Sugar Coma

Sugar Coma
Vinorca Jona POV

“Sit here.” Masen pulled the chair out for me, the gesture catching me off guard for a second. Still, I sat.

He settled into the chair across from me.

“What do you want to order, sir?” I asked quietly, still unsettled after everything that had just happened.

Masen gave a small smile. “Black coffee for me, with no sugar.”

Yuck. His taste in coffee was pure bitterness. “Sure, sir. Give me a moment. I’ll order it and bring it over.”

He nodded, and I pushed myself up immediately, heading toward the counter. I ordered his black coffee, then added a strawberry milkshake and a slice of cheesecake for myself.

Everything was going to strain my wallet, but once in a while I could treat myself. I always lived poor—nothing wrong with that. When I worked hard for myself, taking a tiny break felt allowed.

Within a few minutes, the order was ready. I carried everything back and set it gently on the table. “Please have it, sir.” I took my milkshake and cheesecake.

“You have a sweet tooth?” He lifted his cup.

I choked the tiniest bit on my first sip. “Ahm… I usually don’t eat this stuff, but whenever I can, I do have a bit of a sweet tooth.”

“Why can’t you have it usually? Your guardian doesn’t pay your expenses?”

Did he just take a dig at me? That one was on me—I’d opened the door for questions like this.

“Oh, it’s not that.” I tried forming my lie carefully. “I just don’t like taking my guardian’s money or wasting it. I already have a job as a librarian, so everything I have now is paid by me. My own money.”

Saying that last part filled me with a quiet pride. Dante had cut everything off from me, but I survived. And sitting here, treating someone who helped me—even in this small way—felt like something I’d earned.

“That’s so cool of you.” He sounded genuinely proud of me, and that stupid warmth crept up my neck before I could stop it.

I couldn’t deny that Masen was incredibly attractive. Yesterday he’d felt like someone out of a story. Today… things fumbled a bit, but even then he still felt unreal.

He was the kind of guy anyone would love to have as a mate. And yet, with Dante claiming to be my mate and neither of my wolves confirming anything or speaking to me since that day, I couldn’t let myself think in that direction—not when it came to Masen. He was my teacher on top of all.

The thing with me is simple—if someone treats me even a little well, I start seeing them as the ultimate person. Not in some dreamy, romantic way.

More like hunger. Affection-starved hunger.

My whole life lacked it so deeply that even the smallest kindness could blind me.

“I’m not lying. Students your age usually enjoy life, but you work and manage things on your own. That’s impressive.”

He didn’t know that I would’ve killed to have that kind of carefree life. But destiny had different plans. And since my parents had wanted me to live, that was what I was doing—living the way I could.

“Thanks, sir.” I breathed out, wishing I could crawl into a hole. Blushing over such a tiny compliment—though it wasn’t tiny to me—was embarrassing.

“Are you getting a sugar coma or something? Because you’re turning red.” His voice dipped into something teasing, and my heart just melted.

“No, it’s not like that,” I murmured, flustered. “I just… really loved the cheesecake. That’s why my cheeks turned red. And who goes into a sugar coma from this little sugar?”

“Who knows.” Why did he suddenly sound like he was teasing me? Or was I imagining it?

Masen took another slow sip of his coffee, his eyes lingering on me a little longer than before. The warmth in his stare made my skin prickle, like he was studying every shift in my expression.

I tried focusing on my milkshake instead, letting the cold sweetness numb the embarrassment still burning across my cheeks.

“You know,” he said suddenly, setting his cup down with a soft clink, “I didn’t expect you to come out with me today. After everything earlier, I thought you’d avoid me.”

His honesty caught me off guard. “Why would I avoid you?”

“Because I got angry at you, and you were so scared,” he remarked.

I shook my head lightly. “Of course I was scared, but you did your job as a teacher, so I can understand… a little.”

“A little?” He lifted his brows, half amused.

“Yes. Because you were so kind yesterday, and then today—in teacher mode—you felt like a completely different person.” I tried to keep my voice stable. “Your anger was understandable, though. And you already gave me another chance by accepting my apology and not calling my guardian. So I’m already grateful. There was no way I would’ve said no to coming here.”

Masen leaned back slightly, studying me with a quiet focus that made my pulse pick up. “You don’t owe me for that,” he added. “I wasn’t trying to scare you.”

“I know,” I whispered, my fingers brushing the cold glass of my milkshake. “But being yelled at in front of the whole class was definitely a scary thing.”

“For that, I am sorry. It was my first day, so of course I was a bit stricter than usual, and your friend Amanda really grated on my nerves.”

I took a bite of my cheesecake as I continued. “She’s always like this. No one can make her back down. I’m sorry on her behalf too.”

“It’s fine now,” he replied with a big smile.

“Let’s finish this. I have to go to my job too. I’m sorry for having such a short time, but I hope you understand.”

He didn’t reply and started drinking his coffee a bit faster, which was the cue that he was fine with it.

I started taking big bites and quick sips to finish everything as soon as possible. The chit-chat was over now.

“We’ll get to meet every day, so no hurry.”