Chapter 6

As she entered the store, her face, which was red earlier from embarrassment, had regained her previous color. She had a very big smile on her innocent face when she thought about how she was back in this store after weeks of absence.

The store held most of her good memories. As she looked around to see if there was a change, her eyes twinkled with excitement and anticipation, and her face devoid of any makeup. But that didn’t stop her from appearing charming. While she was observing the surroundings with her twinkling eyes and her lips arched in a small smile, many were entranced by her beauty.

Her hair swayed from side to side as she looked around. Men were absorbed in her beauty, while women were jealous. Even though the dress she was wearing was worn-out and easily remarked upon, it was still overshadowed by her beauty.

Aurora, oblivious to her surroundings, was still standing near the door when she was fetched by a servant who brought her to her table. There she saw her best friend. The shop was not a famous one but big enough to serve at least a hundred customers, thus in need of servants.

They always took a table near the window to have a better view of what was happening outside. When she reached the usual table, she saw her friend Victoria glaring at her. She felt like she was walking on eggshells.

When she reached the table and took a seat in front of her, her friend, who had been silent, turned toward the servant and ordered with a sweet smile. But when she turned her attention back to the girl in the blue dress sitting right in front of her, she clicked her tongue and said, "I hope you're aware that you are fifteen minutes late." Her voice was full of disapproval. Aurora, more than anyone, knew that Victoria hated lateness, bowed her head apologetically and mumbled a quick "sorry" before hearing her friend sigh on the other side. Just like that, she felt a pat on her head and looked up. "But since it’s you, how can I stay angry?" her friend’s voice was warm. When she looked up, the black eyes that were glaring at her earlier now held warmth.

Her friend was wearing a light lime green sweater with a white top underneath and a navy blue knee-length skirt. Her black hair was styled in a blunt bob that fell to chin-length. Her friend was four years older than her.

Victoria pulled out a card from her pocket and placed it on the table. With a smile, she explained, “This was given by Red Snow. She said I must take it and bring you to enjoy ourselves.” Aurora, who was looking at the bankcard on the table with doubt, her once apologetic face became serious. “Don’t you think that it’s strange that compared to the other members, she is showing a bit too much attention to us? And why didn’t you reject it?” she asked. Her voice was full of suspicion. Victoria looked baffled and waved her hand while shaking her head. “No, I really tried to avoid it, but my excuses were all in vain. You perfectly know how cunning she can be. In the end, tell me, what do we do with this?” she asked as she pointed at the card. Aurora looked at the card for a moment before answering, “Keep it. When the time comes, we will find a way to return it to her.” As the issue was resolved, she looked at Victoria with a smile on her face.

"I hope you didn't bring me here just for that, right?" Before Vicky answered, a servant arrived and served what they commanded, cutting short their conversation.

After placing everything on the table, the servant bowed and left. Aurora, who had her eyes roaming all over the table, her blue eyes brimming with anticipation and she was almost salivating, her friend who was observing everything laughed at her before assuring, "You foodie, you can start digging in. All that is present here right now is all yours."

Aurora's eyes lit up as she saw the various plates in front of her; she felt like dreaming. After she finished exploring the various plates on the table, she didn't stand on ceremony and started with the warm goat cheese salad, a salad consisting of grilled goat cheese on toast, served on a bed of green vegetables with a light vinaigrette.

When she placed the food in her mouth to taste it, she glanced left before swallowing it with enough difficulty. It didn’t suit her taste buds, but she had to finish it since she didn’t want to waste food, especially since she knew the feeling of not having food to eat. After three minutes, she was done with the food. She took a few sips of water from the glass on her left and moved on to the next food, which was the pasta buffet.

After she did the same thing and ate without many problems, she felt like she was more in favor of the buffet rather than the appetizers. So, she finished it as quickly as possible before glancing at the tiramisu (an Italian dessert composed of layers of coffee-soaked biscuits, sweet mascarpone cheese, and dusted with cocoa powder) in front of her. Her eyes twinkled with anticipation. Why must she wait when the dessert was calling for her to have a taste.

As she tasted it, her eyes widened in pleasant surprise as she felt the sweet taste in her mouth so tempting that she wanted to go for another bite. It was extremely sweet but not to the point of exaggeration, and so she enjoyed it to the fullest. She thought to herself that since she’s been eating, this was the best of all. When she was done eating, she felt slightly aggrieved but satisfied.

Victoria, who was observing everything from the side, felt quite happy when looking at the girl in front of her, whom she considered as a sister, with warm loving eyes. She had remarked every detail to know that the only thing the girl really enjoyed was the dessert.