Lara turned to Natsu. "What say we give me a ride to some nearby places?" she suggested, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
Natsu's expression remained neutral. "Ugh," he replied, his voice flat.
Lara's enthusiasm didn't waver. "Don't you say no. I am your manager after all," she teased, a playful glint in her eyes.
Natsu sighed, knowing he had no choice but to comply. "Fine," he agreed, his tone resigned.
"Only till 4," he added.
Lara's face lit up with excitement. "Fine, fine," she replied, her voice filled with anticipation. She turned and started walking towards the exit, her steps light and carefree.
Natsu followed her, a sense of resignation settling over him.
As they reached the reception, Ryu was waiting for them. "Hey, Lara, where are you heading?" he asked, his voice filled with curiosity.
Lara, oblivious to the time constraints, replied with a cheerful tone, "Natsu is going to show me some places nearby."
Ryu's expression turned serious. "But what about the contract? Don't you need to write down your terms and conditions? Tomorrow you need them so that you can get into the contract," he explained, his voice filled with concern.
Lara's excitement momentarily dimmed. "Ah, don't worry," she reassured Ryu, her confidence returning. "Natsu will help me with it."
Lara happily rushed outside, eager to explore the city.
Natsu watched her leave, a mixture of amusement and exasperation evident on his face. "She ain't gonna do any work, as far as I know," he muttered to himself.
Ryu, who had been observing the interaction, looked at Natsu with a raised eyebrow. "Huh?" he questioned, his voice filled with confusion.
Natsu waved and left.
Lara, her excitement undiminished, suggested, "First, let's go to a cafe. I'm hungry."
Natsu, still lost in his own thoughts, simply started driving the car towards a nearby cafe.
Upon reaching the cafe, Lara eagerly jumped out of the car, her impatience evident. "You ain't coming?" she asked, turning to look at Natsu.
Natsu dismissed her question with a wave of his hand and looked outside from his window.
Lara persisted, "Just come with me!" she insisted, her voice laced with playful determination.
Natsu ignored her request and laid back in the seat.
Lara, undeterred, rushed to the driver's side of the car, trying to get to the window to get his attention. Natsu, anticipating her move, quickly rolled up the window.
Undeterred, Lara moved to the other side of the car, at the window there. Once again, Natsu was one step ahead, rolling up that window as well.
This playful back-and-forth continued for a few moments, with Lara trying to get Natsu's attention and Natsu playfully avoiding her.
Lara was panting heavily. "Ha! It's not fair!" she exclaimed.
Finally, unable to resist the urge to laugh, Natsu let out a small chuckle.
Lara looked at Natsu who was chuckling and gave him a smile. It was a brief moment of connection, a shared understanding between the two of them.
Lara, undeterred, knocked on the window again. "You coming now?" she asked, her voice filled with playful insistence.
Natsu, composed himself. "No," he replied, his voice firm.
He rolled up the window, cutting off Lara's view of him.
Lara's pout deepened, but she didn't give up. "Fine then," she said, her voice laced with mock annoyance. With a final glance at Natsu, she turned and walked towards the cafe, her figure disappearing from view.
Natsu watched her go, a small smile playing on his lips.
After a few minutes of waiting, Natsu was beginning to relax, his eyes closed as he leaned back in the car seat. Suddenly, a knock on the car window made him awake.
He rolled down the window to find a cafe employee standing there. "Sir, here, this order is for you," the employee said, holding out a bag.
Natsu was taken aback. "I didn't order anything," he replied, his voice confused.
The employee chuckled. "Yeah, but a girl, her name was... Lara, asked me to give this to you. So here is your burger and drink," they explained, handing him the bag.
Natsu took the bag, a mix of surprise and amusement washing over him. "Umm, thanks," he replied.
"You're welcome, sir," the employee smiled and left.
Natsu asked, "How much is it?"
The employee replied, "Lara already paid for it."
Natsu persisted. "Just tell me, I will pay myself."
The employee explained, "Sorry, sir, but once a customer has paid, we can't take payment from someone else and then return the payment to our customer."
"Flashback to Lara placing the order:
Lara, anticipating Natsu's reaction, instructed the employee, "If the guy says, 'I will pay myself' or something else, just say once a payment is done, you can't return or take payment from someone else."(mimicking Natsu's tone)"
The employee turned to leave.
Natsu rolled up the window, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts. He looked down at the order bag, a sense of gratitude washing over him.
After a few minutes, Lara returned to the car, her hands on her filled stomach. "I'm back," she announced, her voice filled with excitement.
Natsu simply responded, "Thanks."
Lara raised an eyebrow. "For what?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.
Natsu replied, "Food," his voice monotone.
Lara smiled warmly. "Oh, don't say that," she said.
"Where to?" Natsu asked, with a small smile.
"Let's go to the shopping mall," Lara suggested, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
Natsu agreed. "Fine," he replied.
With that, Natsu drove the car towards SJ Mall, the most famous mall in town.