My Husband’s Cooking Bites Me Chapter 02
I couldn’t figure it out.
Why did every bite come with that same burning sensation?
Was there something in the food I was allergic to?
I tried a few different dishes.
It didn’t matter what I ate.
The burning came back every single time.
My stomach hurt more and more.
But Thomas looked so hopeful that I still couldn’t bring myself to tell him his food made me feel awful.
So I lowered my head and tried the pasta instead.
One bite.
Same burning sensation.
Could Thomas’s cooking actually be biting me?
He kept urging me to eat more.
I knew my body couldn’t take much more, so I was about to ask what he’d put in everything.
Then I looked up.
Our son was beside me, happily tearing into the pork ribs.
He spoke with his mouth half full.
“Dad’s roasted pork ribs are a hundred times better than restaurant food!”
“They’re amazing!”
“I want them every day!”
“And the green beans are so good too!”
“I want those again tonight!”
Kids couldn’t hide it when something made them feel bad.
My son was eating happily.
What if there was nothing wrong with Thomas’s food?
What if the problem was me?
Thomas noticed I still wasn’t eating and had one hand pressed against my stomach.
He looked worried.
“Ellie, what’s wrong?”
“Are you feeling sick?”
I quickly took the opening.
“My stomach’s been a little off lately.”
“I’ve probably been drinking too much coffee at work.”
I must have looked miserable, because Thomas immediately wanted to take me to get checked out.
I refused.
“It’s not that bad.”
“I’ll leave early tomorrow before work and get it checked.”
I wasn’t lying to him.
I really did think maybe my stomach had gotten sensitive.
Maybe that was why I suddenly couldn’t eat properly.
The next morning, I rushed to the hospital and went through a series of tests.
When the results came back, I was stunned.
My hormones were slightly out of balance.
That was it.
There was nothing wrong with my digestive system.
I asked the doctor,
“Then why do I get this burning sensation in my esophagus every time I eat at home?”
The doctor asked,
“Does it happen every time you eat?”
“Or only when you’re eating at home?”
I froze.
Then I pulled out the bread I’d bought at the store near the hospital and took a bite.
Nothing.
It tasted completely normal.
The doctor said,
“Maybe there’s a seasoning additive in your food at home that you’re allergic to.”
“Just stop using it.”
That finally eased my mind a little.
That evening, before Thomas started cooking, I made a point of checking the kitchen.
I didn’t see any new seasoning additives.
After Thomas heard that my medical checkup hadn’t found anything wrong, he happily made several extra dishes that night.
Six dishes in total.
I cautiously took one bite.
The moment the food touched my tongue, the burning sensation spread from my mouth all the way down into my abdomen.
I almost threw up.
But my medical checkup said I was healthy.
Thomas and our son were eating happily.
If I actually threw up, Thomas would definitely start wondering what was wrong.
So I forced myself through dinner.
When Thomas went to take care of our son, I quickly saved samples from the food.
First thing the next morning, I sent them to the hospital for testing.
But the results came back clear.
None of the ingredients contained anything I was allergic to.
I didn’t believe it.
So I took the exact same ingredients and seasonings to a restaurant and asked them to make the same dishes for me.
The same food was placed in front of me.
I nervously took a bite.
Nothing happened.
My body felt completely normal.
I froze.
Could Thomas’s cooking really be the only food that made me feel this way?