Seated across each other as they patiently waited for a server, Cisse continued to probe Arthur for his earlier reaction. "Are you scared of kids or something?"
"No…I don't think so."
"Kids touching you freaks you out?"
"I don't think so. I honestly don't know what happened. I knew what I wanted to say, but my tongue just tripped up."
"Well, I guess that happens sometimes," shrugged Cisse as his eyes landed on the server approaching their table.
"Long time to no see Cy, it's been a while."
"Hey, May, how you been?" Smiled Cisse.
"Living, you?"
"Been alright." Replied Cisse.
"And who do we have here?" Smiled May as her dark brown eyes shifted to Arthur.
"My brother, Arthur. May, Arthur, Arthur, May." Replied Cisse as he gestured from May to Arthur and from Arthur to May.
"Nice to meet you, Arthur," smiled May as she stretched out a hand.
"Pleasure," forced Arthur as he shook out May's hand, a reaction to Cisse squinted his eyes at.
"Alrighty, what would you guys like today?" Warmly asked May, oblivious to Arthur's slightly odd but normal reaction.
"Something light since it's just breakfast." Began Cisse as he shifted his eyes from Arthur to may, albeit slowly. "How about two bowls for Hausa Koko, some Kosei, some Bofrot (bow-fro- oat), some meat pies, and chilled Kenkay."
"Light?" questioned May with an eyebrow raised.
"Hehehe," laughed Cisse with a shrug as he turned to Arthur. "Anything caught you want to try, Art?"
Looking between Cisse and May and his menu, Arthur simply shook his, indicating that he was good with what Cisse ordered.
"Alrighty then," smiled May. "I will be back in a jiffy."
Watching May leave, Cisse turned to Arthur. "You did it again. Are you sure that you are okay?"
"I think so." Arthur faintly smiled. "I'm not sure why, but for some reason, whether the kids or May, whenever I try to speak, words suddenly become hard to come by."
Hearing this, Cisse squinted as he scrutinized every inch of Arthur. "If I hadn't seen you interacting normally with the men, I'd think you had a phobia of people or something. Or, more specifically, a phobia of strangers. But that clearly isn't the case. The only difference I see is that one party is made up of fighters, and the other is made up of civilians. Wait a minute, civilians make you nervous?.....how the fuck is that a thing?"
"How would I know?" Shrugged Arthur. "Weirder is how quickly I return back to normal when they are gone."
"Hmmm, looks like we will have to ask mother for another checkup later… Food is ready."
Alrighty boys, here you are," came May's voice just as Cisse's voice fell.
Placing down various palates and bowls, May flashed a warm as she said, "Enjoy, boys, lemme know if you guys need anything else."
"T-Thank you."
"Thanks, May."
"No problem." Smiled May as she walked off.
Before Arthur laid bows of ball-like pastries, meat pies, a dusky silvery liquid, and a mug of whitish liquid.
According to Cisse, the browner balls of pastries were called bofort, and the lighter ones, which were more clam-shaped than ball-like, were the kosie. While the semi-circle tan-colored pastries were the meat pies. Whereas the dusky silvery liquid was the Hausa Koko, while the whitish liquid in the mugs was the iced-kenkey.
Leaning forward to rest his head in his hands while pushing the earlier matter to the back of his mind, Cisse flashed a warm smile, "Go on, don't be shy."
Giving a slight nod, Arthur reached out and grabbed a bofrot. Feeling its slightly oleaginous exterior upon contact, Arthur instinctively squeezed the bofrot only to be pleasantly surprised by its slight stiffness. Bring it closer to himself, Arthur broke the bofrot in half releasing a thick stream of steam into the air.
Taking a bite, Arthur's pupils couldn't help but dilate as his teeth broke past a slightly crunchy exterior and into an incredibly soft interior. The moment Arthur's tongue came into contact with the soft interior, an explosion of sweetness quickly filled his mouth.
Eyes wide open, Arthur's gaze shifted to Cisse, who simply returned a pleased smile.
"Now, dab the other half into the Hausa Koko."
Following Cisse's instruction, Arthur dabbed the other half of his bofrot into the Hausa Koko.
Placing the combo in his mouth, Arthur's already dilated pupils dilated even more as a larger explosion of sweetness coupled with a hard to describe earthily favor blossomed in his mouth. Fascinatingly, as Arthur swallowed, a sense of peace enveloped him as he sat across Cisse in a slight daze.
"Good, right?"
"Mhmm." Responded Arthur, with his mouth completely full, courtesy of additional helpings.
Following this, Arthur proceeded to try the Kosei, which, unlike the bofrot, had a soft exterior and even softer interior and didn't boast any sweetness. Its flavor was a bit hard to describe, but it brought a great sense of satisfaction and went perfectly well with the Hausa Koko.
Next were the meat pies….the meat pies. Heavens, where does one even start. From their slight crunch exterior to the explosion of flavor as one bite into their interior-filled meat mixture….ah.
Then there is the iced-kenkey, which Cisse informed had two forms. A solid form usually had for lunch or dinner and was 'aight' in Cisse's opinion. Then the liquid form, which according to Cisse, is where the magic happened. It had a grain-like texture that intriguingly encapsulated a sweet and milky flavor for an incredibly enjoyable drinking experience. Again, according to Cisse, this was the essence of life. Coupled with its refreshing chillness, Arthur couldn't help but agree.
"Whew!" Breathed Arthur as he completely relaxed in his chair. "That, that was good."
"Hehehe, you have seen anything yet. Just wait, there is one thing, just one thing I have to introduce you to, and I promise you'd want to start a fan club. Also, if anyone says they make it better than us, they are lying hard."
"Ho?" responded Arthur, with eyebrows raised.
"Hehehe," chuckled Cisse for a bit before suddenly pausing. "Oh right…."
.
.
.
[Tidbit 1: Hausa Koko, also known as spicy millet porridge, is a Ghanaian street food commonly eaten as a breakfast meal. It can also be taken in the late afternoon as a snack. It is made from millet with a few local spices added to give it a particular taste and color.]
[Tidbit 2: Probably messed up Kosei spelling, just went with the spelling of how it sounds. Anywho though, it is had for breakfast and nice. lol I will be back with more formal information later.]
[Tidbit 3: Bofrot is a traditional African snack made of fried dough. The prominence of this delicacy stretches even to the eastern and southern edges of West Africa, where it is mostly known as mandazi but more popularly as puff-puffs.]
[Tidbit 4: Ice Kenkey' is a popular gluten-free and pro-biotic smoothie or milkshake made with fermented, steamed Corn dumpling known as kenkey in Ghana. ... You can use water, milk, or flavored milk as the liquid for your ice kenkey.]
[Tidbit 5: Meat pies, or at least the Ghanaian version, is a bread-like crust pastry filled with minced beef, onions, and green peppers. But those are basic ingredients. Some people go wild with it.]