Chapter 7
After class that afternoon, Luciana rushed back to her apartment and wolfed down a bowl of instant oatmeal before heading off to her part-
time shift at The Fable Fox.
She had been working there since her freshman year, and it had been almost two years now. A few weeks ago, a group of celebrities dined there by chance, and the restaurant blew up overnight. Ever since, it had been packed daily, with reservations nearly impossible to get.
Just thinking about another exhausting evening on her feet made her back ache. She pulled out her phone and calculated her income and expenses for the month, wondering if she could send some allowance home to her parents in Januview.
After tallying everything, she had a few hundred dollars left. She transferred the money to their bank account and informed them in the family group chat.
Before leaving, she made a quick detour to the bathroom to check how many pads were left in the pack Thiago had bought her yesterday, just in case. She stared at the pack for a while, a sudden wave of confusion creeping over her.
That was strange. Nothing was missing, and every single pad was still there. Where did that extra one in the paper bag come from, then? Did it just appear out of nowhere? Had someone at the dry cleaners accidentally tossed it in?
But even that didn’t make sense. What were the odds of it being from the exact same brand and type, down to the packaging?
After a few moments of thinking, Luciana figured she must’ve miscounted. It wasn’t worth overthinking as she had too many things on her plate to waste time on something this small.
As for what Thiago had said about taking it to heart, he probably didn’t mean anything by it. He had simply been teasing her.
Even ii he had taken it seriously, it wasn’t like there was anything about her that could catch the attention of someone like him.
At exactly 5:00 pm, Luciana clocked in at The Fable Fox. As dusk settled and the city lights flickered on, the restaurant buzzed with its usual
dinner rush.
ciana weaved through the crowd with a tray in hand, barely finding a moment to catch her breath.
She had just served a massive plate of honey–glazed pork ribs, and her arms were still aching from carrying it. Right then, the manager, Ben Trenn, called out, “Luciana, table two is ready to order!”
“Okay,” she replied, then scurried toward table two by the floor–to–ceiling windows. As she pulled out a pen and paper from her pocket, she asked, “Good evening. What would you like to have today?”
Nobody answered her.
An awkward bear later, a man piped up, “You’re flashing me.”
His voice was deep and pleasant, unhurried with a hint of flirtation.
Luciana looked up abruptly, only to find Thiago staring at her. He sat with his legs slightly apart, his defined hand drumming lightly on the table. Amusement flickered in his dark eyes.
Across the table, Monica rested her chin in her hands and said with a sweet pout, “Stop teasing the poor girl, Theo. You’re making her blush.”
It was only then that Luciana noticed the middle button of her uniform shirt had come undone. Flustered, she quickly fastened it. The shirt was clearly a bit too tight for her chest. She made a mental note to ask Ben for a better fit next time.
“Apologies for that,” Luciana said, picking up her pen and paper again. “What would you like to have?”
The two at the table looked every bit the perfect pair–he, refined and impossibly handsome; she, all bright eyes and delicate grace. Together, they were the kind of couple that turned heads.
Luciana couldn’t help glancing at them again, a quiet surge of envy stirring in her chest.
As if he didn’t know her at all, Thiago casually flipped through the menu and asked, “Any recommendations?”
“Our garlic chicken pasta, classic meatloaf, salad, and strawberry cream cheesecake are all popular choices.”
“Sure. We’ll take all of them.”
“Alright.”
Luciana was jolting down the order when Monica suddenly pouted at Thiago, her voice dripping with mock sweetness. “They’re all so high in calories. I’ll get fat, you know?”
Luciana’s pen faltered for a moment. So, should she proceed with the order or not? When she looked up, she found Thiago’s eyes on her again. Her expression tightened, and instinctively, she touched her face, wondering if she had gotten something on it.
The two locked eyes for a few seconds until Monica, with brows furrowed, interrupted the moment. “Hey, Theo? Hello?”
Thiago withdrew his gaze and emotionlessly said to Monica, “Oh. What do you want, then?”
Chapter 7
“Let me ses” Monica smiled charmingly as she flipped through the menu.
“You can call me again when you’ve decided,” said Lariana.
Once she walked away, Thiago shot Monica a cold look. “Why don’t we order two glasses of water, then? They’re zero calories.”
Monica was speechless.
Luciana walked away from the table with the order slip and quietly told her coworker, Lola Hills, “Hey, if table two asks to order later, could you cover for me? I’ll take care of your section in return.”
Lola glanced over at table two with a spark of gossip in her eyes. “Woal. What a good–looking couple. It’s rare to see a pair like them these daye.”
Luciana forced a smile, “Yeah. They look like the perfect match.”
With that, she turned and headed toward the other side of the restaurant.
Yesterday, Thiago had reappeared in her world, and within just a few dozen hours, everything had gone off balance. Every word he spoke- even the sound of his name felt like some kind of spell on her. She was an utterly hopeless fool.
Luciana let out a quiet sigh, steadied herself, and threw all her focus into work. For the rest of the evening, she didn’t step anywhere near table two
Af 10:00 pm, Lanciana changed out of her uniform after her shift. Lola grumbled while packing up.
“Ou, boss is so stingy. You’d think we’d at least get a free meal working here. The online reviews say everything here is amazing, but we’ve never even tasted a thing.”
Luciana chuckled. “You could just pay for it yourself.”
“No way. It’s crazy expensive. One salad costs nearly 60 bucks, and I bet it doesn’t even cost five dollars to make.”
Laciana fell silent for a moment, a quiet wave of thought washing over her.
People like her and Lola didn’t skip fine dining for health or vanity; they simply couldn’t afford it. Meanwhile, someone like Monica was picky because she wanted to maintain her figure.
All that talk about people being born equal? Well, those who said that clearly hadn’t experienced the real world. Some were born with a silver spoon while others spent their whole life trying to buy one.
Lola nudged her when she noticed Luciana zoning out, “Oh, by the way, table two didn’t order anything else and left after just two glasses of water. The guy even left a handsome tip,”
“Oh…” Luciana replied absentmindedly, her mind elsewhere.
Monica must’ve been watching her calories, and Thiago had decided to take her somewhere else for something lighter. The way Monica called him by his nickname was enough to know they were dating.
Was that the kind of worgan Thiago was into, then? Smart, beautiful, brilliant, and from a good family.
Suddenly, Luciana felf oddly relieved she hadn’t given him that love letter back in high school. If she had, she would’ve been so humiliated that she would’ve ended herself.
The curious Lola asked, “Why did you refuse to serve table two? That guy looked so familiar… I think I’ve seen him somewhere before.”
Luciana’s lashes fluttered, and for a moment, a faint light flickered in her eyes. She said softly, “He was way too handsome. I couldn’t brace myself to look at him.”
Lola was suddenly at a loss for words. The two exchanged a few more casual words, packed up their things, and stepped out of the restaurant together.
As soon as they crossed the doorway, a low, magnetic voice stopped Laiclana in her tracks. “Laristia.”
