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"S—Stop making a ridiculous joke. Let\'s just go!" I said, trying to switch topics because it was too embarrassing. 

Mason only smiled at me, and we walked through the cold afternoon with restaurants on our left and right. I glanced at Mason, who still walked with me, looking straight, and that got me curious, "So… any idea where we will be going today? I mean, our lunch date. If you don\'t have any plan yet, let\'s just stop by and eat McDonald\'s instead."

"No, no, I have a good place for us," Mason said. He grabbed my hand so suddenly and then put it inside his jacket pocket. "It\'s so cold today. My hand is freezing…." 

He held my hands inside the jacket, sharing the warmth as I felt that his hand was abnormally cold. I flinched a bit and asked, "Mason, are you sure you\'re okay today?"

"Huh? Why do you ask? I\'m perfectly fine," Mason replied. 

"Your palm… it\'s frozen cold, it feels like you are—"

"A vampire? Hehe, will I look more attractive to you if I\'m a vampire?" Mason chuckled at his own little joke. But that wasn\'t what I wanted to say. What I wanted to say was… his hand was so cold, I thought he was a corpse.

…

But Vampire sounded more plausible, I guess. 

We continued walking, and I got worried that someone from our school might see us like this. But it wasn\'t for long because Mason suddenly stopped in front of a restaurant. I looked up and saw the name of the restaurant, "Ramen… house?"

"Uh-huh, It\'s cheap. I eat here often when I want to eat alone. Because it\'s not really a trendy place for teens," Mason explained. "Or is it not on par with your taste, Em?"

"No, no, it\'s totally fine. But I don\'t know how to use chopstick…." I replied shyly. "I never eat Japanese food before…."

"Ah, so this is your first time eating in a ramen restaurant? Then would this be one of your unfulfilled dreams?"

I choked on air as he worded it like that. But it was completely wrong, though. Basically, I never had any ramen in the restaurant, only the store-bought that tasted so bland. 

But it was indeed one of my unfulfilled dream, as simple as it may sound. Because my life in the previous timeline is just so… bleak. 

I nodded shyly, and Mason got excited, "Whoa! It seems that I hit the jackpot again this time! First the cake, second cat cafe, today ramen restaurant! Maybe this is destiny, Em!"

"K—Keep your voice down. What if someone from our school knows!" 

Mason zipped his mouth, but he still had the same smile. He dragged me inside, and we sat in one seat.

Everything felt Japanese authentic here, and the delicious, rich smell of ramen wafted in my nose. 

"Just order anything you want. It\'s my treat today," Mason said. 

"Wha—I told you that I will pay! Don\'t worry, I have money today," I said as I checked my pocket and then realized that I had spent 20 bucks on Mona\'s cafe because we had a long talk, and I felt guilty if I didn\'t order more. 

Now I was down to… 8 bucks since I paid 2 bucks for bus fare here.

…

Damn. I\'m broke again. 

Mason seemed to know what just happened and shook his head, "I insist, Em."

"No, I can just order uh… this green tea—"

"You need to eat. It\'s our lunch date, right?"

"Ugh, Mason, you\'re wasting too much on me."

"It\'s not wasting if I like doing this for you, Em."

"What? You like wasting your money to treat me some food?"

"I like spending my money for you," Mason said bluntly. He was so straightforward about it that it caught me off guard. 

"Mason, you… you\'re also broke, right? Why would you waste so much money on me when you can use it to—I don\'t know, save it for the future or something? I\'m not worth that much, Mason—"

"—No, you\'re worth the world… you\'re worth everything in my life, Em…" Mason confessed. But there was a bitter smile on his face as he finished his sentence as if he was holding a grievance in his heart. 

I was too stunned to speak. My jaw dropped as I realized that Mason was basically confessing to me. 

This was the first time someone confessed to me so sincerely, and I wouldn\'t lie that I got butterflies in my stomach. 

But I knew it was just wishful thinking to have Mason as my boyfriend. It was all my unfulfilled fantasy…

…

…

We were in this dead silence for a long time. I was actually waiting for his next words because I thought he\'d ask whether I wanted to be his girlfriend or not.

Although, if that actually happened… I didn\'t even know what to say anymore. 

…

…

I took a deep breath and exhaled to calm myself. As expected, it was just Mason and his sweet talk. Of course, someone like Mason wouldn\'t ask me for a date despite my wishful thinking. 

"I\'ll order the cheapest ramen today," I said as I pointed at the most affordable ramen. 

"You sure you don\'t want more? I can pay…" Mason suggested.

"I\'m already glad that you bring me to this ramen restaurant, Mason. Because I\'ve never been in a place like this before…." I said. "Besides, I don\'t want you to waste your money. You\'re still young, Mason. It\'s better to save your money first."

"But—"

"If you want to treat me something better, then you should work hard first and be rich, so you can treat me better food in the future, how about that?" I said. Really, I didn\'t want to burden Mason too much. He had been way too kind to me this whole time. I didn\'t want to take advantage… at least not in this kind of situation. 

Contrary to my expectation, Mason\'s cheeks actually reddened, and he nodded, "You\'re so understanding, Em… I promise to treat you good food and make you happy in the near future."

…

Hold on, that wasn\'t what I intended. I didn\'t need him to make me happy because I didn\'t plan to live after getting all my revenge on those bullies. 

He made it seem like I had a future… with him. 

We ordered the ramen and waited for a moment because the ramen restaurant was empty today. The order came in quick. 

The richness of the ramen in front of me made me salivate, but I was surprised after finding out there was no fork, only ceramic spoon for the soup and chopstick.

Mason slid his butt so he could sit beside me and took a pair of chopsticks, "I\'ll teach you, Em."

Mason started teaching me how to use a chopstick but putting them in-between my fingers. I could feel his gentle breath tickled on my neck, and I shivered. 

I felt like he played with my fingers while teaching me how to use a chopstick, but I dared not call him out.

After giving a quick lesson on how to use a chopstick, it wasn\'t hard for me to adapt, and I ate slowly in silence while Mason also did the same. 

We stole glances at each other from time to time, and I could see the faint blush on his cheeks whenever our eyes met. 

When I saw Mason like this, he looked more grounded than I imagined in the Instagram or ads. And comparing this to the quarterback Mason Hall with his endless line of fans that made him look so majestic, I felt a sense of closure between us.

After lunch, Mason ordered a matcha ice cream for us, and he shyly said, "I—I only have enough money to buy one. Let\'s eat it together, okay?"

…

Okay, that was smooth. Especially when the matcha ice cream came with two spoons.

We ate the matcha ice cream slowly, the heater in this ramen restaurant added with the cooking made the air a bit hot, so this matcha ice cream was perfect for dessert. 

I was enjoying the ice cream mindlessly, enjoying every bite until Mason suddenly broke our silence, "Emmy…."

"Yes?"

"Did you come here alone?"

"Huh? Why do you ask something so obvious? I came here by bus. You know I don\'t have a car…." I replied. 

Mason stared at me for a while and then nodded, "I see, that\'s good then. But there is something that has been bugging me for a while…."

"Huh? What is it?"

"You just came out of a car with a man inside, Em.. I saw it."

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