Look What The Cat Dragged In!

I don't consider myself a food critic, but I do love to eat! From fast food to fancy dishes, I've been lucky enough to set foot in the most expensive restaurants in Japan. So far, I've learned that food is only a small part of the experience. The secret is the connection between what you have on your plate and the people surrounding it. The better the company, the more delicious the food will taste.

As I made my way to our long-awaited "offline meeting", I was able to spot Hikaru and Rika from the windows of the café. They were sitting next to each other, browsing the menu. Their outfits were oddly color-coordinated today. Hikaru was wearing a green shirt and some jeans, while Rika was wearing a green sundress styled with a pair of white sunglasses. I looked at my phone to check the time. Oh, no! I'm 10 minutes late!

"Hey! Sorry, I'm late! What did I miss?" I said, rushing towards their table.

"Akioooo!" Rika jumped out of her seat and hugged me.

"Hey! You didn't miss anything. We were just looking at the menu," Hikaru said.

I couldn't help myself, so I started giggling as I proceeded to sit down.

"What?" Hikaru asked, confused.

"Well, I was able to spot you guys before I even entered the café. And you two looked like you were out on a date!" I said. Both of them started blushing and looked away from each other.

"Don't be silly, Akio!" Rika said, embarrassed.

"Good to know your imagination is as wild as ever!" Hikaru said this while pretending to browse the menu again.

Interesting reactions! Maybe there's something going on between them that I don't know about. Anyway, I decided to change the subject for now.

"Soooo, did you guys spot anything extra tasty on the menu?"

"The caramel pudding parfait caught my eye. I love the salted caramel sauce!" Rika said.

"I hope they still have the limited-edition gummy bear parfait," Hikaru added.

"They do! Look, it's here!" Rika pointed at the photo of a parfait as Hikaru nodded.

Now it was my turn to look at the menu. There were so many yummy options to choose from. After browsing for a while, I decided to get the strawberry mousse parfait. I can't say no to strawberries. They're my favorite! Shortly after, the waiter arrived and took our order. Now the offline meeting can continue!

"So, Akio, did you make any progress interacting with the cat plushie?" Rika asked.

"Yes, but the first night was tough. I couldn't even sleep with it in my room. So I left the plushie outside my door. My dad almost tripped on it on his way to work. Ha, ha! But now I'm much better. I can look at it and even touch it. But I still don't understand something. What's the deal with the toy mouse? I don't get it," I said.

"It's to keep the cat entertained while you're away. I'm glad you're making progress. But you still haven't given it a name!" Rika answered with a smile.

"Yes, I'm bad with names. I'm even worse with cat names," I answered.

Before I could say more, I saw Rika getting up from her seat. Her eyes lit up, and she started pointing at someone. I could only hear the sound of heels approaching, so I turned my head, and I saw... Yuki! What? Why? What is she doing here?

"Code Red! Code Red! An outsider has infiltrated our meeting!" Rika shouted.

"Oh, no! I didn't mean to!" Yuki put her hands on her face and acted surprised.

"I'm just joking, Yuki! Come here and have a seat!" Rika laughed and hugged her.

I was confused but also excited to see her. If I had known she would be here today, I would have worn something fancier than a plain orange t-shirt.

"Hello, everyone! I came here because I wanted to give Akio his umbrella back. Since I didn't have his phone number, and he's not active on social media, I texted Rika today, and she gave me all the details!" Yuki said while looking at me.

"Thanks Yuki! You didn't have to go out of your way to bring it to me here. You could have brought it to school." I said, getting up from my seat.

"Don't worry about it. The weather is unpredictable these days. I feel guilty knowing you're out there without an umbrella," Yuki replied shyly.

She's been worried about me all this time.Yuki really is an angel! As I looked at her closely, I could see a light shade of red on her cheeks. Is it part of her makeup, or is she blushing right now?

"How's the kitten doing?" I asked while trying to distract myself from staring at her face too much.

"The kitten is in good hands! She is doing great! You should come see her sometimes at the animal shelter," Yuki answered, excited. I don't know if I'm ready for that just yet, but I replied with a smile and a nod.

"Yuki, please join us! Sit next to Akio and order anything you like! It's on us!" Rika said.

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a burden. And I definitely can't let you all pay for me!" Yuki said, a little worried.

"What are you talking about? You're not bothering us! Please stay!" Hikaru said.

"Ok, if it's alright with you, I will stay for a bit!" Yuki smiled and looked at me.

I made room for her to sit beside me. Yuki was wearing a beautiful polka dot dress and a pair of high heels that were... extremely high! Wow! How can she walk in those heels? That's impressive! Yuki took her phone out of her tiny purse and put it on the table beside me. Her phone case was filled with cat pictures. Of course, it was! Those little demons! I looked away for a bit to calm my nerves.

The waiter arrives just in time with our parfaits. They looked so delicious! Now he is waiting for Yuki to pick something from the menu. She took a glance at the menu and at our orders and decided:

"I'm having what Akio is having!" she said cheerfully as she pointed at my parfait.

"Alright, one strawberry mousse parfait is coming right up," the waiter replied while leaving our table.

I was shocked. Out of all the items on the menu, Yuki picked MY parfait! I couldn't believe it! While Rika and Hikaru were busy taking pictures of their parfaits and arguing over which looked best, I took the opportunity to offer Yuki my own dessert:

"Yuki, let's swap our parfaits! Who knows how long it will take for yours to arrive? And I don't want you to sit here and watch us eat. I have no problem with waiting a little bit longer," I said. But who am I fooling? I can wait years for a parfait if that makes Yuki happy!

"Oh! You're very kind, Akio!. I'm in no rush, really! I can wait," Yuki said with a smile.

"Please, I insist! Look how tasty it looks! And it smells amazing! Are those cookie crumbs on top? Yum!" I said, trying my best to convince her to swap our desserts. Yuki laughed and grabbed her phone. She took a photo of the parfait and reached for my spoon.

"Ok, I accept your offer!" she said before dipping the spoon into the dessert.

"Akio is such a gentleman, isn't he? Boyfriend material even! Too bad he doesn't have a girlfriend!" Rika said while looking at Yuki. What's going on? What is Rika plotting?

"Do you have a boyfriend, Yuki?" Rika asked with a big grin.

At that moment, I felt all the heat leave my body.