“Desir, can my friends come over tomorrow?”

In the middle of my routine cooking session, a sweetened voice echoed from my side. I turned around, and as expected, my sous chef was looking at me with hopeful eyes.

It has been a week since Althea returned from her trip home, and we had long reverted back to our old ways. We cuddled, we went on dates, we cooked together… She’d even stayed in my apartment throughout, never once stepping foot in her own home next door. In more ways than one, it was as if she never ever left.

“Friends? Do you mean Grace?”

“Yeah, she’s coming as well, but she’s not the only one.”

Oh? Althea was bringing other friends over? Wait, Althea actually had other friends than Grace? I’ve never heard her mention them before. Evidently, my interest was picked up by the young girl cleaning the vegetables, and she answered before I could even ask.

“These are the friends that are in the same clique as Grace and me. We’d met during orientation and stayed in contact ever since. You might have seen some of them before last year when they came over to drink.”

Ah, now that she mentioned it, I did recall Althea bringing some rowdy friends over. It was the first time that Len met Althea as well.

“Why all of a sudden?” I asked while tasting the soup.

“With the restrictions being lifted, my friends wanted to meet up for a study session. Normally, we would do it at my house, but you know…” Althea shifted her eyes, guilty about the fact that she’d hardly used the apartment that her parents gifted her.

“A-Also, they wanted to meet you!”

“They want to meet me?”

“Of course! They know that I have a boyfriend, so they’re naturally curious about who you are!”

Makes sense. If someone I knew were to get a significant other, I would want to at least see a picture of them.

“Alright, they can come.” I accepted without thinking twice about it. “What time would they arrive?”

“Maybe about ten to eleven in the morning?” Althea tilted her head with a cute reply.

“Okay, should I make lunch for them?”

“Yeap! They actually said that they wanted to try the food that I’d praised!”

“Oh, you’re actually bragging about my cooking to your friends?”

“J-Just once or twice...”

“Hah… Looks like I can’t disappoint then!” I slapped my chest and smiled. “What should I cook for them tomorrow?”

Althea got to thinking for a while before coming back with a simple answer: “Since two of them are vegetarian, I think that we should prepare an all-vegetable menu.”

“Oh, vegetarians, huh?”

I wasn’t really fond of cooking an all-vegetable meal. It lacked the nutrients I needed to sustain my daily lifestyle and physique. However, since it was only for lunch, I’m confident that I could whip something out.

“Alright, I’ll plan tomorrow’s meal accordingly.”

“Thank you, Desir...”

“Haha, it’s no big issue. I’m just glad that you have friends to help you study.”

“... What are you, my father?”

Adorable pouting aside, I fell deep into thought as I contemplated the best meal that would impress my girlfriend’s friends. Since she had talked me up to them, I should do my best to meet her expectations.

❖❖❖

“Haha, so we’ve finally gathered after a year! Althea, how have you been?!” A silver-haired girl tapped on my girlfriend’s shoulders while I was in the kitchen, busy finishing the final touches on the food.

“I’ve been good! What about you?”

“Couldn’t be better! I just met another guy online, and we’re going out tomorrow. Maybe seal the deal, even!”

“Tch, can’t you just stick with one guy for once, Kiera?” A brown-skinned, wide-haired girl interjected with a disgusted grimace.

“Commit myself to one person for the rest of my life? No thanks!”

“Yeah! Who cares for boys anyway! They’re only going to leave you at a moment’s notice! Right, Grace?!” A woman with short blonde hair tapped on Grace’s lap as if finding a kindred spirit.

“Guys… You’re a little too loud...” Grace, on the other hand, wasn’t ready to deal with the boisterous crowd. She shifted her eyes between Althea and me, fearing that the group was causing too much of a ruckus.

“It’s fine, Grace,” I replied to reassure the youths. “You guys probably don’t get a chance to talk outside anyway. Just enjoy your time here.”

“Haha, see? We’ve got approval from Althea’s boyfriend!!!”

