Free Web NovelChapter 119: Crepe
Before Megumi could get her wallet from her purse, Hajime was already reaching his hands toward the lady, handing her the payment.
Everything shifted as if Megumi was watching a slowed-down movie. Her face, filled with shock, shifted towards Hajime who expressionlessly handed money to the lady without even batting an eye. It’s as if he was expecting himself to pay, completely overlooking the immutable fact that it was Megumi who went out of her way to invite him. For some odd reason, he took it upon himself to pay despite his financial situation, not even consulting Megumi about it.
"Thank you so much, please wait for a couple of minutes. We do have some tables and chairs right here so feel free to take a seat while you wait." The lady warmly gestured, extending her hands towards the vacant tables and chairs that matched the atmosphere that the crepe stall radiated.
With his lips tightly sealed as if it was sewed shut, Hajime walked towards one of the chairs and table set and offered Megumi a seat, to which Megumi obliged as she comfortably sat, brushing aside her skirt so it won’t wrinkle on her weight. "Why did you pay for that, it was supposed to be my treat." Megumi pouted her lips, implying her displeased reaction towards Hajime’s proactiveness. "I’m the one who invited you out on a date, I should be the one—"
Megumi covered her mouth in embarrassment, guiltily looking away as Hajime smiled a mischievous smile in front of her. "Heh... so this is a date? That’s news to me." Hajime called out. Honestly though, behind his facade of teasing Megumi, he too felt great embarrassment the more he stared at Hajime. Megumi’s admittance to it being a date was something that he wasn’t expecting at all— a surprise attack to his heart that pierced it without question. It took all of Hajime’s being to keep his composure as the two of them eagerly waited for the crepe which was about to be served.
Trying to calm herself down, Megumi grabbed the cup of water which was served to them by the lady as soon as they settled down. The lady didn’t want to disturb their moment so she waited for an opportune time before she interrupted their light conversation. A smile was written on her face as she did so, she couldn’t contain the amount of sweetness that emanated from the presumed couple who were her first customers of the day. "What a cute couple." She chuckled, muttering it just loud enough so Hajime and Megumi would be able to hear it.
Since there was a growing awkward silence between the two of them, Megumi brought up the topic of the kidnappers. She was especially invested in how Hajime managed to take the three kidnappers down. To her, it was simply impossible. Furthermore, there was no way Keiichi helped him out in anything. After all, she didn’t see Keiichi as someone who could put up his arms and fight. Even before they ran away, all he did was cower in fear with heavy reliance on his financial status. frёewebnoѵēl.com
"What do you mean? Keiichi helped out a lot." Hajime called her out since her assumptions were somewhat inaccurate. "He was the perfect bait... and also the perfect distraction. If it weren’t for him, I’d probably have an even harder time dealing with the kidnappers."
"So you’re telling me, even without Keiichi’s distraction, you’re more than capable of dealing with the kidnappers? But how? How did you do it?" Megumi skeptically stared at Hajime, curious as to why he was answering in general terms.
"Nope, I wouldn’t have stood a chance." Hajime flat-out denied it, not because Megumi said something ridiculous, but because he didn’t want the conversation about the kidnappers to drag on.
Based on where the conversation was heading, Hajime could tell that he’d have to talk about his past and his family again if it dragged on. After all, it was his dad who trained him in basic self-defense, and thanks to that, he managed to survive multiple sticky situations during the past year after his parents died. Who’d have thought that those grueling training from his childhood would actually help him in the future?
And no, his dad didn’t personally train him since he was almost always not home. Most of the time, it was just Hajime who’d stick with the training while his dad monitored him through his occasional calls. Even with such a laid-back approach when it comes to his physical training, Hajime still took it seriously. As mentioned before, his mom and dad were almost always not home. Because of that, Hajime felt like the physical training his dad gave him was the only connection he had with his parents, and that’s why he clung to it no matter what as if he were clinging to the very essence of his life. It was a simple-minded approach but who could blame him, he was just a kid back then. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
"Here’s your order," The lady came up to Hajime and Megumi, giving the two of them two oversized crepes.
Hajime was surprised at the sheer size of the crepe served to them. It could barely fit in his hands, and if he weren’t careful, the combined filling made up of fruits and cream would more or less slip at any time. He immediately took out a big bit, followed by licking the parts where it was about to leak cream. It had been so long since Hajime had tasted a crepe, but he still could eat it without making a mess of himself.
"Why are you eating it so fast?" Megumi casually called out, chuckling. Despite her slow pace, she managed to eat her crepe cleaner than how Hajime did it. She was making relaxed work of the crepe and yet she too wasn’t making a mess of herself. Hajime expected such an outcome though since it was obvious that Megumi is used to eating crepes.
The sudden question that Megumi blurted out distracted Hajime quite a bit, and before he knew it, cream got all over his nose. In return, Megumi pointed at her nose before leaning in, wiping the cream on Hajime’s nose before he could react. "There’s cream on your nose." Megumi playfully said before letting out another bout of chuckles.
