As we sat there chatting away, Dolores’s date finally appeared.
He was… a bit shorter than the Commander.
Well, I thought the Commander was just tall, so whatever—and his face was… not as good-looking as the Commander’s.
Of course, it was no surprise since the Commander was drop-dead gorgeous compared to most men and women.
“Heh.”
“Why are you laughing?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
Anyway, the guy wasn’t exactly weird, but he wasn’t perfect either. If I had to categorize him, he fell into the ‘average’ category.
“Shall we sit here, Mr. ■■■?”
“Sorry to keep you waiting. I had a little issue on my way here.”
“It’s fine. We haven’t even reached our appointment time yet, right?”
“Haha…”
The two of them moved to sit a bit farther away while engaging in such chitchat.
By the way, Dolores sure went all out dressing differently today to meet a man. Normally, I only saw her in her maid outfit, so I didn’t realize she was such a beauty. It was hard to understand why she hadn’t found a guy yet.
Honestly, I felt like they could hit it off just by having a normal conversation.
“What drink do you want, Mr. ■■■? I was thinking of getting a latte…”
“………”
Wow.
Hmm.
I was kind of caught off guard by this different version of Dolores. Normally, we shared coffee and even had espresso together sometimes… and now she wanted a latte?
She was wearing a top that showed off some cleavage and all… it was clear she had prepped for today.
“Then I’ll have a latte too. Seems like we have the same taste.”
“Hoho…”
“Wow…”
“The Dolores I know isn’t quite like this…”
“True…”
We all had the same thought; it was just strange in every way compared to the Dolores we knew.
Sure, she was always somewhat prim and proper, but she had loosened up a bit at times, even shouting at us once in a while. But now…
I didn’t know the guy’s name, but it definitely seemed like she wanted to make a good impression on him…
“…let’s cheer her on.”
“Yeah…”
Here’s hoping Dolores could one day succeed in romance.
Her effort to look good today better pay off.
*
…Haha.
-BAM!!!
“UAAAH……..”
“…Slow down. It’s dinner time now.”
“I’ve only had one drink!?”
“That’s one thing…”
Who does a shot of 500cc beer like that…?
“I… I worked so hard… I even put on different clothes! I did my makeup more than usual! What’s going on!?”
“Well, we…”
“Haha…”
Let’s just get to the point: It was a failure.
Yeah.
In fact, things started off pretty well.
It seemed like they only knew each other’s names, and topics like hobbies, jobs, and quick introductions came up.
And then, out of nowhere… Dolores began.
She started talking about work and went into a long spiel about maid-related topics.
Yeah… that was probably the issue.
“At maid school, not only do we learn to cook, but we also learn to show a master’s authority through cooking, infuse personal taste into our dishes, understand plating styles, and sometimes even learn self-defense techniques that can use items like straws or pencils as weapons. A person’s throat is especially vulnerable, so it can be quite effective, so it’s good to know. Oh, do you know much about maids? Actually, maids have been around since the medieval times……”
“…hahaha…”
Thinking back to that moment in the café, it felt like it was good that we stayed until the end.
It was pretty dull, to be honest, and I felt bad for Dolores, but the story wasn’t exactly thrilling.
In fact… it made me understand why such a beautiful and kind girl hadn’t had a relationship until now.
Anyway, that wrapped up our time at the café. Midori and Nana made a swift exit, but we couldn’t do that.
Immediately sensing their conversation had tanked, Dolores began to unload all her woes onto us.
So, we ended up going to the bar after venting all day from morning to evening.
We hogged three seats at the bar and continued listening to Dolores’s complaints.
“Commander! Am I really that unattractive!!??”
“W-Well…?”
“…………”
“…”
“……….”
The moment Dolores asked that, I shifted my gaze to the Commander.
I needed to choose my words carefully.
I mean, I was thankfully observing the situation.
Even if I wasn’t, saying something right was crucial.
“Of course… there’s charm, but… it’s just not really my type…”
“Heh.”
“AAAH…!”
I understood why Dolores asked that, but she picked the wrong guy.
Of all people, it had to be the Commander? That was a bit off, to be honest.
I was sure there was no malice behind the words.
It’s just that the only guy seated in front of her was the Commander.
“Oh?”
“What’s wrong?”
As I watched Dolores almost on the verge of tears, the bartender approached us, looking a bit surprised.
What was going on?
By the way, was that bartender actually a bartender?
It wasn’t that he couldn’t mix drinks; it was more about his appearance that raised pure confusion.
I don’t know how to put it… he looked really young?
To put it mildly, he seemed youthful; honestly speaking, he looked pretty… really young.
