CHAPTER 15: CHAPTER 15: AT AN AFTER-SCHOOL MEETING WITH CATHERINE

Before getting into the car, Zayden sent a message to Catherine.

[If you don’t have any plans for the rest of the afternoon, meet me at this address: XXXXXX]

Her response came immediately.

Catherine: [I’m going, I’m going! I can’t wait~]

Catherine: [Seal of an excited kitten with bright eyes]

...

Komorebi Kissaten (coffeehouse) was a calm and cozy place.

In the background, slow music was playing.

At the counter, the barista, a man around 60 years old with a kind smile, was preparing coffee.

Three girls worked as waitresses, wearing school sailor-style uniforms. Their colors were green, pink, and blue.

The one in blue delivered Zayden and Catherine’s order and, with a neutral expression and a cold voice, said: "Here you go. Help yourselves."

Holding the tray, she left after a simple bow.

Catherine placed her hand in front as if she were about to share a secret, leaning forward: "She’s cool, isn’t she~?"

Zayden, who was sitting across from her, shifted his gaze to the blue waitress.

She was tall, perhaps the same height as Catherine, and slender with long, dark blue hair, almost black.

She had a cold and indifferent expression. From the start, she hadn’t given a single smile.

Many might say someone like her isn’t suitable to work as a waitress serving customers, but the reality is that no one had ever really complained about her.

Her way of acting was so natural that it didn’t upset others.

Perhaps the word ’cool’ was fitting for her.

"She’s a pretty girl," Zayden replied.

"Isn’t she?" Catherine sat back and hummed cheerfully: "I thought so the moment I saw her~"

Zayden didn’t sense the slightest hint of sharpness or jealousy in Catherine’s words.

Was this the confidence of a beautiful, mature girl who could admit another girl was pretty and cool without feeling jealous?

Not everyone could live in such a mature and positive way as Catherine. And it didn’t seem like she was pretending.

’I see... So that’s how her character is. She’s more interesting than I thought,’ Zayden thought with a calm smile.

Playing a game is different from experiencing real life. With programmed routes, characters don’t have freedom or life.

There’s hardly a striking sense of realism.

That’s why it was hard to take seriously, even if the protagonist in the game suffered NTR if you didn’t choose the route carefully. But as frustrating as it was, it didn’t reach the point of letting anger consume its players.

Of course, there are those who already had anger issues, so they’re an exception to the rule.

That said, Zayden became interested in getting to know the girl named Catherine Lefevre.

The truth was that as soon as they entered, Zayden heard some comments like: What a beautiful couple. Are they models?

Both Zayden and Catherine were tall, especially by Japanese standards.

On top of that, they were good-looking, which drew a lot of attention wherever they went, even in school uniforms.

Catherine took a sip of her Café Mocha and said: "Delicious~"

"Do you like sweet things?" Zayden asked.

He himself picked up his espresso cup and took a sip.

’It’s better than the ones sold in capsules,’ he assessed.

The good thing about capsule coffee was the ease and speed of preparation. And while it wasn’t quite as good as the one served at this café, it was good enough.

"Yes, a lot," Catherine replied: "I especially like chocolate. Oh, but I don’t like sodas. I just don’t find any pleasure in drinking those kinds of drinks."

"What a coincidence. Same for me," Zayden smiled: "I prefer more natural drinks, like juices or tea."

"Hehe, I’m happy we have something in common~" She seemed delighted.

"So, what made you like me, even though we don’t know each other that well?" Zayden asked.

"Straight to the point, huh..." She puffed out her cheeks but suddenly smiled: "Well, it doesn’t matter. It’s not a secret or anything embarrassing. I was simply charmed when I saw you playing basketball. My heart skipped a beat, and I knew right then: I want to date that boy! And, knowing how amazing you were, I knew more and more girls would think the same and I acted fast~"

"That was pretty bold of you," Zayden teased.

"Now that you mention it, yeah, I really feel like I was possessed or something, Hahaha," she laughed.

There’s a popular saying on the internet that goes: "For a girl, it takes one second to fall in love; for a guy, it takes eight seconds."

Maybe it’s true. Although she might be more attracted to the side of him shown while playing basketball, something more about his exterior, it’s still a form of love.

The elderly say wise things. In their words: "Love is something to be cultivated."

In other words, even if it starts with simple physical interest, it can eventually blossom into true love.

A bit cheesy. But there’s some sense to it.

