Mai is in the living room reading some news in the internet when someone knocked on her door, when she opened it, it's a delivery man, she widely smile, her package is here!
She signed the paper that the delivery man handed to her.
She squealed and jumped to the sofa, she used a cutter to open the box, her eyes sparkled when she saw the book and the watch that she ordered.
"I hope these will make him happy." She mumbled.
Naru raised his eyebrow when he saw what Mai just bought. He's in the living room, he just rejected a client.
"Mai... is that –"
"Frying pan? Saucepan? Yes." she smiled at him
"This is an office not an apartment."
"I know Naru, but I rarely saw you going out from your office to eat. If you won't come out, then I will bring the food here!" She scolded him like a child.
"Why are you worrying too much for me?"
Mai blushed tenfold "Because..."
Naru smirked "Because?" he stood up and approached her, Mai step back until her back reached the wall, she was cornered by Naru.
"B–b–because you are my boss. Who will sign my paycheck if you get sick?" she muttered.
Naru blinked, then chuckled "Right."
Mai ran to the kitchen to settle down the cooking wares she bought.
Naru groaned from his office. SPR is now officially become a cafe, Mai baked a cupcakes for the irregulars to enjoy. They are too loud for his liking.
"Naru" Mai knocked.
"Come in."
The Earl Grey's aroma filled his nostrils.
"Here." She placed his tea and three heavy frosting cupcakes "You need glucose for your brain to function properly, so eat it."
Naru softly smile, Mai stare at him as if saying 'aren't you going to say something?', "Mai, I don't pay you to stare my handsomeness. Go back to work."
Mai's ears twitched, she open and close her mouth to say something but her anger is beyond words, Naru smirked seeing her lost in words "You look like fish who just got out from the water, Mai."
She felt like there's a steam coming from her nose and ears "Narcissistic, stupid, stuck-up jerk!" she stomped out from his office with a loud bang on his door.
"Mai, what happen?" Gene asked, they are all startled with her sudden outburst. Mai glared at him, seeing his face, she grin evilly.
She quickly walk towards him and hardly squeeze his cheeks "This face! Yes, this face! This face with no manners!" she keeps on ranting on how narcissist and impolite the other owner of his face. She puffed when she was satisfied.
Poor Gene, she leave her a swollen face.
"Dammit, Oliver!" The irregulars laugh when Gene ran to his brother's office.
"Mai, where did you learn to bake?" Bou-san asked, there are still half of cupcakes left in the tray.
"My mother taught me, before she pass away." she sadly smile at him.
Ayako thwack him "What did I do this time, old hag?" he whined.
"You make her sad, hakaisou*!" the two started their nonsense squabbles again.
Yasu cleared his throat and asked "How about your tea?"
"I also learn it from my late mother."
Both the miko and monk thwack and scolded the bespectacled college student.
Mai chuckled "It's okay, really."
"I can imagine that you are very close with your mother Mai-san." John's soft voice soothed her.
"Yes, we are." she smiled at him.
After a moment, a pink haired lady burst in the office carrying a child "Hi~ the lovely Madoka is here~" she chimed. The irregulars and Mai greeted her.
"What a lovely kid~" Ayako stated when Madoka sit on the couch.
"Isn't he?"
"Is he yours and Lin-san's child?" John innocently asked, they heard a loud thud in Lin's office.
Madoka giggled "Nope~ he's my nephew! My bother asked me to take care of him today."
"My office is not a cafe and a day care center." They all spun to see Naru with a swollen face, standing, scowling, on his office door, and Gene is behind him grinning.
"Ohohoho~ But Lin and I have a date today." She put the baby on his arms and went to Lin's office, she drag the Chinese man out from the building.
The baby stir, when he look around and see unfamiliar faces, he started to cry.
"Hey, keep quiet." Naru used his cold tone as usual.
Gene glared at him "Really Noll, he's a baby not your employee."
"Then make him stop!" he pass it to his brother's arms.
Gene tried to coo him, but he won't stop.
"Sing him a song." Ayako suggested.
"Good, sing for him." Gene pass the crying baby to Ayako. The miko don't know any lullaby or nursery rhymes.
"I don't know what to sing to him. Should I sing a Lady Gaga song? Or Britney?"
"Try to sing Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus." Bou-san suggested. Ayako started to sing it, but it only makes him cry harder.
Yasuhara laugh "It's because you have horrible voice, Matsuzaki-san! It scared him!"
"Shut up!"
John went between them "Now, now. Calm down. It won't help the baby."
"But I'm not a sing–" They all paused, realizing something, all of them turn to Mai.
She pointed herself "Me?"
"Yes, because you're a live singer right?" before she can object, Ayako shoved the baby to her arms.
She's trying to remember what her mother used to sing for her when she was a kid. She cleared her throat and lull the baby.
