It all began on a Tuesday. Leo Thompson got his lunch tray in the school cafeteria, braced to relish his traditional dish: a pepperoni pizza, chocolate milk, and an apple. However, the very first bite spelled doom for him.
Scrunching his nose, he said, “This tastes… weird.” Even his best friend, unlike Maya, had to say something after experiencing their first bite. “Whoa, you’re right,” she said in surprise, pushing the pizza aside.“It’s sweet.”
The school lunch experts were stunned, with them experiencing the same perplexing effect. “It’s even worse for me!” someone across the tables said.” The bagel bite was overflowing with potato juice, all swimming in a puddle of over-sweet sauce. The number one best friend, Jayden, on the other hand, had a different take. “This milk is vile. There is no reason to bring more salt into milk,” he ranted before being quiet.
Other kids in the lunchroom were also given this for lunch exhibiting the same disagreeable traits. Someone’s pudding was transformed from a cream color to a vibrant shade and was the weirdest color people had ever seen! “Guess what, even the samosas alongside the jelly were filled with peanut butter!”
Without any hint about what was about to emerge next. The fascinating Mrs. Ramirez claimed the title of over intrusive lunch supervisor only to ask very impatiently, “What is going on now?”
“I don’t think we have to even begin to speak to figure out what happened,” Leo elaborated before sighing deeply to himself. “All the food is all messed up! It is almost too painful to think to myself about how the pizza is sweet, the milk is salty and the spaghetti is…well, I don’t even want to begin to know what’s going on with it.”
With an annoyed expression, Mrs. Ramirez began shaking her head while raising her eyes to the roof as if in exasperation as she commented on what Leo had said. “I’ll speak to Chef Tony,” she said to the whole lunch room.
It was no secret to the children that Chef Tony was the head of the cafeteria. If you wanted something cooked and you wanted it done well, he was the guy to do it. Cakes, stews, pasta, the best chocolate chip cookie. In comparison to the other schools’ chefs, anything from his hands was the best. If there was an issue, he would certainly know of it and he would be more than happy to help.
Leo, Maya and Jayden looked at each other and without saying a word agreed. “This is certainly a case we have to solve,” Maya said.
They all walked behind Mrs. Ramirez and followed her into the kitchen. It was smelling good like it always did; the mouth-watering smell of fresh bread and cheese was so melted that it was up for debate if it was more liquid than solid. Confusion was written across Chef Tony’s face as he stood fiddling with a ladle next to a saucepan filled with what appeared to be soup.
“I honestly don’t understand how things have turned out like this. I swear I made everything the way I always do. Nothing should be different,” he mumbled, the noise having no real intended subject.
He then started putting his hand to rub his head as if deep in thought.
He then began rubbing his head. Glancing with hope at the rest of the room, Leo looked over the counters. There were many jars and containers. On one of the counters, a bag full of sugar laid reticently next to a jar full of salt. That’s when he noticed something unusual.
“Wait a second…” he remarked, now drawing near towards the counter looking. “I need to investigate this more. If this is sugar, that bag over there should be full of sugar.” Leo proceeded to stick his finger into the bag to check. When he did, he thoroughly regretted it and quickly pulled his finger out of the bag. There had been a horrible scowl on his face when, after attempting to taste, his finger made contact with his mouth. “It’s salt!” he yelled, frustrated.
And at this Maya was shocked. “This implies…”
“It implies somebody… no, some strange person changed the components!” And as soon as Jayden chimed in, Leo knew he was right.
Chef Tony sighed. “No wonder everything is messed up. Who would do such a thing?”
“I will look for something,” Leo said as he began scanning the kitchen. His gaze shifted, a glimmer of inspiration striking him. Underneath the counter, sticking out in a very protrusive manner, a tiny ball of crumpled paper came in into his view. He bent down, grasped it, and began reciting its contents: “Revenge is sweet…and so is your pizza.”
The trio’s jaws dropped in disbelief with them simultaneously exchanging glances riddled with surprise. Who could have written the note? And what for?
Maya gasped. “This definitely is incomplete. The battle is still on guys, we now have a food saboteur to pursue.”
Leo replied, “This we are sure of. We are undoubtedly going to unmask him.”
We had only just commenced unraveling the case.
