I Didn’t Lull You to Sleep Only for You to Be Obsessed With Me - Chapter 102

RP: Haebaragi_syk

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Chapter 52.1

“Kugh, I apologize for upsetting you, owner. Hugh, I’m sorry.”

Only then did Claude release his menacing aura. The head chef and his group bolted from their seats, fleeing without even bothering to pay.

Claude tilted his head in the direction they had disappeared and asked April.

“Should I bring them back?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s not like they ate anything anyway…”

“In that case, I guess I’ll have to cover the cost of the cake.”

Even though she couldn’t tell if he was joking, April was too drained to laugh. What mattered most at the moment were the other customers. While there were a few commoners in the café, the majority of the patrons were nobles. She had no idea how today’s events would affect their perception.

If things went wrong, Lilies of April could end up with a bad reputation in social circles.

And it had only been a week since the café opened.

She felt like crying. She had worked so hard to prepare this café, and now everything was being ruined by just one person’s outburst. It was her fault for underestimating the head chef’s outrageous behavior. It was her fault for not handling things better as the owner.

‘Still, I need to wrap this up properly.’

April turned to the customers and bowed.

“I sincerely apologize for disturbing your time here. As a token of my apology, today’s desserts will be on the house. I hope you leave Lilies of April with only pleasant memories.”

She maintained her smile until the last moment, then turned away, doing her best to appear composed as she walked toward the staff break room at the back.

“Lily.”

Claude followed her and gently stopped her, turning her around. His expression darkened when he noticed her reddened eyes.

“You’re crying again. Were you surprised?”

“….”

“If I were to break that guy’s neck and bring it back, would you stop crying?”

April wiped away the tears clinging to the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand.

“I wasn’t surprised.”

It was the truth.

She had encountered plenty of awful customers while working at a cafe in her past life. She had seen all kinds of people—some so outrageous that if she told anyone about them, they’d respond with, “There’s no way someone like that exists in this world.”

Among them were people just like today: customers who complained about the taste of the food and demanded a refund after nearly finishing their meal.

“It’s just…”

April took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.

“It’s because I’m frustrated, that’s all.”

“What’s making you so frustrated?”

“It makes me so angry that they dismissed Sophia’s cake as trash just because she’s a woman, without even trying it. And it’s so frustrating that they ignored everything I said, only to suddenly back down the moment the Duke showed up…”

She tried to hold back her tears, but they wouldn’t stop. Drops rolled down her pale cheeks.

“I worked so hard to open this café, but the thought that everything could fall apart just because of one person’s careless words is infuriating…”

“….”

“I really…”

April couldn’t hold back her tears any longer. She sank to the floor, sobbing like a child. Claude stood still as if frozen in place, watching her quietly.

“I’m scared people won’t come because of today’s commotion.”

Unlike when she ran the café in Saran, she now had employees for whom she was responsible. If the café failed, what would happen to Sophia and Edmund, who had trusted her enough to quit their previous jobs? And what about the other employees who had joined because they loved Lilies of April?

What was she supposed to say to Asher, who always claimed that the treats his sister made were the most delicious in the world?

At that moment, Claude removed his coat and gently draped it over her shoulders.

“I won’t let the things you’re worried about happen. So don’t cry. When you cry, I don’t know what to do.”

“….”

April lifted her tear-streaked face and looked up at Claude. His expression was unreadable, but then he reached out and gently ruffled her hair.

“And besides, your crying face is even harder to look at than I thought.”

“Are you saying my face looks ugly when I cry?”

Claude shrugged and lightly tapped her forehead.

“I’m just telling you not to cry.”

With that, he said he had something to take care of and left the break room.

April stared at the spot where he had been for a moment, then straightened up, wiped her face, and stepped back outside. Though she had no idea what would happen to the café after today, now wasn’t the time to cry. She had to pull herself together and move forward.

Besides,

〈 I won’t let the things you’re worried about happen. 〉

Somehow, when Claude said those words, she believed him. Not because he was the Duke of Winterville, a man so powerful he could command even the heavens, but simply because he was Claude.

No matter the reason, she believed in him because he was someone who supported her dream.