Contract Dating (6)
"It would've been fine to just eat it as it was..."
The words came too late. The bell had already rung. Wouldn't it have been better to say nothing at all than to say it now? I regretted it the moment it left my mouth. I'd already made her have a whole new dinner prepared — what was the point of bringing this up?
"Hehe. It's quite all right. A warm meal will taste far better than something that's gone cold."
The easy smile she wore as she said it, the relaxed look on her face — it was an expression I'd never seen before. From start to finish, I was seeing Amelia for the first time: who she was as a person, what her face actually looked like, all of it. Hadn't I been wound up for no good reason, just because she was a daughter of the Rosemary family, a renowned house of magic, and the academy's top student?
As that thought settled in, I realized something. Every cold expression of Amelia's I'd ever seen had come from photos posted on community boards and the internet. This — right now — was the first time I was actually facing the real Amelia. I'd met her yesterday too, but I'd been so nervous then that I didn't even want to call it a meeting.
The Amelia I was experiencing in person was a thoughtful person. Considerate, too — and above all, her smiling face was beautiful.
"Is something the matter?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
It really was nothing. I'd just realized how beautiful the person sitting with me actually was. I'd only vaguely known that she'd ranked first on the Academy Times list of Most Beautiful Female Students — I remembered it because Kang Areum had been complaining about why she was only third. Sitting together like this in a room that wasn't exactly cramped — it was about four times the size of a dorm room — I could see why.
"Ah, it seems the meal has arrived."
I had no idea how she knew, but Amelia pulled me out of my thoughts, saying dinner was ready.
"I think you'll be pleasantly surprised."
I'd said — no, thought — something similar before. But right now, I wasn't in the mood to eat at all. Even after Amelia had... taken care of me, that hadn't really changed. Besides, Western food always felt a bit too rich for my taste. It wasn't a cuisine I particularly preferred. Maybe it'd be different eating it at a place this expensive. But Amelia was sitting there waiting to eat with me, so I decided I'd eat for her sake. And if I got hungry later tonight, I'd just grab a snack or something.
That was what I told myself. It was nothing more than ordinary self-suggestion, but the moment I caught the scent of the food, I felt my appetite stirring. That aside, I couldn't help but be surprised.
"This is Korean food...?"
"Yes. You mentioned you like meat, so I had bulgogi prepared. Does it suit your taste?"
A dish I never would have expected. Korean food? Honestly, I'd been bracing myself for steak or pasta. What actually arrived was ttukbaegi bulgogi — the kind served bubbling in a hot earthenware pot.
"I do like meat, but..."
How did Amelia even know that? I was certain I'd never told her. There hadn't even been time to tell her. It had only been about a day since we'd met. There'd been no opportunity to talk about food preferences.
"Well... you talked in your sleep."
"What... did I say?"
What on earth had I been saying in my sleep? I hadn't said anything weird, right? Wait — why was I even sleeping here in the first place?!
"Nothing happened, so please don't worry. You simply said that you like meat... that was all."
If that was really all, then good. But could I actually believe that?
"The food will get cold."
At those words, I quietly picked up my utensils. I scooped up a spoonful of rice, mixed it with the bulgogi, and put it in my mouth.
Why is this so good?
It was a level of flavor I'd never experienced before. What on earth had I been eating all this time, calling it bulgogi? Compared to this, could I even call that stuff food? I felt almost sorry for this bulgogi — it was so good I couldn't even find the words. I just kept eating, my hands moving on their own.
"You really are enjoying it."
Amelia was watching me with a faintly pleased smile — and sitting there on the table were two empty bowls of rice and a scraped-clean earthenware pot. Wondering why there were two empty rice bowls, I looked again. The bowl that had been sitting at Amelia's place was gone.
"I'm sorry..."
Sorry was all I could say. I'd stolen her rice just because the food was good. How was I supposed to explain something this absurd? I, at least, couldn't. I wasn't that shameless of a person — and even someone who was would lose that shamelessness in front of Amelia.
"It's all right. I'm glad you found it so delicious."
How many times had I heard "it's all right" from her today alone? I could barely lift my head.
"Hmm. This is rather troublesome."
But keeping my head down like this forever was rude, too. I heard Amelia murmur that it was a problem, and just as I was about to look up, something soft, with a slight weight to it, settled onto my lap. A rustle of fabric brushed past my ears. At the same time, both of my cheeks were caught, and my face was pulled upward.
