Ch.111New Seat!

# 111

At a Chinese restaurant in Las Vegas.

Most of the food on the table was half-empty.

“My goodness, are you not hurt?”

“I’m fine. I’m completely okay. Fit as a fiddle, I tell you.”

Himena said with a grin, showing her hands and arms to Jesse.

“If I had known something like that happened, I would have at least driven you there.”

“Oh, it’s fine. How could I call you to such a dangerous place?”

“If I had a car, I’d show you my driving skills. Too bad.”

Jesse took a sip of her milkshake with a clearly disappointed expression.

“Is OSA such a dangerous place?”

“Usually, we don’t have many incidents like this. Normally, my job would involve being buried in paperwork, but lately there have been so many suspicious activities that we can’t help it.”

Jesse, who had been quietly listening, crossed her arms, leaned back against the chair, and said:

“Then wouldn’t it be better to create a team dedicated to investigating such things?”

“Oh, you mean a task force?”

“Yes, that’s it. It seems like these incidents keep happening, and what department did you say you were in, Himena? Residence management? Residence administration? Anyway, wouldn’t it be much better if you investigated with Dexter?”

“A task force…”

Dexter also pondered for a moment before nodding.

“It doesn’t sound like a bad idea. It might actually be good since it would reduce Himena’s workload. Why don’t you propose it?”

When Dexter spoke positively to Himena, she also thought it was a good idea and opened her mouth.

“Instead of reducing my workload, I might have to respond to more emergency calls. And the department assignment might be a bit ambiguous. But I think it’s worth proposing.”

Although Dexter was an honorary agent, Himena knew better about how OSA operated.

They decided to leave the task force team matter to Himena, while Dexter would focus on the tasks at hand.

“So, Dexter.”

“Yeah?”

“When are you planning to introduce Judy?”

“To whom? To you? Or to Himena?”

“Either Himena or me.”

Dexter scratched his chin thoughtfully at Jesse’s words, then shrugged.

“Judy is really nice and cute, but well… maybe if things go well when we meet tomorrow?”

Jesse frowned at his noncommittal answer.

“Isn’t that really vague?”

“How can you be so definitive about relationships? How can I just bluntly say, ‘I’d like Ms. Judy to become one of my girlfriends’?”

No matter how much Dexter lived by his own rules, he couldn’t easily blurt out such words.

Jesse, who had been speaking to Dexter like a mother asking to meet a new girlfriend, seemed to realize this was awkward and laughed sheepishly.

“…I guess that’s true?”

“If Judy definitely falls for me, I’ll tell you or Himena, but not yet.”

“That means you’re confident you can make Judy fall for you, right?”

Himena said with a mischievous smile.

“The evidence is right here.”

Dexter said, looking back and forth between Jesse and Himena.

Though they wanted to refute Dexter’s statement, the two who had agreed to share him had nothing to say.

“…He really knows his own charm.”

“Can’t even hate him for it.”

Jesse and Himena said, glaring at Dexter.

After everyone had eaten their fill, Jesse put her arms on the table, rested her chin on her hands, and said:

“Ah, anyway, I think I need to work.”

“Work? Don’t. Just hang out at home.”

When Dexter said jokingly, Jesse poked him in the side with her finger.

“What do you mean ‘hang out’! Who knows how many parts and new cars I’ve missed while I was locked up. I need to catch up now.”

“Hmm.”

“Oh, Jesse, you were in the automotive business before you were incarcerated, right?”

“Yes. I did go street racing at night, but my main income was from car repairs and selling parts, of course.”

“Ah, then would you be interested in maintaining OSA’s official vehicles?”

“Official vehicles? You mean the cars that agents drive around in?”

“Yes. I drive my own car, of course, but new agents or those on missions have to use official vehicles. Since we’re a secret department, we can’t outsource car maintenance and have to handle it internally.”

Just as OSA is always short on people, their maintenance department also struggles with finding trustworthy staff.

Things were so bad that there was even a ridiculous suggestion to send field agents to the maintenance department, suggesting they should fix the cars they drive themselves.

Himena was well aware of this fact, so she recommended the maintenance department to Jesse, thinking that any confidential information Jesse already knew would be well-maintained if she worked for OSA.

“Ah! So you’re going to hire me for OSA’s own maintenance department? Recommend me? Something like that?”

“I was thinking you could work at OSA for a while and then maybe open your own repair shop. How does that sound?”

“I’d love that! Then I could commute with Himena, right?”

Seeing the two who had become such good friends in such a short time, Dexter felt a little lonely.

‘Somehow it feels like they’re leaving me out.’

Still, it was a good thing that Jesse and Himena got along well without fighting.

The thought of them grabbing each other’s hair and fighting over who was right and who was wrong made him shudder.

On the way to drop Himena off, Jesse, sitting in the back seat and fiddling with Dexter’s shoulder, casually asked:

“What movie are you going to see with Judy tomorrow?”

“Ah, don’t touch my face. What was it again, Mad Max? They said it’s a remake of the movie that starred Mel Gibson.”

“I think I saw it once on cable TV… If it’s good, I want to go see it later too.”

“Hmm… Okay, shall we go the day after tomorrow?”

