"You're still beautiful no matter what you're wearing, Em…" Mason stared at with his gentle and warm gaze, giving assurance that his words were an absolute truth.
My cheeks reddened because of his sincere complint. I shook my head, trying to dispel this weird feeling in my heart, but I wouldn't lie that his words really made my heart racing.
"S—Stop making a ridiculous joke. Let's just go!" I said, trying to switch topics because it was too embarrassing.
Mason only smiled at , and we walked through the cold afternoon with restaurants on our left and right. I glanced at Mason, who still walked with , looking straight, and that got curious, "So… any idea where we will be going today? I an, our lunch date. If you don't have any plan yet, let's just stop by and eat McDonald's instead."
"No, no, I have a good place for us," Mason said. He grabbed my hand so suddenly and then put it inside his jacket pocket. "It's so cold today. My hand is freezing…."
He held my hands inside the jacket, sharing the warmth as I felt that his hand was abnormally cold. I flinched a bit and asked, "Mason, are you sure you're okay today?"
"Huh? Why do you ask? I'm perfectly fine," Mason replied.
"Your palm… it's frozen cold, it feels like you are—"
"A vampire? Hehe, will I look more attractive to you if I'm a vampire?" Mason chuckled at his own little joke. But that wasn't what I wanted to say. What I wanted to say was… his hand was so cold, I thought he was a corpse.
…
But Vampire sounded more plausible, I guess.
We continued walking, and I got worried that soone from our school might see us like this. But it wasn't for long because Mason suddenly stopped in front of a restaurant. I looked up and saw the na of the restaurant, "Ran… house?"
"Uh-huh, It's cheap. I eat here often when I want to eat alone. Because it's not really a trendy place for teens," Mason explained. "Or is it not on par with your taste, Em?"
"No, no, it's totally fine. But I don't know how to use chopstick…." I replied shyly. "I never eat Japanese food before…."
"Ah, so this is your first ti eating in a ran restaurant? Then would this be one of your unfulfilled dreams?"
I choked on air as he worded it like that. But it was completely wrong, though. Basically, I never had any ran in the restaurant, only the store-bought that tasted so bland.
But it was indeed one of my unfulfilled dream, as simple as it may sound. Because my life in the previous tiline is just so… bleak.
I nodded shyly, and Mason got excited, "Whoa! It seems that I hit the jackpot again this ti! First the cake, second cat cafe, today ran restaurant! Maybe this is destiny, Em!"
"K—Keep your voice down. What if soone from our school knows!"
Mason zipped his mouth, but he still had the sa smile. He dragged inside, and we sat in one seat.
Everything felt Japanese authentic here, and the delicious, rich sll of ran wafted in my nose.
"Just order anything you want. It's my treat today," Mason said.
"Wha—I told you that I will pay! Don't worry, I have money today," I said as I checked my pocket and then realized that I had spent 20 bucks on Mona's cafe because we had a long talk, and I felt guilty if I didn't order more.
Now I was down to… 8 bucks since I paid 2 bucks for bus fare here.
…
Damn. I'm broke again.
Mason seed to know what just happened and shook his head, "I insist, Em."
"No, I can just order uh… this green tea—"
"You need to eat. It's our lunch date, right?"
"Ugh, Mason, you're wasting too much on ."
"It's not wasting if I like doing this for you, Em."
"What? You like wasting your money to treat so food?"
"I like spending my money for you," Mason said bluntly. He was so straightforward about it that it caught off guard.
"Mason, you… you're also broke, right? Why would you waste so much money on when you can use it to—I don't know, save it for the future or sothing? I'm not worth that much, Mason—"
"—No, you're worth the world… you're worth everything in my life, Em…" Mason confessed. But there was a bitter smile on his face as he finished his sentence as if he was holding a grievance in his heart.
I was too stunned to speak. My jaw dropped as I realized that Mason was basically confessing to .
This was the first ti soone confessed to so sincerely, and I wouldn't lie that I got butterflies in my stomach.
But I knew it was just wishful thinking to have Mason as my boyfriend. It was all my unfulfilled fantasy…
…
…
We were in this dead silence for a long ti. I was actually waiting for his next words because I thought he'd ask whether I wanted to be his girlfriend or not.
Although, if that actually happened… I didn't even know what to say anymore.
…
…
I took a deep breath and exhaled to calm myself. As expected, it was just Mason and his sweet talk. Of course, soone like Mason wouldn't ask for a date despite my wishful thinking.
"I'll order the cheapest ran today," I said as I pointed at the most affordable ran.
"You sure you don't want more? I can pay…" Mason suggested.
"I'm already glad that you bring to this ran restaurant, Mason. Because I've never been in a place like this before…." I said. "Besides, I don't want you to waste your money. You're still young, Mason. It's better to save your money first."
"But—"
"If you want to treat sothing better, then you should work hard first and be rich, so you can treat better food in the future, how about that?" I said. Really, I didn't want to burden Mason too much. He had been way too kind to this whole ti. I didn't want to take advantage… at least not in this kind of situation.
Contrary to my expectation, Mason's cheeks actually reddened, and he nodded, "You're so understanding, Em… I promise to treat you good food and make you happy in the near future."
…
Hold on, that wasn't what I intended. I didn't need him to make happy because I didn't plan to live after getting all my revenge on those bullies.
He made it seem like I had a future… with him.
We ordered the ran and waited for a mont because the ran restaurant was empty today. The order ca in quick.
The richness of the ran in front of made salivate, but I was surprised after finding out there was no fork, only ceramic spoon for the soup and chopstick.
Mason slid his butt so he could sit beside and took a pair of chopsticks, "I'll teach you, Em."
Mason started teaching how to use a chopstick but putting them in-between my fingers. I could feel his gentle breath tickled on my neck, and I shivered.
I felt like he played with my fingers while teaching how to use a chopstick, but I dared not call him out.
After giving a quick lesson on how to use a chopstick, it wasn't hard for to adapt, and I ate slowly in silence while Mason also did the sa.
We stole glances at each other from ti to ti, and I could see the faint blush on his cheeks whenever our eyes t.
When I saw Mason like this, he looked more grounded than I imagined in the Instagram or ads. And comparing this to the quarterback Mason Hall with his endless line of fans that made him look so majestic, I felt a sense of closure between us.
After lunch, Mason ordered a matcha ice cream for us, and he shyly said, "I—I only have enough money to buy one. Let's eat it together, okay?"
…
Okay, that was smooth. Especially when the matcha ice cream ca with two spoons.
We ate the matcha ice cream slowly, the heater in this ran restaurant added with the cooking made the air a bit hot, so this matcha ice cream was perfect for dessert.
I was enjoying the ice cream mindlessly, enjoying every bite until Mason suddenly broke our silence, "Emmy…."
"Yes?"
"Did you co here alone?"
"Huh? Why do you ask sothing so obvious? I ca here by bus. You know I don't have a car…." I replied.
Mason stared at for a while and then nodded, "I see, that's good then. But there is sothing that has been bugging for a while…."
"Huh? What is it?"
"You just ca out of a car with a man inside, Em.. I saw it."
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