Chapter 3 - egg salad sandwich

Kain paused in the doorway of the lunchroom and looked around at the scattering of tables and chairs. Within seconds he spotted one of his friends at one of the tables and headed that way. "Hey there, Jason." He said as he set his lunch box on the table and settled into the chair. "Where's Frank and Dean?"

Jason looked up and gave a small wave. "Oh, they'll be here in a minute. They had to use the microwave."
"Well, they'd better hurry." Kain complained playfully. "I'm hungry today."

Moments later they were joined by the other two men, both carrying frozen dinner trays. "Hey!" Dean called as he settled beside Jason. "What's for lunch?" Frank sat down next to him and all three of the men turned their lustful gazes to the cooler.

"I was just about to open it and find out." Kain replied with a grin. Taking a moment to look at his audience, he reached for the zipper and slowly dragged it across its track before flipping open the lid. Giving a final glance at the three pairs of eager eyes watching him, he looked down into his lunch box and smiled. "Oh, this looks delicious."

Reaching in, he pulled out a sandwich wrapped in a clear plastic bag. Small lumps of white peeked out from the creamy yellow filling. "Egg salad. Wonderful!" He exclaimed before setting it aside. Next he pulled out a smaller clear bag holding two hard boiled eggs, their shells removed. "Must have been left over from the sandwich." Setting those on the table, Kain next pulled out a small, squat orange fruit. "Oh! Lucky me, I got a tangerine!" After the tangerine was placed aside, he brought out a small ziplock of pretzel sticks. He smiled at the twig-looking snack and set it aside to pull out the final item of his lunch. The grand finale, a lone raspberry zinger, he help up in his palm like a treasure, the eyes of the other three men rising up to stare at it longingly.
"Man, you sure are lucky" Frank muttered as he glanced down at his microwaved meal. "I wish my wife would pack me a lunch like that."

"Hell, I'd settle for a sandwich and an apple." Dean added. "But the last time I asked, she said I'm a grown adult and can make my own damn food."

"Yeah, you are one lucky son of a bitch, Kain." Jason put in.

Kain's smile widened and he nodded, setting down the zinger to reach for his sandwich. "Yeah, I sure am." He agreed.

Unwrapping the sandwich, he closed his eyes and brought it to his nose. Inhaling deeply, he took in the luscious smells of cooked eggs, mustard, cracked pepper mayonnaise, and the subtle sweet tingle of relish.
The honey wheat bread was soft and fluffy, tearing easily under the pressure of his teeth. The creamy egg salad filling was a delicious balance of savory and sweet, with small lumps of firm egg white and pickle relish. He closed his eyes and let out a soft moan of delight as he chewed.

After swallowing the first bite, he opened his eyes again and tore off two strips of crust before popping the spongy morsels into his mouth. Another bite of sandwich covered his tongue in yellow filling, and he took his time savoring it, running his tongue across the roof of his mouth to collect every delicious morsel.

Too soon, the sandwich was gone and the empty wrapper was deposited back into the cooler. He reached for the eggs next, pulling one from the bag and taking a nibble from the slightly pointed top. He was pleased to find the egg had already been lightly salted and he chewed the rubbery substance cheerfully before taking another, larger bite. As his top teeth reached the edge of the harder yolk, he bit deep, scraping a layer of the crumbly ball. As the cooked yolk tongued his tongue, its mild earthy flavor mixed with a lingering of salt from the last bite of egg white to create a perfectly balanced mix of flavor.

The next bite encompassed the rest of the yolk, which went from a crumbling chalky texture to more creamy as it was crushed and kneaded between his molars. The next egg went even faster than the first and he licked his lips in satisfaction as he swallowed the last bite.

The tangerine was next. The thin orange-colored peel came apart in one large piece and was discarded. A ring of juice-filled slices of citrus sat in his palm. He gently separated the segments and popped one into his mouth. Sweet juice exploded onto his tongue and splashed against the back of his throat. A seed crunched in between his molars. Once more, Kain closed his eyes and savored the taste of his meal. The fruit was at the peak of its freshness. Perfect.

One by one, the juice filled pods were popped into his mouth and eagerly devoured, the juice sipped and swallowed like a drink, the flesh mashed and mangled to extract every tasty drop.

As he finished the last tangerine slice, instead of reaching for the pretzels, he picked up the raspberry zinger. The plastic wrapper crinkled softly as it was pulled open and tossed into the cooler. Holding the cake delicately, he took a small nibble from the end of the treat. The spongy vanilla cake, sugary sweet raspberry coating and dry toasted coconut mingled into a perfect fusion of flavor. Instead of chewing, he mashed the bite against the roof of his mouth and flattened his tongue across the mash to savor the experience. Finally he used the tip of his tongue to break small portions off and sent them down toward his throat.

The next bite contained a portion of foamy cream filling that squirted across the entirety of his mouth as he smashed it. Bite by bite, he devoured the dessert with relish.

"I think I'll nibble on these later at my desk." Kain said to no one in particular as he fingered the bag of pretzel sticks. Licking the lingering cream and raspberry from his fingers, he popped open the small pretzel bag and took out a single stick before sealing it back up. Sticking the pretzel into his mouth, he crunched it quickly, the salt and yeasty bread of the pretzel complimenting the sugar still coating his tongue.

He almost reached for another when the alarm sounded. Lunch time was over.

Tossing the pretzels back into the cooler, he rose and made sure that his space at the table was cleaned. "See you guys later!" He said with a wave, and headed back to his station.