Eve and Hope

"Oh my god."

"So, how is it?"

I looked down at the table lined with a variety of dishes.

Salads, sandwiches, warm tomato soup, and more.

I couldn't help but gape at the incredible spread of food, unbelievable considering it was made from just a fruit basket.

Wait, are they really this good at cooking?

What even were the dishes I've been making up until now...?

"Do you like it? I decided to show off my skills for the first time in a while."

"This is amazing! Seriously, awesome!"

"...Thanks for the compliment. Now, try some before it gets cold."

"Okay!"

A salad that looked fresh even without any dressing.

A generously packed vegetable sandwich.

A steaming hot tomato soup.

And apples carved into the shape of rabbits.

Which one should I eat first? This happy dilemma consumed me.

What should I eat first to give the impression I enjoyed it properly?

Everything looked so good that deciding was a real challenge.

"Well... this one!"

After much deliberation, I chose the sandwich.

Of course, since this orphanage only had that rock-hard hammer bread, the filling wasn't wrapped in bread but in beet slices.

I grabbed the sandwich with both hands and took a big bite.

"Uh, director, your mouth is too small—if you take a bite that big, it won't fit..."

"Mmmph, mmph!"

"...Here, dip it in the tomato soup and swallow it."

"Ah, thanks."

"..."

For some reason, I felt like the beast-girl's gaze toward me had changed a bit.

It didn't feel like my imagination, but I decided to chalk it up to that anyway.

People can choke if they eat a little too hastily, right?

...I was really hungry. Really.

"...Mmm, it's so delicious."

"Thank you."

After letting that little incident pass naturally, I continued munching on the sandwich. Suddenly, a question popped into my head.

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Well, if you're this good at cooking, why did you cry when eating the soup I made...?"

"Oh."

If she could cook something this delicious, why would she have a reason to cry over the soup made by an amateur like me?

Her cooking would obviously taste way better than mine.

As much as I hate to admit it, it's true.

"...It's just that the soup was so warm."

"Huh?"

"It was warm and comforting, the kind of warmth I'd never felt before."

"I see."

"When I looked at it, I somehow felt reassured, cozy, like I wanted to stay with it forever."

"...We're still talking about soup right?"

"Of course."

That's odd.

The soup I gave her had been sitting for so long that it had gone completely cold.

She must have a really bad cold...

Poor beast-girl.

She must have been so sick but still stayed in the kitchen without showing it to fulfill my request.

...Wait a minute.

Doesn't that make me seem like a terrible person?

I replayed the earlier situation in my head.

I tried to kick out a sick child who had been lying in the cold and hadn't fully recovered yet.

And I forced her to cook for me.

Looking back, this is outright exploitation, isn't it?

...Yeah, it really is.

My conscience pricked me.

The guilt was scolding me, saying, What have you done?!

I mean, she could've just said she was sick...

"So, what do you think? Am I accepted? Can I stay at the orphanage?"

"Of c... uh, sure."

"Thank you so mu—"

"Come, sit down. Let's eat together."

"...Huh? No, I can't. Beasts and humans shouldn't eat at the same table..."

"There's a rule in this orphanage: Everyone eats together at mealtime! So sit down."

"Th-Then, excuse me..."

Honestly, I only asked for food because I was hungry and planned to send her back after some persuasion.

...Now I have no choice but to accept her.

Her cooking skills are unexpectedly amazing, and my conscience keeps pricking me, so I couldn't bring myself to say no.

"Here, have a spoonful of the soup. It's best when it's warm."

"Im fol, so ou et it."

"...Director, please finish chewing before you speak. I can't understand a word."

"Mm-hmm."

Still, seeing the girl smiling so brightly like that—

...No, seeing her smile awkwardly, as if it were the first time she'd ever smiled—

Well, the orphanage is big enough, and having one more person around shouldn't hurt.

It felt like all my worries from the past and the ones yet to come melted away into the soup and disappeared.

"Here! Try this! It's so good!"

"The last sandwich is for you, director—Mmgh!"

"Just eat it. I'm full!"

