“Hi, Desir! I’m here again!”

“Good afternoon, Grace. You’ve arrived just in time.”

While finishing up the lamb burgers I’d prepared for lunch, I greeted the newcomer who walked into my apartment with my supposed neighbour. Althea confidently brought her friend in and allowed her to settle down on my couch. At the same time, she naturally took out the Earl Grey sachets I had leftover and prepared a cup of tea for Grace.

Is this your house or mine, Althea?

“I hope you can take mutton.”

“Yeah, Althea informed me that you’re making a Mediterranean burger. Don’t worry, I love lamb!”

“That’s a relief,” I smiled as I finished plating the dishes.

As if on cue, Althea walked over and lifted the plates automatically. Ever since we’d started eating together, it had become routine for Althea to prepare the table while I focused on the kitchen. So, there was no need for verbal communication on our part. I plated the dishes and soaked the pans. At the same time, Althea brought the meal over to the table and prepared our respective beverages.

Grace looked at us with curious eyes, but she didn’t move to help. Well, she was the guest, after all. There wasn’t much that she could do.

Once the table was set, Althea took her place beside me on the living room table while Grace sat opposite her. Usually, Althea would be the one on the other side of the table, but having her by my side was refreshing as well. Smiling, I declared:

“Alright, let’s eat!”

I raised the buttered buns filled with Greek yoghurt and the snappy lamb patty and took a big bite. As I’d expected, the burger came out perfectly. The moment I took a bite, I could feel the explosion of flavours gushing onto my tongue. All those hours of seasoning had paid off as there were no signs of blandness, nor was the taste of the meat too overpowering.

It really was one of my finest creations.

“Oh my God… This is delicious!!!” Grace yelped in glee. “Desir! I didn’t know that you were such a good cook!”

“Didn’t you have some of Desir’s cooking before?”

“Yeah, the steak, right? It was good, but it was nowhere near this burger! It’s the most delicious lamb burger I’ve ever eaten!!! It’s far better than the other restaurants I’ve been to!”

“Haha, thanks for the compliment!”

I shyly chuckled and looked away. There was a reason why this lamb burger drew such raving reviews. I had aged the meat sufficiently and prepared all of the best ingredients just for Grace’s visit. An average restaurant didn’t have the luxury to do all that.

Naturally, it wasn’t half as good as those expert steakhouses that age their meat for months. But Grace didn’t need to know that. I held back my smile and remarked: “If you want seconds, we have more patties. I can whip another out for you.”

“Really?! Thank you!!!”

Grace beamed happily before turning towards her precious friend: “Ah, I’m jealous… To think that you get to eat this every day, Althea. Maybe I should live here too.”

“You can’t.”

“Huh? Not even for a few weeks?”

“Nope.”

“Okay, what about a few days?”

“...”

Althea smiled back at Grace. No, her face was smiling, but her piercing gaze wasn’t. It was the first time I’d ever seen Althea firmly reject someone, and well… It was quite the sight. In the end, it was Grace who caved in first.

“Tch, stingy...” Grace giggled and turned her attention back to me. “So, Desir! Have there been any good Althea stories of late?”

“G-Grace!”

“Hey, let me get this revenge!”

“You!”

The two started bickering again, much like two sisters who were fighting over the same toy. Ahhh, youth. I remember a time where I would quarrel with Len all the time about anything and-... No, wait, I still do that.

After being reminded of my own mental age, a calm voice broke me from my stupor.

“Desir?”

“Hmmm? Ah, right! Althea stories! I have plenty of them!”

“D-Desir?!”

I recalled the many times where Althea had cutely messed up and the times where she behaved like a klutz. While they weren’t happening every single day, there were still some adorable moments that I had stored up in my mind bank.

Of course, my stories weren’t for free. In exchange, I asked Grace to narrate some of the derpy moments from Althea’s past.

It was a win-win for all… Well, not for Althea, who was blushing furiously, but neither of us cared for her.

“Hmph! You guys are bullying me! I’m not talking to you anymore!”

“Haha, we’re just joking, Althea!”

