Chapter Three - Introduction (c)

As I entered the bakery, the atmosphere was very light and cheerful. Everyone was smiling at one another and they all seemed to be on good terms with one another. The big window pane by the front brings in so much light and openness into the whole shop. There were five to seven tables with four chairs each and a long counter: half of it was for dining and the other half was for those who were taking their orders on the road.

This sort of interaction has the feel of being too perfect, unrealistic. This doesn’t happen in our realm. Everyone is always serious about their own kingdoms and keeping everyone in check when we instantly forgot how to smile at times. And for me who has been in that kind of environment for the longest time, this is very refreshing for me.

“Robert!” Grandpa Ben shouted from the counter where people were dining. “Please sit here. We have a long chat ahead of us,” he continued, pointing to a chair right in front of him.

I rushed over to the counter and quickly made myself comfortable on the last stool. Grandpa Ben handed me a list of what they have in the bakery.

“What would you like, son? Choose anything you want.”

As I read down on the menu, everything on it looked… delicious. The list contained the name of the meal. At the bottom of the name was a short description on what that meal has and at the right side are beautiful hand-drawn illustrations of a certain meal. Such careful planning has been incorporated in this menu and it reflects on how radiant the atmosphere is inside the bakery and its effect on its customers.

I would buy all of these just to make sure I’d try every single one. Unfortunately, I can’t. I shouldn’t spend all of my money and I can’t spend any more after giving seven pieces to that bastard a while ago. It might also cause another riot inside here and I wouldn’t want to disturb the peace.

“Is there something wrong, son?” he asked, a hint of worry reflected on his face as he leaned closer to me.

“Grandpa Ben, all of these appear to be quite scrumptious,” I replied with a smile as I lifted the menu for a quick second. “Just by their names and their ingredients, it’s enough to make one’s mouth water.”

“Then how come you haven’t chosen anything yet?” he asked another. “You seemed to be in deep thoughts. You couldn’t possibly be thinking about this too hard.”

“I would like to buy one of everything on your menu. However, the money I have with me isn’t enough to let me do so,” I lowered my voice as I scratched the back of my neck.

Grandpa Ben suddenly bursted into laughter. He enjoyed it for a few seconds then stopped, wiping a tear from his left eye. “Oh, boy, you just made me cry,” he snickered, trying to stifle his laughter. “Don’t you worry about it, Robert. You won’t have to pay for anything,” he explained as he calmed down. “It’s a rule here that if it’s your first visit, you can order what you want without paying.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want you to lose profit because of me,” I replied, worried that I might cause trouble.

“Calm down, young man,” he answered, stopping me from speaking by giving me a tap on the shoulder. “You don’t have to worry about anything. Just choose what you want and you can have it.”

I stared down at the menu once again, trying to decide if I should order the whole menu or just choose a few.

Grandpa Ben then put his hands on each of my shoulders. “Don’t stress yourself over this, Robert. Just choose anything that catches your attention.” He pulled his hands back to give me space to think.

A few seconds have passed when I finally decided, “I think I would like to try your special tea and the apple pie that you said Laura makes.” I then returned the menu to Grandpa Ben.

He turned to his staff and began giving instructions. “Rodrigo, I need one of your tea creations.” He then turned to Laura, “And you, little one, I need one of those pies.”

“As you wish, Grandpa Ben,” she nodded with enthusiasm and went to work.

Grandpa Ben pulled a chair and sat right in front of me. “I’m so happy my granddaughter has finally found a friend around here,” he started.

My brows furrowed. Did I hear him correctly? Did he just call Laura his granddaughter?

“I beg your pardon, good sir. Did you say granddaughter?” I asked, incredibly baffled. Laura said she was an orphan. How could she be his relative?

“I was pertaining to Laura. And please, don’t call me ‘sir’, I don’t own this town,” he replied, shaking his head as he stifled a chuckle.

I smiled as his was contagious. “Sir--I mean, Grandpa Ben, how come you said Laura’s your granddaughter? She said she was an orphan,” I continued as I leaned closer, keeping my voice at a low volume.

“Well, she wasn’t lying about that. She was an orphan,” he replied, his voice changed to a bit more serious tone. “I’m the one who adopted her. Originally, I signed up to be her grandfather but I have since adopted her as my own which makes me her father as well.”

Laura is fortunate to have a father and a grandfather in one person. Perhaps that’s why she has such a gentle nature: it’s because of how Grandpa Ben treats her.

“So, Robert, who are your parents? And where do you live?” he asked, crossing his arms and putting them on the counter.

