A Step Closer to Love

Kieran drove for a while before he came out to a busy road. Finally, Arabella saw some lights and places her mind was able to remember. She was happy that the result of her foolishness was not that she had to sleep outside the whole night.

He brought her to a restaurant that served hot soup and was still open at that time. From the signage, she was able to tell that it was a twenty-four-hour restaurant and that they were always open. They got their order and Arabella could barely wait for the order to come.

“I brought you here in case you caught a cold, the hot soup would help out” Kieran murmured as he set out the table placing the cutlery by her side and filling up her cup with water.

“Thank you, that is very thoughtful of you”

Kieran had a rough time that night as well. As soon as he saw her dart out of the office he tried to follow her but by the time he was able to make it to the parking lot and drive out of his car to the main road she had gone a distance. He tried to go in the direction she usually took and then he saw her.

She sat down in the park and spoke on the call for a long time. He turned his eyes away from her for a second and she was nowhere to be found once again. Kieran began the hunt for her by turning into every nook and cranny of the neighbourhood.

The waiter brought out their food served it and then left the place. “The owner here is Korean so all her meals are Korean based” Kieran said.

“Oh” Arabella said taking a sip from the large bowl of bone marrow soup in her front. She liked the taste and the way the heat burnt a part of her throat.

“I did not know it but this was exactly what I wanted” Arabella said as she took another spoon. She liked the way I went down her throat.

“Slow down,” Kieran said taking some of the tissue on the table to help clean the soup she spilled all over herself.

“Thank you I can do that myself” she said taking the tissue away from his hand. He reluctantly let go of the tissue so she could clean it up herself.

“You know unlike the way you look you are very considerate” Arabella said.

“Unlike the way I look? How do I look?” Kieran was curious. He had heard many versions about himself but he was most curious to hear about what she thought.

“Unfriendly,” she said and he gasped. “It’s just that that’s the way I remembered you from my childhood and you acted the same way when you came to pick me up from the airport and even all through my stay. It is just a shock to me how kind you could be”

“Well, I have never been told that I look unfriendly before”

“What have you been told then? Handsome? Breathtaking?” she said and instantly regretted the way her mouth ran itself.

“Yeah,” he said with a nod taking some of the side dishes provided by the restaurant.

“They did not lie about it though”

Of all the things that Arabella thought she could say that statement was not one of them. if he knew he was a handsome man she did not need to assure him of the validity of the said claim.

She stamped her palms to the table and stood up abruptly. “We should go” her voice came out in a squeak and Kieran laughed.

“If you are embarrassed I will pretend that I did not hear that” he said gently as he continued with his meal.

“I am not embarrassed” Arabella muttered.

“Then should we talk about how you find me handsome and breathtaking?” he asked and she felt her heart beat faster. It was like her entire body was on a mission to embarrass her. Why did she respond when he was willing to pretend like nothing happened to make her comfortable?

“I never said I find you breathtaking and handsome” she said and he shook his head.

“What did you say then?”

“I only agreed that those who found you handsome were correct. I said I found you unfriendly” she said and he smirked. Why did he smirk? Why was she still speaking? Did she have a life mission to embarrass herself further?

“If you say so,” he said but his tone did not match his words, they were screaming that he did not trust a single word she said.

“Sit down and have your dinner, I am sure you haven’t had anything to eat aside from what my mom packed for you” his tone now sounded caring all over again.Original from NôvelDrama.Org.

She slipped back into the chair, she was glad the restaurant was not so crowded so she had not embarrassed herself that much with her sudden jilt from her chair.

“I promise not to make a big deal out of your confession” he said and she wished the ground would swallow her whole.

How much more embarrassed did she need to be in front of him? She had gone missing in a city she had lived in before and then her stomach rumbled loudly like she was a barbarian and now she kept saying things that made him want to tease her.

“I would very much appreciate that” she said trying to act like a cool woman when in fact she knew she was not a cool woman. There was no kind of attitude she had displayed that would make others think that of her.

She sent a smile his way as she focused on eating her meal. There was no need for her to keep talking or she might embarrass herself further.

“Thank you for the meal,” she said as they got out of the restaurant. He had insisted on paying even though she struggled, he won in the end. She wanted to have a clean slate with him so that she did not need to repay him.

“The next meal is on me” she added and he nodded.

“Then I guess you can buy me dinner tomorrow night,” he said.

“Tomorrow night?” she screamed feeling her voice hitch in her throat.

“Yeah so you can repay me?” he was shocked by her reaction.

“Oh yeah, then it’s a date”