Chapter Text
The air was crisp in the new town you arrive in, a gentle breeze making your cheeks blush as you glance over the place you will now call home. Everyone had been welcoming to you thusfar, and you couldn't wait to meet everyone-they must all have interesting stories and lives you wish to endulge in. Your next task to settling down was to meet the mayor; Atara-Naturally, that's a frightening thought. What will the mayor of this new place be like? What if he doesn't approve? So many thoughts run through your mind, but you try and pace yourself as you enter the town central-surely he won't be too bad.
Walking up the stairs of the town hall, you can hear your heartbeat through your chest, the anticipation is killing you. The doors to the main hall are large and intimidating, making your hand tremble slightly as you reach for the door to welcome yourself in and introduce yourself-only the doors move on their own. You're taken aback as the doors open before you, revealing a tall man in a blue blazer. Your heart flutters-the only release your chest has had from the constant pounding since you were given the task of meeting the mayor-as you gaze upon him. He's talking and laughing with someone, and doesn't realize you're there until the two of you bump into one another, causing you to stagger back from the force of his tall frame. Recollecting yourself, you hear a brash and kind voice,
"Oh my! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there!"
The man's hands reach to cup your elbows, helping you stand up straight,
"It's okay, I shouldn't have just been standing there..."
The words barely escape your throat from embarassment,
"I'm just looking for the mayor, I was tasked with meeting him?"
Once you stand up straight, you look the man in his eyes-he has beautiful grey/purple eyes. It takes everything in you not to get lost in them. You notice he has soft black hair, tied into a low ponytail that drapes over the sharp corner of his tailored suit jacket-everything about him looks so intricate and clean; professional.
The man gives you a small chuckle,
"You don't need to look far-I'm the mayor, Atara."
His smile makes you blush-from being flustered, or embarassed you didn't realize you were talking to the mayor ... Maybe a bit of both.
"Oh! I'm sorry... I didn't-"
That chuckle of his returns as he lifts a hand in dismissal,
"You needn't worry. I'm glad you've shown up-I've heard much about you."
Redirecting his attention to the person he was initially talking to, he grabs a file from their hands,
"Some townfolk have requests for you to fulfill, if you don't mind? I'm sure you're busy with your new move, so don't stress yourself with these too much."
The files are extended towards you to take, so you grab a hold of them and scan them over-nothing too hard. Just requests for some materials you can get easily,
"No problem! Thank you again, Atara..."
You nod at him and give a smile, which you can almost swear makes his cheeks turn a soft pink.
Atara returns your smile with one himself,
"I'm sorry to cut our introduction short... But I have things to take care of. Hopefully you have a good time here."
His hand falls to your shoulder, giving you a pat before he walks past you with a smile. The person attending him follows in a scurry, and they begin talking amongst themselves as they walk down the stairs of the main hall building. You watch him walk away, admiring his tall stature. It takes you by surprise when he looks back at you and gives you a smile-making you wave nervously and turn away in a hurry.
-
Giving fish to a resident was your final request, and you finish it off by marking it down in the files with a stamp from the resident. You wipe sweat off your forehead from the work you've done, and start back up to town central to hand in your work to Atara. Your heart skips a beat thinking about facing him again-the interaction from earlier still playing in your head.
So embarassing to literally bump into the mayor like that on your first day...
You try not to think about it too much as you find yourself walking up the stairs to the main hall-hoping the doors don't open on their own again to welcome another awkward encounter. Filled with relief that they don't, you hold the handle to the door and push it open-revealing a grand entrance. It takes you by surprise-though it is the town hall... You can't be TOO surprised. You're greeted by a young man in a suit, who bows out of respect,
"Are you here to see Atara about the resident requests?"
Holding the files up, you nod at the man, who nods back and gestures to follow him up the large staircase. Your mind is too foggy to take in the surroundings of the buildings interiors, but it is rather graceful. Reaching the top of the stairs, you're met with a large entrance way, with beautiful double doors that are left open for you to enter. The man nods and begins down the stairs again, leaving you alone upstairs. You gulp, and enter the open room with the files held tightly to your chest.
