Chereads / A Warm Mood Starts with You / Chapter 23 - Ice Cream

Chapter 23 - Ice Cream

LIGHT drove to the Blue Moon Dessert Shop. It's near the vicinity and it's very famous for their desserts that can surpass the taste and plating of those in five-star restaurants.

They arrived at the shop in no time, and Blue swooned over the design of the shop. It's minimalistic but cute. Blue wanted to take a picture and post it in her social media account so she handed her phone to Light.

"Please take a picture of me!" Blue pleaded and posed in front of the cute door of the shop.

Light didn't want to ruin the girl's mood, so he took a picture of her.

Actually, he found her… cute?

Blue stood up straight when Light gave her phone back to her. Light was about to enter the shop when Blue stopped him by pulling him at the spot where she was taken a picture of.

"Stay there. I will take a picture of you!" Blue grinned and walked backwards. She opened her phone's camera app and continued to walk backwards until Light's entire body fits the phone screen. She pressed the shutter button and ran towards Light's direction to show him the photo.

"Woah! You're so handsome! I want to use this photo as my lock screen wallpaper…" Blue mumbled, and she raised her head only to see Light staring weirdly at her.

Okay, why did she say that in the first place?

"Why do you need to use it as your lock screen wallpaper? You can see me every day. Can't get enough of my handsome face?" Light said and grinned widely. Blue snorted and entered the dessert shop.

Now that Blue saw the interior of the shop, she wanted to take a photo in every corner of the place. She glanced at Light and showed a pitiful face. The man knew what she wanted to do.

"Let's eat first. Aren't you ashamed that you're already enjoying the ambiance of the shop without even spending a penny?" Light said while giving Blue weird glances.

Blue pursed her lips and unwillingly sat on the nearest chair to her. Light sat in front of her and scanned the list of desserts.

"What do you want to order?" Light asked Blue and the latter sighed.

"Seems like you're very familiar with this place. You should order for me. I trust your taste buds." Blue gave Light a thumbs up and pulled out her phone from her pocket. She clicked on the Hello app and her friends' group chat was unusually quiet. Light stood up and went to the counter to order.

What happened?

She typed a message and sent it to the group.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: Hey, what happened?

Not even a minute had passed when Pepper Mint replied.

Pepper Mint: Someone here is very secretive. Seems like she doesn't trust her friends.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: Huh?

Pepper Mint: Say, Blossom, what if a close friend of yours started dating and didn't even inform you? Then you'll unexpectedly bump onto that friend somewhere, and you'll see her walking with a guy side by side! Only a stupid person wouldn't be angered.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: I'm not dating!

Pepper Mint: …

Pepper Mint: Why do you sound so defensive? I'm not talking about you!

Sorrow Blossom Qin: Then Alena…

Pepper Mint: Yes! That girl is dating the owner of KNK.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: And? She's already 29. She can decide for her own.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: You said that yourself, right? We have our own minds so we can do what we like as long as we're not harming others.

Pepper Mint: But she can inform us, right?

Sorrow Blossom Qin: She's going to inform us when she's already sure and ready.

Pepper Mint: What if she's not going to inform us?

Sorrow Blossom Qin: Then we just need to wait. Just be patient, Pepper. We'll all go through a stage where want to keep secrets from everyone, even from our friends.

Pepper Mint: L

Pepper Mint: Sorry, Alena orz

Alena Cervantes: The heck, that idiot isn't my boyfriend! I wouldn't lower my standards just for him.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: …

Pepper Mint: …

Alena Cervantes: Why we were walking side by side, we went to a restaurant together to claim a coupon where couples can get a discount.

Sorrow Blossom Qin: You can go alone. That wouldn't cause a big loss of money from your wealth.

Alena Cervantes: Where's the fun in that?

'Okay. I finally accept that I was born to be a kill joy.' Blue thought to herself and just as she raised her head, Light placed the desserts he ordered on the table and sat in front of Blue.

"I ordered avocado ice cream, mango ice cream, and cookies and cream ice cream for you. I ordered the same for myself." Light said and picked up one bowl from the tray. He placed the bowl in front of Blue and wiped one spoon. He handed the spoon to Blue. "Have a taste."

Blue obliged and scooped a spoonful of the avocado flavor. She put the spoon inside her mouth and ate the ice cream. Her eyes widened when she tasted it.