I felt the corner of my lips rise as the silver-haired girl raised her arms in celebration. Before they came over, Althea had already given me a crash course about the three new girls that would be gracing my apartment for lunch.

Kiera Quinn. She was slightly on the pudgy side, but that didn’t take away from her confidence. In fact, it seemed like she had a little too much of it. Kiera’s hair was in a stunning style of glossy silver, which was likely dyed to look that way. She wore flashy clothes and donned extravagant earrings. I’ve even heard from Althea that she had a tattoo on her butt.

And given her gaudy looks, the girl was quite the player. Switching boyfriends like they were handbags, Kiera’s love history would make Taylor Swift feel inferior. I’m not sure about the details, but she even had some men on rotation, which I couldn’t get my head around.

What the hell does a rotation mean?! It’s a totally different world that I lived in, so I decided to just ignore it. If I thought too much about it, I believed that my head would explode.

Moving on to the next intruder. Evelyn Miller was a brown-skinned woman who seemed most like a certain African Goddess. Though, she wasn’t intimidating in the slightest. Evelyn held an intellectual charm that could only be replicated by someone who reads frequently. Her prominent black eyes were covered by silver-rimmed glasses, which only added to her sophisticated demure.

And just like her appearance, Evelyn seemed serious in everything she did. Especially when it came to her relationships. She had a long-time boyfriend of five years, and Althea said that they were practically already married.

Actually, she was the main reason why our lunch had to be strictly vegetarian. Because of how strictly Evelyn followed her religious diet, I had to make sure that not even a single ounce of meat was spilt onto the cooking pan.

Finally, there was the short-haired blonde that had a poor view of relationships. Celeste Fisher was her name. She was the most sporty of the bunch, and it showed. The moment she stepped foot into my apartment, her eyes couldn’t leave the home gym setup that I created. Based on Althea’s stories, Celeste mountain climbed during her free time and was even one of the few women who had climbed the highest peak in our country!

Problem was, Celeste was a very open person. She spoke everything that came to her mind, and eventually, her boyfriend left her during the pandemic. He said that it was because of the virus, but Celeste knew that it was because of her overwhelming personality.

In summary, Althea’s group of friends were both diverse and weird.

“Alright, lunch is served.”

“Oh, goody!”

As expected, Kiera was the first to arrive at the dining table. The others were not far behind. Only Althea remained in the living room as she shot me a concerned look behind her friends’ backs.

‘Sorry for the disturbance.’

I could hear her loveable voice within my mind.

‘It’s fine,’ I transmitted back with a gentle smile.

Our short exchange didn’t go unnoticed, however. The other four girls turned about and saw our loving eyes, only to immediately scrunch up their expressions.

“Hohoho, the Ice Queen has finally met the Prince that could melt her heart.” Kiera stroked her chin amused.

“Mmmm, Althea, you chose well. I hope that your relationship can last for a long time.” Evelyn shot a thumbs up with a look of approval.

“Tch, Grace! Let’s go find some guys to pounce on right now!”

“Please leave me out of this, Celeste...”

The only two single women in the room clicked their tongues and rolled their eyes, drawing a smile onto my face. As I’d thought, Althea’s friends were all amusing figures in their own right.

“Alright, I’ve prepared a feast for you guys. Since two of you are vegetarian, I made spinach ravioli, sweet potato fries, spiced mushrooms and tofu, pumpkin soup and falafels for lunch. If you’re not good with spicy food, maybe stay away from the mushrooms.”

I introduced the dishes one by one. I took extra care in seasoning the food so that it would be up to par, even though it lacked meat or fish.

“Wow… You really weren’t kidding, Althea. Your man really could cook!”

“Why would I lie?”

“Haha, I’m just surprised! Not many young men these days know how to cook.” Kiera added with a hungry gaze. “All of the guys I’ve dated say that the woman should be the one who cooks.”

“What kind of backwater men are you dating?” Evelyn adjusted her glasses. “But I see your point; society still thinks that men should be out working while the women take care of home affairs.”

“I guess it’s the opposite in our case,” I said lovingly as my hand naturally reached out to the side. “Althea doesn’t really do the housework here.”