"By the way, Zayden-kun, what’s your favorite color?" she asked.

"Favorite color?" He thought for a moment and answered: "If I had to choose, I think it’d be green."

"Ara? Can I know why?" She seemed interested in this topic.

"Mm, I never really thought about it..." Zayden grew pensive, and Catherine nodded and took a sip of her Café Mocha, letting him reflect without rushing.

"I think it’s because it can convey a calmer, natural, or even mysterious identity, depending on the shade of green."

"Makes sense," she nodded and laughed: "Haha, I actually thought you’d say something like: Because it’s the dominant color in nature: trees, forests, fields."

"Oh? That sounds like a more commanding reason. I like it," Zayden teased: "I take back what I said, I like it for the reasons you mentioned."

"Hahaha, you’re funny~" She reached out and touched his hand.

When she did, her expression changed slightly, her cheeks taking on a rosier hue.

Smiling, Zayden turned his hand palm-up on the table and held her delicate hand.

At first, she showed surprise, but soon her eyes curved into crescent moons, and the corners of her lips lifted into a smile.

She really had a beautiful smile.

It was charming, sweet, and with a touch of cuteness.

The dimples on her slightly flushed cheeks when she smiled like that were what made her smile even more charming.

Zayden held his breath for a second.

That smile of hers caught him off guard.

Zayden looked deeply into her purple eyes; as beautiful as gemstones. He felt his soul being slowly drawn in by those eyes.

’She really is a very attractive girl.’

Her platinum hair matched perfectly with the color of her eyes and fair skin.

When she tucked her hair behind her ear, it only heightened her charm.

"Stop staring at me!" she complained, looking away.

Seeing her get embarrassed after acting so boldly was quite adorable.

Zayden let out a soft chuckle and picked up his cappuccino.

After finishing a bit, he raised his hand.

"Yes?" The girl in blue came again: "Can I take your order?"

"Another cappuccino and a chocolate cheesecake, please," Zayden replied.

"For me, another Café Mocha," Catherine said to her: "And a slice of chocolate cake with lots of strawberries, please."

"Noted. One moment, please." Bowing, she turned and left.

"Back to the previous topic," Zayden looked at her: "I already told you my favorite color. Now it’s your turn."

"Red!" She didn’t even hesitate.

"Oh?" Zayden was surprised.

He was expecting a more... feminine color, so to speak.

"Why red?" Zayden asked.

"I was waiting for you to ask that~" She laughed a little and replied: "It’s because your eyes are red~ Of course I’m going to love the color of the eyes of the boy I like~"

"While I’m happy to hear that, is that really true?" Zayden raised an eyebrow.

"Well, before it was purple. I just love eye colors and I love the color of mine. But after I met you, my preference changed," she answered seriously.

Since she wasn’t speaking in her usual cheerful tone with her European accent, he believed her.

"Eye colors, huh... Well, I admit your eyes are very beautiful. They remind me of a precious gem," Zayden smiled: "I wouldn’t get tired of looking at them."

Hearing a sincere compliment from him, especially about her eyes, Catherine let out an awkward yet happy giggle.

’Cute.’

Although she usually seems very cheerful and enthusiastic, seeing her pure and innocent side is captivating.

While Zayden and Catherine chatted happily, the blue-haired girl returned.

With a silver tray, she approached them.

She still maintained her cold expression as she placed the slice of chocolate cake with strawberries and the slice of chocolate cheesecake.

"Enjoy your meal," she said, bowing and walking away.

After she left, Zayden noticed Catherine’s gaze on his cheesecake.

She touched her lips: "It looks delicious..."

Thinking for a moment, Zayden picked up the silver fork beside him and cut a piece with the spoon.

"Say ahh."

Without hesitation, Catherine leaned forward and gladly accepted the piece of chocolate cheesecake.

Sitting back upright, she brought her hands to her cheeks.

"Delicious~"

"As long as you like it," Zayden smiled and took a piece for himself.

When he tried it, he was slightly surprised himself.

’Not bad,’ he thought.

For him to give such an evaluation meant that this chocolate cheesecake was of high standards.

The texture was addictive, and the slightly bitter chocolate flavor paired perfectly.

"Here, try mine~!" Catherine cut a piece of her cake and extended it toward him.

Zayden leaned forward a bit and tasted it.

He commented after chewing: "Really good."

"Hehe~"

Catherine was happy even though she didn’t make it. It was the joy of sharing something delicious with the boy she liked.

