A Job Offer

"Why are you here?" Luna asked after they, herself and Zach, decided to have dinner together. In the house where she lived, of course.

"Can't I come here?" He asked back after swallowing his second mouthful of fried rice. Initially, he intended to share the deliciousness of his favorite fried rice with Luna. Because of that, he stopped by and bought it from his favorite restaurant in front of this apartment building. Unfortunately, the plan had to be canceled. Or rather, delayed.

"It's not like that," said Luna quickly. "Why didn't you go home and come here instead?" This was the actual point of her question. Usually, people would go straight home after a long day of work. They needed to rest their bodies and minds.

That was what she knew, although many other people also liked to stop by before driving to the house.

"Haven't I told you? I live in this building, too."

"Oh, really?"

That was new information. The day before, they did not discuss each other's lives. They were too focused on any kind of help that he offered to her.

Zach gave a definite nod in response. "Yes. Three floors above this unit."

Luna's lips rounded into an o. It answered his presence in this building, but not his presence in her apartment. Oh, could she call it that way? After all, she lived here.

But, she chose not to ask. No. Didn't she already do it? And what she got was that reply.

Then silence filled the place. The awkwardness was again felt when the two focused on their food.

"Is it delicious?" Luna asked, with her eyes fixed on his box of fried rice. The scent seemed to have caught her interest, although the smell of her instant noodles was no less tempting. She already said she had never tried that food, didn't she? And she didn't expect it to smell this good.

Zach, who saw how Luna stared at the brown rice grains in front of him, offered, "You want to try it?"

Luna was about to nod enthusiastically. However, she remembered to keep her reactions under control. Don't draw attention.

And what he did was take a spoonful and then hand it to the woman sitting in front of him. In other words, he acted like he was about to feed the food into her mouth.

How would she react?

To be honest, Luna had doubts. She was confused about what to do with that spoonful of fried rice. Did she need to open her mouth or take the spoon from his hand?

Ah, this resulted from her watching too many human dramas. She thought about something as simple as difficulty.

The answer was simple and clear. Luna only needed to open her mouth wide and didn't think anything.

So, she made it happen.

Surprisingly, he laughed at her. What was so funny?

"Why are you laughing?" Luna furrowed her brows in confusion.

"No. Nothing," Zach responded in between his laughter that began to disappear. "Open your mouth again," she ordered.

Her eyes narrowed, looking sharply and suspiciously at her interlocutor, especially with the amused look on his handsome face. She felt like she had become a clown.

Even so, she still followed his order by opening her mouth wide—as before. And one mouthful of fried rice landed there. She smiled happily because she had finally tasted the food that made her curious.

He observed every change in her face. "How? It's delicious, isn't it?"

A low mumble escaped from her lips, which were still busy chewing the first fried rice in her human life. Then she gave an excited nod. "It's great," she said, further clarifying the answer. "I'll eat mine tonight," she added, more to herself.

"The restaurant is really close, in front of this building. So, you can buy this instead of eating instant noodles." He gave a satire at the end of his sentence. Instant food was not suitable for continuous consumption.

"I have to save." She chimed in briefly and stirred again her instant noodles, which had just become the subject of his satire. She had heard humans often talk about how bad it was to eat instant food every day and for an extended period. Even some doctors—she peeked at their works—said the same thing.

But, again, she was not entirely human. Would the bad things happen to her too?

"If the money runs out, I can give you some more."

Luna widened her eyes, unable to believe what had entered her ears. "Oh, no. No," she blurted. "No need. I'll find a job to buy my own necessities and pay the rent for next month." She continued. She couldn't continue to depend on him for her life. He had already done too much for her.

"You need a job?"

"Of course. I need food to live."

Zach was silent for a moment. He seemed to think about something. "You want to work for me?" Suddenly, he asked.

"What kind of job?"

"What can you do?"

Her mouth opened as if to say something. But, it was canceled when the facts about her life hither. She was just an angel of death who was to bring the human spirit to the world above. That was her job throughout her existence.

The enthusiasm vanished instantly and was replaced by a heavy sigh and resignation on her face. "I don't have any special skills," she admitted honestly. At this rate, how did she get a job? So, her life?

Being human was indeed hard.

"Nothing at all?"

Luna nodded weakly. Her skills only applied in the above world, not the human world. "I'm just good at accompanying people to talk." She meant the human spirit.

She would be the friend of the spirits and help them understand their condition before delivering them to the above world. Sometimes, she also had to comfort those crying or angry over the death that had occurred to their human bodies. And yes, she always had to ensure they were within her reach.

Zach thought again. However, it was not long before he had a new offer. "How about you accompany me to chat or be my friend to talk? Every night like this?"

She blinked her eyes repeatedly, trying to digest his words. "Could it be called work?" she asked doubtfully.

"Of course. Anything can be called work as long as there is a need for it."

"And you need me to be your friend?" she concluded.

He responded with a nod. "You can also cook dinner or something else to enjoy in our time." He added another detail.

Honestly, it was a very tempting offer. Just listen and chat, and Luna could earn some money.

But, there was one other problem regarding the last explanation. "I can't cook." Luna really sucked, didn't she?

"You can learn, and I'll judge the results. How?"

Luna was interested. However, there was doubt in her heart. Was it possible for her to have this kind of luck in succession? Or was Rio's suspicion correct?

"You're not lying, are you?" Luna confirmed.

A reassuring smile spread across his lips and erased all of her doubts. "I don't like lying," he said confidently.