Ariana felt excited as she stood in the middle of market street. She didn"t think that Cayden would have shown her the route he used to sneak off of school grounds so he could do his side job. It was such a simple route and it wasn"t guarded by people, magical creatures or traps so she wondered if there were more students who used the secret portal deep with in the forest by the bathhouse. Then again it didn"t stick out either. It looked like an ordinary weeping willow tree, it didn"t look that old and the trunk was st.u.r.dy but the portal itself was located in a stranger spot and the tree was the route to get to the portal. So how did Cayden come about the portal? "Don"t raise your head up too much." Cayden said snapping Ariana back from her thoughts.
"Sorry, I just never thought that we would end up here." Ariana said in awe. When they jumped through the portal they landed in the store room of a clothing store. Cayden got up quickly and grabbed a new, plain outfit for Ariana and a matching female, newsboy cap. She looked at the outfit. "You look too cute in what you"re wearing and would stick out. We need to look inconspicuous." Cayden explained.
Ariana took the new outfit and Cayden moved to a corner as he grabbed a set of clothes for himself. Ariana blushed as they changed in silence and she had to fight the urge to turn and look at his broad, naked back. With a shaky sigh she resolved to chang quicky. Once they were changed, they stepped out of the store room and ran into a male shop keeper. He didn"t make a fuss instead he nodded at them and watched as they walked out the front door.
"Well let"s go have fun." Cayden said as he grabbed Ariana"s hand. Ariana smiled as Cayden pulled her along, he was smiling like a young boy, charming but mischievous. Ariana couldn"t help but be mesmerized. She smiled in return and allowed Cayden to show her a good time.
They walked down market street and saw how packed it was. People were running in and out of small shops, there were produce stands up with people advertising their products and food booths. Ariana spotted a sign with a cute crepe as a logo, they walked up to the booth and we in awe. Ariana was amazed that someone came up with a way to transport crepes she wanted to praise the chef. So the qued in line. The moment they reached the counter Ariana couldn"t help but laugh, there was a familiar face among the staff. "h.e.l.lo Bruno." Ariana called out. "Ariana?" Bruno said in confusion. Ariana nodded. "Oh my goodness how are you!" He said happily as he rushed out and gave Ariana a big bear hug. "Good, I"m sorry I haven"t come by to teach you personally. Do you forgive me?" Ariana asked as she hugged Bruno back.
Bruno beamed as he pulled away from the hug. "Are you joking business is booming because of your help. Your recipes were easy to understand and your instructions with little drawings were beyond helpful. Your grandmother even sent her personal chef to teach me some of your tricks." Bruno said as he gave Ariana a wink. Ariana couldn"t hold back her joy as she smiled. Bruno looked pleased too but then he felt a cold chill run down his body.
Bruno looked up and saw standing behind Ariana was a good looking young man but his glare was dark and murderous. Bruno flinched and took a step back from Ariana. "Bruno?" Ariana said in a confused tone. Bruno"s eyes darted from behind her then to her and back again. Ariana turned around but didn"t see anything scary behind her.
In fact Cayden was busy looking over the menu board. Cayden sensed her stare and looked at her. He smiled sweetly as he pointed to the board. "These all look good." Cayden said happily. Ariana raised her eyes and looked at the board. "Oh you made your own variations! Good job!" Ariana said excitedly as she looked back at Bruno.
Bruno looked like he lost a few years of his life as he pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed his sweaty, round face. "Y-y-yes. B-business has been so good that I branched out a little to have some fun." Bruno stuttered as he slowly composed himself. Ariana was so pleased that Bruno was having fun with his work now. She wondered if he could send him something as a congratulatory gift. As she slipped into thought Cayden spoke up. "What would you recommend for a family?"
Bruno tensed up. "Combination platter!" He reported quickly. "It comes with six different crepes and they range from sweet to savory. It"s a good choice if you don"t know what everyone is craving." Bruno continued to explain. Cayden smiled a charming smile as he pulled Ariana into his arms. "My love what do you think? We can get a combination platter and have a nice picnic." Cayden sad as he looked into Ariana"s eyes.
Ariana lit up. She started to nod her head enthusiastically. "A picnic sounds wonderful." She said with a dreamy, silk like voice. Cayden"s eyes grew wide. He started to blush as he looked away. He raised his hand and pulled Ariana"s cap down. "Cayden!" Ariana shouted in protest. "Don"t look or talk that way to anyone else." He mumbled loudly. Ariana fixed her cap and turned away from Cayden with a giant pout. "S-o mean." Ariana grumbled.
"One combination platter then?" Bruno asked with a cough. Ariana"s face turned beat red. She slipped into her own word with Cayden and completely forgot about Bruno. She then heard some giggles around her and felt even more embara.s.sed. "YES PLEASE!" She shouted loudly and awkwardly. They booth was busy and the staff was still serving people but they were holding up the line, Ariana became mortified and covered her face with her hands.
Bruno laughed as he moved behind the counter. "It will take me some time to make them. Why don"t you tell me how you met your boyfriend? Is this by chance the rumoured fiance?" Bruno teased. Ariana raised her head and looked at Bruno. "Yes this is Cayden." She answered happily. "Well I feel relieved then." Bruno said as he poured batter on to three hot plates. He then saw Ariana"s confused looked then peeked at Cayden who in turn looked at Ariana affectionatey.