“T-That’s because you don’t let me!”

“Of course, this is my apartment, right? Why would you clean my floor and wash my clothes?”

“B-But… You even do my laundry!”

“Isn’t it more convenient that way? Also, we can decrease the costs if we wash our clothes together.”

“... See what I have to deal with?”

Althea pouted adorably while complaining to the four friends that she had over. Goodness, are you trying to kill me with cuteness, woman?

“Wow… Althea, you’ve really found someone special.” Celeste looked over at us, seemingly with a longing gaze.

“Hmmm? What are you talking about?”

“Hah… Is this denseness something that comes with the package as well?” Evelyn added while holding back her laughter.

“Well, looks like we have to tell all those younglings who are aiming for Althea to just give up. Against Desir, the average university boy just can’t compare.”

“...”

The girls continued speaking in riddles, confusing the heck out of my tiny little brain.

Hah… If I can’t understand them, I should just ignore their words. Either way, it didn’t seem like they were badmouthing me.

❖❖❖

“You know… When you said that you got a boyfriend, I was concerned.”

After we’d finished our lunch, us girls went into our own private space in the living room and prepared to begin our study session. Desir, adamant about giving us a comfortable background, took the task of cleaning the dishes.

Seriously, I wish that he would rely on me a little more. Sometimes, having such a dependable boyfriend really weighed on my mind.

“What do you mean, Kiera?” I asked while having one eye on Desir, who was currently the target of our conversation.

“You know, you never really had any dating experience, and the first guy you ever got close with was that disgusting womanizer. So I was concerned that you might have repeated your mistakes. But...”

“But?”

“Now that I’ve finally met your boyfriend… I really think that you’ve hit the jackpot.”

Oh? Now that’s high praise. Kiera, a girl who had dated dozens of men, was evaluating Desir as if he were a one-in-a-million catch.

“He can cook, he has his own apartment, he has a good-paying job… And DAYUM, those muscles!” Kiera licked on her lips as her eyes turned a little dangerous. “Do you have any topless pictures of him?”

“... No,” I lied immediately. Who knows what would have happened if I showed her pictures of Desir without a shirt?

“I have to admit, while I still think that my boyfriend is the best, a man who can cook is always a plus.”

Evelyn said that in a neutral tone. But I could tell that there was a hint of annoyance in her long-time boyfriend’s lack of culinary ability.

Celeste was scratching her head in frustration. “God damn it! Althea, how on earth did you manage to land such a man?! He’s rich and smart! Not to mention, he also works out! Urgh, if I had met him first...”

“That’s what I had been asking her for months,” Grace added on with a serious nod.

Oh ho… What did you just say?

Unknowingly, my face turned into an expressionless mask. I couldn’t feel it, but an icy chill was directed at the four girls, causing them to choke on their words.

“I-I was just joking, Althea! D-Don’t take it too seriously.” Celeste immediately went into damage control and tried to appease my rising rage.

“Hah… Aren’t you intimidated by his face?”

“His face? Why would we be afraid of that?”

Kiera looked at me as if something was wrong. Wait a second, wasn’t Desir shunned all of his life because of his intimidating appearance? Did these girls not feel threatened?

“Well, he’s not the most handsome guy out there, but his gentleness adds to his charm.”

“Gentleness? A-Ah!”

It was then that it hit me.

Ever since Desir had started this relationship with me, the man’s glare and overall demeanour had softened significantly. Maybe it was my influence, but I feel that he’s getting more attractive by the day. And while that was good news during the pandemic…

What’s going to happen once everything goes back to normal?

Would Desir be swarmed by the ladies? Will he become popular? What if other women start targeting him?

Now that I think about it…

Isn’t that horrible news?

And the worst part was… Desir was oblivious to all of it! I’m certain! Just look at how handsome he has become! Damn it, Althea, why must you make him such a catch?!

No… I must become more vigilant! If I turn lax for even a second, I’m certain that some vixen would be lurking to snatch Desir away from me!