His question made me stop and think everything through. Up to this point, I’ve introduced myself as a random stranger that happened to pass by and assist Laura. I can’t tell him that I’m not of this world. My identity as an immortal must be protected at all cost or I’ll end up with a crowd again. I don’t think that Grandpa Ben is the type of person that tells people everything but still, I don’t want any eyes on me in this place.

“Did I say something wrong, Robert?” he asked as he noticed my silence. “Did I say something offensive?”

“Oh, not at all, Grandpa Ben. It’s just, um…”

Come now, Robert, think of something.

I continued, trying to be as careful as I can possibly be, “You see, Grandpa Ben, I’m not from around here so I don’t think mentioning my parents would be worth it.”

“Is there some kind of family conflict? You seemed… uncomfortable talking about your parents,” he said.

“Let’s just say that there are so many things that happened with my family that made our relationship as a unity turn sour,” I replied, my lips formed into a firm smile.

“Can you share a bit about that?”

Maybe I could share a few things to lift some weight off of my chest. I didn’t tell him that I’m from a family of immortals so I think it’s safe to share a bit of my frustrations with him. He seemed to be interested and concerned as well.

“I think… I think it’s the marriage arrangement they pushed me into that ultimately destroyed my relationship with them,” I answered, looking down on my hands that are now intertwined with each other.

“If you’re in an arranged marriage, I assume you came from a rich family, am I correct?” he smirked.

“I guess we can call it that way,” I replied, hesitant. I’m not the kind of person that’s absolutely proud of his title and parades his wealth outside of the castle. To be completely honest, I prefer to look like a normal being whether I’m inside the castle or not. Boasting what I have was never an attitude of mine.

“One order of tea and apple pie, ready to be served!” a worker shouted behind Grandpa Ben, putting the meal on the counter behind him.

Laura then appeared from the workplace, grabbed the tray and headed towards me. “Here you are, good sir. Tea and a freshly-baked apple pie,” she said as she put my order directly in front of me. “Enjoy!” she smiled and started to head back to the workplace.

Grandpa Ben let out a chuckle. “I’m sure he will,” he teased Laura.

She then turned around and stuck her tongue out to Grandpa Ben. After their little moment of playful banter, Laura headed back to work.

“Go ahead, son. Try it,” he reverted his attention back to me.

I smiled as I gently lifted the cup of tea closer to my mouth. As the hot liquid touched my tongue, I could definitely say this is one of the best kinds of beverage I’ve ever tasted. “Sir,” I put the tea down. “I mean, Grandpa Ben, I have to say that this is one of the best teas that has ever touched my tongue.”

“I’m glad you liked it. Rodrigo was the one who makes all the beverages here,” Grandpa Ben said with a sense of pride. “He said his recipe has been handed down through his family for generations and it is a well-guarded secret. Whoever created the recipe was a genius and all thanks must be given to its creator.”

“A genius, indeed,” I smiled. My eyes then turned its attention to the apple pie.

“Since you had, as you said, the best tea you’ve ever tasted, are you now ready to taste the best apple pie in this place?” he asked, his expression full of enthusiasm.

“Well, by the looks and the aroma of this pie, it must be mouth-watering,” I complimented, pulling the slice of pie closer to me.

“Though I must warn you, boy… those who have tasted Laura’s apple pies went mad about them. They would always return here and eat as much pie as they could,” he replied as he handed a fork to me.

I stuck my fork into the pie when someone from the baking area started to ring a handheld bell. “It’s almost time for lunch, everybody! Lunch is almost here!” he continued to shout as he walked around the baking area with the bell. “Enough with all the breakfast pastries and beverages. It’s time for dessert!” he continued. After ringing the bell and shouting like a mad man inside the bakery, he went back to this workstation.

“You have someone who keeps time in check here, Grandpa Ben?” I asked.

“Oh, yes, we do. We have to,” he answered as he folded his arms and laid them on the counter, supporting his weight as he leaned towards me. “We want to be different from other bakeries here as much as possible. We don’t want to be a bakery that bakes bread and only bread. Our treatment in the workplace is like family. So, every time a customer enters that very door,” he pointed to the shop entrance briefly. “We serve breakfast, snacks and desserts for everyone’s delight,” he added.

“What time do you normally close the bakery?”

“When the street clocker starts to ring his bell during the evening, we take it as a sign that it’s time to close the shop. If there are people who wanted midnight snacks, we would deliver them after we close the bakery,” he explained. “Now, that’s enough talking. Go ahead and try the apple pie,” he pointed at the pie.

Oh, right, the pie! I turned back to the pie and carefully sliced a small bite. As I lifted it up, it looked just too delicious that you just wanted to eat it with your eyes alone. I was about to take a bite when Lady started to whiny in front of the entrance.