*Knock, Knock
Someone was knocking on the door while Lucian had just finished a dramatic and chaotic conversation with John.
It was currently 8:40 AM, and he wondered if his friend had made it to work on time. Not wanting to make the person at the door wait, he quickly told them to come in.
"I figured you were having a conversation, so I didn't interrupt you." It was Nathan, dressed and ready for work.
He was wearing a perfectly tailored suit that fit his bulky body, with well-polished shoes. His hair was neatly combed, and his sleeves were rolled up just enough to reveal a highly expensive watch, undoubtedly a Swiss one.
Seeing such a handsome and masculine person dressed so sharply, Lucian couldn't help but admire what was in front of him.
"Don't worry, I just finished the call, hehe."
His eyes were everywhere but on Nathan, and Nathan was not naive enough to miss his reaction. He just laughed and chuckled silently without Lucian noticing.
"Well, if you're ready, let's have breakfast together." He suggested nonchalantly.
Lucian was somewhat amazed. "Breakfast? Did you make it yourself?"
Nathan's expression became complicated. 'Should I have made it myself?' he thought.
"No, Betty, my housekeeper, made it," he answered, a little troubled. "She's usually in charge of the food and the house's organization."
"Oh, right! I would have been really amazed if you actually did it," Lucian said unseriously. "Knowing how to cook after losing your memories would have been something else."
"Should I cook next time?" Nathan muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing."
'He really keeps a lot of things to himself,' Lucian thought, a smirk on his face that Nathan couldn't see.
As the two of them went down the stairs, Lucian, while holding the handrail, couldn't help but keep stealing glances at Nathan.
He looked at his broad shoulders, his neck, and the way the shirt shaped his body from behind.
It was perfect.
It was obvious that he wasn't used to wearing a tie, which he kept adjusting. Lucian found it amusing.
Once at the table, he was amazed by the amount of food. It didn't seem like breakfast at all but a feast. There were boiled eggs, prosciutto, sausages, different kinds of bread, and orange juice. Of course, in the center, there was a plate full of fruits and cereal. As if that weren't enough, a pot of flowers even fit on the table.
"This..." Lucian was speechless.
"I know," Nathan answered immediately, trying to read his expression. "I also thought it was a lot at first."
He pulled out a wooden chair and sat down. "This time I asked Betty to stay and make a warm breakfast." He turned to look at Lucian. "Is that okay?"
Lucian peeked at the housekeeper, who seemed a little worried about his answer, so he shook his head without hesitation. "Yes! I'm actually grateful for the breakfast." At this point, he was laughing nervously.
"Okay."
Ms. Betty seemed satisfied with Lucian's answer, and he felt relieved because of that.
While eating his breakfast, He realized it was pretty late for a regular worker to still be at home. He himself had a schedule he had personally discussed with Ms. Manon, but wasn't Nathan also supposed to be at work by now?
"I'm curious about something, but shouldn't you be at work right now?" he asked in a shy tone.
Nathan, before answering, gave him a warm smile and reassured him. "I already told Secretary Chen in advance that I would be late today." Stealing a glance at him, he added, "You don't have to worry."
"Okay..." A long silence followed as they both ate their breakfast.
By the end, Lucian was more than satisfied. He could only think about the last time he had been able to eat like that. He felt grateful to Nathan but was always cautious about his limits. He knew very well how to digest these kind of situations.
Both of them got up from their seats and went to brush their teeth.
By 9 o'clock, Nathan was already preparing to go to work, and Lucian felt it was necessary to follow him to the door.
Nathan, noticing Lucian watching him seriously at the entrance, asked, "Is there something you need?"
Lucian, as if snapping out of deep thought, immediately answered that there wasn't, and Nathan, seeing how foolish he looked and how uncomfortably he answered, gave him another of his mocking smiles.
"Were you thinking of kissing me goodbye?" Nathan added flirtatiously.
After hearing his words, Lucian couldn't believe the man in front of him. 'Was he actually serious?' were the only words that came to his mind.
He nervously returned his gaze, his entire face slightly pink like a cherry blossom. Lucian didn't know how to answer that. He was troubled.
'Am I supposed to say yes?'
'I don't want to... How could I?'
Nathan, seeing Lucian's nervousness at his bold comment, found himself quite amused and satisfied by his reaction. So as to lighten the mood, he gave him some peace and reassurance.
"It's not necessary." He tenderly stroked his hair while looking at him with soft eyes. He actually felt strange having someone at his door waiting for him to go to work. He felt somehow satisfied.
Finally Nathan bid him goodbye and went to his car.
"..."
Lucian just stayed standing in front of the door like a fool. He was stunned.
'Where is the cold man I met a few days ago at the hospital?!'
'Bring him back right now!!'
....
3 PM, Jardin des Tuileries, France
Linda was sitting at one of the cafés inside the garden, enjoying a nice coffee with a croissant and marmalade. It was quite sunny, but the temperature was perfect for being outside in the evening.
She was contemplating the view when she decided to turn on her phone, which she hadn't used at all during her trip.
To her surprise, she had a lot of missed calls, but she decided to ignore them and continue sipping her drink, just to receive another call.
Her face showed a look of annoyance, but she answered anyway. "Yes?" she said, taking another sip.
"Oh God, you finally answered. I thought you were dead!"
"Don't exaggerate. I was just busy flying."
"Flying? Did you have work somewhere else?"
"No, just relaxing. I had a short break for a few days." She said it while assuming a relaxing tone.
"Aha, so... where are you?"
"In a garden."
"Okay, but where? Washington?" insisted Lucian.
"No, just Paris."
"Wait... PARIS?!" He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "As in, Europe?"
Linda just kept nonchalantly drinking her coffee. "Yep."
"Oh my god. The last time was Egypt, and now you're in France?" Once again, Lucian was stunned.
"So, what's it for this time? Your trips are never reasonable!"
"Does there have to be a reason?" she said with an uninterested tone. "I just wanted to go to the museum to appreciate a nice painting since I could, so I did."
"Linda why- you know what, nevermind. It's fine! I just started my day with a lot going on, so it's okay."
"Okay, so I guess now is the time when you tell me what happened, right?"
"Well... it comes with being friends with me."
"I know, so just spit it out."
Lucian began telling Linda everything, even the recent call he had with John and what had just happened with Nathan. She listened attentively and took the opportunity to finish her drink, which was already cold, but not because of that bad. And just like that, twenty minutes went by without interruption, except for Linda, who wanted to continue her tour of the place.
"You see..." She paused to think. "You actually bring all this on yourself."
Lucian, who was already feeling self-conscious, didn't argue at all and just agreed with her. "I'm as dumb as a dog."
"Hey, don't insult dogs!" Linda interrupted quite seriously.
"...Linda, you—never mind."
"Listen, I'd like to continue our chat, but I really have to go right now, so..." she just wanted to free herself.
Lucian understood, and with a sigh and a helpless mood, he let her go without holding her back any longer.
'At least I hope she has fun instead of me...'
He still had half an hour to prepare for work, so he just stayed in his designated room, reading or studying the material he needed to help the students. He still had that job, even if it was just twice a week.