a/: My cousin bugs me every year to make this for new year so every time I do bake this.. I always tell my mom to buy John’s bananas XD

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johnten

Ten is an eccentric character in Neo Cakes and Treats with how he detested fruits in general. Everytime fruits are involved, he would flee the kitchen. Kun would laugh at him while Taeyong would roll his eyes but the Thai’s fear of fruits stuck so they had to just deal with the diva when it comes to fruits.

Fruit and vegetable cakes are an acquired taste but it is quite an ingenious way to feed tricky people their daily dose of fruits and vegetables. While most fruits are used as filling for cakes, it can still be incorporated into the batter. A word of caution though, since fruits are rich in moisture, it can make your batter rather doughy, collapse or unevenly cooked.

“Hey handsome, what can I get you?” Ten greeted the new comer and the guy, a tall one with those pouty lips looked at him and smiled.

“Oh hey, coffee a strong one please and something to go with that.” The customer said and Ten nodded.

“can I get a name for that order?” Ten asked and the guy smiled and nodded.

“Johnny.” He supplied and Ten nodded, he liked the sound of Johnny’s name.

“We have Danishes and loaves and some cakes, do you have an inkling of what you’ll want to have?” Ten asked and Johnny mused.

“Do you perhaps have a Banana Bread?” Johnny asked and the mention of bananas made Ten cringe. “Is it that bad of a choice?” Johnny asked and Ten shook his head.

“No, it’s okay but I just don’t like fruits in general.” Ten shrugged and that made Johnny gawked at him.

“How could you? They are good for you!” Johnny remarked.

“We tried to tell him that. Hi Johnny hyung!” Jaehyun greeted as he passed by the counter.

“Oh Hi Jaehyun! Loved the cake you sent over. Doyoung hogged like half of it.” Johnny chuckled and Jaehyun laughed along.

“Good to know he’s still enjoying the food I make.” Jaehyun commented.

“So, I guess I’ll just have a ham sandwich.” Johnny turned to Ten who nodded and rang up his order.

“It’s Ten.” Ten spoke and Johnny blinked at him. “You’re looking at my name tag, it’s Ten.” He clarified and Johnny smiled and nodded. “Have a seat, will serve it to you.” Ten said and Johnny thanked him.

Banana bread is technically a cake baked in a loaf pan. The secret to this type of cake is the bananas used are very ripe, providing acidity to react with the baking soda or baking powder. Many techniques are utilized to make a banana cake, from creaming the butter and sugar like a normal sponge cake to using melted butter or even oil for an all-in type of batter. Bananas are mashed but not pureed. This is important to have the texture and taste on the final product. And since no milk is added to the mix, the cake is lighter and the banana flavor profile is  highlighted

“You detest fruits Ten.” Taeyong pointed out as he watched the baker tried to overcome his fear of fruits and peel a banana.

“Just think of it as a man’s banana.” Yuta supplied and he earned a shove from Taeyong.

“I’m scarred!” Donghyuck, their part time worker fled the room to run to Jaehyun or Kun while Ten glared at his friend.

“You’re not helping!” Ten shouted.

“Why are you even trying to make a banana bread?” Taeyong asked and Ten bit his lip.

“Maybe I like Jaehyun’s boyfriend’s friend and he likes banana bread?” Ten answered unsurely.

“Johnny?” Taeyong and Yuta asked and the same time and Ten nodded.

“Damn, you got your work cut out for you.” Yuta snickered.

“Why? You know him?” Ten asked and Yuta nodded.

“He’s a friend of ours and he is pretty much oblivious to any time of flirting and he’s set on dating Yoona noona.” Yuta answered and Ten almost teared up hearing that.

“Yuta!” Taeyong reprimanded his boyfriend and went to hug Ten.

“Oh, sorry Ten. It’s just he’s really not that welcoming to idea of dating.” Yuta said and Ten nodded.

“Great, I liked a stupid straight guy.” Ten exasperated.

“He’s bi.” Taeyong corrected and Ten nodded, at least he’s not straight.

Banana bread is versatile in terms of addition of spices and nuts. The  most common spice added is cinnamon and it gives a warm note to the cake. Nuts like pecans and walnuts work well with the bread, giving it crunch, a contrast in texture to the soft cake. The nuts compliment the sweet and delicate flavor of bananas which makes for a delightful experience. In place of nuts, chocolate chips can be added as well contributing to a more modern appeal.

“Hey Ten!” Johnny greeted and Ten smiled at him just as bright.

“Hey Johnny.” He greeted back. “What can I get you?” He asked and Johnny looked at the display for the treats when his eyes lit up.

“Oh is this a banana bread?” Johnny asked and Ten nodded.

“Banana and Walnut Cake, with light whipped cream.” Ten explained and Johnny was sold.

“I’ll have that and a cappuccino.’ Johnny said and gave Ten his card.

“Have a seat, I’ll prepare them.” Ten said as he handed the card back to Johnny.

Ten prepared his order and quickly served it to Johnny who gave him a kind smile. He was about to leave when Johnny stopped him, grabbing his wrist and looking at his eyes.  “Do you have time?” He asked and Ten looked at the counter where Jaehyun gave him a thumbs up so he nodded. Ten took a sit across Johnny who smiled wide at him. He smiled too and asked him his concern.

“Do you make custom cakes? Like sculpted cakes?” Johnny asked and Ten was confused for a moment.

“Oh for like birthdays?” Ten asked and Johnny nodded as he took a bite of the cake.

