Chapter 5: The Aroma of Coffee

The next day, Haru waited patiently sitting in the student council reception area.

"You can’t come in until after 6 PM, okay?"

Those were the president’s words.

He decided not to look into it. If those were the council’s rules, all he could do was respect them.

"Still, you’re curious… nyan?"

His imagination ran wild every time he thought about that day.

The click of the door unlocking pulled him out of his thoughts, and the president appeared with her usual elegant and calm presence.

She looked around the whole room and could only see Haru.

"You can enter now, Aizawa," she said calmly.

"Is there anyone else?" she asked next.

"Nyan…" he replied.

She looked at him with curiosity.

"I mean… no, no one else but me," he added with embarrassment.

"Anyway, I need help with some budgets," she explained.

He simply nodded and followed her to the main room.

As usual, she locked the door again. If someone needed them, they had to knock first.

But as if the click of the door were the key to some magical shackle, she let go a bit of her rigid composure.

"These budgets are so annoying!"

"I wish I could eat a nice flan, sweet and soft…" she murmured, imagining sweet desserts in her mind.

Haru was organizing a few things in the kitchen.

"Or a crepe… that would be so good…"

Her face quickly became a bit more serious.

"Are you ignoring me, Aizawa?" she asked with a calm air of indignation.

Although he began to feel curious, he also noticed an aroma coming from the kitchen.

“Toast?”

A few minutes later, he came in with a small tray, with a cup and a plate.

She looked at him with curiosity while feeling drawn by the aromas.

"Coffee and toast with strawberry jam," he says, placing everything on her desk like a waiter.

"It’s not flan, but I hope you like it," he added with a smile.

The president did not hesitate for even a second and bit into the bread with jam, her face showed a happiness she never thought she would show someday.

"Mmm…"

"So good… is this how heaven feels?"

"It’s the best thing I’ve eaten in a long time," she confessed with tears in her eyes.

"Don’t exaggerate, it’s just bread with jam."

She didn’t seem to hear him. To Haru’s eyes, she looked like a little bunny slowly eating a piece of bread.

"This is delicious, but where did you get these things?" she asked, licking her fingers.

"I bought a few things, since we only had tap water. I thought we could have something more," he explained, while she looked at the coffee with curiosity.

Noticing that she was analyzing the cup too much, he let out a small sigh.

"If you want, I can go buy milk… black coffee can be very strong."

The president’s attention turned to him with an embarrassed look.

"Hmph! Don’t treat me like a child!"

"I can drink black coffee, like any adult," she said before taking a sip.

Her face clearly showed that she didn’t like it and that she was forcing herself to drink it.

"S-see? I’m a real adult," she added with an air of self-sufficiency.

…

He simply stayed silent, thinking about how adorable she looked.

"Yes, yes, President," he replied while taking a sip of his own coffee.

Then he looked at his cup and continued:

"It’s just instant coffee, but we could go to a café sometime…"

He thought for a few moments about what he had just said.

"To study, of course… I need to improve my grades. Hehe," he added nervously, scratching his head.

When he turned to look at her, she had her mouth full enjoying her toast.

"Huh? Yes, studying, of course," she replied when she noticed he was talking to her.

When they finished their snack, Haru began picking things up from the desk, and before he could head to the kitchen…

"Aizawa…"

He stopped in his tracks.

"Thank you," she said softly.

"You’re welcome, President," he replied and continued on his way.

With a renewed smile on her face, she went back to the papers on her desk.

*********************

Later that day, Haru arrived running to the café where he worked.

"You’re late, Romeo," commented a middle-aged man behind the counter.

"Sorry, uncle. I had student council work," he replied while leaving his backpack and putting on an apron.

Then he looked at him seriously.

"And I already told you not to give me weird nicknames…"

"Ha, ha, ha! As serious as ever! Come on, take life with more humor," his uncle laughed.

Right away, Haru started cleaning the tables and restocking napkins, sugar containers, and those things.

"So, how did it go with your girlfriend? Did she like the tea and coffee?"

"I already told you she’s not my girlfriend, she’s the council president, you old pervert," he shot back, blushing.

"Though she did like the homemade jam," he added.

"Of course she did, sweets are my specialty," his uncle bragged.

At that moment, a couple walked in and Haru greeted them politely.

"Welcome to Café Aozora. I’ll bring you the menu in just a moment!"