He was shorter than the guy Dolores met earlier and also quite slender…
Of course, even if his looks weren’t as striking as our Commander’s, he had an appealing vibe.
He didn’t come off as particularly masculine, just slightly… pretty-like.
One thing’s for sure, though: he wasn’t really my type.
“Why is the beer already…?”
“Oh.”
That was probably it.
There was no surprise the bartender was taken aback.
She had basically shot-gunned a beer five minutes after we got our drinks…
I mean, to be precise, the Commander and I were fine drinking our highballs.
The issue was Dolores who had polished off her beer like it was nothing.
“What’s with you…? What are you looking at…?”
Dolores was speaking to the bartender, slightly tipsy.
It gave off this vibe of a wild girl causing trouble for a younger guy passing by.
“Oh, you drank your beer too quickly. Would you like another one?”
“…If you want to give me another drink, then do it…”
The bartender smiled brightly at her while asking, and Dolores responded with a bit of agitation.
That wasn’t the usual Dolores, but it seemed her mood was dampened today, possibly due to the morning meeting.
Of course, I didn’t think less of her.
Even though she made mistakes at the café, she remained a kind co-worker, and I believed she would eventually meet someone better.
From the start, that guy she met in the morning was honestly just not suitable for her, anyway.
“Commander, are you okay?”
“…I haven’t finished even one drink…”
“Just checking, you know.”
Even though the Commander looked a bit offended, I just smiled.
Because it was true, the Commander wasn’t good with alcohol.
“Heh, just kidding. But try not to drink too fast. It’s still dinner… you know what’s next, right?”
“Cough…”
“How about we send Dolores back to the ship, and after some time, we’d have our work to do?”
Yeah, drinking too much wouldn’t be good.
“What’s this…?”
“It’s an alcohol that has the taste of coffee mixed with milk. I thought you’d like coffee.”
“Hmm… thanks, I’ll give it a try…”
“Sure.”
Dolores responded somewhat unpleasantly, but the bartender kept the conversation going surprisingly well.
I pondered if bartenders’ experiences made them more adaptable to odd personalities.
While sipping my highball, I briefly considered that.
“Can I ask if something happened today?”
“Me?”
“Yeah. You started drinking so fast. Just checking if something is bothering you or something.”
“Well……. it’s not like it was extremely tough…”
That was the polite way to put it, but Dolores’s expression was very gloomy.
But then again, I understood what she felt.
Going on a series of blind dates that end up poorly most of the time… it must be really tough.
Though we tried to cheer her up earlier today, it was clear that she wouldn’t be fully restored just yet.
It was a different level of experience altogether.
“I’m turning 24 soon…? I attended a good school… but due to a lack of money, I went to maid school before turning 20. In any case… I worked hard and studied hard…”
Dolores began her life story complaints again.
Of course, this time, it wasn’t directed at us but rather at the bartender.
Basically, it was the same story.
She studied so hard that she never got to experience romance.
Then, when she grew up, she underwent some transformation, her hair turned white, her physical abilities improved, she grew taller, and things were better since she became prettier.
Ever since then, she tried dating but, without prior experience, she didn’t know how to interact with guys…
It was the kind of dilemma common among regular students, but at the same time, it didn’t quite match Dolores’s beautiful appearance.
“Ugh… ughhh….”
“Oh dear… that must have been tough.”
“You wouldn’t know what it feels like… you’re not even a woman…”
“That’s true, but… I can relate to some extent.”
“What are you talking about…”
While wiping the glass, the bartender kept the conversation flowing with Dolores.
The Commander and I were holding hands and listening to the chit-chat.
“In fact, I’m on the petite side too, and back in school, I was often told I didn’t look like a man or even an adult.”
“Oh… oh… that…”
Dolores looked a bit guilty after hearing the bartender’s words.
Well, she probably hadn’t realized he had his own circumstances.
“Anyway…”
“No, it’s okay. I’ve still managed to date a bit and have friends at a normal level.”
“………”
“Anyway, don’t worry too much. I don’t know why the customer got rejected, but you seem like such a great person!”
Another bright smile.
As I watched that expression, I turned my gaze to Dolores.
Her face was slightly… flushed.
“…Huh.”
It seemed… she wasn’t just tipsy anymore… it felt like something different?
“…Commander.”
“What? Should I get more drinks for you?”
“…I think we might need to change our plans sooner than expected.”
I just… had this weird hunch.
It was hard to put it into words… but somehow, it felt like that.
Dolores… well…
Maybe just letting her be for now, supporting her quietly… that’s what we should do?
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