“This is really good.” Johnny remarked and Ten smiled, at least his creation was edible. “So like it’s my birthday soon and I want to have a sculpted cake.” Johnny said and Ten nodded.

“Sure we can do one. Who is it for?” Ten asked and Johnny grinned at him.

“Mine.” Johnny revealed and Ten was surprised. “It’s on the 9^th.” He added and Ten gasped.

“You’re a February born too!” Ten was excited, he’s a February born as well. “Mine’s 27^th.” He said and Johnny smiled knowing that.

“Great! And well my idea is to have a giant Banana cake that is shaped as a banana.” Johnny said and Ten blinked at him like a goldfish.

“You want a what?” Ten asked and Johnny snickered.

“Where does Bananas grow?” Johnny asked and Ten was confused and a little weirded out.

“Tropical countries. They need warm humid air to grow.” Ten answered and Johnny laughed.

“The amazon silly.” Johnny answered but it confused Ten.

“I don’t get it.” Ten confessed and Johnny stopped laughing and coughed a bit.

“I liked bananas and amazon is a play on my name, John.” Johnny explained and Ten grimaced as he thought for a while.

“Oh, oh, John’s bananas!” Ten said and Johnny raised his hand for a high five.

“Yeah, so can you do it?” Johnny asked and Ten nodded.

“We can do it, you want a real banana looking cake? That’s it?” Ten asked and Johnny nodded like a puppy, a very cute but large puppy. “Sure, let me get an order form so we can settle it.”

Sculpted cakes need firm sponges for their base and banana cakes freeze-thaw well so it is perfect for the job. Layer the cakes with regular buttercream; you can add banana slices and walnuts as filling to give it depth in flavor and texture. Chilling the cake is important in carving and  to have smooth stable base for covering in fondant.

 Ten powered through and completed the banana cake, even painting the fondant to look as realistic as possible that his co-workers were pretty amazed by his skill and dedication. For a person who hates fruits like his life depended on it, he tolerated the bananas, mashing them up by hand and carving the cake to accuracy.  

“It’s done, go and deliver this thing!” Ten screamed as he threw the piping bag on his work bench.

“Oh, you’re going to deliver that.” Kun pointed out and it made him raise a brow,

“Jaehyun, Taeyong hyung and Yuta hyung are coming to the birthday party right? Why couldn’t they deliver this?” Ten asked and Kun handed him the order slip.

“It said, please have Ten deliver the cake, pretty please.” Kun highlighted and Ten was confused.

“Why me?” Ten asked and Kun shrugged his shoulders.

“How would I know? I am not Johnny.” Kun shrugged and went to check on the dough he was proofing.

Ten sighed as he drove towards the restaurant where Johnny was holding his party. The cake wasn’t as heavy for him to lift alone but as really grateful that the restaurant had prepared a trolley for him to use. He loaded the cake on it and pushed it towards the dining hall were Johnny was entertaining his guests. Johnny saw Ten, bundled up in his NCT jacket as he pushed the trolley and he immediately ran towards him to hug him.

“Glad you can make it.” Johnny said and Ten laughed.

“Of course you can’t miss your cake! Happy Birthday!” Ten greeted and Johnny thanked him before admiring the beautiful piece served to him.

“This is so realistic, did you make it?” Johnny asked and Ten nodded. “You’re super awesome!” Johnny remarked and asked his friends to gather around to admire the cake and to sing him a birthday song.

Ten wanted to leave to let Johnny have his moment but Johnny had pulled him close to him, hand resting on the small of his back and the younger was trapped as his heart pounded erratically inside his rib cage. After Johnny had blown the candle, he was given a knife and he cut opened the cake, serving himself a slice. Johnny moaned at how delicious it was and then offered some to Ten who reluctantly ate the offered cake, smiling as he swallowed it.

“You’re really amazing Ten.” Johnny remarked and that made Ten blush.

“Thank you. Uhm I should go back, Kun needs help closing the shop.” Ten said but Johnny won’t let him go.

“Can’t you stay a bit more?” Johnny asked with hopeful eyes ad Ten was conflicted.

“Sorry, I really can’t. Enjoy the night Johnny.” Ten waved but Johnny pulled him back and kissed him on the lips. Ten kissed back almost instantly until he realized what was happening, so he pushed himself away and looked at Johnny. “But you don’t want to date anyone but Yoona-ssi!” Ten exclaimed. “Yuta hyung told me!” He added and that made Johnny chuckle.

“I may have asked them to say that, sort of rile you up.” Johnny confessed and that made Ten blush so he looked down on his feet. Johnny placed a finger on his chin and lifted his face to look at him and Ten’s breath was taken by how handsome Johnny truly was. As Johnny leaned in to kiss him once more, Ten placed his hands on Johnny’s cheeks and pulled him in, crashing their lips in a passionate kiss.

“Get a room geez.” Yuta howled and everyone laughed as the two broke off flustered.

“enjoy the dinner Ten, Kun already locked up and is on his way here.” Taeyong informed him and then took the knife to get himself a piece of the cake. “Tasty.” He said with a wink and left with Yuta dangling from his arm and the older of the two feeding the younger with the cake.

“Yeah, I like you. Forgot to say that.” Johnny said and Ten punched Johnny lightly.

“You made me bake banana cake for you. I hate fruits yet I did that for you because I like you too!” Ten said and Johnny was sure, he’ll keep Ten for the rest of his life.

a/n: Please forgive me for all the puns in this chapter. Now let’s scurry like minions in search of bananas!