Chapter 27 – Gift

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Although I got scolded for making silly remarks, the conversation gradually continued.

Of course, from the middle onwards, I ran out of things to say, so it became a situation where I just responded to whatever Yuika said. Still, it was a good thing for me since I managed to break the silence as I had hoped.

As we were talking like that, a shadow fell over the table. Turning my head, I saw a burly octopus… no, the Master, placing a wooden tray filled with the food we had ordered on the table.

“Here’s your cappuccino, a café mocha loaded with chocolate, and syrup-drenched pancakes.”

“Wow~ Thank you, Master.”

“Th-thank you.”

Following Yuika, who was exclaiming with a bit of exaggeration, I nodded my head. The Master’s gaze lingered on us for a moment before disappearing.

“If you need anything else, come to the counter.”

“Okay~”

As the Master left abruptly with his gruff voice, I whispered to Yuika.

“The Master is quite an interesting person, isn’t he…?”

“Right? I was also surprised when he said he was going to open a café. I knew coffee was his hobby, but I didn’t know he was so passionate about it.”

“I’m still shocked by the menu…”

“Hehe, we used to talk about that a lot too. Despite his rough appearance, his handwriting and such are surprisingly delicate.”

Yuika said that and picked up her mug.

“By the way, I ordered for you without asking, but you don’t happen to dislike coffee, do you?”

“Ah, no. I don’t.”

I wouldn’t say I like it, but I don’t dislike it either.

“That’s a relief. I asked the Master to make it extra sweet, so you probably won’t even taste the bitterness of the coffee.”

It certainly looked that way. I awkwardly smiled as I looked at the whipped cream and chocolate syrup piled high on the mug.

I do like sweet things, but this looks way too sweet. Moreover, because of the whipped cream, I had no idea how or where to start eating it.

Should I stir it with the fork that came with the pancakes and drink it? Or should I tilt the mug and drink it directly? But if I do that, the whipped cream will definitely get all over my mouth.

Ugh, I don’t know. Since it came with the coffee, I guess it’s okay to mix it and drink it. After some serious contemplation, I picked up the fork.

Of course, I didn’t forget to keep an eye on Yuika’s reaction. If I was doing something wrong, she would surely stop me.

But Yuika was leisurely savoring her cappuccino and didn’t seem interested in what I was doing. In the end, the choice was mine. I swallowed hard and slowly poked the whipped cream.

After feeling a slight resistance, I felt the fork break through completely. I looked at Yuika again.

There was still a chance to turn back. If Yuika said, “Oh, you’re not supposed to do that.”, I would have pulled the fork out immediately.

But after taking a sip of her cappuccino and enjoying the aftertaste, Yuika just tilted her head in response to my intense gaze and didn’t say anything.

Does that mean it’s really okay to do this…? To mix the whipped cream into the coffee…!

“Mari?”

“Eek!”

Flinch. 

Despite all my agonizing, my hand twitched at Yuika’s voice. As a result, the whipped cream, now misshapen, began to melt into the coffee. Feeling a sense of emptiness, I stirred the fork around.

No matter how long I agonized over it, one action led to an irreversible outcome. I realized this with a sudden epiphany.

As I stirred, the dark brown coffee began to lighten in color. When the cream had melted enough, I pulled out the fork and hesitantly took a sip from the mug.

Gulp—The moment I swallowed, I felt a flood of sweetness overwhelming my mouth.

It was just one sip, but the sweetness spread throughout my mouth, leaving me momentarily dazed. I took another sip.

This wasn’t just sweet—it was indescribably sweet. It was so sweet that I’d need to attach words like “extremely”, “incredibly”, or “immensely” to describe it. There was also a slight thickness, as if it was loaded with chocolate, but it wasn’t bothersome.

If this had been in the past, I would have put it down immediately after one sip, saying it was too sweet, but…

As I closed my eyes and savored the taste, Yuika smiled and said,

“How is it? Does it suit your taste?”

“Yes, it’s very sweet… I like it.”

Even though it felt like my teeth were rotting in real time from the sweetness, strangely, I didn’t dislike it.

Maybe my taste buds changed along with my body. But since I liked it, it didn’t matter.

As I replied in a drowsy voice, Yuika picked up the knife and fork that came with the pancakes and said,

“Try the pancakes too. You’ll definitely like them. The Master’s pancakes are truly exceptional.”

“The pancakes…”

Now that I thought about it, there were pancakes too. I was a bit wary of the thick sauce—whether it was honey or something else—but after tasting the coffee, I was also looking forward to it.

After Yuika cut the pancakes into bite-sized pieces, I speared a piece with my fork and immediately put it in my mouth. My eyes widened.

“It’s sweet…!”

The fluffy and sweet taste. It was the kind of taste that made dopamine surge with every bite.

I chewed and swallowed the pancake, then took a sip of coffee. Then I loaded another piece of pancake into my now-clean mouth.

Eat, drink, eat again, drink again. My body moved on its own without me even realizing it.

Why had I only just now tasted something like this? I felt like I’d missed out on half my life.

Clink.

“Huh?”

