"Oh Luuuke!" she called, kicking off her shoes at the entrance. "I'm here as you asked!"
The young angel had raved endlessly over the phone about the success of his new scone recipe, and urged Karin to drop by so that she could sample them straight out of the oven.
"Karin! You're finally here!"
Luke's blond head of hair popped out from the kitchen doorway. He let out his usual cry of excitement and bounded to her side like a puppy whose master had just returned home. Resisting the urge to pat him on the head was hard, but Karin knew that he hated when others treated him like a child.
Instead she asked, "How were your lessons today?"
"Ummm... they were fine. Just fine!" Luke's gaze dropped to the floor momentarily before returning to her face. "But enough about that! Come to the kitchen, let's have tea!"
His small hands gripped onto her sleeve, and she allowed him to tug her along as if she were a suitcase.
Simeon was seated at the dining table, surrounded by stacks of paper. His brow was furrowed as he stared down intently at his work, pen in hand. As he looked deep in concentration, Karin didn't want to disturb him, but Luke leaned in before before she could react and waved in Simeon's face to grab his attention.
"Hey! Karin's here, aren't you going to greet her?"
Simeon glanced up, eyelashes fluttering against his dark bangs. "Oh, hello Karin. I'm sorry, I didn't notice you come in."
His warm smile caused Karin's heart to skip a beat, and she almost choked on her next words. It was a wonder that anything coherent made its way out of her mouth, but thankfully they did.
"It's quite all right!" she stammered, quickly changing the subject. "Are you writing the next part of your TSL novel?"
"Yes. In fact, I've just put the finishing touches on an intricate fight scene between multiple characters, so this is perfect timing."
"Time for a break," Luke exclaimed. He brought over a plate of scones, accompanied by jam and cream. "Tell me what you think, Karin!"
Spreading some jam onto a scone, she took a bite and immediately the buttery flavour and a hint of sweet tanginess exploded onto her taste buds.
"Wow, delicious! You've outdone yourself, Luke. The texture is extremely tender, flaky and light."
She applauded his fruitful efforts. Luke beamed at the praise, and a proud smile spread across his face.
"The scones pair nicely with this tea as well," Simeon added. He handed Karin a teacup that she recognized all too well. "This is Pure Tea from the Celestial Realm. Do you remember, Karin? We had this together on the day before my birthday."
"Of course. How could I forget such a lovely time?"
Her hands trembled as she held the saucer and brought the cup to her lips. The unique flavour certainly brought back memories of the occasion.
Simeon observed her with an inquisitive gaze, while Luke, on the other hand, looked a tad confused.
"Karin, please take some back with you. I'm always worried about what those demons are feeding you!" Luke said fretfully. "And make sure Beelzebub doesn't devour them, okay?"
He made Karin promise to hide the scones from the ravenous redheaded demon before she was allowed to leave.
"It was lovely to have you visit," Simeon said. "You're welcome over anytime."
"Thank you for having me! I'll come by again soon," Karin promised.
"Call me when you get home."
Simeon's request made Karin's heart lurch in her chest again. She struggled to remain composed and simply nodded her head in response.
"See ya later!" said Luke, with an enthusiastic wave.
As the door shut behind her, Karin could still faintly hear their conversation from outside.
"Nobody talks on the phone anymore, Simeon. The correct thing to have asked is for her to message you when she got home!"
"I know, I know." Simeon's laughter was like music. "But, I want to hear her voice. So I said what I said."
Karin's face turned a bright shade of red and she scurried off, not wanting to be caught eavesdropping.
The topic was far too embarrassing, anyway!
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Behave yourself, now. ;)