The room is filled with lots of natural light from large windows gracing the walls across the room from the doors, with a grand desk sitting in front of them-a leather office chair left empty at the desk, and a smaller one on the other side. You scan the room; the walls are filled with bookshelves, lined with books from head to toe-a round coffee table with a few luxury chairs surround it, and a beautiful carpet underneath the scene. Your eyes fall to the other side of the room, where you see Atara holding a file from one of the bookshelves on the left side of the room,
"Um.. Excuse me-Atara?"
His body turns to face you, a smile spreading across his face as he closes the file and puts it back on the shelf,
"There you are! I was wondering when you'd come back. How was it? The weather is beautiful today, I hope you enjoyed it on your adventures."
Atara's shoes tap on the wood floor as he approaches you-soon standing over you,
"It was great! Not as difficult as you put it out to be..."
He chuckles as you hand him the files, and he opens them up to look at the stamps of approval by the residents,
"Perfect!"
He closes the file and nods for you to follow him as he walks back to his desk. You oblige, and hold your hands in front of you as the two of you approach his desk-he holds the smaller chair out for you to sit down, and pushes it closer to the desk once you've sat, before he goes around to sit at his own chair. His hands fold over his desk as he looks into your eyes, his piercing gaze looking into your soul,
"I hope you're being acquainted well, we have a lot of friendly residents in our town."
You nod in agreement, and fold your own hands in your lap,
"Yes-everyone seems to be very kind, really welcoming."
He smiles at this news, and reaches down into a drawer in his desk to pull out a stack of files, placing them on his desk,
"There's lots to do..."
He picks up a file, his white gloved hands caressing the paper, before he opens it and takes out a paper-handing it to you. You take the paper and look at the contents-a weekly request from Atara himself,
"Don't feel pressured to complete it today, you have all week to do it."
Atara gives you a smile, and stands up, motioning for you to do the same. The two of you walk out of his office, and down the stairs. You hold the paper in your hands in front of yourself as you descend the stairs, keeping your eyes down as to not stare at the man beside you-even though you want to.
Approaching the doors, the man from earlier opens them for the two of you, where you walk outside on to the terrace,
"It was the greatest pleasure to meet you and finally talk face to face. I hope we can do it more often."
Standing faced one another, you feel a flustered wave come over you, and you nod nervously,
"It was a pleasure!"
Atara smiles at your awkwardness, and gives you a wink as he turns and walks back into the grand building. The doors shut behind him, and you're left outside with the paper in hands. You shake the nervousness off and descend the stairs of the main hall, heading back to your new home. It's going to be interesting here, for sure...
Life in your new town seemed to have been doing well thusfar, and everyone was super friendly to you upon your arrival. Daily tasks were easy enough, it was just a matter of transportation-thankfully you had gotten a scooter for a cheap price recently. It was nearing the end of your first week, and you realized you were still tasked with the weekly request from Atara-completing a personal goal. Personal goal? Your brain is puzzled as you think of a personal goal to complete. Fishing has been rather interesting recently... Perhaps setting a goal for fishing will help with your skills.
Arriving on the port to start fishing, you task yourself to catch at least five fish and report them in the file, so you get to fishing! Fish big and small attract themselves to your line, and you find yourself with well over five fish in the boat you're on. Proud of yourself, you head back to shore to load up all the fish for cooking, or selling, depending on the quality of the different fish.
Once your day is over, and you've loaded all your fish at home, you head downtown to hand over your file to Atara and claim your reward. As you approach main hall, you notice Atara standing out front talking to some other residents, so you stand patiently at the bottom of the stairs for him to finish his affairs. Mid conversation, he redirects his attention to you at the bottom of the stairs and smiles, extending his hand to the people he's talking to, before he descends the stairs to meet you,
"There you are! Have you finished my request?"
You nod and hand the file to him with an awkward smile, still rather embarassed about your last interaction with him, but he takes it carefree and scans it, then reaches into his pocket to grab a small medallion and hand it to you, placing it in your hand and clasping your hand shut with both of his,
"I threw in an extra for you."
Atara smiles and gives you a wink, letting go of your hands to place them on his hips, looking you over in a quick motion, which makes you shift posture and blush slightly. You look at your hand, opening it to reveal two medallions instead of the usual one you get from your requests. Your eyes dart up to his in surprise, holding your hand open to extend the medallions out to him,
"I can't take both-I only get one from my requests-"
Atara lifts his hand in dismissal, and smiles,
"It's a little something extra on my behalf. Please accept it."
