PS/: I CHANGED THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER TITLE
-Levi POV-
"And why is it?" He asked.
"Because they have blue eyes and are pretty, just like you." I replied, looking him in the eyes. He turns away from looking at me. He's blushing, haha.
"I told you many times already. Stop talking nonsense." He said that, avoiding my gaze.
"I'm not talking nonsense. I'm telling the truth. Later, you should do some research on them. They're really pretty, just like you." I wanted to tease him further.
"Oh, look. There's a tunnel here, sir. We should take a look." He said that, trying to change the topic like he always does. He left me there alone, walking towards the tunnel first. I followed him from behind.
"Wow. It's pretty. Oh, the base is moving." He said. He's a bit startled.
"Watch your step, Mr. Auclair. The base was designed to move on its own from the entrance until the exit of the tunnel." I explained to him, and he just nodded without saying anything.
"Let me take a picture of you. The view is wonderful here." I said that while taking out my phone. Well, I actually want his picture on my phone.
"You don't have to. I'm not interested in taking pictures." He said that while admiring the view. He just turned down my offer, haha.
"You're going to regret it, you know. There aren't any people around right now, so there will be only you in the picture. Just do the pose, I'll take the pictures for you!" I said that while raising my phone to take a picture of him. He just sighed, but then he did some poses after that. Although it was a bit awkward for him actually.
"Alright, now let's take a selfie together!" I said that and threw myself towards him.
"Wait, Levi…"
"Smile!" And then Snap! Snap!
"Don't just throw yourself at me like that." He grumbled.
"Haha, I'm sorry. Look, the pictures turn out good. You look adorable in this one, Haruka." I showed him the picture, and I could see he is blushing right now. Of course he's looking at me in the picture, haha.
"I'll send the pictures to you later." I said that with a grin.
"Suit yourself then." He replied and then moved forward without me again. Haha. He always did that to hide his embarrassment. I just followed him from behind until we reached the end of the tunnel, then walked down the stairs.
"Wow." Haruka said it in amazement. I love seeing him like that.
"This is called the Flood Forest, which contains the freshwater fish. Each column contains the fish and is connected to the big aquarium below them. This was designed by Samuel Nouvel, one of the most famous architects in the world. People called him a genius. Well, to be precise, the whole aquarium is designed by him." I explained to him while we kept taking a look around.
"No wonder he's called a genius, then. The whole design here is a masterpiece." He said that while admiring the works. True. Samuel is a genius. He works in the United States and has never accepted any jobs in France before, so this is the first time. That's one of the reasons why the cost of building this aquarium is a bit high. Well, that's worth it for me.
"Then, would you like me to take your pictures again?" I asked, getting my phone ready. He glances at me.
"Well, I think I would like to have one here." He replied that I didn't expect that. Well, that's good then. I took the pictures for him.
"Don't you want to take a picture here too?" He asked, making his steps towards me.
"You're going to take a picture of me too?" I asked him in surprise.
"You've been taking my pictures since earlier. I should help you too." He said and then pushed me towards the spot he stood earlier.
"Wait. Here, take my phone." I said, handing him my phone.
"Don't worry. I'll use my phone and send it to you later. Now, make a pose, please." He said that, taking out his phone from the pocket. He's taking the pictures using his phone. My face will be kept on Haruka's phone. OMG, this made me so happy, and I couldn't stop smiling.
"Hmm, you look happy in all the pictures taken. Not bad then. Just tell me if you want to take a picture. I'll take them for you too." He said that and then kept moving to look at the other side too. Haruka is going to take a picture of me, I'm so happy. I followed him from behind as he just left like earlier.
"Mr. Ackerman, you're here. We're going to feed the otters right now. Would you like to join too, sir?" One of the staff suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Oh, we arrived at the stream now. It's otter feeding time.
"Yeah, sure." I said that with a smile. I'm excited, actually.
"The otters usually like to eat small fish, crayfish, crabs, or any other aquatic invertebrates that they could catch. Today, we're going to feed them crayfish. Would you like to try, Mr. Ackerman?" The staff asked me. Of course I would love to, haha.
"Yeah, I would love to. Haruka, can you take a picture of me feeding them?" I look at Haruka with an excited expression.
"Yeah, sure." He replied awkwardly. I bet he's surprised to see me like this haha. I took the crayfish and called for the otter to come. The otter came to eat the crayfish, which made me very excited. OMG, they're so cute!
"Haruka, would you like to try too?" I asked him after I was done feeding them.
"No, it's alright. I'm not really good with animals, you see." He said that awkwardly. Right, he's not really good with them, haha.
"Well, let's go to see other things then. They had penguins here also. So, shall we?" With a smile, I asked him.
"Anywhere is good. I'll just follow you." He responded. After that, we continued with our aquarium tour until the end.
//SKIP//
We're done touring the aquarium, and now we're having dinner here.
"This is pretty amazing. Having dinner at an underwater restaurant. We could see all the aquatic animals here. Just like the aquarium." He said so, mesmerizing the view.
"Right. A perfect place for a dinner date too." I said, trying to tease him.
"I warned you many times, Levi." He glared at me.
"I'm kidding, okay. Btw, I'm sorry that you need to have seafood for dinner. Well, it's an underwater restaurant, so most of the dishes are seafood. I told them to make a mild-flavored one so it would be okay. It's called Black Cod and Miso, a recipe from a Japanese chef. I bet you will like it." I said that with a smile, and he just nodded. He tried it right away. Well, looking at him, I guess the food is not that bad. As for me, I'm having barbecued oysters and escargot. Well, I'm a bit hungry, so that's why.
"I noticed you like to eat seafood with shells." Haruka suddenly spoke. What? He noticed? Did he keep an eye on me this whole time?
"You're right. I prefer the ones with shells over fish. But I do like salmon and tuna, though. Would you like to try this?" I offered him the oyster.
"No. No need. What about your favourite food then?" He asked me again. Now, he's asking me about my favourite food.
"My late mother used to cook me lobster thermidor when I was a kid. Since then, Lobster Thermidor has been my favorite. What about you?" This time, I asked him.
"Me?" He looks at me with a confused face.
"Right. You. You said I can ask you what you like directly, right?" I said that with a smile, and he seemed a bit awkward for a while.
"Well, I like Japanese Yakitori-Style Pan-Roasted Duck Breast." He replied. Hmm? Never heard of that.
"It's a Japanese style, right? No wonder I never heard it before. And I noticed one thing from you too. You prefer duck over chicken." I said that confidently. Right. He rarely eats chicken, if I'm not mistaken.
"You're right. I prefer duck, then beef, and then chicken." He replied. It seems like he's trying to open up more to me.
"So I learnt something new about you today." I said that with a grin. He's clearly blushing right now.
"Say, Levi. Would you like to come to my place again this weekend?" His sudden remarks nearly made me choke.
"Why so sudden?" I asked him in surprise. I never expected him to invite me to his place again.
"Well, there's something I wanted to show you. Or do you have something to do on the weekend? If you're busy, you don…"
"No. I didn't. I'm completely available this weekend. I'll come." I cut him off and replied as fast as I could.
"Well, that's good then. Come to my place at 11 then. You should finish your food now. I'm sorry for interrupting your meal." He replied, trying to change the topic again. I can't believe I'll be going to his place again. After that, we just finished our food and went back home.
//SKIP TO THE WEEKEND//
Now, here I am, in front of the door. Haruka's place, of course. This is my second time being here. I was too excited, so I came a little bit early. But that doesn't matter, I guess. I ring the bell and wait for him to open the door. After a few seconds, the door swings open.
"Mr. Ackerman, you're here."
TO BE CONTINUED!!!