Chapter 7 First Date

• [Amara's POV]
• I don’t know what the deal is between Cernon and the rest of my family. Once he invited me for a meal, it was as if all of them wanted to push me toward him, as if they had sold me for a penny while I was asleep. I am yet to ask him how he knew where I live, and why he was in the protected forest. I couldn’t sense any strange power from him. Considering that he saw me in the afternoon, he certainly is not a night dweller, so what is he?
• Dad handed me the key to his car, and I drove us to the nearest cafe. I feel anxious about the way he looked at me, but I didn’t say anything about it. It’s not that I can’t defend myself if he turns out to be an offender.
• On our way to the cafe, I cleared my throat to break the uncomfortable silence in the car. “Cernon, right?” I asked.
• “Uh. Um,” he answered reluctantly.
• “I haven’t thanked you yet.”
• “That’s not necessary. Anyone would do the same thing I did if they saw someone faint in the middle of the forest.”
• “Still. Thank you.”
• “No biggies.” He giggled.
• “What were you doing in the forest again?” I probed subtly.
• “I was lost. I have been walking for hours, and I don’t know which direction I came from.”
• Gotcha. I knew it. He was lying.
• “Hmm. And where did you come from? I mean, what’s the name of the place? I can drop you off later.” I offered. I want to know if his story will check out.
• There’s something fishy in his story. He couldn’t possibly be just walking for hours to reach the center of the protected forest. First, it doesn’t matter where he came from; it would take someone at least a day to get to the center of the forest on foot. Second, since it’s a protected forest, our supernatural population wouldn’t let anyone get past a few hundred meters after crossing the border without leading them back to where they came from. And when I say 'supernatural population,' it means a great deal. They are scattered everywhere. Some of them may not be visible, but they are there. Each community plays a part in maintaining the peace and order of our territory. Not to mention the canopy of protective spells covering the entire forest, from beneath the surface to a few kilometers overhead.
• I couldn’t accept his lies on face value. Does he think I'm a fool? He must be a hunk, but he'd better come clean, or else I can just dump him by the roadside.
• “Are you familiar with the neighboring territories? He answered my question with a question.
• “Yes. I’ve been living in this area for five years now, so you can say that I'm quite familiar with it. So, aren’t you going to tell me where I could drop you off?”
• “Oh, I live in the neighboring territory. It’s a werewolf pack.”
• “Oh yeah? Which one?” I probe as my adrenaline starts rising. This is both exciting and annoying at the same time. He is lying on my face without even batting an eyelid. Does he think his handsome face could save him from my wrath?.
• “Black Moon Pack.”
• “Really? I know that pack. How about I drop you off after our meal?” I offered perfunctorily.
• “No, it’s fine. Your grandmother accepted me as a guest, and your parents also agreed with her as a form of gratitude for bringing you back safely.” He paused and shrugged before speaking again. “I will go back with you after dinner.”
• I hummed in response without taking my eyes off the road. He didn’t do his research well. He doesn’t know that the Black Moon Pack belonged to us. Let’s see how long he will make a monkey out of himself until he runs out of a made-up story.
• After a few minutes, we reached my favorite cafe. I pulled over and quickly got out of the car. I’m so hungry that I couldn’t waste a second being graceful. I tilted my head and waved at him encouragingly to hurry up.
• Once the waitress ushered us to a vacant table by the corner, I quickly ordered a peanut butter and jelly burger with spicy fries and a matcha coffee without looking at the menu. I was handing Cernon the menu, but he pushed it back to me.
• “I will have what she’s having,” he told the waitress.
• I narrowed my eyes at him. I have never found anyone who would want to eat the weird combination of food I just ordered.
• “Are you sure?”
• “Sure, why not? There’s always a first time for everything.”
• “As you wish.”
• After the waitress came to serve our food, I didn’t waste a blink and literally stuffed everything in my mouth. In just a few minutes, my plate was clean, and not even a single sesame seed was left behind. After wiping my mouth clean, I noticed that Cernon hadn’t touched his food.
• “What’s wrong? You don’t like it?”
• “I’m not hungry, you can eat some more, I haven't touched it,” pushing his plate in front of me, before drinking his coffee. I looked at his face and smirked. “You don’t like the taste, do you?”
• “It;’s not like that. I saw how hungry you were so I thought you might want more.”
• “Nope,” emphasizing the last letter with a pop. “I’m full,” I added as I rubbed my stomach in circles.
• He nodded and started eating in silence. I waited patiently as he slowly chewed every bite with an unreadable expression. He must be regretting his decision to order the same, but he could only swallow his pride and gulp the ridiculous food combination to save his face.
• Once he ate the last piece of fries, I folded my arms across my chest and pushed myself back a little.
• “Do you happen to be a ranked member of the Black Moon Pack?” I schooled my expression to look innocent, concealing all the thoughts running in my head. I still don’t know what he is and what he is up to. Could he be a warlock? I hope not. I still get goosebumps every time I’m reminded of Mom’s ordeal with the warlocks. I shook the idea out of my head and focused on the man sitting opposite me.
• He smiled, and a set of lower cheek dimples appeared ever so slightly. I was distracted by the sight of it. I didn’t even notice that I was staring at his dimples longer than I would have hoped for.
• Cernon cleared his throat, “You liked it?” His magnetic voice reached my ears, and I could feel my face heating up.
• “Nah. It’s just unusual for a man to have dimples, that’s all.”
• “It seems you don’t see a lot of men.”
• “Nonsense. I met a lot of guys in the university. I hang out with them a lot all the time.” I lied. In reality, I teleported myself in and out of the university every day. I returned to the coven after my classes and barely interacted with anyone. Dad Seb booked a massive, fully furnished dorm room during my first year in university, but I got bored and always found myself teleporting either to the coven or to the Riverbed Pack. In the end, they had to cancel the room and let me do as I wished.
• He shrugged, then cleared his throat again, before asking, “Can I ask you something, Amara?”
• “Shoot.” I answered roughly before picking up my coffee.
• “Can you be my girlfriend?” His question was so abrupt. I almost spat the last sip of matcha on his face.
• “Whoa. Stop right there, Romeo. Where did that come from?” I blurted in shock. “We just met, remember? Just because you found me unconscious in the forest doesn’t mean I have to pay you back with my affection. No can do.” I shook my head, matching the movement of my index finger to solidify my objection.
• He scratched the back of his head and murmured, “I’m sorry. I thought you would agree since you did not oppose going on a date with me.”
• “Date?” I was baffled. When did I agree to go on a date with him? Did I hallucinate and commit to something without remembering it?
• As if he could read my mind, “Isn’t this our first date?” he asked uncomfortably.
• First date? I couldn’t hold it any longer and burst out laughing.