Your hand closes around the two medallions, and you nod at him in acceptance, returning his smile with one of your own that grows on your face. He has such a charming face and smile, you can't help yourself but smile when seeing it. Atara shifts slightly, and places a hand in his pants pocket under his long blazer as he looks over his shoulder, then back at you when he's sure his acquaintances can't hear,
"How would you like to get dinner sometime? To discuss your future in our town. I'm sure there's lots to go over."
His offer turns your cheeks red, the nervousness making you toy with the medallions in your hand,
"Yes-I'd love to!"
A pleased smile spreads across his face, and he nods once as he reaches into his blazer pocket and pulls out a small envelope, handing it to you. Shoving the medallions into your pocket, you reach for the envelope and take it-grazing fingers with Atara accidentally. He doesn't seem to mind,
"Don't worry about opening it here. Take your time and open it once you're back home, I'm sure it's been a long day."
Nodding, you hold the envelope in both hands in front of yourself as Atara turns his body slightly towards the people he was talking to before,
"Well, I have matters to tend to, but I hope we'll see each other again very soon."
Atara gives you another smile as he turns his body away from you, and begind walking back to the group of people,
"I hope so too-!"
You call out to him, making his shoulders move with a small chuckle. You smile at the reaction, and turn to go back home.
-
The wooden chair beneath you squeaks on the hardwood floor as you sit down at your desk with a sigh, leaning back and looking up at the ceiling of the house you now call home. You reach into your pocket with a scoot to pull out the two medallions gifted to you as a reward, and set them on the desk in front of you-rubbing your thumb over the engraved symbol on the front with a small smile. The metal of the medallion taps against your desk as you set it down, reaching into your other pocket to pull out the envelope Atara gave you. Your heart flutters as you lift open the envelope open and pull out the contents-a single piece of thick paper with elegant handwriting on it-a date, time, and location for a dinner reservation tomorrow. A dinner reservation already? Like he anticipated you to agree. You shake your head with a chuckle and sit the paper up against a lamp on your desk, the contents of the card facing forward for you to look at as you sit in your... very uncomfortable chair. You seriously need to get some better furniture soon.
You lift yourself up off your chair and drag yourself to bed to turn in for the night.
-
The morning brings a crisp breeze and warm sunshine peeking through your window, waking you up with a yawn. Neighbours on every side are bustling in the sun, completing tasks and getting materials for cooking and crafting, but you have only one thing on your mind for the day-your anticipated dinner with Atara later that evening.
Your tasks nearly fly by as you complete them, and soon you're watching the sun start to set, which makes you check the time on your watch; It's almost time for your dinner reservation! You brush yourself off and begin towards the location stated in the card, approaching it soon with a look of awe. Who knew such a place existed in this small town?
The building is a two story restaurant, with booths and tables outside the front, and on a small and secluded patio on the second story. Greenery and plants line the exterior of the building, giving the outside a rustic and natural vibe in contrast with the typical white aesthetic that graces all the buildings in town. You smile, and approach the door to the building, pushing it open to reveal the inside-A beautiful brown and red vibe fill the inside, with little to no lights to illuminate the natural candlelight from the tables and walls. A man approaches you with a menu, and gives a small bow,
"Reservations?"
You nod in response, and place a hand on the back of your neck,
"For, uh... Atara?"
The man nods, and nudges you to follow, which you do. You're taken to a staircase near the back of the busy restaurant, bustling with people eating and chatting, where you follow the man up the stairs to a large, open, door. Walking out, you are met with the sight of a beautiful secluded patio, with only one table-where Atara is sitting by himself-one empty chair across from himself. You and the man approach the table, and Atara's attention is brought to you-causing him to stand and pull the empty chair out for you to take a seat. You sit down and are pushed towards the table by Atara, who then takes a seat in his own chair once again. Menus are placed in front of you, and two glasses of water are placed in front of you,
"I'll come back for your orders soon."
The man walks off, and you're left alone with Atara. Your eyes meet his as he leans to place his elbows on the table, his hands falling folded under his chin,
"I'm happy you showed up, I've been looking forward to this."
