"Shut up!" Junak retorted embarrassingly.

"Hi guys!" The young waitress greeted them. "It is good to see you again!"

"It is good to see you too, Val!" Tratan replied. "Junak was just saying that it was about time for you to return."

"Really! I'd have thought you guys would have forgotten a seasonal waitress like me."

"Are you kidding? I don't think I could ever forget you" Junak responded shyly.

Val's cheeks began to blush and she smiled. "Come have a seat, I'll get you guys some tea while you look over the menu." She grabbed a couple of menus and led them to an empty table. Then she left to go and prepare the tea.

After the two men had finished their meal, they approached the cash register to pay. Val saw that they were ready and went to assist them. "I hope you enjoyed your meal gentlemen. Your total comes to $15.84."

Tratan pulled out his wallet and removed some money, while Junak responded to her comment. "We always enjoy eating here. The food is the best!"

"I'm glad to hear that." She smiled and took the money from Tratan. "Okay, here is your change."

"You can keep the change" Tratan replied.

"Why thank you, I hope you have a pleasant day!" she responded politely.

"You know, I noticed that we never seem to see you outside of the restaurant. Don't you like to go out and enjoy yourself?" Tratan asked.

"Well, yes I do like to go out, but I haven't made many friends here yet. So, I don't really have anyone to go out with and I don't really like going out by myself" she replied honestly.

"If that's the case, why not go out with Junak? After all, you do know him."

Junak grabbed Tratan by the arm and pulled him away from the register. Then he nervously whispered to him "What do you think you are doing?"

"Listen, I know you like her, but are too shy to ask her out. I'm only trying to help you out a bit. Besides, aren't you dying to know what her answer will be?"

Junak's eyes widened with curiosity. He looked Tratan in the eyes and nodded nervously.

"Sorry about that" Tratan said as he and Junak returned to the register.

"Oh, not a problem" she replied.

"So, what do you think? You know, about you and Junak going out together" Tratan asked casually.

Val looked at Junak and blushed. Then she smiled and said "I'd love to."

Junak nearly fell over at the sound of her reply. "Are you sure? You know, you don't have to if you don't want to" he nervously jabbered.

Val giggled "Of course I'm sure. I get off work at seven. You can pick me up and we can go grab a bite to eat."

"O... Okay" Junak replied nervously. "See you at seven then."

Junak and Tratan left the restaurant and headed back to the shrine. "I can't believe she said yes" Junak said in amazement. Then it hit him. "Oh my God! She said yes! What do I do? Tratan, you have to help me."

"Calm down, Junak. You don't have to get so worked up over it. Just take her someplace nice and, most importantly, be yourself and have fun."

That evening, Junak and Val went for a stroll through town and had dinner at a nice restaurant. They were enjoying themselves so much, that they lost track of the time.

Junak glanced down at his watch and said "I can't believe how late it is. I should probably take you home."

"That is okay" she replied nonchalantly. "You don't need to. Besides your place is nearby. You don't need to go out of your way to take me home. I'll be fine." She smiled joyfully and inched closer to him. "Thank you for a wonderful evening, Junak" she whispered in his ear, and then she kissed him on the cheek.

All Junak could do, was watch as she walked away. He was so mesmerized by her kiss, that his mind went blank. By the time he came to his senses, she was already long gone. He walked home as though he were in a trance. Her kiss was the only thing that occupied his thoughts.