Chapter 111 - What a cute name [POV: Morikawa Erina]

Suddenly, a young boy started saying that he would pay the bill… I wonder if he was upset with us because of our annoyance. “Sorry, what? Why are you suddenly saying that? Calm down boy.” - He said. “Didn’t I make myself clear? Let me pay your bill instead of her. Geez, I never thought I would see the day when a man would actually beg a woman for money… wait, actually—” Kind of a weird boy. I mean, sure, nowadays it’s not uncommon to split the bill equally, but still, as etiquette, the woman is usually the one who handles this. “What’s your problem, kid? Didn’t you learn that it’s inappropriate to listen to other people’s conversations?” “Sorry about that. It’s just that I couldn’t ignore a guy begging his girlfriend to pay the bill. You know what? Next time, you should ask your MOM to go with you.” Pftt—oops, I almost laughed. And I wasn’t the only one. Other customers who witnessed it also chuckled. “Wha—hey! This is not funny! Besides, I’m not her boyfriend, but a rental one. And I’m only advising her about the manners I’ve noticed so far.” Did he really need to state that? Now everyone is looking at me with pity— “Seriously, miss? Did you actually pay him to date you?” - The young boy asked me. Now even the boy must see me as a clown or some kind of desperate woman. I just froze again. But I still needed to answer him, so… I just smiled and nodded at him. I couldn’t even talk at this point. “See? Now you better sit at your table. I’ll let you off the hook this time—” “Miss, if I were you, I would make a complaint about the bad service and ask for a refund.” Wait… is he actually… on my side? “Okay, young boy! Enough! What do you want from me?” “Just pay your bill, that’s all. Oh! And as advice from someone who deals with customer service, next time, treat your customers with more respect.” Everyone was in awe of the young boy, and of course, so was I. As for my fake boyfriend, he just paid the bill and left the restaurant. I had never seen him that furious before. “Everything okay, miss?” - The young boy asked me. “Yes! Thank you for helping me. Let me treat you as a token of my gratitude.” “Come on, miss. You don’t need to.” “I see… then I need to go now. Again, thank you!” Suddenly, for some reason, my tears came out. “Hey, miss, it’s okay now. Oh, right! Let me treat you to a dessert.” “No… wait, you don’t need to.” “I already asked for two more desserts for myself. So don’t worry about it.” Such a young boy, treating me like this… Stop, otherwise I’ll start having weird thoughts about you. But… I guess I can talk a little about myself. ♦♦♦ 30 Minutes Later ♦♦♦ “…and that’s how I decided not to involve myself with him.” “Miss?” “Yes?” “I know that I said I would treat you to dessert, but it was only the first one, okay?” Then I noticed that I had quite a few other desserts ordered without even thinking about it. “Wait! Did I actually eat all these!? I’m really a mess… Oh! Don’t worry, I’ll pay for everything.” “Only the extras you asked for. As for the first one, I’ll be the one to pay.” “Haha, you really want to pay that much?” “I don’t want to brag, miss, but I kind of earn a lot from my work.” Now that he mentioned it, he said that he deals with customers. And at such a young age. “Can I ask what you do for work?” “I work at the butler café. You can already see that from here.” “I heard it’s kind of expensive there.” “No kidding. Kind of weird coming from me, but you’re better off going to a normal restaurant than there.” “I see.” “Well, I need to go home now. Otherwise, Mom will kill me. And as for that jerk, forget about him. Seriously, he should be the one paying you to be able to date you. What a world…” Then the boy waved his hand and went away. And at the same time, I noticed that my heart was beating like crazy and my cheeks felt kind of hot. Butler café… I want to meet him again. ♦♦♦ Now I’m kind of nervous. I mean, I’ve never done anything like this in my life. Not to mention, it’s kind of embarrassing to enter here. No! Today, I will meet him and try to talk to him again. “Welcome, my dear mistress!” - One of the butlers greeted me. “Table for one.” “Then allow me to escort you. Please, this way.” I have to admit, the atmosphere here is quite nice. So when I arrived at my table and glanced over the menu, I was really surprised by the prices of everything. “Please, feel free to take a look at the menu, and you can call us whenever you need.” “Thank you.” But still, I don’t see that young