His words make you blush, and you place your hands in your lap nervously,
"I wouldn't miss a request from the mayor himself."
Atara perks up at what you say, and leans back to sit upright in his chair, folding open his menu on the table to scan it over,
"I already know what I want... The Black Truffle Cream Pasta is delectable."
You nod and open your own menu, looking over the very expensive options with a gulp. A hand is placed over the top of your menu, causing you to look up and meet Atara's eyes,
"Don't worry about the prices, It's on me."
Atara gives you a reassuring smile, making you blush and nod-even if the offer makes you feel guilty, you accept anyway and go back to looking at the menu as he brings his hand back to himself. Once you decide on a dish, Fish and Chips, you fold your menu and place it aside. Atara places his menu on yours and directs his attention to you once again,
"So, what brought you to this town?"
His question makes you think for a second,
"I suppose just the want for a change."
He nods at your answer with an attentive look, and places his hands on the table in front of himself, fingers interlocked as he looks at you, which makes your ears turn red,
"I understand the need for change. I hope my town has been what you were looking for."
You nod in agreement, and reach to pick up your cup of water when the man from earlier approaches and picks up the menus,
"What can I get you two?"
The gentleman from earlier approaches your table and picks up the menus the two of you set aside. Both yours and Atara's attention is brought to the man, and you two relay your order to him as he nods, folds the menus under his arm, and walks off.
A quiet breeze rattles the leaves on the nearby trees surrounding the secluded patio, bringing a wonderful nature smell along with it-Atara notices you getting lost in the moment, and smiles at you as he rests his cheek in hand. Looking around your surroundings, you notice lots of greenery and wildlife; butterflies, singing birds in the trees and the roof of the building, flower bushes and shrubs, and of course-the beautiful sunset behind Atara. The two of you lock eyes as you bring your focus from the sunset behind him, to his face-and you shift your posture as you look at him,
"Sorry, I was just looking around..."
Atara chuckles and sits upright,
"No need to apologize. I hope you're enjoying yourself."
You nod and set your hands in your lap, smiling slightly at his chuckle. Your throat is dry from nervousness, so you finally pick up your glass of water to take a sip, then set the glass back down to place your hands together on the table. Atara follows by taking a drink of his own glass-you can feel his eyes on you, even when he's taking a drink. Nervously, you meet his eyes with your own-a piercing gaze that looks right through you-he can tell how nervous you are, so he extends a hand to place on top of yours with reassurance,
"You know... I'm really-"
Clearing of a throat snaps the two of you out of the moment, to look at the man who was waiting on you earlier-a large tray with two smaller trays, two empty glasses, and a bottle in hand. Atara brings his hand back to himself, and you move your hands off the table so two trays can be set on the table-the man lifting silver lids off the trays to reveal your wonderful looking dishes. He sets the glasses in front of each of you, and pours some sparkling juice in each glass for you to-
"Enjoy."
He bows, and returns back inside with the large tray and lids. The two of you smile and thank him, then redirect your attention back to your dishes. You aren't used to fancy things like this... Everything is rather overwhelming and new. You're brought back from the overwhelming feeling by Atara, who lifts his glass up to you for a cheers-making you smile. Lifting your own glass, you bring it to his to collide gently with a *tink*,
"To starting over."
Atara's cheer to drink to makes you feel at ease, and you nod in agreement,
"To starting over."
The juice is sweet and bubbly-while taking a drink together, you notice Atara smiling from behind his glass. New and confusing feelings wash over your entire body, a shiver running up your spine and turning your cheeks red. Sitting here with Atara feels... different; good.
The two of you eat, often meeting eyes with a tension you've never felt before-so many different emotions and feelings, you don't know what they all mean.
After the two of you finish the dishes, the man from before comes back as you pat your face clean with a handkerchief to pick up the empty trays and set a small tray with a Roll Cake on it-taking you by surprise. The man looks between the two of you,
"Was your meal satisfactory?"
Atara nods once-a gracefulness to his move-even his nod is professional...
"My compliments to the chef."
The man nods with a smile and brings his attention to you,
"Yes, it was very delicious. My compliments as well..."
Your awkwardness makes Atara chuckle, and the man nods with the same smile,
"Enjoy your dessert."
