"Mey-rin, don't you think you're carrying too many dishes?" Bard asked, while cutting vegetables, which he would probably burn in the process of cooking.
Mey-rin wobbled a little before continuing on. "No, no, Bard. I should be fine." she smiled as she wobbled a little more.
Bard quietly began to follow Mey-rin. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, it was just…well, he knew how clumsy she was. Bard walked up behind the chair she was standing on. Mey-rin needed said chair to reach the shelf that the plates were stored. As she began to lift the stack of plates, she wobbled and somewhat lost her balance.
Bard, not very much considering it, placed his hands on either side of her waist to steady the clumsy maid. "Heh heh. And you said you'd be fine." He grinned, his hands still in place.
"Um…thanks, Bard." Mey-rin put the dishes on the shelf.
"And, up you go." Bard carefully lifted Mey-rin down. "There. No accidents, and all the dishes are still in tact. Likewise our maid. Pretty big accomplishment, don't ya think?" Bard smiled.
"For me, you have no idea." Mey-rin smiled back.
"Both of you, get back to work." Sebastian said passing the doorway, and starling the two servants.
"Y-yes, sir!" Mey-rin stuttered. Then, she looked down her thumbs, hoping to start twiddling them. That was when she noticed that Bard was still holding both of her hands from helping her down. "U-Um…Bard?" she blushed.
"Wha-? Oh! Sorry!" Bard looked down and let go of her hands. "Sorry, Mey-rin. I didn't realize-"
"Bard, it's fine." Mey-rin giggled at his frustration. "We should get back to work, though."
"Yea. Before Mr. Sebastian starts having one of those creepy lectures." Bard chuckled.
"I heard that, Bardroy." Sebastian said as he passed by the doorway again.
"Tch. Show off." Bard whispered.
"That too." Sebastian popped by the doorway again.
Mey-rin couldn't help but laugh. "I've got to sweep the kitchen and you have to prepare the Young Master's dinner. We should get to that."
Bard nodded and put the chair Mey-rin used back.
After walking back to the kitchen, Bard continued his vegetable cutting and Mey-rin began to sweep the floor. Mey-rin couldn't help but watch as Bard carefully prepared the dish to put in the oven. "How could someone who burnt nearly everything prepare dishes so precisely?" she thought.
Bard noticed that Mey-rin would watch every once in a while and then briskly go back to sweeping. He smirked as he put the dish in the oven. After closing the oven, Bard leaned against the counter, lit a cigarette, and began to smoke. Now, it was his turn to watch Mey-rin. For the first time ever, Mey-rin didn't seem clumsy at all. "She's so graceful," Bard thought. "Almost like she's dancing."
It wasn't until black smoke caught his eye that Bard looked away. He looked to the oven, knowing the sight of smoke was not good, and realized that the oven was about to blow. Instinctively, Bard ran to Mey-rin and shielded her just as the oven exploded. Mey-rin shut her eyes tightly to not get any debris in them, and buried her face into Bard's uniform. As soon as some of the smoke disappeared, Mey-rin opened her eyes, and realized the position she was in. "B-Bard…?" She whispered, blush painting her cheeks.
Bard's grip on her loosened a little. Mey-rin looked at Bard and noticed that his shoulder had a small flame. She quickly put it out with a wet rag that was on the counter-top.
"Thanks." Bard smiled, still holding her relatively close.
"A-anytime…Um…Thanks to y-you too, Bard." Mey-rin stuttered. She stared at how his normally white uniform was now all ash covered. And she noticed how her own uniform remained fairly clean.
"Anything to keep a lady safe and presentable." Bard replied. "Well, mostly, anyways." he said as he gently wiped some ash off of her cheek.
Mey-rin slightly leaned into Bard's hand, which lingered on her cheek for a moment. The next thing Mey-rin knew, Bard laid a soft kiss on her lips, which almost instantly was deepened by Mey-rin. She had never felt so comfortable.
Bard pulled back and stared at Mey-rin. "Mey-rin…I'm sorry. Its just…I couldn't…stop myself…" Bard blushed.
Mey-rin giggled. "I like how flustered I make you, Bardroy."
Bard blushed even more. "Um…I-I'll help you clean up." He let Mey-rin go.
"Thank you." She said as she grabbed the broom. "There's a mop in the closet."
Bard nodded and went to retrieve it. When he came back, Mey-rin had a glass in her hand with brownish liquid and another one on the burnt counter with similar liquid. Bard raised an eyebrow at the maid.
Mey-rin held up a half-empty bottle of scotch. "Thought we could use some. After all, cleaning this up won't exactly be a walk in the park." She smiled.
"Right," Bard picked up the second glass and lightly collided it with Mey-rin's. "Cheers." They both drank together. Bard downed the glass, as usual, and was surprised to see that Mey-rin did the same.
"I don't get it," Mey-rin said quietly. "The Young Master has such good liquor in his possession, but he isn't even old enough to drink it yet."
"Oh…I may buy some once in a while…I say its for 'cooking'. That's not really lying." Bard put the glasses aside.
Mey-rin smiled. "Now, that makes more sense."
After cleaning the kitchen, they both had another glass of scotch and allowed Sebastian to cook the dinner.
"What do you have to clean now?" Bard asked almost hopefully. "I'll help you with it."
Mey-rin took two rags. "I have to dust the library now." As the two of them walked up to the door of the library, Mey-rin handed Bard a rag.
Moments later, Mey-rin was climbing a ladder to get to the top of the shelves. With the shelves being about 15 feet high, Bard watched nervously. "Be careful, Mey-rin." He warned her.
"Bard, I've dusted these befo-oh bugger!" Mey-rin's foot slid off of the ladder and she began to fall.
Bard only had to take a few steps to catch Mey-rin bridal-style. "Every time you stand on something, Mey-rin?" Bard grinned.
Mey-rin blushed. "Thanks…again, Bard."
"Of course." Bard replied, realizing that he was still holding Mey-rin. "Do you want me to let you down?"
"No." Mey-rin whispered unknowingly. Obviously, Bard heard her, because his face turned red. "I-I mean s-sure." Mey-rin stuttered.
Hesitantly, Bard set her down. Mey-rin moved a piece of his hair out of his face and frowned. "What's wrong, Mey-rin?" Bard asked.
Mey-rin took off her glasses and smiled. "That's better." And she kissed Bard's lips.