Yes Chef
a Hell's Kitchen story
by Niki
"It's raw!" Chef Ramsey yelled at Roxanne. He couldn't believe the audacity of these children. How did they make it so far in thei competition and not know how to cook chicken? "Roxanne!? What is the matter with you?' He cleared his throat. It was becoming raw from so much yelling.
"I'm sorry, Chef. I'm fixing it right away, Chef."
He watched her hustle to fix her mistake and moved over to the blue kitchen. "Ben, where are the potatoes?" he yelled.
The feeble minded attempt to talk his way out of his predicament only angered Chef Ramsey more.
Face red and throat raw from screaming, chef Ramsey leaned against the counter. His head was starting to feel dull and thick. "Not good,' he thought.
He inched over to the red kitchen again, where the girls had made a remarkable recovery.
"Good job, Roxanne," he barked. He suppressed a cough, and was pleased that no one in the kitchen had noticed.
"Are you all right, Chef?" Gloria asked, appearing beside him. She had worked under Chef Ramsey for five years and she could tell that he wasn't feeling well. The dear circles under his eyes, the pallor of his skin, and his erratic pauses would have been enough. However, the suppressed cough sealed it for her.
His chefs. He hadn't even considered them. "I'm fine, love. Thank you," he answered quietly.
"Chef!" Scott called out to him. As he walked over to the blue kitchen he noticed the world bob out of synch. `Definitely not good.'
He looked at the potatoes that Scott was having him take notice to. They were half raw, half burnt. "Ben!" he called. But, it was too much. He immediately started coughing: deep, husky coughs that wouldn't stop.
"Ben, stay there!" Scott ordered, waving Gloria over.
But, Ben saw Chef Ramsey in a weakened state and was more than happy to step in and started shouting orders to the kitchen.
Chef Ramsey continued to cough as he heard Gloria tell him to sit down, and pushed him gently into a chair. She handed him a glass of cool water.
As he sipped it the coughing subsided. "Thank you," he whispered, so that only Scott and Gloria could hear him.
Within minutes he was back shouting commands to the red kitchen. Gloria watched, but didn't get back to work.
Halfway through his tirade, Chef Ramsey's body could handle it no longer. "Hetchoo!" he sneezed heavily, just barely catching it in the crook of his arm.
"Bless you, Chef!" the girls called out.
He felt his cheeks grow warm with embarrassment. Before he could say anything else, more sneezes struck. "Hetchoo! Hessshooo! Heketschoo!"
"Keep moving!" Gloria yelled at the kitchen, when she noticed the girls had paused to watch. "Scott, get in here!" Gently, she pushed Chef Ramsey out of the kitchen.
Handing him a napkin to use as a handkerchief she found him another seat and wet to get ihm another glass of water.
She watched as he calmed down. "How long have you been feeling like this, Chef?"
"Only tonight."
She swallowed her fear. "You're out of the kitchend for the night. Scott and I will handle it."
He looked at her sternly, then nodded. She was right. He knew she was right.
"Do you need help getting to your room?"
"No, I'll be fine, love. Thank you. I'll sleep it off."
"All right, Chef."
"Gordon, love. You know that. We're not working now."
"I know. But, I wasn't sure if the camera was going to follow us."
"It'll get cut. I'll make sure of it."
She nodded and smiled.
"Heffrroo!"
"Bless you. Now, go to bed. We'll watch the tapes in the romning.
He nodded. "Now," he said, as sternly as he would in the kitchen, "get back in there and make sure they don't burn the place down."
She smiled back. "Yes, Chef."
Explanation: In Britain `love' as a term of endearment is often used with close friends – not just lovers.