The weekend zoomed by faster than I thought because in a blink of an eye, it was already the day of the potluck. I watched my parents make the phá» in a huge steaming metal pot at the restaurant and I wondered if it would be enough for all of the students.
Most people tended to bring small types of dishes to potlucks, but I didn't mind bringing something as big as phá» as long as it meant saving the restaurant. Watching my parents make the broth, they let me stir some on my own and add some of the vegetables and spices. I kept forgetting which spice was which though and I knew that if Luca was there, his eyes would have definitely drilled holes into my back like the perfectionist chef he was.
I wonder if he would like the phá» we made. Oh well, it didn't matter how much he liked it. What really mattered is if other people will like it. The morning was so stressful for me, I looked terribly haggard walking out of my house with a heavy pot of phá». Making sure not to spill it, I practically moved like a snail on the way to the car and school.
"Have fun! Make sure people like the phá»!" called my dad from the car, waving at me.
"Yeah, yeah I'm sure they will," I replied, waving him off. I couldn't help, but chuckle a little at his statement. Make sure they like the phá»?! How could I possibly do that when everyone had their own opinions?!
Lugging the heavy pot into school, I felt like my back was going to break from all the weight I was carrying. Even though there were plenty of kids I saw that were also carrying a plate of food, I still got a couple of stares on my way to the school office. I mean I was carrying a giant metal pot so I guess I couldn't really blame them.
Entering the school office, I poked my head out of the corner to see any sign of people. Noticing me, one of the office ladies stopped typing on her computer to peer at me over her glasses.
"Hello dear, do you need something?" she inquired.
"Yeah, do you have a place where I can keep this until lunch time?" I asked, holding up the pot as best as I could, the weight starting to tire my arms.
Noticing the pot, understanding washed over her face. "Oh of course! Just put it on the table next to the door over there," she said, pointing at a gray table with various items on it already.
"Thanks," I smiled at her, walking over and placing it on the table. There were a couple of lunch boxes and bags there too, assuming that this must be where people dropped off items. About to leave, the door next to the table opened as a girl came in.
We both looked up in surprise at the unexpected encounter. She awkwardly smiled at me, "Oh didn't expect anyone to be here. What's that on the table?" She gestured her head towards the pot.
For a second, I froze remembering the days of elementary school when classmates used to question the food I brought. The look of judgement on their face was something I buried deep down in my memories, hoping to forget. For a second, I wanted to lie. I wanted to say "oh just noodles" or "this is for someone else". Anything to avoid being associated with my culture.
However, her voice didn't seem judgmental as she stared at me. She just seemed curious so I thought maybe I didn't have anything to worry about.
I hesitated before replying, "Uh, it's phá». It's for the ASU Club potluck today."
"Ohh I see. Sounds delicious," she smiled at me before taking something off the table and leaving.
I smiled a little to myself, thinking about the potluck. It was a great opportunity for a bunch of people to try the phá» and I hoped they would like it enough to increase our business. After I left, I felt antsy the whole morning in my classes. Whenever I thought about the potluck, my leg would involuntary jiggle out of anxiety and I'm pretty sure it drove my desk mates nuts as most of them would shoot me an annoyed look.
Could lunch time come any faster?! After a few more torturous hours of staring at the clock in my classes, lunch time finally came!! I practically ran to the office, carefully grabbing the pot to lug to the big Multipurpose Room that my school often used for events like the ASU Club potluck today.
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Already at the entrance, I could see that the doorway was decorated with some long strips of gold paper and white balloons. A huge banner that hung across the top of the door said "ASU CLUB". Wow very fancy, I thought. Even from where I was standing, I could see how busy it was inside and I knew I couldn't just stand idly by.
I quickly walked inside and the bustling of voices got louder as I came nearer. There were tables overflowing with food of all assortments and chairs everywhere. The walls were adorned with Asian country flags and I awkwardly stood there for a moment, feeling overwhelmed.
Someone passed by, I presumed a club member, saying, "You can put that over there!"
I nodded my thanks at them and carefully placed the phá» pot on one of the lesser filled tables. There was so much food that I was worried that not enough people would try the phá». I looked around wondering where Luca was. He was supposed to be here to help me hand out flyers, but his characteristically dark shaggy hair was no where to be found.
Deciding to not waste any more time, I took off the lid of the pot. Shit, I hope it didn't go cold. I might need some kind of portable stove to heat it up again. I stirred the pot a little and tasted some of the broth with one of the plastic spoons I randomly snagged.
Well it wasn't as hot as it was before, but it was still warm. It'll be enough for now. I breathed a sigh of relief as I took out a stack of plastic bowls and spoons for people to try.
Jeez, where the hell is Luca?!
A warm hand on my shoulder made me jump and I almost dropped the soup ladle.
"Hey, you got the flyers?" said a familiar deep nonchalant voice.
Recognizing Luca, I turned around to glare at him for scaring me. Today we were unintentionally matching, I realized. He was wearing a white t-shirt with light wash jeans while I was wearing a white tank top and light wash jeans. From the outside we looked like one of those cheesy couples who wore matching outfits on their dates or something. I gawked at him for a moment, feeling a little embarrassed. I hope he did NOT notice. "Finally you show up. Here, hand these out and look approachable for once please," I cleared my throat before saying.
I handed him a huge stack of small flyers I printed out. He rolled his eyes while taking them from me. "At least I'm more charismatic than you. Just watch," he said with an air of confidence I wasn't used to hearing as he walked over to the entrance.
I crossed my arms, raising an eyebrow at him from across the room. The first person that came in was a girl and he smiled at her. He smiled at her. My jaw dropped in surprise. They talked for a moment and he handed her a flyer in which she took, blushing for a moment while sneaking back glances at him when she walked away.
I gritted my teeth. I don't know why I hated seeing that image so much. Luca was good looking, I knew that for a fact. So shouldn't I be happy that he would help promote the restaurant more?! Turning back, I started serving a line of students bowls of phá» while grumbling to myself.
I smiled at the students as I offered them bowls of phá», but on the inside I was anxiously dying. I hope they liked the phá» because it would be a disaster if they didn't. Suddenly my mood lifted when the next person in line that appeared was none other than Alex!
"Hey Allison, told you I would stop by," he smiled, his dimpled cheeks showing.
I smiled warmly at him while serving him a bowl of pho. "I'm glad you came. I hope you enjoy the phá»."
I glanced up for a second towards the other side of the room only for my eyes to come into direct contact with Luca's. He was staring at Alex and I with an annoyed look on his face. Jeez, he was back to scowling again? What was his deal? I thought we were on good terms now.
I sighed, shaking off the feeling of Luca's blatant staring. "Tell me how it goes alright? I'm kind of nervous people won't like it," I said to Alex.
Alex held the bowl closer to his face as he took in a whiff of the smell. "It smells really good to me. I'll let you know, but I'm sure you have nothing to worry about," he reassured.
We were suddenly interrupted by a girl who weaved through the line to us. "Hey, there'a something I have to ask about this phá»," she said, looking at me.
Oh no. What could it be?!