After fifteen solid minutes, we’d reached Althea’s breaking point. Her puckered lips and pouting face were both incredibly charming, and my desire to pet her was raised twofold. However, with Grace present, I should hold back on any amount of physical contact. Instead, I turned to Grace and changed the subject.

“So, what’s new with you? How’s the pandemic treating you?”

“Urgh! Terrible!” Grace groaned and rolled her eyes. “Since school has yet to reopen, we’re unable to mingle with new friends! After my ex-boyfriend broke up with me, it has been so boring! I really want to meet someone new!”

… This was a first for me. I was expecting her to complain about the workload in university or how constrained the pandemic restrictions were. To think that she would talk about meeting new guys.

“Desir! Do you have any eligible bachelors to introduce to me?”

“You? Probably not...”

I cautiously looked at Grace and did my best to hide the frown creeping up my face. Grace, unlike me, looked far younger than her age. Given her short frame and innocent-looking face, one might even mistake her for an underage school girl. If I were to introduce any of my friends to her…

Yeah, too much trouble…

“Hah… So unlucky! Urgh, I really want a nice partner! Tell me, Althea! How did you manage to land Desir? He can cook and has such a nice apartment at such a young age! I’m so jealous!”

“G-Grace!!!”

Unable to take it anymore, Althea abruptly stood up from beside me and pulled Grace’s ear. Once again, her face was smiling, but I could see an apparition of death floating right above her head.

“Excuse us for a moment, Desir.”

“O-Ohkay...”

I watched as Althea dragged her best friend out onto the balcony with a face that could kill a thousand men.

Ahem… Rest in peace, Grace. It was nice knowing you...

❖❖❖

“Grace! Why did you say all of that?!”

“What? I’m not wrong, aren’t I?”

Ever since the day I’d brought Grace to meet Desir, this girl had been pestering me about coming over again. Eventually, I relented and brought her over, but from the looks of it… It was a terrible idea.

I cautiously peeked through the glass door that separated the balcony from the living room, only to see Desir focused on the television and his burger. While he did shoot some suspicious looks our way, for the most part, Desir tried his best to give us some privacy.

Honestly… It’s frightening to see how thoughtful he can be.

“Listen here, Grace. Desir and I are not in a relationship!”

“Oh, please!” Grace rolled her eyes in derision. “Anyone with a pair of eyes can tell that you’re smitten over him!”

“R-Really?”

“Of course! Even a blind man would puke out sugar after seeing you flirt all day! You’re behaving like his lover, no, long-time wife already! Don’t think I didn’t see how you naturally moved around the house like it was yours!”

W-Was it that obvious? I’d never given any second thought to how I behaved around Desir and believed that everything we did was purely platonic. Seriously… Was my face really that lovestruck? Wait! T-that means...

“D-Do you think Desir knows?”

“Him?” Grace tilted past me and gazed over my shoulders. After examining the muscular man who was laughing at the television, she snorted and said: “I doubt so… Your feelings were obvious, but he acted like nothing was wrong.”

“I see...”

I can’t say that I’m happy about that verdict… I mean, I like that Desir and I have this comfortable relationship where we can talk about anything and just staying in the same room together was fun, but…

Noticing the conflict in my feelings, Grace gasped and remarked:

“Wow… You really like him, huh?”

“... What about it?”

“N-Nothing… It’s just, I’d never thought that you would be fine with another man. Especially since Paul...”

“I’d long forgotten about Paul...”

It was true. The days that I was tormented by nightmares were long gone. I’d no longer care about Paul nor the time where he’d tried to assault me. The days of cold and grey were over, and now… I was surrounded by warmth and sunshine.

And I had one person to thank for that.

“Althea, you… You’re really falling hard for Desir.”

“Y-You have a problem with that?”

“Hahaha, no problem at all! In fact, you have my blessing!” Grace gave two thumbs up. “Desir seems to be a nice guy. He’s good at cooking, he has a nice job and that body… Whew. Could you send a topless picture for me?”

“I don’t have any! Even if I did, I wouldn’t send it to you.”

“Tch, why so stingy?”

“Hmph!”