Chapter 42: Enjoying Coffee Time with Emily (2)

The promised day arrived.

I brewed coffee in advance before Emily came.

Knock, knock.

Suddenly, I heard a knock. I opened the door.

The one who knocked was Emily.

“Hello. Rachel.”

“It’s been a while, Miss. Come in.”

It’s been over a week since I haven’t seen her. Until then, she came to drink coffee at least 5 days a week.

But she couldn’t come because she was busy with something a while ago. So I sometimes made coffee myself or sent coffee through a butler.

‘I got a handwritten letter every time.’

Long letters filled with sincerity are piled up on my desk.

I led her to the living room.

“Did you finish the work you said you were busy with?”

“There’s still some left, but it’s almost done.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried because Emily looked very tired these days.”

“You were worried?”

“Of course. You’re a precious person.”

Emily blushed. That reaction was cute, so I wanted to tease her a little, but I realized that the other person was the daughter of the Great Duchy and came to my senses.

“Then shall we start class right away? Let’s chat after class, while eating coffee and dessert.”

“Um. Yes. That’s not bad either. Just a moment. I’ll wash my hands and come.”

While she went to the bathroom, I set up the equipment.

I arrange the location so that we can face each other.

“Oh? What’s this? It’s a machine I’ve never seen before. It must be related to coffee, right?”

“Yes. That’s right. The one in front is a gift for you, Miss.”

“Really?!”

Emily looked around the machine, wiping her hands. She touches it carefully as if it might break.

“Then let’s start right away. Shall we grind the coffee first?”

I put the coffee beans in the grinder and ground them. Emily also started to grind them skillfully.

It’s not very difficult because it’s not grinding directly, but using a machine.

The next thing to do is to put water and coffee grounds in the espresso machine and extract it.

“The operation of the machine is really simple. Basically, the principle is…”

I explained it simply.

In the first place, the principle itself is simple, so there was nothing difficult to explain.

“Usually, the temperature is between 90 and 96 degrees. The pressure is set between 9 bar and 15 bar.”

I put it in and pressed the button. The extraction was complete.

“The extract is a little darker than the existing drip coffee. It must be because of the pressure, right?”

“Yes. Try it. It will taste different too, right? I call this espresso.”

“Espresso….”

Emily muttered softly and took a sip.

The reaction came right away.

“Ugh.”

She frowns and makes a strange sound. She couldn’t stand the terribly bitter taste.

I expected it.

The reason why Emily prefers latte over existing drip coffee is because it is savory and less bitter.

Espresso itself is thicker than drip coffee thanks to being brewed under high pressure. Naturally, the flavor and bitterness also become stronger.

I tried to hold it in as much as possible, but the appearance came to me so familiarly that I couldn’t help but laugh.

It’s the opposite of her usual image.

“Pfft. Ahem. Cough. Hmm.”

Of course, I cleared my throat to cover up the laughter.

Emily glared at me with a blushing face and drank the water next to her.

“Do you just eat this?”

“Some people eat it as is, and some people add water, milk, or syrup.”

“What about Rachel?”

“I also prefer to add milk rather than eat it as is.”

I brought the steamed milk that I had prepared in advance.

“If you add milk to this, you can have a much more delicious latte than the one you usually drink.”

I poured the latte into the espresso I made.

“Look at the surface carefully. A picture will appear.”

As I practiced hard yesterday, I painted a heart-shaped latte. The dark brown espresso turned light brown, and white foam appeared on top.

“H, heart.”

“How is it? Do you like it?”

Emily stared at the latte painting. Her ear tips turned red, and a blush appeared.

‘She must be very curious.’

It’s understandable.

I was also very surprised when I first saw it.

“You don’t have to do latte art. It’s harder than you think. The important thing is the taste. Try it.”

I knew the golden ratio that she likes by drinking coffee with Emily every day. I added as much milk as that, so she will like it enough.

But Emily was still staring at the coffee and didn’t think about drinking it.

“Is there anything you don’t like?”

“No. No. There’s no way. I was just looking at it because the picture is pretty and amazing. I’ll enjoy it.”

