[GL] I tamed the female lead

Chapter 22

The others didn't dare approach us as long as Orange was guarding me but seeing me get up, Prissy finally could look at me from head to toe. I told her that I was fine but she still made me drink some herbs before getting back to work. The greenhouse got nicely decorated under my supervision. I didn't really like too intensive colors or decorations so everything was white and a light purple. I really liked purple and every time I said it, Orange would blush.

"I think we should paint our room purple. What do you think?"

Orange seemed torn for a few seconds before saying:

"Why don't we paint it blue?"

I laughed:

"Isn't purple better? It reminds me of someone important."

Orange almost choked trying to avoid my gaze.

"Blue is gorgeous."

Of course I knew that she was referring to my eyes so I hugged her with all my strength

"You are so cute. How can you be so cute?"

We didn't paint our room in purple or in blue but we did decorate the greenhouse in purple which was very nice. I didn't like plants that much so I never came into the greenhouse but seeing it all nice and clean I thought that maybe it was a nice spot to read. I was really satisfied with this idea and noted it somewhere in my head. Seeing me all happy, Orange recovered her energy and we continued planning.

We made a list of all the cakes we wanted there and for some reason Orange wrote down only my favorite cakes. I looked at her list with a frown:

"Why didn't you write chouquettes or meringue down?"

Orange seemed to think they didn't have their place on the list.

"You don't like them.

-But they are your favorites."

She didn't seem convinced so I just added them to the list with a sign:

"You should think of yourself more. Don't only think about me.

-Why?"

I laughed:

"Okay, then I'll just have to think of you on your behalf."

Orange blushed and I laughed again. Following the list, our favorite cakes were prepared for the tea party. Apart from the cakes, we bought teas from the furthest countries and asked everyone about their allergies to be sure everyone would have something to eat. Everything had to be perfect if I was going to hold a gathering. I wanted people to have fun and talk about it for days.

People started arriving one after the other and I escorted them to the tables. We invited quite a lot of people but I didn't even remember most of them. I knew that it wasn't the first time I was seeing them but I had no idea what their names were. I really needed to pay attention to people but I just didn't care. I liked to get to know people and have fun but making real friends wasn't my goal. I introduced myself to everyone just to be sure and fortunately some people did tell me their names. However, as soon as they left I forgot them again. I really wanted to hit myself. How could I care so little?

Orange stood by my side while I greeted everyone and escorted them to their seats if needed. Everyone complimented us on the location and the decorations which I was quite satisfied with. I helped make them and thought it was really nice too. Once seated, people started eating and drinking and they really liked our cakes. We bought them at my cake shop in town which wasn't well known yet. It hurt me a bit when people asked me about where the cakes were from. I really didn't want my secret paradise to be found out but I had no reason to lie so I just told the truth with an aching heart. People drank tea and talked happily. Everything was peaceful and satisfying and if every gathering was like this then I was ready to host more. I got to talk to our classmates and got to know new interesting people as well. I made sure that everyone felt welcomed and talked to the guests one after the other. I really liked small gatherings because we were more involved in the conversation but that was only when the conversation was interesting. What I liked about big gatherings like this was that if I got bored of a conversation, as the hostess, I could rotate to the next table without any issue.

I talked to everyone with a smile and didn't have time to get bored. I started remembering some people's names but I especially paid attention to Saber when she arrived. She was the new student and this was for her to feel integrated after all. She was a small girl with light brown hair and eyes of the same color. I immediately knew who she was as soon as she came in, I didn't know why. There was something different in her and she didn't even have to introduce herself for me to know I was right. She was almost the first one to arrive and her energy was contagious. She seemed overjoyed at the idea of being here and was all over the place not staying put for a second. If I had to compare her to something then it would be a butterfly. She was twirling the same way and would disappear as soon as you looked away a second. Her eyes were glowing with life and everyone really liked her. She always knew what to say and listened to people intently. I really enjoyed her presence and Orange seemed to notice because she turned to me:

"Do you like her?

-Saber? She is really nice. I am happy that we decided to invite her. What do you think?"

Just as usual, Orange didn't mingle with people. She didn't really talk to anyone, only slowly nodding when someone talked to her. She seemed really unbothered and only talked to me coming to my side from time to time carrying a plate full of cakes or a cup of cooled down tea. While I was eating she would even stay next to me if there were too many cakes and would hold the plate until I was done. She was adorable as always but I would have loved for her to get to know people more. I really thought that being in different classes, Orange would finally start making friends but she didn't. People tried talking to her sometimes but she just stared at them and nodded or shook her head. For some reason this made me smile. She looked like a grumpy cat and it was fun.

"What do you think about her?"

Orange stared at Saber:

"She's not the worst."

I was really surprised. This was the nicest thing Orange ever said about anyone else. She was really hard to impress and would guard me as a loyal dog usually.

"Is there someone else you like?"

Orange didn't hesitate a second:

"No. I only like you."

I laughed:

"Don't worry, Orange. You are by far my favorite one here."

She blushed and quickly escaped which made me laugh. Despite being all shy I knew that she was touched because she always came back to me as if waiting for more. I thought Orange would quickly come back as usual but was surprised when even after twenty minutes I didn't see her. I had a horrible sense of time but I just suddenly felt like something was wrong. It took me some time but when I noticed what was wrong, I looked at my watch and saw that in fact she had been gone for a long time. I didn't know where she disappeared off to but I couldn't see her anywhere. I looked around multiple times but she was nowhere to be seen. Where did she go? Usually she only left for a few minutes to give me time to talk or to go get me something to eat. Then where was she now? Was everything okay? I didn't think it would bother me that much but just like a mom who couldn't see her child anymore, I started looking for her.

I didn't want to bother her or to force her to stay by my side but it was just weird. She never left my side for this long and I couldn't help feeling that something happened. The buffet was still full of cakes so she didn't leave to get more. There was a lot of tea too and I didn't see any spiders. I hated spiders and Orange would take them away as soon as she saw them to protect me. Maybe she left again to take care of an insect. I was going to wait a bit more to see.