Ren was urged by Mai to change into the staff uniform – a white shirt with the cafe’s logo sewn on the right, a pair of light brown pants, and a navy blue apron. Then he was tasked with setting up the whole cafe before it opened.
Ren unstacked the chairs, wiped the tables, and provided each table with a tissue dispenser. The place was set up quickly, with still half-an-hour remaining before opening time. Mai was pleasantly surprised by his speed.
“Since you’re still new here, you can take care of the cleaning first.” She said, handing him the broom, before she opening up the store. There were apparently no other employees other than the two of them.
The cafe was currently short-handed, and searching for new employees, which was why there were less requirements to apply, and why Ren was hired so quickly. The other few employees that did work there, were either on a break, or had quit for another job. It was something that happened every other season, so both Mai and the owner were used to it, and had prepared for it early on.
Ren was sweeping the floor, while their first customers had already come in. Ren greeted the customers while Mai went behind the counter to prepare their orders. The morning was fairly busy, but it was a weekday so it was to be expected.
His first day was just spent serving food and drinks, cleaning the tables, and mopping the floor, as per Mia’s instructions. Ren was taken aback how crowded the cafe was at first, but quickly adjusted.
By the time it was breaktime, he was feeling just a little out of breath. He sat onto one of the chairs in the breakroom.
Mai came in a few moments later, holding a glass of iced lemon water.
“Here,” She said, handing it to him. “You’ve worked hard today. I’m surprised you could keep up, even if it’s your first day. Most newbies get pretty overwhelmed.”
Ren took a sip, feeling more refreshed than before.
Then he shrugged. “This was nothing.”
Mai smiled. “That’s good to hear, because afternoon tends to get even busier.”
“And you still don’t have any more employees to help around?” Ren asked. After all, why would such a popular cafe only have one, or now including him, two people working there.
“We prefer quality over quantity.” Mai said, matter-of-factly.
Ren frowned at the vague reply.
‘Is it even possible to judge someone’s quality by just looking at an online application?’
“Well, that’s enough slacking off for today. Let’s get back to work.” Mai said suddenly.
Ren kept the glass of water on the side and followed Mai outside, ready to deal with a whole set of other customers.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Usually, Luca had an easy time keeping his personal matters off of his mind, with work to distract him, but this time, his personal life was distracting him from working.
He sighed.
[Is everything alright?] Wyatt asked, glancing over at Luca.
Luca hadn’t even realized Wyatt had come in. Of course his secretary didn’t bother to knock first.
[You seem uncharacteristically distracted today.]
“It’s nothing.”
Wyatt raised a brow. [Really nothing or nothing work-related?]
Damn it, he really knew Luca well.
“The latter, so we won’t be discussing it right now.”
Wyatt looked like he wanted to say something, but then decided against it.
“So why are you in my office?” Luca asked.
[The contract with Lyzon has finally been terminated. However, some of the shareholders and executives are displeased with the result, namely the losses we suffered, and they are requesting a meeting next week.]
“Of course they are. They do the least, yet are the most worried about losing profit. Just choose the earliest date available. The faster we get done with this, the better.” Luca said, looking unsurprised.
[Yes, sir.] Wyatt said, but didn’t make any move to leave.
“Is there anything else?” Luca asked.
[Not really.] Wyatt said, not bothering to elaborate.
‘Then why are you still here?’ Luca thought.
Just when Luca assumed the office would be filled with awkward silence, Wyatt suddenly spoke.
[You just seem really different today.]
“You already mentioned that when you came in.”
[I did.]
“You’re not going to leave until I tell you, are you?” Luca asked, exasperated. But really, he didn’t mind.
[Your mental health is also important.] Wyatt said, seriously.
“Awwwww, you care about me so much~” Luca teased, feeling a bit touched.
[If I didn’t, I’d have to do most of your paperwork, and work overtime. With the pace you’re going, it’d take a year for you to get all that done.]
“I take back everything good I said about you.” Luca said, pulling a face.
Wyatt ignored Luca and took a seat in front of his desk.
[So what’s bothering you so much?]
Luca turned serious.
What was bothering him? Wasn’t it the fact that he still didn’t think of an excuse to get Ren to stay longer? That, if Ren really wanted to leave, Luca had no way to make him stay. He had tried not to get attached, but that was futile. He tried to prepare himself for this day, but obviously he still wasn’t ready. He liked having someone around, keeping him company.
He had always led a fairly isolated life, even with his friends around. They had their own lives and he lived on his own. It was lonely. But then, he suddenly had company, and he looked more forward to waking each day.
He’d been spoiled by having someone around, he didn’t want things to go back the way they were. It didn’t help that Ren was . . . well Ren. His honest reactions always made Luca want to tease him. Yet, he was still covered by many mysteries.
“How do you . . . convince someone to not leave?”
Wyatt blinked, not expecting such a question.
[Does this have to do with that kid who you keep around?]
Luca nodded.
[Just ask him to stay.]
“But what if he doesn’t want to?”
[Then ask him why he wants to leave, and maybe try to fix that.]
Ren had said he didn’t want to be a bother to him, but it would bother Luca more if he left. He tried explaining that, but Ren didn’t seem to believe it. Did he really seem like the person to keep someone around out of kindness? Luca wasn’t a good person. He couldn’t even convince himself he was, so why would others believe it?
He was selfish. Every action he took was calculated. Although, he supposed picking Ren up was an impulse. Still, it didn’t change the fact it was self-serving. Ren was too naive to think he was anything other than that.
“And if I can’t fix it?” He asked.
[So pessimistic already? You haven’t even tried yet.]
“Humor me.”
[Then you can only respect his decision.]
Luca curled his lips. As if he didn’t know that already.
Wyatt looked at him carefully.
[I hope you figure it out.]
“Me too.” Luca whispered.
Welcome back and happy new year!! Thanks for the chapter~~
I hope everything goes well
Welcome back and thank you for the chapter!! ❤️❤️
welcome back
i missed Luca! thanks for the chapter <3
I miss this novel!
Is this dropped already….