"It doesn't taste artificial! I'm sure that the avocado used in this ice cream is fresh and the ripeness is just right. The sweetness of the cream and the taste of the avocado is just balanced. Not too sweet, not too bitter. If I were to rate this dessert, I'll give this a 10/10." Blue nodded as she ate another spoonful of the same flavor.

"You should start a food blog." Light commented and Blue snorted. "Try the other flavors, too."

"Seems like I'll visit this place again!" The taste of the ice cream lingered in Blue's tongue. She smiled genuinely at Light. "Thank you for bringing me here! My mood was lifted, thanks to you. I was feeling anxious a while ago, and it's all gone now!"

Light smiled back at Blue and the latter's blood rushed to her face. He's so handsome when he smiles! Just a little bit more of good points and Blue would surely have a crush on him.

Light leaned towards Blue and patted the girl's head. "Be honest with what you're feeling so the people around you would know what to do."

"Uhm, okay?" Blue asked, confusion visible on her face. Light chuckled lightly when he saw the look on Blue's face. Blue didn't mind him and continued to eat her ice cream.

When she finished, she raised her head to look at Light, but she wanted to retreat when she saw a bright smile plastered on the guy's face. Why does he look so happy, and why is there a hint of doting in his smile?

"You're a messy eater, huh?" Light mumbled and raised his hand to wipe away the tiny bit of ice cream on Blue's chin.

Blue almost had a heartache when Light's slender thumb wiped away the ice cream.

Light didn't let go of Blue's chin after wiping. Instead, he pulled Blue's face closer to him. Closer and closer, and then he…

Smiled.

Light hand left Blue's chin, and he continued to eat his ice cream.

Blue wanted to curse Light with all the profanities she knows. She also wanted to hit him hard. This was the first time she assumed that a man would kiss her!

Well, this was also the first time someone dared to be 'that' close to her.

Blue didn't imagine that such a scene of wiping food residue in one's face would happen to her.

But the feeling… It's not bad. It's just, Blue's heart wanted to jump out from her chest and Blue didn't know the reason her heart was acting like that.

Perhaps she's sick and needs to consult a cardiologist?

"Blue, why were you sad?" Light asked and paused for a while. "It's fine if you don't tell me the reason. I just wanted to ask." He continued.

Blue pursed her lips and talked.

"I had a friend when I was in college. Well, I only had two friends back then, and I considered both of them as my best friends. One is Pei Lu, and one is Miyoki. They were both foreigners in this city, and the reason the three of us bonded was because I understood their native languages."

"To make the story short, Miyoki betrayed me. All the students need to pass their thesis. Miyoki and I are from the same course, and we're classmates in all of our subjects. She borrowed my thesis to check if she missed some parts."

"When the submission day came, I was very confident with my thesis, and I was very ready for our defense. The thing is, when I handed my manuscript to the panelists, they scolded me. They said that I dared to plagiarize Miyoki's thesis, word for word. Miyoki and I were called to the office of the professor to know who the actual owner of the thesis is. I didn't expect that Miyoki prepared evidences and proofs. She showed the editing dates of her manuscript, and it showed that she finished it earlier than I did. Of course, I know better than that! She altered the dates!"

"I just stayed silent because I can't do anything. I was so helpless by that time. At the end, I failed the subject. You know, I was a candidate for summa cum laude, then I wasn't able to graduate that year because of the incident. I repeated the subject and scored full marks."

"But what angered me the most was that this lazy Miyoki graduated as a cum laude because of my thesis! Me, who spent my allowance, didn't sleep for days, didn't even earn a credit. Tell me, how can I forgive her? I could have owned my clothing line by now if only she didn't steal my work." Blue blurted out and all she felt was anger towards her former friend.

"I… I don't know what to say." Light said and stayed silent for a while.

"It's fine. My heart felt light after I had shared these to you. Thank you for listening." Blue sighed. "You need not comfort me. My dream, it would happen soon."

"I admire you for being strong."

"I admire you for being handsome." Blue winked at Light and laughed. Light also laughed with her. It worried him that the mood was heavy, and he doesn't know how to lift it up.

"Then, it's time to go home." Blue said, and she stood up. Light also stood up, and the two left the shop. "Aw, I wasn't able to take pictures…"

Light looked down on Blue, because of their height difference, and he spoke. "There will always be a next time."

Blue grinned, and Light opened his car's door. Blue was about to enter, but Light's phone suddenly beeped.

Light looked at his phone screen, and he sighed heavily.