I was quite confident before in my cooking abilities but now that the time came for me to serve him food, I was so nervous that my hands shook. Endless worries filled my mind, and I doubted if the food I had made would be good enough for him or if it would suit his tastes. After placing the food in front of him, I took a few steps back and stood to the side. “What are you doing? Sit down and eat with me,” the man said invitingly. I hesitated for a brief moment before taking the seat opposite him from the table. He must have thought that my reaction was strange because even I didn’t know why I acted like that. Since he’s not one of the masters that I was supposed to serve, I had no idea why I was starting to treat him as if he was one. He lifted a spoonful of the soup that I made up to his lips as I stared at him from across the table. My stomach felt like it was tied up in a tight knot as I waited for him to appraise the food that I made. “It tastes wonderful,” he said before he started laughing. “Really?” I asked before letting out a sigh of relief. “Really. It tastes even better when accompanied by your funny reactions. You don’t have to be so nervous around me,” he said before stuffing more soup and bread into his mouth. I was very hungry before just watching him eat my food so happily made me feel full and very satisfied. My lips curved into a joyous smiled and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him as I watched him enjoying the food that I had made for him. “Does your fingers still hurt?” he asked as he looked my way. It was a shame that he was still wearing his sunglasses even though we were already indoors because that meant that I couldn’t see his eyes or the feelings reflected in them. “A little but I’m fine. Sorry if I got you worried…” I replied truthfully. “You should eat. You’re hungry, right?” he said before his lips curved into a slightly teasing smile. “Well…” I began saying before I hesitated. I couldn’t really tell him that my appetite was already quite satisfied with just seeing him enjoying the meal that I made. It would just sound strange and forward. “Here,” he said as his beautiful hand shoved a spoon full of soup in front of my face. My eyes widened as I watch him lean over the table to offer me food. He wants to feed me? “Huh?” I made a surprised and confused sound. “Open up. I’ll feed you…” he said warmly before he continued smiling charmingly at me. “There’s no need…” I began protesting right away. “Just open up,” he insisted. He didn’t give in, and I figured that I couldn’t win against his stubbornness or determination. No one has ever fed me food before and definitely not a man. Was this something that people here normally do for each other just like how he sucked on my fingers? Slowly, I opened my mouth, and he gently fed me the soup. The warm and familiar flavor of the soup filled my mouth. Immediately, I was reminded of home and all the other girls at the orphanage. I’ve thought of them before, and it didn’t take long for me to wish to go back. However, cooking and tasting my own cooking reminded me of the role that I played and the life that I lived at the orphanage. “It tastes amazing, doesn’t it?” he asked before he chuckled happily. Without knowing what to say, I just nodded. I didn’t want to compliment my own cooking because it was lacking, and I couldn’t make anything fancy due to the lack of ingredients and equipment back at the orphanage. Suddenly, I started to feel extremely emotional but the emotions that consumed me were not bright and happy ones. “What happened?” his voice snapped me out of my dark and ominous thoughts. I looked up from my lap to see him already crouched down next to my seat. He really is such a big man. His forearm rested on one knee as he stared at me. I could see my reflection faintly on the lens of his sunglasses. “Why are you crying all of a sudden? Did I…say or do something to make you sad?” he asked with a hint of confusion and guilt in his voice. “That’s not it…” I quickly denied before he would get the wrong idea. His beautiful fingers slowly approached my face and soon I felt the heat of his fingertips on my right cheek as he brushed my falling tear away. He let out a soft sigh before his fingers moved to my other cheek to do the same. His touch felt so gentle, but it only made me feel more sorrowful than before. The reason that I was crying was extremely simple. I must have been fooling myself or ignoring it not to realize the truth. I can’t go back home anymore. That place that I called home was no longer my home. There was nowhere for me to return to and no one for me to return to. The thought brought even more tears to my eyes. Although I tried to stop crying at first, it didn’t seem possible anymore. It was like all the emotions that I had been trying to hard to hold in exploded forth all at once. Tears streamed down my face before I covered my face with my hands to hide away from him. I didn’t want him to see me cry. In fact, I didn’t want anyone to see me cry and breakdown like this. … **Leonard’s Point of View** Why did she start crying all of a sudden? I had gotten physically too close to her than I had intended for today and I knew that I had to keep some distance between us. After silently promising myself that I wouldn’t touch her again, she had to start crying just a short while after. --To be continued…