Chapter 10: part 4 - A Cozy Catchup

= Chris POV =

When I arrived home I hesitated a bit. I had picked up some sushi from a sushi restaurant down the street and I had the pastries from Hana, plus the roses…was this enough, to make things up with Sarah? I had neglected her for so long. Even as roommates, this was a little much. I should have checked in after demanding her to adhere to my requests and even sleep in my bed.

I sighed and unlocked the door, pushing it open. The house was a wash in the late afternoon sun, and I walked in to see Sarah had left a bag of pastries on the table. I heard the shower running and realised Sarah must taking a shower.

I put my stuff on the table beside hers and went to the room to change. I didn't like lounging around in my office wear, so I changed into a pair of shorts and a loose T-shirt. I sat down on the couch and waited for Sarah while doom-scrolling MickMock on my phone.

Sarah came out of the bathroom soon after, drying her hair with a towel. She too had chosen shorts and a T-shirt, and although it wasn't the most stylish I had seen her, she looked really cute.

"Hi umm, thanks for earlier. Ruby tends to get a bit too zealous when trying to get us to taste her experimental recipes" Sarah said with a sheepish smile.

I looked up from my phone and smiled "Yeah I'm not surprised. We were in the same year at culinary school so, I'm familiar with her zealousness. Thankfully we are of similar build so it's a lot harder for her to get me to eat her stuff" I replied " Also, I didn't realise that you worked there, I bought you these flowers to celebrate getting a job, why didn't you tell me it was at Jun's Cafe? Congratulations by the way on getting a job! I guess this means you will be paying rent soon?" I asked.

Sarah sighed and turned sharply, returning back to the bathroom to put away the towel. She then marched to her room, where after a while, she returned with a notepad and pen.

"So, I've done the math, and I still can't afford the room. My pay is only ¥210,000, and after taxes and bills, it amounts to this much" she said and showed me the numbers she had scribbled down on the page.

I nodded in agreement, secretly pleased that she couldn't afford her room yet. Then I furrowed my brow…why was I pleased…shouldn't I want her to pay for the room? I had been stressing about it all week…

"I know I know, I'm such a useless person. Even with a job I still can't make rent. I can cover the storage unit though, so I guess I'll move back to my room after I make my first payment on it. After I get my first paycheck, I'll transfer you the money, and every month after that" Sarah said, flopping down next to me on the couch " I really am trying hard, I hope you see that. You didn't even reply to me once when I sent you all those messages" she said, pouting as she fiddled with the notepad.

I bit my lip. I had been a right jerk. I should have at least replied to her after I reached home, before I went to sleep, I don't even remember the last conversation we had.

"I'm sorry, I guess I've just been sort of out of it. I got promoted by the way, so I guess my absence paid off a little bit? Because now I can umm…take care of more of your expenses easily" I said, trying to explain my absence in a positive way.

Sarah turned to me and smiled " Really? Did you make Lead Chef? You have been dreaming of that position for ages! Congratulations!" Sarah beamed, grabbing my hand and squeezing it " I'm so proud of you"

Feeling Sarah's small hand in mine made my heart skip a beat. I wanted to hold her, so badly. I just want –

"Can I make a request?" I asked.

"Anything" Sarah smiled, then her smile faulted as she realised she had offered a bit too open-ended a response.

"I just want to hug you", I said.

"Awe of course," Sarah said and began to open her arms, then stopped and her hand went to her thoat " Except, are you going to be redeeming another strike? I have to go to work, it wouldn't be a good look…" she said, worried.

"No, no strikes today. We both have done so good for ourselves, I just want one hug, and that's it, I promise" I reassured her, blushing a little as I remembered how I got a little carried away the last time.

"Then come here" Sarah smiled and opened her arms up again.

I folded into that embrace immediately. Snuggling up against her like a cat. She hugged me tight and I rested my head against her shoulder. Sarah smelt so good, like peaches and cream.

"I'm so proud of you Sarah, I'm sorry I wasn't there for you much this last week, with the new job position, I will be able to see you more, and hopefully we can maybe hang out more as well," I said into her shoulder.

"And I'm proud of you too! Look at you, rising up the culinary ladder as always, keep going and you might be running your own café like Ms Jun" Sarah said proudly, patting me on the head.

"Urrghh…Ruby" I groaned and pushed myself out of Sarah's embrace.

"You really don't like her do you" Sarah said, sitting cross-legged on the couch and reaching for a bun from her little bag of baked goods.

"It's not that I don't like her. It's just that while I had to work really hard for everything I achieved, that trust-fund bunny had everything handed to her. She is only the CEO of the café because I didn't have time after college to play café owner. Heather and Ruby both had the capital while I had my savings. I own 20% of the shares of that café by the way, so I could open up my own place anytime I wanted, I just don't have the time, or the financial prowess that Ruby or Heather have respectively" I said, grumbling a bit.

Sarah reached out and rubbed my arm "There there, you don't have to be so sour about it. Both Heather and Ruby are working their hardest, I can see them trying every day, and so are you! All three of you are giving it your all. You should come down and maybe be more involved if you feel left out"

"I don't feel left out!" I exclaimed, then I sat back " Do I?". It had never really crossed my mind but yeah, after all these years, while Heather and Ruby were living the dream, I was still slogging away, for someone else's dream.

I shook my head " Anyway, today was supposed to be your day, so today, you get to make a request. What would you like me to do, for you?" I asked, turning to Sarah.

Sarah smiled a little, thinking " A request, can I request anything?" she asked.

I nodded " Anything within my power"

Sarah then clasped her hands together and smiled "Then I request, to have my best friend back, just until the end of the day".

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︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Author's Note: 

The Paperback & EBook Editions of "I'm broke, can I pay for the room with my body?" Book 1 is now available to read on Amazon! Book 1 covered Chapter 1 to Chapter 5, so if you would like to re-read this story offline, or if you would like to get the paperback version to your home library, get it now on Amazon! 

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D8RMRL53?ref_=pe_93986420_774957520

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