...

A few hours later, the sky had completely darkened.

The city lights came on, and the movement on the streets increased.

Many were returning from work, others going out for a stroll.

A little over 100,000 yen was the change he got back after paying their bill.

As he left the café with Catherine, he was stopped by a man wearing a uniform, consisting of a black suit from the building he was staying at.

"Zayden-sama, here are your car keys." There was a flattering smile as he handed over the key.

"Good job," Zayden said: "I sent the taxi money for you to get back, plus a tip. Check it."

"You didn’t have to." Even though he said that, the wide smile on his face upon seeing that he had just earned 50,000 yen so easily betrayed his true thoughts.

At the edge of the road, the black Mercedes-Maybach Exelero was parked.

Some people started to gather around, and there were even a few girls taking photos while leaning against the car.

Holding Catherine’s hand, Zayden walked with her to the passenger door.

When the girls saw them approaching, they were annoyed, but before they could complain, Zayden pressed the button, and the sound of the alarm unlocking beeped.

Their annoyed looks turned into fawning ones.

However, when they saw Zayden open the door and Catherine enter confidently, even throwing them a smug look, they felt awkward.

But one shouldn’t underestimate how bold a girl can be in front of someone young, handsome, and very rich.

"I’m not interested." Before the girl, who smiled seductively and deliberately unbuttoned her blouse to show her cleavage, could make her move, Zayden said in a cold tone.

Not expecting this kind of reaction, the girl who was smiling before froze in place.

Some women are quite cruel creatures; seeing her like that, they started laughing without even caring that it might hurt her feelings.

But, if you think about it, she was in the wrong, after all, Zayden was clearly accompanied, yet she still dared to try something with him.

Zayden didn’t care, going to the driver’s door and opening it.

When he got in, Catherine was laughing, holding her stomach.

"Zayden-kun, you’re so mean~♪" she said with a laughing tone. Her bright purple eyes seemed to be made of water.

"Huh? I don’t think so," Zayden denied categorically: "I’m not going to give attention to every girl who shows interest in me. And my priority today is you. I won’t waste time with fake kindness toward someone I’m not interested in."

Catherine stopped laughing.

After reflecting on the words he said, she smiled shyly, lowering her head.

Finishing putting on his seatbelt, Zayden started driving.

Although he tried to act normally, Catherine, with the seatbelt between her chest, a fantastic view to say the least... *Cough* She was discreetly looking at the car’s interior, seeming like a child in a supermarket for the first time.

"I didn’t imagine you drove," she said suddenly: "Well, I should’ve guessed, since driving is something all boys must dream about in their teens, right?"

"Actually, I’ve been driving since I was 13," Zayden laughed a bit: "And when I turned 15, I got my license."

"You never got in trouble for that?" She seemed genuinely interested in this topic.

"No, really. I’ve never been stopped by the police or anything like that," Zayden said: "Well, it’s not like I go driving around everywhere. Most of the time, I have a driver. I only feel like driving myself sometimes."

"I see..."

"Interested in driving? Have you gotten your license?" Zayden asked.

"You noticed? Yes, I’m interested, and sometimes I drive to the supermarket with my mom," she pouted: "Or to places she wants to go. Other than that, she doesn’t let me drive without supervision."

"Want to drive?" Zayden pulled the car over to the side of the road.

"Can I?" Her eyes sparkled, but she quickly waved her hands: "N-No, it’s better not. I’d feel terrible if I ended up crashing such an expensive car."

"You don’t need to worry about that," Zayden said: "Even if you did crash, I wouldn’t blame you."

"Then... No, no!" She was almost tempted, looking quite enticed, but still refused: "Maybe next time? I don’t feel confident, and I’m getting nervous just thinking about it. So, it’s better not."

"I see," Zayden signaled to pull back onto the road. Before moving, he looked into her eyes and said: "Whenever you want to take a drive, just let me know."

"Thanks~" She finally smiled.

"By the way, guide me," Zayden said: "Or I’ll just keep driving in circles without knowing where to take you."

"Just take me to your house," she said, smiling mischievously as she added: "Kidding~"

Seeing her stick out her pink tongue while teasing him, he pretended to be angry: "You... Don’t play with fire."

"Or what?" she challenged.

"Or I’ll buy you a car!" Zayden replied.

"Huh? What?" She was completely confused by his unexpected response.