Leaving once again, Atara hands you a delicate fork,
"This particular selection is one of my favourites, I hope you enjoy it."
Taking the fork from his hand, you nod with a smile-sweets, something you're familiar with, unlike the fanciness of this restaurant. The Roll Cake is sweet and savoury, very soft and delicious-it brings a smile to your face. Atara notices your positive reaction and takes a piece for himself, nodding in agreement.
The plate is quickly cleared, Atara watching you take the last bite with a gentle smile,
"I hope you liked it."
You nod as you set the fork down on the empty dessert tray, and pat your mouth again,
"It was very good! It's nice to have a sweet again, it feels like it's been forever since I had something like that."
Atara nods,
"I'm glad."
The man from before returns to collect the tray, and nods at the two of you,
"Can I get you two anything else?"
Atara looks towards you, and you shake your head,
"That was plenty..."
Atara smiles, and looks back at the man,
"We're good, thank you."
The man nods and dismisses himself, leaving you with Atara again-who stands and walks to pull your chair out for you to stand up. Atara offers his arm for you, and you blush as you interlock arms with him,
"May I walk you home?"
You nod at him as he looks down at you, toying with the fabric of his blazer sleeve-making him look away with a slightly nervous blush on his cheeks. You smile at his reaction, and walk with him back into the restaurant to go out the front door.
Walking out, you look above you as a swarm of dark clouds cover the clear night sky, a raindrop landing on your cheek-making you flinch slightly in surprise and wiping it off your cheek with your free hand. Atara turns towards the door-where a rack of umbrellas sit just outside of the door-to pick one up and open it, sheltering the two of you from the incoming rain. You watch him open the umbrella with a smile,
"Did you know it was going to rain?"
Atara gives a smile and begins walking with you,
"It was forcasted... I love a good stroll in the rain, it's romantic in its own way."
Atara's words make you blush and look away with a flustered smile.
Raindrops tap the umbrella with grace, the sidewalk around the two of you fogging up from the colliding drops and creating a dark and romantic environment-holding onto Atara like this makes your chest feel heavy with emotions.
This was supposed to be a dinner to learn more about me and my future, why I came here... Why does it feel so... Different?
Your hand grasps Atara's arm instinctively as your mind races, making him look down at you,
"Everything alright?"
Your eyes meet his, a somewhat worried expression on his usual calm face,
"Yes! Sorry, I'm just thinking..."
Atara brings his arm towards himself, pulling you closer in the process,
"Have you noticed how the flowers sparkle in the rain?"
His remark makes you look around the two of you at the flower bushes, the flowers glistening as the raindrops fall onto them gracefully-this makes you smile and feel at ease. Atara is good at reassuring and taking your mind off of your racing thoughts. Atara smiles at you as your grasp loosens on his sleeve-still holding his arm, and you, close to himself as the two of you exit the main town and begin down the dirt path towards your house. You point down the road to the location of your house, and the two of you begin down tha path-making your stomach feel uneasy as you think of your time with Atara coming to an end; you've been enjoying yourself tonight, just relaxing and having some good food. It's been a hectic first week, so this dinner and walk with Atara has been really nice.
Approaching your house, Atara looks it over with a pleased look-even though your house is small, he doesn't seem to be displeased with it, which makes you feel at ease, considering his position and value. As the two of you walk up to the door, you hesitantly let go of his arm and turn to face him,
"Well, this is it..."
Atara looks around at the door with a small nod, before meeting your eyes,
"You have a wonderful home. Tonight was great, I hope you enjoyed yourself as well."
You nod at what he says in thanks, and agreement,
"I did, It's been a while since I did something nice like this, so thank you."
Atara smiles and nods,
"It's my pleasure, I hope you have a great rest of your night."
He leans in, making your heart flutter-Atara's free hand wraps around your shulders, pulling you into a hug. You hug back and smile, then pull away for the two of you to exchange a smile and look as he turns to go back into town. Opening your door, you let yourself in and turn back to Atara, who's standing at the end of the path to your home-making sure you get in safely. You wave at him-and he waves back, before you close the door with a smile. Your eyes peek out the window of your door to watch him walk away under his umbrella.
You hope the two of you can do something like this again soon...