Chapter 2: The Deal — End
554 Words
"Then... goodnight."
"Goodnight."
She turned and went upstairs, returning to her own room.
Closing the door, she leaned against it, her heart racing again.
She thought of how he had looked just now—exhausted, relaxed, and not as cold as he usually was. She remembered the tone of his voice when he said, "Stay with me for a while," like a person who had been lonely for a very long time and had finally found someone to talk to.
She thought of the way he ate the noodles, head down, focused, bite by bite, as if he hadn't eaten something so home-cooked in ages.
She thought of the look in his eyes when he said "thank you," containing something she couldn't quite decipher.
She walked to the window and looked out at the night. The city lights were still brilliant, but inside her heart, something was quietly changing.
She didn't know if this was a good thing or a bad thing.
She only knew that from this day forward, when she looked at that man, he seemed different than before.
Downstairs, Julian Vane was still sitting on the sofa.
He stared at the empty bowl, dazed for quite a while.
Then he stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the night scene.
It had been a long time since he had eaten something so home-cooked. It had been a long time since he had sat in the living room with someone, a long time since he had said those things to anyone, and a long time since... he felt this house wasn't quite so cold.
He thought of how Evelyn had looked just now—wearing an apron, standing in the kitchen, earnestly cooking noodles. The light had fallen over her, looking warm. When she brought out the noodles, there had been a faint smile on her face.
That smile wasn't something required by the agreement, nor was it out of politeness; it was real.
He suddenly remembered what Vivian had said before: "You're too cold. Being with you, I can't feel any warmth."
But now, he seemed to be feeling something.
He couldn't quite name what it was, only that from today on, the way he looked at that woman was different than before.
He stood by the window, gazing at the lights of ten thousand homes for a very long time.
It wasn't until his phone rang that he snapped out of it.
It was a work email.
He took a quick look, set the phone down, and headed upstairs to the study.
The living room fell silent once again.
Only that empty bowl remaining on the coffee table proved that everything just now wasn't a dream.
The next morning, when Evelyn came downstairs, she found breakfast sitting on the dining table with a note beside it.
She picked it up to read; it said:
"Last night's noodles were delicious. Thank you. —Vane"
Looking at those words, she smiled.
She folded the note carefully and tucked it into her pocket.
Then she sat down and began her breakfast.
Sunlight streamed through the window, falling across the dining table, feeling warm and bright.
She thought to herself, "Days like these don't seem quite so hard to endure after all."
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Chapter 2: The Deal — End
- Writer