“I want to go too, but I don’t have time…”

“For Himena, let’s rent a DVD and watch it at home later… We’ll watch it together when you have time.”

Dexter said, adjusting Jesse and Himena’s schedules bit by bit.

There was more to do than he had expected.

‘Well, there’s a lot to do even with one girlfriend, let alone several.’

The thought of having to arrange all his schedules like this from now on made Dexter a little dizzy.

However, since this was the path he had chosen, he had to endure it with grit and determination.

* * *

The next morning.

Dexter stood in front of Jesse wearing a thin light blue shirt and jeans that slightly revealed his ankles.

Jesse was smiling contentedly at the sight of the shirt that looked like it might burst if he flexed his chest.

“My boyfriend is so handsome.”

Dexter chuckled as Jesse patted his shirt and said:

“What are you, my mom?”

“I can take care of you a little!”

Jesse said, slapping both of Dexter’s arms.

“Have a good time.”

“Ah, this feels kind of strange.”

Dexter said, scratching the back of his neck.

“I’ll be going then.”

“Make a big move, got it?”

“You really say anything, don’t you.”

Dexter glanced at Jesse, who was showing a sly smile.

Today was the day for a casual date with Judy from the afternoon.

“Oh right, Jesse.”

“What?”

“A car will arrive this afternoon.”

“Okay. And?”

“Someone will get out and hand you a document.”

“Okay.”

“Just sign it.”

“Sign the document?”

“Yeah. You’ll know what it is when you see it.”

Jesse, knowing well that Dexter wouldn’t do anything bad to her, nodded.

“I don’t know what it is, but okay.”

“I’m really going now.”

Dexter gave Jesse a light kiss on the forehead and left the house.

Driving his pickup truck, Dexter headed to a small theater near Summerlin.

It was a theater close to where Judy lived, and there were small restaurants nearby, making it convenient to have a meal and then watch a movie.

Arriving exactly 15 minutes before the appointed time, Dexter sat on a palm tree planter between the restaurant and the theater to wait.

‘Is that her?’

Dexter smiled lightly and waved his hand when he saw a woman in a white sleeveless dress that suited the Nevada weather.

“Have you been waiting long?”

“No, I just got here. Your arms look more toned?”

Dexter said, pointing to Judy’s forearms.

The once completely smooth forearms now showed shallow contours.

“I actually worked out hard today too.”

“Good job. You must be tired from exercising, shall we have lunch first?”

Dexter said, pointing to a Japanese restaurant.

“Sounds good.”

Preferring lighter food rather than heavy meals for lunch, Judy entered the Japanese restaurant with Dexter.

The two sat down and ordered ramen, spring rolls, and a chicken katsu sandwich.

“Seems a bit light.”

As Dexter touched his chin, Judy said with surprise:

“What? You want to order more?”

“No, you should eat more. Excuse me!”

Dexter called over an employee and additionally ordered fried rice.

“I, I can’t eat that much.”

“You must have room for milk tea.”

“…You want me to drink milk tea too?”

“Well, women have a separate stomach for desserts, don’t they?”

“That’s true, but…”

It seemed like Dexter was being kind and thoughtful, but Judy felt like he was steering their relationship toward fitness.

‘Do I need to exercise even after I get home today…?’

Seeing Judy’s troubled expression, Dexter smiled wryly.

‘It might be a bit much to talk about exercise on a date.’

“I’ll eat what you can’t finish, so feel free to leave some.”

“Oh, that would be nice… Is that okay?”

“We’re meeting with good intentions, and I feel like I’m pressuring you.”

At Dexter’s consideration, Judy gradually shifted her gaze elsewhere.

‘Actually, I skip workouts sometimes…’

She definitely felt her body improving by following Dexter’s exercise instructions, but being human, she sometimes found it bothersome.

But with Dexter showing such consideration, Judy naturally felt sorry toward him.

Dexter couldn’t help but notice her gaze.

“I won’t say anything today, so just relax.”

“…What?”

“How can anyone exercise every day? Everyone needs a break sometimes.”

Of course, Dexter occasionally takes breaks from exercise too, but that’s for muscle recovery.

If he mentioned that, he’d come across as insensitive, so Dexter just smiled lightly.

Soon the food arrived, and the two ate quietly.

When about 2/3 of the fried rice remained on Judy’s plate, Dexter silently helped her finish it.

“How can you eat all that…?”

“I’m the type to eat when food is available.”

After clearing their plates completely, Dexter and Judy got large milk teas in takeout cups and entered the theater.

“Mad Max… I heard it’s a remake of an older film.”

“A friend who saw it said it has something that… touches a man’s heart?”

Judy’s bright smile was pleasant to see, but Dexter, worried she might be compromising for his sake, asked casually:

“Are you okay with this?”

“Huh? Oh, I actually like romance movies too, but I enjoy these kinds of films as well. They’re refreshing.”

Judy threw an awkward jab into the air, making Dexter chuckle.

Judging by her appearance, Dexter had expected Judy to prefer high school musical films or romance movies, so he found this a bit surprising.

‘Somehow today feels like both of us are compromising, is this okay?’

Though being together felt good and happy, there seemed to be a subtle gap between them.

As the screening time approached, the two entered the theater and spent an intense two hours without a break.