Chocolate Penguins

Today I tutored my 9-year old reading comprehension student at his house. It was his birthday, and his housekeeper was making him a cake. It was beautiful--chocolate, and the top was covered in ice-blue, representing the ocean, and then she had made these beautiful little penguins which were placed on top. My student begged her to give me a penguin. Of course, this was terrorizing. I did not want to eat any food in their house--what if they were sick? What if they were recently sick? About to get sick? She told him that I could have one, and she picked one up off of the counter where she must have been making them, with her bare hand, and handed it to me. I thanked her. My student told me to eat it. I had to. How could I disappoint him in his innocence? How could I rebuff his kind gesture? So I smiled and tried a tiny bit. He caught me. He told me I didn't eat it. I showed him that I did. And then I worried and worried and worried.