Growl...

"Uh."

"...Pfft, your stomach disagrees."

"That's just because I'm satisfied, ah, no. Don't laugh!"

"Pfft, hahaha!"

* * * *

The meal with the beast-girl passed quickly.

We alternated between bites of food and bits of small talk, and before I knew it, all the food was gone.

"It was delicious."

"Thank you for the meal."

This was the first time I'd eaten so much in a long while.

My stomach was so full it felt like it might burst. I patted it lightly, hearing a faint, hollow drum sound.

"Director, should I help you down if it's hard for you?"

"No, it's fine."

No matter how much I've softened, I was once a top-notch warrior.

This level of weight wouldn't stop my agile body.

"..."

"You're sure, right?"

"...Uh... yeah."

Strange.

Even though the height wasn't that intimidating, looking down from the chair made my heart leap.

I couldn't muster the courage to jump down.

Why?

Sure, it's about the same height as me, but all I need to do is land properly, right?

Move, body.

Move!

Show the strength of a squad leader and veteran elite soldier!

"Come here. I'll help you down."

"No, well... please do."

"You should've said so earlier."

It seems I don't have any strength worth showing off after all.

The beast-girl, unable to bear watching me struggle awkwardly on the chair, finally wrapped her arms around me.

"Oh, this is rather... nice..."

"Huh?"

"Ah, it's nothing."

I thought I heard her sniffing a little, but anyway, the beast-girl carried me down and gently set me on the floor.

"..."

"What is it?"

And then, I saw it.

A scene I absolutely, positively did not like.

"Why are you so tall?"

"What...?"

She's clearly still a child.

So why is she so much taller than me?

Isn't it a little strange that I have to look up at her?

"You're just small, Director."

"What."

"Plus, there's an age gap between us, so it can't be helped."

"...Who's older, exactly?"

"Me. By about five years?"

"How would you even know that?"

"Magic."

...If it's magic, I guess I can't really argue.

"Then why are you being so formal with me if you're older?"

"Uh, well, because you're the Director? I'm not really sure, but I think I'll keep using formal speech."

"That's kind of vague."

"Well, life is vague like that, isn't it?"

Is it?

Now that she says it, I guess it might be.

"Then, can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?"

"We're going to live together from now on, so I think I should know. What's your name?"

"Huh? Just call me Director."

"No, not that. Your real name."

My real name.

Come to think of it, I haven't really thought about it until now.

"A name, a name..."

I couldn't use the name I've been going by up to now.

After all, it's a man's name. It wouldn't suit this delicate, fragile body.

"...Um, E, ah, Eve. My name is Eve."

Eve.

The name suddenly popped into my mind as I rolled my eyes around in thought.

I don't know why.

Maybe it's because marching on Christmas Eve left a deep impression in my memory.

Or maybe it's just something that randomly came to mind. I'm not sure.

"Eve, Eve."

"What?"

"It really suits you."

"...Flattery won't get you anything."

"But your lips are curling up."

"Gah."

"Just kidding."

As soon as I hastily covered my mouth, the beast-girl flashed a playful smile.

Teasing an adult already, huh?

She's got the makings of a little troublemaker.

But since it wasn't an unpleasant kind of teasing, I decided to let it go with the magnanimity of an adult.

"By the way, I'm jealous. You have a name, but I don't."

"Really? Then why don't I give you one?"

"...Would that be okay?"

"Of course!"

I've had a name in mind ever since I first saw her.

I didn't expect to use it like this.

"Alright, get ready."

Time to showcase my amazing naming sense.

I put my hands on my hips and struck a confident pose.

"Your name is Hope!"

"Hope?"

"Yeah, since you're the first to come to this orphanage, I named you Hope, inspired by the saying, 'Well begun is half done!'"

(In the original her name is Half (하프) which sounds normal in Korean but weird in English so it's now Hope.)

"So 'Hope' as in the first orphan...?"

"...The way you put it makes it sound weird."

"Well, it's not wrong."

It feels like I'm winging it a bit, but...

Isn't life like this anyway?