The weekend dragged by with no party to attend or a movie Lucy wanted to see. But she accepted weekends weren’t always about fun, as she buckled down for a study session on Saturday afternoon. She was preparing for Monday’s test on food hygiene and kitchen safety – subjects they got tested on more often than any other sections of the theory course work.

She wasn’t too worried about doing well, but missed Willow. They’d usually fling tricky questions at each other, especially with tricky wording, ensuring they understood the work thoroughly. They motivated themselves with thoughts of a snack prepared by the loser, or chocolate from the loser’s ‘candy dash’ to the nearby shop.

Willow earned extra pocket money from babysitting, but Lucy’s mother hadn’t wanted her studies to suffer, so she’d increased her allowance instead.

“Focus on what’s important now and reap the rewards. You’ve chosen a demanding career, Lucy,” her mother had advised. “Plus, you have your Mystery Basket Challenge coming up.”

“Yes, Mom, I know, and thanks for the extra bucks,” she’d replied, hugging her warmly.

Today, Willow’s neighbours needed her to baby-sit their toddler so they could attend a wedding reception, and she didn’t want the toddler’s disruptions to distract Lucy’s studies. So, instead, she went to the neighbour’s place, and sent Lucy an occasional message to check up on her progress. She knew Lucy’s responses would depend on her study breaks.

Fish sticks, thought Lucy, irritated, as she read a question on kitchen safety: ‘Should one ‘always pay attention’ or ‘pay closer attention’ when working in the kitchen?’ I’m not giving Christian the satisfaction of beating me as well as mocking me with his stupid comments, she fumed while searching her memory for the correct answer.

I’ll use common sense, she concluded. Considering the hazardous environment of a kitchen, one should always be careful.

Reviewing her answers before finally putting down her pen, she heaved a contented sigh, satisfied that she’d done her best. Chef Lorraine had said she would announce their test scores after the lunch break.

Tell us: Why would being a chef be a ‘demanding career’, as Lucy’s mom says?