"Hahaha!" Seeing her reaction, he laughed.

Well, if she had accepted, he really would have bought a car in her name.

But he understood that this wasn’t like giving an expensive accessory.

"Moou!" Seeing that he was teasing her, Catherine puffed out her cheeks, making him laugh louder.

She ended up relaxing her cheeks, saying "God," and laughed along.

With a cheerful atmosphere, they continued until they reached the residential area, two blocks from Catherine’s house.

Catherine’s house was in a gated community.

It was a very prosperous community, with several mansions there. One of them was Catherine’s family’s, after all, her father was still thriving and hadn’t gone bankrupt like in the game.

When the car stopped near the gate, Catherine rolled down the window.

The security guard recognized her and said, "Welcome back."

Then, the gate began to rise.

"Thank you." Thanking him, she rolled the window back up.

Zayden started driving again.

After passing a few houses, Catherine said, "It’s that one over there!"

The house she pointed to was a three-story white mansion.

It had a large garden and a pool.

The property was surrounded by low grass and had some decorative trees.

"M-My parents aren’t home, want to come in for a bit?" She invited him nervously.

Zayden seemed to ponder the matter and murmured, "Mm, so this is how a wolf feels when invited to join a flock of lambs?"

Catching the hint, Catherine’s face turned even redder.

Of course, she understood what her words could imply. And to say she had no ulterior motives would be a blatant lie. If asked whether she wasn’t worried... She was terrified. But even so, she wanted to spend more time with him.

"I-It’s still early, I just..." With her head lowered, she tried to explain.

Laughing, Zayden said, "Haha, it’s all good, I get you. I don’t want to part with you so soon either. I really enjoyed spending this time with you."

"That’s exactly what I was thinking!" She brightened up again, exclaiming loudly.

Then, without hesitation, she clicked the button on the remote with a set of keys in her hand.

The metal gate opened, and Zayden started driving again.

There was a paved path from the gate to the house’s entrance.

Zayden drove up to the entrance.

The garage was in a separate area of the house, but Zayden simply parked on the right side, near the entrance hall.

...

In the spacious living room of Catherine’s house, Zayden and she were drinking a cup of espresso.

Catherine’s glossy lips traced the edge of the cup, and a soft, sensual sigh escaped her lips with every sip.

To be honest, it was incredibly seductive.

The fact that she didn’t seem to be doing it on purpose made it even more appealing.

Her glossy lips became very inviting.

They were sitting on the large sofa, shoulder to shoulder.

In front of them, a television was on, playing a movie.

It was a mystery movie that had recently gained a lot of attention. Catherine had bought it precisely for that reason, wanting to have something to talk about.

What she hadn’t imagined was that she’d end up watching the movie with the boy she had a crush on and was sort of dating? She still didn’t know how to define their relationship.

Look, she was a girl and wanted to be loved by the boy she liked, just as she also didn’t want an ambiguous relationship without a ’name’ defined.

Another thing, after they arrived at her house, she made him wait while she went to change. Thinking that maybe if he saw her in something other than her school uniform, it might make his heart race at least.

Of course, she didn’t want to dress too fancy as if she were going out, because she was afraid he’d think she was being too vain...

In the end, she chose a green off-shoulder top with ruffles, paired with short black shorts.

Her choice of outfit was because she knew he liked green, hence the top, and she was confident in her long legs, hence the short shorts.

When she returned earlier and saw him sitting on the sofa turn to her and gasp a little at her change in appearance, her heart filled with sweetness.

When he said, "You look beautiful," she was overjoyed.

Blushing and looking down, she wanted to run away, but at the same time, she didn’t. In the end, she still asked, "Thank you and... sorry for taking so long. By the way, want a cup of coffee? I’ll make it for you."

"Yes, please." He nodded.

After going to the kitchen and preparing the coffee, she returned.

Seeing that he was just watching something random on the television, she remembered she had bought a movie.

...

"What’s our relationship right now?" She ended up blurting out and immediately regretted it.

When she looked nervously, she saw him smiling at her gently.

Setting his coffee cup on the saucer on the table in front of them, Zayden took hers and did the same.

She didn’t even try to resist and kept looking at him with curiosity, nervousness, anxiety, and a lot, a lot of fear.

She was afraid he’d say their relationship was something casual, something like friends with benefits. If he said something like that, she would cry.

Holding her hands with his, Zayden looked into her eyes with his deep red eyes.