My lifted gaze found Amelia's face filling my vision completely.
"I told you it was fine. It really is fine."
The face that kept saying it was fine looked faintly flushed.
"Well? Do I look angry to you?"
She let go of my face and touched her own as she asked. Her eyes, her nose, her lips, that flawless, smooth, translucent skin — all of it was right there in front of me.
"Nnh..."
I instinctively looked away. Even as I turned my head, even as I averted my eyes, Amelia shifted her face to catch my gaze again.
"Do you still think so?"
I shook my head desperately, denying it. If anyone saw us, they might think I was being threatened. The reason I was so desperate was that Amelia's body was getting closer and closer to mine. At this rate, we were actually going to touch. And if we did, I wasn't sure something... sensitive wouldn't happen.
"Uh, I think we're a little close..."
"Mmm. Is that so."
The way she shifted back, tinged with disappointment, looked almost like she was licking her lips.
"So, you understand now, right? I'm not angry in the slightest."
"Yeah..."
She seemed satisfied that I nodded so readily, and returned to her seat. In a completely different way from yesterday, I felt like my energy was being drained. Was she actually a nine-tailed fox? Ah, right — Amelia was from Europe, so more of a succubus than a gumiho.
"It's a shame, but it seems it's time we part ways. Will you be heading back to the dorms?"
At Amelia's words, I pulled out my device and checked the time. Nine o'clock. I'd met Kang Areum at five, and Amelia not long after that. We'd been together for a little over three hours, it seemed. And now, after those three-plus hours, dinner was finally over. Though I'd fallen asleep in the middle, so it wasn't quite three hours.
"I've had a car prepared downstairs. Shall we go?"
Amelia was going to take me all the way to the dorms. A feeling of taking too much, of being a burden, rose up in me.
"I think I ate too much at dinner. Figured I'd walk it off."
I conveyed my refusal. Amelia's behavior felt strangely sincere. I found myself wondering if this was really just contract dating. But of course, the conclusion was that it was a contract. The reason she was treating me so well was probably Amelia's own rehearsal for a perfect performance. If I thought of it that way, everything fell into place. The strange hostility she'd shown toward Kang Areum was still hard to explain or understand, though.
"Is that so. In that case, would you like to take a walk to the dorms together?"
"A walk?"
"I believe I ate a little too much as well. I was thinking of walking it off."
Don't lie!
Amelia had clearly given me her own rice, and I'd eaten all of it. It was weird for me, the one who'd eaten it, to be this indignant about it. Anyway, Amelia had barely eaten any dinner, so the fact that she was saying that and wanting to take a walk meant one thing: she wanted to walk together.
What am I supposed to do about this...
I had no grounds to refuse. Even if I did, my brain couldn't come up with any.
"Alright... let's go together."
If I'd just taken the car, I wouldn't have had to walk with her for dozens of minutes. The words I'd said to skip a few minutes had come back around as dozens of minutes instead. But actually walking the night path together wasn't that uncomfortable. Amelia walked quietly beside me, and I didn't particularly try to start a conversation either.
Even walking in silence, though, her presence didn't diminish. If anything, the slight darkness made her shine even more. At this point, was I seriously enchanted?
Amelia, you scary kid...
A dumb joke popped into my head and I tried it out, but going by how I was being treated, I was probably the kid here. The lap pillow from earlier flashed through my mind, and my heart suddenly started pounding.
Is this arrhythmia...?
There had been a lot of tense, stressful stuff, after all. The weekend was coming up, and I desperately needed the rest.
"I feel like I'm the one who should be doing this kind of escorting."
"It's all right. I'm strong, after all. So I'll protect you."
"Right..."
I was weak. Even if I tried to protect her, I wouldn't be much help. Or wait — maybe I would be useful. As a meat shield, at least...
"Well then, good night."
"How are you getting back, Amelia?"
"I have a car waiting."
Of course she did. She had cars and drivers waiting on standby, and she'd still chosen to walk with me. At this point, wouldn't it be okay to get the wrong idea? The person who came to mind with that thought was Kang Areum. Yesterday and today had been a bit rough, but she was still someone I didn't want to let go of.
"See you."
"Take care."
I watched Amelia leave from in front of the dorms until she was gone. She left without incident. Now all that remained was time with my roommate — who'd just witnessed that whole scene.