle, but the way she clung to me made it feel like we'd both won the war...