Blinka lilla stjärna där,
hur jag undrar var du är!
Fjärran lockar du min syn
likt en diamant i skyn.
Blinka lilla stjärna där,
hur jag undrar var du är!
Mai smiled when he stop crying, he hiccups and stare at her. She wiped his tears and continue the song.
När den sköna sol gått ner,
strax du kommer fram och ler,
börjar klar din stilla gång,
glimmar, glimmar natten lång.
Blinka lilla stjärna där,
hur jag undrar var du är!
All of them blinked, and was awed watching her, hearing her sing a lullaby that they don't understand.
The baby reached his hands to her and made a baby noise.
"Do you like it, little champ?" she cooed, the baby giggled "I take that as a yes." he clapped his small hands. "Once more?" he bobbed his head. Mai repeat the lullaby, until he fall asleep.
"Mai, what song was that?" Gene asked, tilting his head.
"It's Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."
"Yes, we recognized the tune but the lyrics..." Bou-san trailed off.
"Oh, that's the Swedish version of it."
"Swedish...?" They all asked.
"Yes. Don't you have your own Japanese version for that song?" she asked as she softly place the baby on the couch. Naru was quiet, he's just observing her.
"Why would you sing the Swedish version?" Naru's question made her stop for a moment. She took a deep breath, she's being careless.
She turned to them "In my Linguistic class, our professor said that, the best way to learn a foreigner language is thru a song~" she beamed. "Like English language, we don't understand it that much but we can fluently sing their songs."
"Oh. That's right." Bou-san agreed, of course he would agree seeing that he's in a band. Everyone seems to buy her explanation, even Naru.
"I'm amazed, with that brain of yours, you learned a Scandinavian language." he smirked and went back to his office.
He's really getting in her nerves today, she open her mouth to scream at him but Gene is fast "You will wake up the baby!"
It's six in the evening, Mai make a moderate dinner for Naru, knowing that he will go home around eight. She knocked on his door, and enter when he told her to enter.
"Here. I already made you a dinner, I already cleaned the kitchen and I'm done with my work. So I'm leaving now."
Naru glanced at the clock "It's still six."
"I will do a late night shopping."
This perked Naru's interest "Why?"
"I no longer have a stock in my apartment."
Naru nodded "Okay. Don't be late tomorrow."
Mai turn around to leave, knowing that Naru won't say 'thank you', her hand on the handle when she heard him speak.
"Thank you." he mumbled, he thank his dim office that Mai won't see his blush.
She beamed at him "So you do have a manners."
"Aren't you supposed to answer 'you're welcome'?"
She chuckled "Right, you're welcome Naru, anytime." then she left, leaving the smiling Naru in his office.
Mai was humming while putting anything whatever her hands will get. Well, she's done buying ingredients for her cake, now she's buying snacks for her.
She wonder what her father will say if he knows that her daughter is eating what he called 'an inappropriate food for a royal' she chuckled and softly shook her head.
Her father missed delicious snacks, right, when she come home she will make her father eat chocolates and ice creams.
She pick boxes of chocolates, and tubs of ice creams.
The cashier lady almost bulge her eyes out when she saw her cart overflowing with sweets, not just any brand of sweets but an imported sweets.
She was scowling the entire time she was swiping the goods "It's a total of 261,612 yen ma'am." the cahier devilishly smirk when she saw Mai frown looking at her wallet, she's short in cash.
"You know what? Why don't you take it back–"
Mai was about to take her credit card, when a black plated credit card is placed before here with a pale hand.
"Here." Both Mai and the cahier lady look at the person.
"Naru." Mai grunted.
The cashier lady blushed when she saw him. She batted her eyelashes. Obviously, Naru ignore her, when her flirting didn't work, she frown and swipe his credit card.
He raised his eyebrow at the goods that Mai just bought.
"Are you sure you can eat all that?" Mai grinned and nodded at him "You're wasting your salary on these snacks?"
"Hehe. It's my salary not yours. I will pay you later."
"Maybe I will cut your pay for you to avoid buying these things."
"No! Chocolates are delicious!"
Naru rolled his eyes at her childishness.
"You brought your car?" Naru asked when they are walking to the parking lot, he's carrying Mai's groceries, and he won't admit that it's quite heavy.
"Yes." Mai walk faster when she saw her car. She open the convertible roof and Naru put the groceries on the backseat.
"You still didn't told me who gave you this car." Naru stated as he open the driver's seat for Mai and she start the engine.
"You will know soon." She smile "Thank you for earlier, you're a life saver."
He smile back "Take care."
She step on the gas and drive her way to her apartment.
[A/N]
This Chapter is filler! ^^
If you want to hear the Swedish version of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star search it in YouTube, the tittle is Blinka lilla stjärna där.
*Hakaisou – an outlaw monk.
xOxO
- BSOL