Tenant’s Secret Love

Chapter 38: A restaurant encounter

The night came as expected, and the tired body was finally released. In this huge city, the night gives us endless loneliness, but also allows us to indulge recklessly. Perhaps only at night can we release the truest version of ourselves. We suffer in reality, we enjoy ourselves in reality, and we helplessly watch our youth slowly drown in the rushing flow of time...

Because of Violetta, Mark's A4 has become my personal car these past few days. After finishing my phone call with Robben, I drove to the hotel to pick up Violetta, and then drove non-stop to CC's “Empty City”

music theme restaurant.

After we arrived, Robben also appeared at the entrance of the alley with my guitar on his back and his modified racing motorcycle.

After parking the car, Violetta and I got out of the car one after the other. Violetta was very happy to see Robben and greeted him from afar.

As the two of them approached, Robben put his hand on Violetta's shoulder and jokingly said, “Big shot, long time no see!”

Violetta didn't mind Robben's behavior of leaning on her shoulder, and looked at the guitar behind him and asked, ”Big shot, are you going to sing tonight?”

“This is Lucas's guitar.”

Violetta looked at me again and asked, “Are you going to improvise a few songs later?”

I nodded and said, ‘Well, I haven't sung in CC's restaurant in a long time, and I miss the days when I used to sing here.”

“Why does it make me feel sad when I hear the word nostalgic?’ Robben said.

Violetta agreed, ”Because nostalgia is shameful. We are both people who look up and move forward, aren't we, Robben?”

Robben nodded: “You're right. It's just that Lucas still sometimes willingly looks back, even though he knows it's shameful.”

I laughed. At the moment, Robben and Violetta were teasing me in unison, but it was more like a kind of cover-up and avoidance. But I wouldn't expose it. No matter how perfectly he disguised himself in front of others, when the night was quiet, all the disguises he put on to cover up would still be torn apart, because the night didn't like pretentious people.

The three of us laughed as we walked through the dark alley towards CC's restaurant.

When we opened the door to the restaurant, the first sound we heard was CC's familiar singing voice. This time she was singing Xu Wei's “Time”. She was so absorbed in her singing that she didn't even notice our arrival.

We didn't disturb CC, we just found a corner to sit down and listen to this song that made us feel so many emotions.

When CC sang the line “You are the most beautiful spring in my memory, the yesterday I can no longer return to,” Robben and I almost simultaneously took a cigarette out of our packs and lit up. I don't know what Robben was feeling at that moment, but my heart was filled with those feelings of nostalgia for the past, the hatred of not being able to return to that spring, to jump into her river and swim to the end of love...

The applause came and went intermittently, and I realized that the song “Time” had already finished as time passed quietly. I looked up at CC on the small stage. She had put down her guitar and almost at the same time noticed our arrival. Her eyes were full of surprise, but of course her surprise came from Robben, not from me or Violetta.

CC came towards us with a smile, while also asking the waiter to bring us drinks and menus.

Robben didn't react in any special way to CC's arrival, and he was still smoking and tuning his guitar.

CC stood next to Robben and said after a long while, “It's been a long time, Robben.”

“Sit down and have a drink with us,” Robben said, making room for CC, but his tone was flat and devoid of emotion.

CC nodded and sat down next to Robben, lit a cigarette and asked Robben, “How have you been recently?”

“Pretty good,”

CC looked helpless at Robben's perfunctory reply, but Robben had always been like this towards her, and there was nothing she could do about it, so she fell into silence.

The waiter first brought the wine and drinks, and each of us filled our glasses. The three of us talked away from Robben.

CC flicked the ash in her hand and asked me, “Lucas, why didn't you bring your girlfriend along today?”

I froze for a moment before answering, ”She's quite busy, busy all day.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Violetta and Robben next to me asked me at the same time, “Do you have a girlfriend?”

At this time, I regretted a little bit for talking nonsense with CC about Renee being my girlfriend that day. However, people always have inertial thinking. I introduced Renee as my ‘girlfriend’ in front of Harlan and Brittany, so I continued to introduce her to CC as well.

“Well, sort of,” I replied perfunctorily.

Robben, on the other hand, took the news of my girlfriend very lightly. He lifted his glass, took a sip, and didn't pursue the matter further. Violetta, on the other hand, was very interested and asked, “Who is she, Lucas?”

“You've met her before,” I said, lifting my glass to signal Violetta to drink, in an attempt to distract her.

Violetta ignored me, thought for a moment, and said, “Is she the woman who paid your fine at the police station last time?”

“Take a guess,” I said, picking up the guitar tuned by Robben and walking towards the small stage across the room, but I was afraid that Violetta would keep asking questions.

I had just sat down in the chair on the stage, and Robben followed me onto the stage. We looked at each other helplessly. I was afraid of Violetta's persistent questions, and Robben was afraid of facing CC.

Robben and the sound engineer asked for another microphone and then told the band behind them, “Play Black Panther's ‘Don't Break My Heart’.”

The band found the right pitch and signaled to us. Robben and I gave an OK sign, then closed our eyes and reveled in the prelude of the song.

I was so engrossed in the whole song that I kept my eyes closed until the end, when I subconsciously glanced over at the seats we had just sat in. I discovered that Renee had come to the restaurant for some reason and was sitting with CC, applauding for Robben and me, and the diners' attention had also gathered around them.

It's rare to find a beautiful woman, and at the moment Renee, Violetta and CC were sitting together, naturally amplifying the beauty effect infinitely, attracting the attention of the diners. But I was panicking under this beauty effect, afraid that CC would introduce Renee to Violetta as my girlfriend. Then Renee would be very disrespectful and expose the truth, and I would be so embarrassed!

I handed the guitar to Robben, signaled for him to continue, and hurriedly walked off the stage to the three women. Just as I was about to speak, Violetta said to me, “I'll take over for you. It's been a while since I worked with Robben.” And she walked off to the small stage.

I sat down next to Renee and, taking advantage of CC's attention on the stage, asked Renee in a low voice, “How did you find your way here? I already promised you that I would help you get rid of those damn cockroaches when I had time. Why are you in such a hurry!”

Renee looked at me with an i***t-like expression and asked after a long while, “Do you think I came here to see you?”

I then realized how self-absorbed I was in my nervousness. I remembered that last time Renee told me that she really liked CC's restaurant, so naturally she would come here to eat and spend money, so today's encounter was purely coincidental.

To ease my embarrassment, I asked Renee cheekily, ”The song I just sang, don't break my heart, was pretty good, wasn't it?”

“The man next to you sang really well, and didn't pay any attention to you.” Renee spoke to me, but she was looking at Robben on the stage with her chin in her hands, as if she was looking forward to Robben's next song.

I covered my chest, twisted my face into an expression of pain, and said, ”Oh, dear, my heart hurts so much. I'm your boyfriend, you can't do this to me, my heart is broken!”

“Boring,”

Renee's attitude made me feel a little relieved. If she had been embarrassed by me, she would have said more than just “boring”.

I took a sip of my beer and then focused my attention on the small stage, waiting for Violetta and Robben to sing together.