Chapter 08
1346 Words
The biological clock woke Ava up at a fixed time each day.
She lazily rolled over in bed and stretched, feeling that her sleep had been extraordinarily restorative last night, even erasing the fatigue from the past few days.
What could this mean?
Ava sat up.
She remembered there had been a power outage last night. In the sweltering summer without air conditioning, she hadn’t melted like a box of ice cream, and managed to sleep soundly?
It seemed...
Last night, she had seen a shadow.
She had also heard the sound of a fan—just like when she was a child, unable to sleep in the summer heat, her mother would use a fan to cool her while telling stories.
Recalling this—
Ava suddenly remembered something.
Liam!
She still had Liam staying at her home!
Ava hurriedly picked up the loungewear she had dropped on the floor.
When Ava appeared in the living room with disheveled hair, Liam was already dressed and groomed.
He stood before the TV cabinet, holding a photo frame with intense focus, unaffected by Ava’s presence.
Ava approached slowly—viewing from Liam’s side, she could see that the photograph within the frame depicted a young man and woman.
Yet, the colors and edges of the photo revealed the passage of time with perfect clarity.
“…………” Ava stood beside Liam, interrupting his gaze and thoughts, her fingertips gently caressing the photograph—
She told him, “They are my parents.”
Liam turned his face, looking at Ava with deep meaning—her attention entirely fixed on the photo, her lips curved in a gentle smile as she touched it.
“They……”
Liam hesitated to continue.
“They’re no longer here.” Ava said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders and offering a radiant smile to Liam, “It’s been many years... By then, I had already entered the police academy. They probably knew my future path, but their only regret was that they couldn’t meet my husband and children, nor attend my wedding—”
Ava added, “A slight imperfection, I suppose.”
Liam continued to gaze at Ava intently before speaking, “They…… were……”
“You’re asking how they passed away, aren’t you?” Ava smiled slightly, sensing the question Liam struggled with—
“They left me in a car accident seven years ago. My uncle said I was also there, but I survived the disaster. However, I was injured and stayed in the hospital for a long time before waking up, and even then, my memory of the accident was quite hazy…”
“But that’s fine; after all, it wasn’t a particularly happy time to remember.”
“A car accident, then? So, that’s how they told you…”
Ava asked, puzzled, “……What?”
Liam slowly returned the photo frame to its place and asked a seemingly nonsensical question, “Do you feel happy now?”
Ava glanced at Liam, merely smiling without answering.
Happiness.
It was such an abstract concept.
What is happiness?
What kind of feeling constitutes happiness?
—It’s inexpressible and indefinable.
Following the massive power outage in the East District last night, the police station was indeed in disarray.
Ava and a few colleagues had been running around various locations in the East District, coordinating and investigating.
As she passed the shelter, she glanced inside, though she saw nothing.
Naturally, when Ava left home in the morning, she took Liam with her—bringing him home during the storm had been a reluctant decision, but she hadn’t lost her sanity to leave him alone in her house.
Liam was a stranger to her.
And an extraordinarily peculiar stranger at that.
Would Liam go to the shelter, or head home directly?
“Deputy Instructor!”
“Deputy Instructor——”
When Ava heard her colleagues calling out in the distance, she realized she had unconsciously stopped outside the shelter—
Her mood sank.
After all, Liam and she weren’t even casual acquaintances; whether he lived or died was none of her concern.
It seemed she had indeed fallen for Liam’s “handsome trap,” and quite deeply!
In her moment of desperate need for an antidote, she received a call from Lucy.
“Sis! Tomorrow’s Saturday, you don’t have to work overtime, right?”
Ava pondered, “The power outage last night was quite severe. Whether I need to work tomorrow depends on the superior’s arrangements. Why, is something going on tomorrow?”
“…………” Lucy’s voice on the other end rose in exasperation, “Ava! Are you silly? Didn’t I call you last night? Dad, that is, your uncle, has set up a blind date with the ‘young white-collar worker’ for the weekend!”
Ava: “…………”
“I warn you—” Lucy’s tone turned secretive, “Even if the boss asks you to work tomorrow, you must find a way to avoid it! The ‘young white-collar worker’ is the best pick my parents could find for you, in terms of looks, job, and family. If you miss this opportunity, you’ll probably have no chance to find someone like him again!”
Ava: “………… Is it really that dire?”
Lucy suddenly snickered, “You’re just too outstanding in every aspect, which is why you’re still struggling with lifelong matters. Think about our grandparents—how many more years do they have to hold a grandchild? Do you really want to make them worry themselves to death?”
“…………” Ava, frustrated, retorted, “And you! Why don’t you hurry up and have one yourself!”
Lucy’s mischievous response almost made Ava explode; she squeaked:
“I’m still young~”
Forget it!
Ava hung up the phone abruptly.
That evening, Ava picked up a bowl of spicy hotpot from a street vendor.
She strolled back to her apartment, turning a corner near her building—
She was struck dumb.
Amidst the floral and moonlit scene.
In front of the building entrance.
A man whose beauty could make flowers pale in comparison sat quietly on the flower bed.
He was seated at the same “old spot” he had occupied several times before.
Upon seeing Ava, the man immediately stood up and walked towards her with purposeful strides.
He said a barrage of audacious words: “Ava, I’ve thought about it for a long time, and I believe the best solution is… for you to let me stay at your place. I only need to set up a simple bed in the living room; I won’t damage your sofa or disturb anything in your home. In exchange, I can be your caretaker and housekeeper, taking care of all your needs…”
Ava: “…………？？？”
[Black question mark face.jpg]
“What is this?”
Liam pointed to the takeout bag in Ava’s hand.
Ava glared at Liam. “My dinner.”
“I need to see what it is—”
Liam snatched the bag from Ava’s hand and, upon opening it, furrowed his brow.
“I see your refrigerator is empty except for a few bottles of beer and instant noodles. Tell me, do you eat this unhealthy stuff every day?”
After inspecting the takeout, Liam threw it into the trash can without a word.
Ava watched in dismay as her dinner was discarded. She was not only glaring at Liam but also felt an urge to hit him.
“What I eat is none of your business! And you want to move into my home? A grown man insisting on living in a single woman’s place—have you no shame!”
Liam leaned closer, his eyes gleaming with a radiant smile, and said something that left Ava completely stunned.
It was as though an unfamiliar yet strangely familiar current surged through her heart.
She found herself foolishly allowing him to take her hand and lead her out of the apartment complex.
“—If I had any shame, how could I pursue you?”
- Writer