boy… Oh! There he is, attending to someone. But calling him just to chat wouldn’t be appropriate. ~sigh~ Since I’m here, I should just order some of the simplest and cheapest meals they have here. Wait, it seems he noticed me and is coming here. “Oh! Hey, miss! It’s nice to see you again!” - It was him! “Yeah~ I mean, yes! I was kind of curious about what a butler café is like.” “Well, then I hope we’ll be able to meet your expectations.” And so he went to the kitchen, I guess. I kind of wanted to talk more with him, but I guess it’s impossible. So I ordered a meal from the first butler who talked to me and asked me to wait for a few minutes. But suddenly, I heard something behind me. “MOE MOE, KYUN KYUN!” - One of the butlers chanted. That really took me by surprise, but it seemed the customer enjoyed it. It’s kind of cute to see them doing this, and since this is a way to bless our meals, no wonder there are women who enjoy it. I wonder if the young boy would do this if I asked. “Here’s your meal, my lady.” - Speaking of the young boy, it was him. “Thank you!” “…” “…” “Sorry, my lady. I can’t provide this kind of service. But I can ask my senpai to cast the spell. I apologize for the inconvenience.” “It’s fine. You don’t need to force yourself. Just the fact that you brought the meal with a smile is enough for me.” Then suddenly, the first butler called him. I guess he was the senpai he mentioned. “Hiro—Sebastian, I know that you can handle customers flawlessly, but still, chanting the spell to bless their meals is really important. Since she’s here for the first time, I thought it would be a good opportunity for you to do that. My lady, I apologize for the inconvenience. Then let me do the chanting.” “It’s okay, don’t worry. Like I said before, just the fact that he smiles at me is enough. You don’t need to force Sebastian to smile.” To think he had a Western name. But well, I don’t want the one who helped me to force himself to do something he doesn’t like. “~sigh~ I guess senpai’s right. I know another way to bless someone, though it’s not a chant. It kind of involves physical contact, so I’ll need to ask for your consent.” - The young man proposed… Eh!? Everyone who heard that stopped eating, surprised by his statement. “Physical contact!?” - I asked, surprised. “Yes. If you ever feel uncomfortable, feel free to say so.” “No, no! Not at all!” - I’m really panicking now. “Then, if you’ll excuse me.” So he gently touched my hand, then kneeled like a knight giving a blessing. “May you have a wonderful time, my lady.” And so he kissed my hand. Then he stood up, took the plate, and went to the front door to attend to the new customer. I don’t know if he noticed, but everyone who witnessed it was still confused, trying to understand what had just happened. As for me… well, the only thing I can hear is my heartbeat, and I can feel my face burning. The meal was not that different from a normal restaurant, but if I’m able to receive this blessing from him, then it’s totally worth it. There’s no doubt about it. I fell for him. “My lady, would you like to take a photo with one of our butlers?” - Sebastian-kun asked. “That’s… can I take one with you?” - I wonder if I’m acting cool. “Of—of course!” - He stuttered… Is he uncomfortable taking a photo with me? And so I was able to take a photo with him. I will treasure this for the rest of my life. “Thank you very much, my lady!” - Sebastian-kun said. “I’m the one who should be thanking you. For everything…” “It was nothing. From the little I know about you, everything will be fine, miss. Oops, I mean, my lady.” “Morikawa Erina. This is my name.” “Morikawa… Morikawa!?” - Why is he surprised? “Yes? Something wrong?” “Nothing… Then, Morikawa nee-san. It’s my pleasure to meet you.” And so, I started coming to this shop just to see him. And I always asked to be attended to by him. There was even a special event where they celebrated the birthdays of the butlers. So I gave him the same watch that I had given to Tomoki-kun. It was kind of fun to see Sebastian-kun troubled by it, but I was happy that he kept it and used it afterward. Although I can only spend time with him in this place, it’s still one of the best moments of my life. Though, I wish I were a little younger. I hope he doesn’t mind a woman who is older than him. Right! I should bring Tomoki-kun here. Maybe he could figure out what Sebastian-kun thinks about me and even give me some advice. Yeah, I should do this. Sebastian-kun~ I can’t wait to see you again~