Custom Made For You

Chapter 28- I Think I'm About To Lose It

The ride was quiet even though Airi was present, I was grateful that my friend knew how to read between the lines. I sat beside Fancy-Ass, wind blowing through my hair, making it slightly messy. I looked at him, he looked bothered, yet I was certain that it wasn't because of his hair that was going crazy. His brows were knitted with a permanent scowl. If looks could kill, everyone within 50 metre radius would have dropped dead. I had never seen him act like that (Mainly because I had only knew the guy for less than a week.), it was petrifying, even though I knew he probably wasn't angered by neither Airi nor I (At least, I hoped.).

The trip from my place to the office was shorter than expected. I was almost startled when he hit the brakes. He turned his head to look at us, forcing the warmest smile he could, he said, "Here we are! You guys grab breakfast before work, yeah?"

I nodded, assuring him that we will be just fine. When I closed the door, I surprised myself by asking him, "You are gonna be alright, right?"

He chuckled, "Sure, don't worry about it. I'll handle it. I've been wanting to anyway."

With that, he drove off, leaving Airi and I in front of the building, filled with a mixture of confusion and concern for him.

"He seems nice," Airi said, out of nowhere as we walked down the street to get coffee and food.

"I guess so," I answered half-heartedly.

"Are you going to give him a chance?"

"A chance to?"

"To date you, duh. It's so painfully obvious how much he is interested in you."

"You don't know that, we just met. I don't even know him that well yet."

"So? I think it's fine. If you know everything about him before dating, wouldn't it be kinda boring? Plus, in case you two break up, you'll only lose him once."

One thing about Airi, she never dates anyone who are initially her friends. 'You'll lose them twice. Once as a friend, twice as a lover,' she said. Which, I'll admit, it was true. But, I couldn't just date anyone I just met like her, it felt weird, opening up to a complete stranger. I felt insecure doing so.

I shrugged, "I don't know, we'll see."

I pushed open the door to the pastry shop, freshly baked bread hit me like a truck (in a good way) the moment I stepped in.

The shop owner, Mrs. Sia, waved at us when she spotted us. The tiny Chinese lady grabbed me by the hand, urging me to follow her. I went willingly, excited when she did that, since every time she did, it was to have me taste test some new flavours or product.

She brought out a tray of luscious macarons. Just the scent made my mouth-water. She pointed to them, "Go ahead, have one. Tell me yeet or keep."

Cautiously, I examined it. 'Unbroken feet, check. Smooth shiny skin, check. Filling not bulging out, check.' I thought to myself, mentally judging it. I took a bite. The exterior was crispy and slightly crunchy. The insides were chewy, the filling was creamy. It was the correct amount of sweetness, I was really hyped to have another.

I looked at Mrs. Sia, complimenting her, "These are great! You are really good at this! Ten out of ten keep."

She let out a chortle, "I didn't make these. My new employee did. He's good at it. He's only been here for a few weeks."

"Oh, new employee? That's news," I was a curious as who the new employee was.

"Here he comes!" Mrs. Sia told me, tugging my sleeve, pointing to a man entering the shop.

"Good morning, ma'am," he greeted her. I looked at him, he looked remarkably familiar.

Mrs. Sia fervently introduced us to each other, "Tolmer, this is Sebastian, Sebastian, this is Tolmer."

"Nice to meet you," I held out my hand, waiting for him to shake it.

He took it, gripping it firmly. In fact, too firmly for my liking. "Same here," he replied before heading into the kitchen.

"He doesn't say much, but he's really hardworking and responsible," Mrs. Sia said to me once he disappeared out of sight.

I was about to say something but was interrupted by Airi's frantic calling, telling me that we were about to be late. Mrs. Sia shoved a bag of macarons and two cups of coffee into my hand before sending me off.

As we exited the shop, Airi whispered, "That dude who just entered the shop. I think I recognize him."

"He looked sort of familiar. Maybe it's because we've seen him somewhere around this area? I haven't been to Mrs. Sia's for quite a while, so I don't know."

"Hold on," she whipped out her phone from her bag. "I asked Vastel for a copy of the security camera footage."

"Am I the only one without a copy?"

"Not important, Tol. Look," She played the video. I squinted , trying to focus my vision on the face.

My eyes widened as I had connected the dots.

"They look alike!" Both Airi and I exclaimed in sync. Holy, crap, things were getting complicated.