She smiled and drank the coffee.

At the same time, she closed her eyes and began to savor the coffee.

It’s the expected reaction.

Unlike Yona, who eats quickly when she has something delicious, she savors it slowly.

“As Rachel said, it’s definitely savory and. The flavor is deep.”

Until she finished drinking the coffee, a smile did not disappear from her lips.

“Now I’ll try making it.”

She stirred the latte around as I did. But of course, art was not created.

This is harder than it looks.

There were many things to pay attention to, such as angle control and force control.

“It’s harder than I thought. I want to make it for you too.”

“It’s okay, I think you’ll be able to do it with a little practice. No. Shall I help you?”

“How?”

I picked up a brown apron and went behind her.

“First of all, you might spill it while doing it, so I’ll put on an apron.”

I put on an apron from behind her.

She says she can do it alone, but I don’t need to let her do it alone since I’m behind her anyway.

After tying the knot into a ribbon, I held her hand.

“I’ll help you like I did when I first helped you. Relax, and slowly.”

Drizzle.

I slowly poured the steamed milk. I was a little nervous, but fortunately, I succeeded to some extent.

“I’m still awkward, so this is the best I can do.”`

“You’re awkward? You were good at it.”

“Hehe. I’m glad if it looked like that. Actually, I practiced hard until yesterday.”

“Really?”

I couldn’t see her expression because I was behind Emily. But her ears are turning red, so she must not hate it.

Emily was excited before coming to Rachel’s house.

She has been suffering from work for over a week, so her mind has been quite exhausted. She couldn’t see Yona, and she couldn’t see Rachel.

Just thinking about the elders’ faces makes my blood pressure rise.

“I’ll enjoy it to the fullest today.”

Through this opportunity, I plan to get a little closer to Rachel and relieve the stress I’ve received.

I was a little nervous when I knocked.

So when I met Rachel and entered the house, a familiar scent spread.

‘It smells good.’

Her office and room also objectively smell good, but she only handled work there, so it wasn’t good.

But Rachel’s house smells good and is full of good memories, so it’s bound to be good.

From then on.

Every moment I spent with Rachel was happy, and the smile on my lips did not disappear.

“This is a gift. I’ll send it through a butler when I leave.”

I was moved by the words that she had prepared a gift for me in advance. I selected what kind of gift I could give her in my head.

When she said that I was a precious person, I felt that I wasn’t the only one who thought of her as a friend.

The coffee was also delicious.

Honestly, I was used to drip coffee now, so I didn’t think it would develop further from there.

But what is this.

When I actually drank it, it was much more delicious than the previous drip coffee.

I was impressed to see that she made a machine that didn’t exist in the world in a short period of time.

And next, when I did something called latte art, I felt like I was completely flying in the sky.

“Look at the surface carefully. A picture will appear.”

A white heart was drawn on the light brown surface. It’s a picture I’ve never seen before. It was beautiful.

Most of all, I liked the fact that the picture drawn on the surface was a heart.

And she said that she practiced hard yesterday to make this for me.

I felt good.

‘I want to make it for her too.’

I don’t like just receiving, and I wanted to express my feelings.

So I tried it, but of course, it failed. Rachel was really good at it, but it was harder than I thought. So, while trying this and that and going through several failures, Rachel stepped up.

She stepped up to help me directly, just like when we had our first class.

When she put on an apron without thinking, my heart pounded.

‘Why?’

I couldn’t figure out the identity of the emotion. I was nervous that Rachel might hear my heartbeat.

And next.

The way she overlapped her hands to teach me latte was the highlight.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

‘Why the hell is my heart rate rising? Is this normal when you hold hands with a friend?’

It is a natural inference for her, who has never had a friend.

“Slowly, you can do it like this.”

A soft voice ringing in my ear. My mind was at ease. The rising heart rate slowly went down.

‘Whatever. It’s okay as long as I’m happy.’

I don’t know the identity or cause of the emotion clearly, but isn’t it okay as long as I’m happy.

“Can I do it like this?”

“Yes.”

I learned by being led by Rachel’s hand.

At the next meeting, I can give her a heart too.