Sometimes, Annie would think the man was simply trying to make her life difficult. Sometimes, she would find his behavior childish.
Being pressed tight to his body, she struggled to maintain the impassive look on her face and stared at him.
“I am only spending the weekend, Mr. Lim. It’s not like I’ll be gone forever.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re spending two days or just a few hours. Annie, I won’t let you go out.”
Annie looked into his serious eyes. She could feel his heart beating, or maybe it was her heart that was beating.
She closed her eyes and shifted away. “We’re not a loving couple. Why are you acting like this?”
Three years ago, he was like this, clinging to her like a baby. But, things were now different. They couldn’t be termed a loving couple or anything close to it.
Her back was facing him and he couldn’t read her expression.
“Mr. Lim,” Annie added. “If you don’t allow me to go out, I might as well invite everyone here and celebrate my promotion.”
And that settled it. Annie was starkly aware that the man wasn’t asleep, however, his voice didn’t come again.
After a while, she glanced behind her and their gazes met.
Annie looked away, her heartbeat prominent. ‘What exactly do you want, Andy? No one can change what happened three years ago. Is that what you’re trying to achieve? Or is it something else?”
…
The next morning, Annie woke up to find the man gone.
Even if it baffled her, she didn’t show it as she went on with her activities as if nothing happened.
While she was getting ready to go out, the doorbell sounded and she walked out to the living room.
On opening the door, she was surprised to see the middle-aged woman. “Good morning, Mrs. Huang. How may I help you?”
“Ms. Lin, I thought we were neighbors.” Somehow, Mrs. Huang looked offended. “You told me about your promotion and I congratulated you. Didn’t you say you’re going to celebrate it?”
Annie couldn’t remember telling the woman that she was going to celebrate it. What puzzled her the most was why the woman was angry.
Mrs. Huang on the other hand thought the girl only told her about the promotion to rub it on her face.
She was older than this girl, yet, she seemed to be getting all the good things in life. Once in a while, Mrs. Huang could swear she was seeing a very handsome and tall man going in and out of the girl’s apartment.
But before Mrs. Huang could realize it, she wouldn’t see the man’s figure. It made her wonder if she was hallucinating.
“Ms. Lin, you should at least show me some appreciation. Are you going to celebrate it or not?”
Annie was thinking about inviting Mrs. Huang to X District to celebrate with her. Then she changed her mind, sensing the woman’s strange behavior.
Despite Mrs. Huang’s harsh tone, Annie maintained her smile and she said, “Please give me a minute.”
Then she turned around and entered her apartment, heading to the kitchen. The cake was still intact inside the fridge. Because a slice was missing, she decided to cut it all into slices.
Annie placed the cakes on a plate and came out with it. “I appreciate Mrs. Huang for celebrating with me. I hope you’ll like this cake.”
Mrs. Huang’s expression transformed into an amiable smile immediately. “Ah, Ms. Lin, this is too much. Well, I’m going to accept it. I know my son will love it when he comes back from the playground.”
“It’s nothing.” Annie waved her off.
Mrs. Huang turned around and entered her apartment. She looked at the cake and clicked her tongue. Even the decoration looked expensive. The fondant tasted expensive too.
This girl was definitely living too extravagantly. Surely, some people had it easy.
.
Annie had planned to take the cake to X District and distribute it to the neighbors. So on her way to the apartment building, she stopped at a bakery and bought two large cakes.
The sun was bright outside and the city was bustling. Yet, Annie couldn’t forget that it was in this area that she had a feeling someone was following her.
The feeling was not there currently, but she was starkly aware of her surroundings.
Mrs. Lin was overjoyed to see her daughter’s arrival. “I thought you would come earlier, Annie. I have been preparing a lot for the party.”
Annie looked at the decorations in Mrs. Lin’s store and she found it strange. “Ma, It’s not a big ceremony. Why these decorations?”
“Come come. Drop these cakes and go upstairs then freshen up. After that, you’ll help me hang these decorations in the canopy beside Mrs. Tan’s saloon. Dylan is upstairs helping with the food ingredients, but I fear that boy will burn down my kitchen. So you must hurry.”
Mrs. Lin didn’t give Annie a chance to speak. She hastily chased her out of the store and urged her to go inside the building.
Annie didn’t think she needed another bath. It hadn’t been long since she took a bath. Why was her mother acting strange?
“Hello, Annie. Mrs. Lin told us about your promotion. Congratulations, Dear. I always knew you would be a successful woman.”
Mrs. Ming was coming downstairs and she rained praises on the girl. “Annie, you’re beautiful and talented. I hope you’ll make the best decision when you want to choose a husband next time. My Little Chen is a-“
“Mum, quit disturbing her!” Chen’s voice came from the stairs. He picked up his pace and stopped beside Annie. “Pretty Ann, forget about what she said. Everyone knows I’m your best decision. You can count on me always. Unlike those stupid men, I won’t leave you no matter what happens.”
Mrs. Ming walked away, seeing that her son was a bit irritated. Actually, she was only trying to speak in his favor.
“Pretty Ann.” He went on. “I heard about your promotion and I’m the happiest person on earth. Later, I will treat you to a nice cola. I promise.”
Annie waited for him to finish speaking before voicing out her question. She had planned to look for the boy and interrogate him anyway since Mrs. Lin said that he was dodging from her.
“Little Chen, tell me the truth. You’re hiding something about Dylan. What is it?”