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I shrugged it off, believing that the hotel manager probably arranged this breakfast. I sat at the small table and ate every bite until my plate was spotless. It was, without a doubt, the most extravagant meal I had had in a while.
After leaving the hotel, I checked out an apartment I had scheduled to view earlier. The current tenant, a young woman, still had a month left on her lease.
Though the place was older and located on the sixth floor of a walk–up, it was clean and cozy, with a single bedroom and a small living room. She even had a few pots of flowers by the windowsill.
When she saw me, she looked surprised and slightly confused. She said, “I’ll be moving out on the
30th of this month, and you can have these flowers.”
She chuckled and added, “I didn’t expect someone as pretty as you to rent a place like this. You
look like you could afford much more.”
I smiled back politely. “Thank you for the compliments–and the flowers.”
I was pleased with the apartment, mainly because of the price. The rent was only 2,000 dollars a month, paid every six months, which was a great deal for a place in Harborton.
I signed the lease with the landlord for six months starting next month. This way, I would have a
place to stay when the semester at Harborton University ended.
With that settled, I headed to the tennis club for an appointment I had booked. I was originally
supposed to meet a woman, but instead, Quinton showed up.
“My friend booked this session, but she couldn’t make it, so she gave me her slot,” Quinton said as
he scanned me up and down.
“I saw you get into Mr. Liam Yates‘ car,” he continued casually. “But you should know Mr. Yates
has a fiancée, and they’re very much in love. So even if you’re with him, you won’t get an official
status.”
“Liam and I have nothing to do with each other,” I said coldly. I explained myself not for Quinton’s
sake but to clear Liam’s name. He did have a fiancée, and I didn’t want to cause her any
unnecessary discomfort.
Quinton’s eyes lit up, but I interrupted him before he could say more, “Are we going play or not?”
He grabbed his racket and shrugged. “Alright, let’s play.”
Three hours passed quickly.
As I sipped on warm water from my thermos, Quinton approached me again. “There’s still an hour
left, but it looks like your wrist is bothering you. Why don’t I take you home so that you can rest
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early?”
My right wrist still had not fully recovered, and I had been playing with my left hand, which was
now overworked. I replied, “Thank you for the offer, Mr. Quinton, but I can go back on my own.”
“I know you’re a student at Harborton University,” he said, softening his tone. “I’ll take you back to
the campus. It’s just a simple ride. You can relax won’t do anything to you. I just want to get to
know you better.”
I hesitated but eventually agreed. Seeing this, Quinton’s smile widened, and he said, “Great. I’ll grab my car and wait outside for you.”
It felt like he was rushing to ensure I wouldn’t change my mind.
The drive from the tennis club to Harborton University took about an hour. Quinton kept asking about my major, but I didn’t answer. He must have gotten my university information from the tennis club’s application form, where I had written down my address and university but not my field of study.
When we arrived near the main gate, he parked the car. I quickly said, “Thank you, Mr. Quinton,” and opened the door to get out.
But before I could walk away, he also stepped out and pulled a bouquet of flowers from his trunk. He abruptly handed them to me.
“These are for you,” he said. “I was a bit rude last time, and I hope you’re not upset.”
“1
After that, he got back in his car and drove off. I stared at the bouquet, pulling out the card tucked inside before placing the flowers on the roadside. Taking the card, I tore it into pieces and tossed them in a nearby trash can.
“Jules, are you really going to leave the flowers someone gave you?”
A familiar voice called out behind me, catching me off guard.
I turned around to see Yvette standing there, and to my surprise, Samuel and Leonardo were with
her.
