He was following me again!
The realization hit me like a wave, and anger surged through my body. I wanted to storm over to him, yell at him, and demand that he stop trailing me like this.
But Magnus was here too, and I didn’t want him to see Marek. He would definitely suspect something.
Instead, I quickly turned to Magnus and said, “Shall we go? I’m really looking forward to trying your cooking.”
Before we left, though, I decided to stop by a convenience store to pick up some alcohol.
“Oh, Seraphina, you’re too kind. You really didn’t need to buy anything. I have everything at home,” Magnus protested.
Despite his objections, I insisted on paying and brought along a few beers and some liqueurs to Magnus’s apartment.
Magnus had invited me for dinner, and I didn’t want to feel like I hadn’t contributed anything.
Seeing my determination, Magnus finally gave up trying to stop me.
We arrived at his apartment, which looked just as I remembered it.
Without the nervousness of my first visit, I felt much more relaxed stepping inside.
Magnus turned on the TV and said, “Seraphina, why don’t you watch some TV while I cook? It might be a simple meal, but I hope you don’t mind.”
He walked over to the fridge and pulled out the ingredients.
When I saw the bloodied pieces of beef, I froze.
I hadn’t expected Magnus to buy meat that hadn’t been drained of blood.
It looked so raw and gruesome that, honestly, it made me feel a little queasy.
Magnus turned and noticed the expression on my face. “Did I scare you? I prefer this kind of meat. Whenever I have time, I drive to the slaughterhouse to get fresh cuts. Sometimes they don’t have time to drain the blood.”
“Oh, no, it’s just… I’ve never seen meat this bloody before. It looks like it was just cut from the cow,” I said with an awkward laugh, trying to hide how unsettled I felt.
Though I ate meat and even enjoyed beef, Magnus’s preference for rare, bloody cuts wasn’t something I shared.
Especially now, with the raw, bloodied meat right in front of me, it felt almost horrifying.
I wasn’t familiar with the slaughterhouse process, but I assumed it was highly standardized. Cows would be stunned on a production line, slaughtered, drained of blood, and then cut into pieces.
So how had Magnus managed to get his hands on undrained beef?
“Seraphina, why don’t you sit on the couch and watch TV? Dinner will be ready soon,” Magnus suggested.
“Sure, no problem. I’ll wait,” I replied.
Since it was a small studio apartment, the kitchen was cramped, and having two people in there made it feel even more crowded.
Plus, the smell of blood was too much for me, so I moved to the couch and sat down.
As I watched TV, I kept an eye on Magnus as he cooked.
He was wearing a light blue apron that somehow suited him perfectly.
Without his white lab coat, Magnus had the air of a dependable, homey man.
He seemed to be frying steak, as I could hear the sizzling of meat in the pan.
Soon, the aroma of food wafted over from the kitchen.
I hadn’t been hungry before, but the smell made my stomach growl in anticipation.
After a while, Magnus brought the food to the table and said, “Alright, Seraphina, come and eat.”
He also took out the alcohol I had bought from the fridge.
I stood up and said, “I know how to mix drinks. Maybe you’d like to try one?”
“Oh, really?” Magnus’s eyes widened with surprise, and his blue eyes sparkled with excitement.
His gaze was so deep and focused that it made my heart race, and I had to look away.
“I used to work part-time at a bar and learned from the bartender,” I explained with a smile.
“What are you going to make?”
“How about a Mojito?” I suggested, thinking it was simple enough.
“Sounds great,” Magnus agreed.
I started mixing the drink, first slapping the mint leaves to release their aroma and placing them in the glass with lime wedges. I added syrup and lemon juice, gently muddling them to extract the juices, then poured in white rum and crushed ice. Finally, I topped it off with soda water and garnished it with a sprig of mint.
Soon, a vibrant green Mojito was ready.
I placed the drink in front of Magnus, and his eyes lit up. “Wow, Seraphina, you’re amazing. This looks so beautiful I almost don’t want to drink it.”
I made one for myself as well and clinked glasses with him.
“You must know how to mix drinks too, right? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have these professional tools at home,” I said, referring to the lemon and muddler.
“I do make drinks sometimes when I’m bored,” Magnus admitted.
Finally, I turned my attention to the dinner Magnus had prepared.
We each had a steak, some sausages, and a small portion of corn salad.
Knowing I didn’t like rare steak, Magnus had cooked mine well-done.
His, however, was still bloody.
He really did enjoy his meat on the raw side!
But after having shared a few meals with him, I’d come to accept that this was just his preference.
In addition, Magnus had also made a serving of mac and cheese.
Goodness, I couldn’t contain my joy when I saw it.
Even though I’d had it for lunch, I still craved it.
For me, mac and cheese was one of those dishes I could eat endlessly without ever getting tired of it.
“I know you like it, so I made sure to keep some at home,” Magnus explained as he cut into his steak.
His thoughtfulness touched me deeply.
The entire meal was filled with pleasant conversation and shared laughter.
“Honestly, you should try my kind of steak sometime. You can really taste the natural sweetness of the meat,” Magnus suggested.
“No, thank you. I… prefer mine well-done,” I replied, politely declining.
“That’s fine. You can try it whenever you’re ready,” Magnus said with a smile.
After dinner, we had some beer and talked about campus life.
Magnus was a hardworking student, juggling studies and internships while earning the highest level of scholarships.
“We should study together at the library sometime,” Magnus said.
“Sure,” I agreed.
Once we finished eating, I took the initiative to clean up the dishes, despite Magnus’s protests.
“I’ll take care of it,” I insisted.