"Our relationship, huh..."

His magnetic voice made her unable to even blink as she gazed into his eyes too.

"Now that you mention it, I was really being negligent and ended up making you anxious. Alright. I’ll talk about my real thoughts, okay?" When she nodded, his smile became warmer: "I haven’t known you for long, I know little about you, and the same goes for you. That’s why I wanted to get to know you better. Well, we’ve already kissed before."

He let out a chuckle.

His laugh was the vibrant, low kind, with a killer attractiveness.

Catherine’s face grew hotter just from seeing him laugh like that.

He continued: "We kind of put the cart before the horse and did something before even having a proper date."

"Well..." She blushed even more, knowing that most of the blame was hers for acting rashly, pulling him into an empty room at school.

Releasing one of her hands, he touched her nose, smiling: "I’m not trying to blame you. And kissing you was great. I don’t want to deny our start, but I didn’t want to make that the only motivation for our relationship, so I invited you today to go to a café, talk, and get to know each other better."

When his hand touched the left side of her face, Catherine felt trapped in a wonderful dream.

His touch, his voice, everything about him seemed so perfect to the point of not feeling real. Her eyes closed reflexively as she savored his touch on her face.

’Ahh, I love him so much!’ She thought.

She herself knew it was strange to love someone she barely knew so much, but it happened, what could she do about it? Besides, after getting to know him better today, she fell for him even more.

She was already on a path of no return. It was like entering a maze where the entrance collapsed, and she had no choice but to keep moving forward.

Opening her eyes, she gathered her courage and said, "I also want to get to know you better!"

"I’m right here, I’m not going anywhere." Zayden said, still smiling: "Ask me whatever you want and feel free to do whatever you wish. As for what we are to each other, I’d love to call you my girlfriend, would you accept?"

Something in her mind seemed to explode. She felt as if she had butterflies in her stomach. Her face turned redder than ever, more euphoric than ever. She was feeling so many emotions that she herself didn’t even know exactly what she was feeling anymore, but one thing was certain, she wanted to kiss him uncontrollably now!

"I want that!" She practically shouted and, placing her hands on his face, holding his head, she pressed her lips against his.

Their lips overlapped one another.

This time, Zayden was caught by surprise to the point of taking a moment to react.

When he came to his senses, he opened his lips and, eagerly, captured her upper lip between his, pulling and, with a smacking sound, he let go and captured her lips again, this time intertwining, and then, when she slipped her tongue into his mouth, he laughed with his eyes, closing them and savoring her tongue with a slight sweet and bitter taste of coffee.

After a while, Catherine released his face with a sweet but feverish sigh, panting as a transparent thread connected their mouths, looking shy but devilishly seductive.

When she let out a "Wow," as if she had experienced the most incredible thing in her life, even Zayden couldn’t remain indifferent.

He felt a bit proud, thinking he kissed well enough to cause such a reaction, but he was also mesmerized by Catherine’s current appearance with her glossy lips swollen from the kiss.

She let out a shy giggle: "Hehe, what do I do? I’m so happy now~"

"It’s not just about what you do, but rather, what you want to do." Zayden replied while his eyes looked into hers.

Even though she felt a bit of embarrassment, looking into his fiery red eyes felt so good that she couldn’t look away.

She didn’t even notice that because of this, her expression turned into that of a lovestruck girl gazing at the boy she loved, making her expression very tempting.

Before they realized it, they were kissing again, pausing briefly to catch their breath, but ending up kissing once more.

It was as if they couldn’t get enough of each other.

"W-Wait." Catherine pulled back a little, saying: "I’m thirsty."

Hearing this, he smiled: "Me too."

...

After drinking a glass of cold water, the two managed to calm down.

But Catherine simply couldn’t stop looking at him.

She also discovered a new fetish she had just acquired...

Watching her... boyfriend drink water.

It was so sexy when his Adam’s apple moved up and down that she simply couldn’t look away while pretending to drink her own water.

’My boyfriend is so handsome and cool~!’ She screamed like a lovesick little girl in her mind.

"Weren’t you thirsty?"

When she heard his question, seeing that she had barely drunk her own water, Catherine’s heart skipped a beat.

"Y-Yes. Of course. Haha." She laughed awkwardly, trying to cover it up, drinking all the water in her glass.

For someone who was kissing him so passionately just moments ago, seeing her so shy now made her irresistibly adorable and captivating.

||- Note -||

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