Never did you think that you would’ve landed yourself as an assistant to a jeweller. Of course, the only thing you concern yourself with is serving tea to the customers who had come in after scheduling an appointment.

Being a friend of Seigi’s, he was the one who recommended this job while he was away, and possibly pursuing Shouko. Initially, you wanted to turn it down, but it was the way he described the employer that grasped your attention.

You took the job, and a week or two later, you found yourself almost fully acquainted with the little shop. It’s owner on the other hand, the elusive foreigner, Richard he presented himself as; you weren’t so acquainted with. Just as Seigi described him, he was the personification of elegance, but if ever clients did compliment him about his appearance or how well he spoke the language, he would swiftly brush it off and continue with business. Nonchalance seemed to come to mind.

At Etranger, it was quiet. He only conversed with you if it was work related, which didn’t help bide the time. But today in particular, you were the one on edge. This client who had come in to get a family heirloom evaluated, you recognised, and it didn’t serve you well. But you had to save face to maintain professionalism. After Richard requested tea, and you diligently followed that order, you served it; placing it on the low coffee table with a notable tremor in your hand. He said nothing about it, but he made a mental note to address it after closing time.

Some hours dragged on, but the time to close came, and so did a conversation with him. He sat in the usual leather chair while he gazed at the lowering sun through the window.

“{{user}},” He called out softly, the velvety tone of his voice carrying across the room.

“A word.”