Eva heads to the Chops & Hops, a small diner run by her American-German colleague and college friend, Mara Astrid, who was also the first restaurant owner to get Eva's judgment on restaurant reviews.
The altercation between her and Edward somehow caused her to rethink her original plans for the day. It was still bothering her and she couldn't stop thinking about everything that was said.
"I have read the latest release of TPG for Fresh Garden review," Mara spoke to her in fluent German. "I laughed so hard at the line, 'There's nothing fresh in this fake garden, not even the air that comes out of the AC'."
Eva groaned as her eyes rolled with a response in German as well, "It's disgusting. I could taste the expiration date—no pun intended."
Mara burst out laughing once more before taking a sip of her iced tea as they continued their foreign language conversation.
But then, she became aware of her friend's strange facial expression, despite the fact that she was now having a good time with her.
As a result, she set the glass aside and took Eva's hand, startling the latter and making her seem confused.
Mara told her, "You didn't simply come to see me. I can tell that."
"Huh?"
"I know that you are thinking about something else." Eva's right-side chin got a gentle touch from her. "I'm here to listen."
Eva was completely convinced that she had already told Mara about Edward, and they had also had a chance meeting before.
Mara was also aware that Edward was the only friend Eva had and that she relied on him so much after the passing of her parents.
But, that's it.
She doesn't want to bring up her past and the identities of the rest of her friends, about whom Mara knows nothing about.
"It's nothing serious, actually."
"The look on your face tells me that it is," Mara was convinced.
After a few seconds of them simply staring at each other, Eva sighed and then decided to spill the tea.
"Edward and I got into a fight over my decision to skip the party honoring the company's incoming president," she said.
"Tell me about it."
"I don't see the importance of it," Eva said. "I have better things to do aside from partying. And I simply don't want to do something related to my job because I should be enjoying my weekend."
"Well, to me... it still doesn't seem like it," Mara said as she took a sip of her drink. "You're not telling me the truth."
"Mara, there are some things that need to stay private. Moreover, the other things are just incredibly boring; only this would hold your interest."
Eva could see that Mara wasn't entirely convinced, and she could see her thoughts in her eyes rather than on her face.
It's actually lucky that Eva's order, including a glass of vanilla milkshake and a cone of golden, salted fries, arrived in the middle of a rather unwanted conversation.
Mara was astonished when Eva instinctively grabbed a fry and dipped it in the milkshake before enjoying a great bite.
"Is that a thing?" Mara was staring at Eva with a bemused look.
"Yes, it has been since 2017."
Mara regarded her with skepticism and grinned awkwardly, almost as if she were intrigued.
"Come on…" Eva giggled at her friend's amusing response. "The flavors are harmonious."
"Despite being a professional food critic, I find it unbelievable that you enjoy weird food combinations," she commented.
Eva kept eating a couple more fries while dipping them in the glass of milkshake before asking her friend another question.
"Do you think it's weird?"
"Hell yeah!"
As Eva kept what she was doing with her friends from the past a secret—since it wasn't easy to forget about something you used to do—the two of them laughed together.
[Flashback] Eva and her friends have been able to hang out in their favorite restaurant every time they're working on a group project for school.
"Here, guys! Listen to this…"
Johnny caught their attention while holding his notebook and started reading his poem:
If I could write a poem,
I would write it just for you.
But I cannot write a poem,
So what am I gonna do?
Johnny's funny and clever poetry got everyone laughing and applauding.
"That just summarized my whole mood today," Daniel commented.
Frowning in front of his notebook, Edward couldn't help but scratch the back of his head and started complaining.
"I don't understand why we need to write something like this in school."
"It will help us become creative," Alex replied to what he said. "Also, it's a good way to express yourself."
Johnny pointed towards Alex right away. "And by saying that, I think you should go next."
"No, I'm still in the middle of brainstorming," Alex responded, his hands waving back and forth, the thumb facing him and the pinky pointing away from him.
"Brainstorming on your own?!" A sarcastic laugh followed Edward's exclamation.
"Edward, why don't you show him what you got?" Daniel suggested.
Edward nodded at Daniel as he took his notebook and gave Alex a scornful glare. "I'll show you, boy!"
"Go on. Show me," Alex answered, then ignored him nonchalantly.
Edward began reading his composed poem:
I promise to love you.
When your jokes are not funny.
I promise to love you.
Even when you have no money.
To his amazement, Alex burst into laughter.
"Whoa! You just defined my current financial status!"
"See? See?" Edward boasted. "I told you!"
Their laughter was suddenly interrupted when Barron and Aiden showed up carrying trays of the meals they had ordered. At the same time that Barron distributes their selected milkshakes, Aiden places a bucket of fries on top of their table.
"Alright. Who ordered strawberry milkshakes?" Barron asked them as Aiden and Daniel raised their hands and received their drinks right after.
"How about chocolate?"
Alex, Johnny, and Edward raised their hands, getting their drinks afterwards.
Before setting out the empty tray, Barron handed a vanilla milkshake to Eva, who was silently seated next to him and working on her poem.
"Eva."
She was drawn to attention by Barron after he noticed her completely focused on her activity. Therefore, she gave him a quick glance before looking at the others who had already begun to eat and drink.
"Sorry," she said, shyly.
"You looked very serious with that poem of yours," Barron informed her as he sat down next to her.
The moment she was going to answer him, she unexpectedly met his eyes, locking them with hers. It wasn't supposed to be awkward because they are close friends, but Eva certainly felt so.
Since Barron has attractive eyes, she may have abruptly stopped responding just like an outdated computer would do. Another reason might be that she felt at ease staring into his innocent eyes. Who knows?
As Eva carelessly picked up a piece of fry, dipped it, and put it into her mouth, she nearly came to her senses.
"Honey," Johnny called to her, and she looked at him. "Did you just dip your fries into Barron's vanilla milkshake?"
She was dumbfounded long enough before everyone burst into laughter because of what Eva had done. [End of Flashback]
Eva was beginning to understand each word that Barron had said before: "If it's a good memory, then it shouldn't be forgotten at all."
And after all, it's true. But the question is, will she be appreciative of it?