Indra supported both of his cheeks using his hands that were leaning on the table, sitting down after he took off the apron he was wearing earlier for making several sets of dessert food for Ariel. The way she was enjoying all of the desserts he made was very graceful and elegant. It might be for the reason that the young woman had been brought up with noble manners. Everything was clear from how the young woman tried her best not to show any reaction in front of him. Even though he could tell from the look in his eyes that this young woman really liked the dessert he made for her.
"You can tell me if you want a second plate. I will gladly make it again for you."
The young woman ignored his words, busy enjoying her food. In fact, he could have sent Charles—the chef he had hired in his cafe, to make all the menus in the cafe for him, but he chose not to do that. He wanted to make a good impression on this young woman, so she would not put on a curt face towards him anymore in the future.
The road was still long, he realised. Yet at least it was worth trying rather than doing nothing.
Well, although it did not mean he did not like Ariel's curt side, which he thought was very sweet. He could even tell that he really loved it. Well, it was not for the reason that he was a masochist. He was absolutely certain that he was not a masochist. He just felt there was something different about this young woman that he had never seen in any other woman he had ever dated in his life. In his eyes, this young woman was different.
Perhaps, it was for the reason that, of all of the women he had ever met in his life, this young woman was the only one who honestly expressed what she felt without feeling ashamed of it. It might be for the reason that it was the honesty of Ariel's attitude that made him interested in getting to know the young woman more than now. And perhaps it was as a result of him, who had never met a young woman as cute as Ariel Valentino.
Whatever the reason was, it was not something he should think about. As long as he could enjoy his time with Ariel, he would be willing to sacrifice whatever he had.
"Don't expect me to praise you after you made all of these desserts. "On my tongue, all of these tasted bland. Uncle Louis could make it better than you," said Ariel, who was now devouring the dessert set.
"Who is Uncle Louis?"
"The head chef in my house."
"Is that real? Wow," commented him, without feeling hurt by what Ariel had just said to him. "Then, it might be better for me to expand my skills even harder to be on par with Uncle Louis."
"Yes indeed. Your cooking is still far behind compared with what Uncle Louis makes for me every day."
He laughed at Ariel's cute reaction. "Can I ask you something?"
"In return for making all the delicious food—I mean, for this plain-tasting meal, I will answer as best I can."
"Why did you immediately assume that I was laughing at the colour of your eyes?"
Ariel was silent for a moment before finally understanding what he meant. The woman's hands stopped moving, putting down the spoon that was used to eat the dessert while looking down languidly. "I thought you would be like that too."
"I would be like that? What do you mean?"
Ariel intertwined her ten fingers in silence, with a languid look that reminded her of a puppy's sad gaze. "You know, since I was little, everyone who took notice of the colour of my eyes always said things like that. You must be thinking that too, right? Just admit it. No need to lie with me."
He shook his head slowly at Ariel's words, leaning towards Ariel. "You thought I would think those eyes were weird? Society is like that. From ancient times until now, it has always been considered that things that are outside of what they set as a person's standard of normality are strange or weird. Be that as it may, I think your eye colour is beautiful. Should I say that your eye colour is the most beautiful eye I have ever seen in my entire life?"
"W-what the hell!" Ariel looked up, putting on a scowl that unfortunately failed to hide her blush. "You must be joking, right!? I do not ask you to flirt with me, you moron! Stupid!"
"I am dead serious. Why would I joke about something like this?"
"Urgh ... you are so noisy …"
He was silent, enjoying Ariel, who was shaking with pleasure. It might be for Ariel since he was the first person she ever met to praise her eyes. Apart from his family, of course. "You do not have to feel inferior. There are many people like you. For instance, Mila Kunis and Dominic Sherwood. So be proud of it."
"Dominic Sherwood!? Do you mean the actor who played Jace Wayland in the Shadowhunters series!? The one who also played at The Vampire Academy as Christian Ozera!?"
"Er… I do not really know much about what dramas he is in and what you are talking about, to be honest, but think of it like that. You can search the internet if you want to know more," he said, looking relieved when Ariel's gloomy face disappeared. "After this, do you want me to take you home?"
Ariel nodded.
"I want to meet your father. Could I?"
"What for?" Ariel, who returned to eating her food, was a bit surprised to hear her words.
"I want to introduce myself, as a potential boyfriend," said Indra, who immediately laughed when he saw Ariel preparing to throw his spoon at Indra. The way she acted really reminded him of Fernando for this one. "I am just kidding, rest assured. Fernando asked me to deliver a message."
"O-oh," Ariel did not throw her spoon away, instead of nodding in understanding. "Okay. Let me finish the food first."
"Relax. Just enjoy your time," Indra smiled, looking back at Ariel, who now looked embarrassed.
It seemed that he would never feel bored if he was beside Ariel. There was always a new reaction shown by Ariel, as the young woman always managed to keep him entertained from the first time he met her until now.
"You can come here whenever you want if you want to visit Fernando," he continued, still with his gaze fixed on Ariel. "This place of mine will always be open to you."
The young woman just nodded in response to his words without saying anything. But the expression that showed clearly on the young woman's face was more than enough to tell everything. His hands rested on the table, supporting his head as he continued to observe Ariel.
If I knew Fernando had a sister this cute, I should have approached her a long time ago, he mumbled to himself.
"Why are you looking around!?"
Ariel's curt question left him stunned for a moment. His brows furrowed, questioning the meaning of Ariel's question, before finally understanding that Ariel's curt question was apparently not aimed at him, but rather at a group of women who have been one of his cafe's regulars since the cafe opened until nowadays.
He deliberately kept quiet, wanting to know what action Ariel would take against the women.
"Everything is mine. He made it for me, not for you! Not yours! Bwek!"
He desperately restrained himself from laughing at Ariel's childish attitude.
"Indra, who is this little annoying girl? Why is she sitting with you?"
Sandra, one of the female customers who always visited his cafe, scowled and approached him. Without hesitation, the woman immediately linked her arm to his in a spoiled manner. If he was in the usual mode, he would not mind her attitude, which he only saw as their way of expressing their closeness to him.
But now, he found himself no longer comfortable. In a slow motion, he took Sandra's arm away from him with an expression full of regret that managed to make Sandra and the other women gasp at his unexpected response.
"Oh, this one? Her name is Ariel Valentino. My future girlfriend."
The answer succeeded in sacrificing his right foot, which was immediately stomped hard by Ariel from under the table. He grimaced a little as a result of Ariel's unmitigated stomping on his foot with full force until he had to close his lips tightly as he did not want to show how painful Ariel's stomping was until the healing power of his body managed to eliminate the pain until it left no trace.
"Your future girlfriend? Are you serious, Indra? You want to take this spoiled little girl as your girlfriend?" Sandra raised her voice with the index finger of her right hand, pointing at Ariel, who gave him a triumphant look. "I thought you did not want to commit to a serious romantic relationship, so that is why you always prefer casual dating instead of being serious. And now? What happened to Indra I know?!"
"Let's just take that I changed my mind. And yes, if later my efforts are successful and she finally accepts my feelings," he said again, as he got up from his chair once his legs no longer hurt. "You wanted to order from the regular menu, didn't you? Let me prepare the menu for you. A special treat for today, since I am in a good mood."
For a moment, he leaned towards Ariel, brought his hand to the top of Ariel's head, then rubbed the top of Ariel's head with a gentle motion before he led all of the women to the table they always sat at, leaving Ariel, who returned to eating her food with a triumphant face.
***