How many times had I repeated this? Just as I habitually reached for the fork again, instead of the fluffy sensation, I heard the unpleasant sound of the utensil hitting the plate.

Frowning slightly, I shifted my gaze and saw that the plate was now empty, with only the sauce left.

“Huh? What?”

When had I eaten it all? As I made a flustered expression, Yuika chuckled and said,

“I thought you’d like it, but I didn’t expect you to like it that much. I never thought you’d finish it all by yourself.”

“Huh? I ate all of that?”

Now that I thought about it, the pancakes weren’t small at all.

There were four layers, and each layer was about the thickness of a finger. In terms of quantity, it was probably more than what I’d eat in one meal.

And I ate all of that by myself? That seemed a bit excessive…

But Yuika nodded as if to negate my thoughts and said,

“If I’d had my phone, I would’ve recorded it. You were munching away at the pancakes so quickly, like a hamster… it was adorable.”

“Adorable…? That’s…”

“Mari, you’d say the same if you saw yourself. If you’d seen it, you’d have thought it was cute too.”

I don’t think I’d call myself cute even if I saw it.

As I thought that to myself, Yuika laughed and said,

“If you want more, just say so. I’ll order as much as you want.”

“Ah, no. It’s okay. I’ve had enough. If anything, you didn’t get to enjoy it properly because of me…”

“No, it’s fine. I’ve eaten the Master’s pancakes enough to get sick of them. Besides, I saw something even better.”

“Something better?”

“Yeah. Thanks to you, Mari.”

Yuika, with a satisfied expression, clasped her hands together towards me, making me tilt my head in confusion.

I don’t think I did anything special… but if Yuika’s satisfied, I guess it’s fine.

I sipped the remaining café mocha and, like Yuika, made a satisfied expression.

–

After spending a bit more time at the café, we headed outside.

“You refused at first, but you ended up taking some to-go, huh?”

“Ah, haha…”

Yuika looked at me with eyes that seemed to see right through my dishonesty as I awkwardly laughed, holding a white box.

In the end, I had one pancake packed to-go. I didn’t think it was possible, but when I asked, they said it was fine, which surprised me. They even had proper takeout boxes, which was even more surprising. It seemed like a lot of people took food to-go.

Of course, this wasn’t for me, but even if I argued that, Yuika’s gaze would probably just get warmer.

“See you next time!”

“Goodbye…”

We parted ways after arriving at the central district.

After nodding goodbye to Yuika, who was waving her hand energetically, I headed home—or rather, towards the cathedral.

I went around to the back entrance instead of the front gate and took out the key from my pocket.

Sister Andreina had given it to me, suggesting that since I always shrunk back when entering through the front gate, it might be better to use the back entrance where no one was around.

Click—As the lock opened, I stepped inside and felt the serene atmosphere.

Even though I had only crossed one door, the atmosphere changed instantly, and no matter how many times I came, I couldn’t quite get used to it.

After properly closing the door, I entered the chapel-like space inside. There was a statue resembling a deity and rows of long benches.

In front of the statue, a blonde nun was kneeling in prayer.

Her appearance was so reverent that it made anyone watching feel a sense of piety. As I stared blankly, the nun, with her eyes closed, spoke.

“Is that you, Mari?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Could you wait a moment? My prayer isn’t finished yet.”

I nodded vigorously and sat on a nearby bench, watching Sister Andreina pray.

After some time, Sister Andreina, who seemed to have finished her prayer, stood up and turned to me.

“I think this is the first time you’ve come at this hour. You usually come around lunchtime.”

“I had a bit of an appointment today…”

“An appointment? Does it have something to do with that white box?”

Instead of answering, I stood up and approached her.

Then, holding out the white box to Sister Andreina, who was looking at me curiously, I said,

“Will you accept this…?”

“Is this for me?”

“Yes. I went to a café in the northern district today, and the pancakes they make there are really delicious. So, I thought… I’d like you to try them too…”

“A café… Now that I think about it, I did hear that a place like that opened recently.”

Sister Andreina replied like that, accepted the white box, and then smiled.

“So, this is a gift from you, Mari?”

“A gift? It’s not that grand…”

“A gift doesn’t have to be grand. What’s important is the heart behind it.”

“Is that so…?”

“Yes. That’s why I’m very happy. You wanted to share the joy you felt with me, and that’s why you gave me this gift.”

Is that how it works? Well, it’s not entirely wrong.

I had thought that Sister Andreina, who is always at the cathedral, should definitely try this, so I brought it.

…Now that I think about it, I feel a bit embarrassed.

As I squirmed from the belated embarrassment, Sister Andreina smiled and said,

“I’ll prepare some tea, so let’s eat together.”

“Huh? But this is a gift for you… Wouldn’t it be a bit rude for me to eat it too…?”

“It’s fine. In fact, I’d prefer it if you ate with me.”

“If you say so…”

…Honestly, I wanted to eat it again too. Yeah.

Besides, Sister Andreina said she wanted to eat it together, right? It would be rude to refuse.

After rationalizing it to myself, I followed Sister Andreina with a sheepish smile.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Eat pancakes and drink frappe mocha.

It’s like the completion of a perpetual motion machine!