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6. Curious and inquisitive

Rion’s arrival on my campus grabbed most of the people’s attention. He was so striking in the red Lamborghini car he was driving, not to mention his handsome posture and face, that people thought he was a celebrity. Rion gave a slight wave to me, who was currently standing still, staring at him, half stunned. I went over to him and stopped about two steps away from him.

“I thought Fabio was coming.”

“I was out of the house, so I might as well come here. Why did you choose this major?” he asked as he looked around the faculty yard.

“I want to be a lawyer one day if I can make it,” I replied. His gaze returned to me.

“Amelia.”

I turned my head because someone was calling me. Thomas came trotting towards me.

“Are you going home? There’s still one more trial.”

I exhaled.

“I have some business, Tom.”

Then Thomas turned to Rion.

“With him? Who is he?” he asked in a half-whisper. I formed my lips straight as I thought of a good reason for his question.

“He is—“

“I’m her boyfriend.”

Thomas and I turned to Rion and stared at him in disbelief.

“It’s Not—“

“Come on, I don’t like to waste time,” interrupted Rion, who pulled me up, opened the car door in the front seat, and pushed me gently into it. I was about to say something to Thomas, but Rion immediately closed the car door.

“Shit. Why would he say that? Thomas must be wondering and thinking weirdly.”

“What are you doing? Why did you say that earlier?” I asked when Rion was already with me in his car.

“Soon, our relationship will be like lovers or become lovers.”

I was about to say something, but Rion made an unconcerned face as he started the car engine.

“Oh, come on... We just agreed to give you a child.”

I don’t know why I sounded so stupid saying that. Everyone knew our agreement would happen, just as Rion had said a moment ago.

“You want to deny it? You said you don’t want to be a prostitute. You should be my lover, or if necessary, you should marry me immediately and become my wife.”

My eyes widened in surprise to hear him say that so easily.

“Are you out of your mind? I’m a stranger to you, and so are you, and you-“

“You’ve even shared your warmth with me, which means the stranger status between us will soon disappear.”

Rion cut me off as he knew what I was about to say. I chuckled, turned to the windshield beside me, and stared out the window.

What kind of relationship were we going to have?

“What do you want our relationship to be like?” I asked after we’d been silent for a few minutes, Rion exhaling.

“Look, I don’t want to just take advantage of you.”

“So, what can I get out of our agreement? Is it just your property?” I asked because, as far as I was concerned, and it was written in the agreement, I had the right to ask him for a material part.

“How about my trust?” asked Rion. It was my turn to exhale. It’s too clichéd and fragile.

“It’s too fragile for me.”

“Werewolves always keep their loyalties.” Rion clarified his status.

“Is that so? Because as far as I know, there is not a single creature on this earth that can be trusted if its interests are at stake. No one would be willing to die for a promise.”

I’ve never even found someone I can trust, not Karina. Even though she was currently the closest person to me, I still couldn’t risk everything for that girl.

“Don’t you have a family?”

I just kept quiet. Should I tell Rion, too? My other self shrugged with a whatever expression. I exhaled.

“I only have my mom,” I replied.

“Your father?”

“He divorced my mom and left us. Since then, my mom never wanted to talk to me about him.”

I looked at the people walking on the sidewalk in front of the shops lining the street. There were not only shops but also cafes in between.

“Why?”

I rolled my eyes. I wouldn’t say I liked it when someone was so curious about my life when they had only met me yesterday.

“I don’t know.” That’s all I could say, and it was the correct answer. Even now, I don’t know why my mother doesn’t want to talk about my father.

“Where’s your mom? I didn’t see her when I came to your flat that night.”

“In the hospital, in a coma.”

We stopped when the traffic light at the intersection was red.

“Is it still far?”

“You must not have eaten anything; your stomach is making so much noise,” Rion said, making me smile and embarrassed. I didn’t hear him, probably because my mind was thinking about something else.

“You should eat something before we go to my house. Our conversation will be draining.”

I rolled my eyes, understanding what he meant.

“Don’t be too hasty. I don’t want to get pregnant anytime soon.”

I suddenly thought of this idea. I wanted to finish my studies before taking on the task of becoming a mother.

“It’s not up to you; it’s up to me.”

I smiled scornfully.

“I’m the one who got pregnant, and anyway, I can exercise my rights in the agreement. Calm down... It won’t be long, only after I finish my studies.”

“How long?”

“Another six months.”

“No problem then. My father will hand over the throne during the winter celebration feast later this year.”

We arrived at a fancy restaurant. I looked at the restaurant building for a moment.

“Why? You don’t like this place?” asked Rion, making me turn to him.

“I don’t usually eat at places like this,” I answered honestly. Rion raised one eyebrow.

“Then where? At a fancier restaurant than this?”

I answered his question with a light laugh. I didn’t expect him to judge me as a materialistic woman.

“You think I have that kind of lifestyle? I’ve never even been inside a restaurant like this.”

“Then this is your chance; come on, you should eat.”

Rion got out of the car, opened the door for me, and helped me out by holding my hand. I almost bumped into his body as he pulled me out of the car. His amber eyes made me unable to take my gaze off him. It was like something inside me was connected to him, something very familiar. Then, Rion kissed me and said, “You have no idea how much I’ve been waiting for a moment like this.”

His words jolted some flashes of my memory. I saw a woman smiling at a man, and then the flash changed to a man’s face that was different from the first one I saw; the stranger showed sadness on his face, and then the flash changed quickly, an explosion and flames; I jerked from witnessing that and brought me to reality.

“What’s... happened?” I asked in a daze, and my head felt a bit sore.

“Hey, are you okay?” asked Rion, looking at me worriedly. My forehead scrunched in confusion, and my gaze returned to his handsome face.

“Probably hungry,” I answered casually. Rion smiled and took my hand towards the entrance of the fancy restaurant. As we passed a concierge at the gate, Rion’s cell phone rang, and we automatically stopped.

I took the opportunity to stare at him for a while longer as he fell silent while listening to the explanation of the person who called him this time.

“I’ll be home in an hour; you care for her like I always do, Fabio.”

I glanced at the few women staring at Rion with admiring, hungry, seductive, and desirous gazes. He naturally had the perfect physique for a man, but I was curious about his other abilities; indeed, he didn’t just have a handsome face and an ideal physique.

“What do you want to know from me?”

I was surprised by that question because I didn’t say anything to him this time.

He can read minds?

Rion smiled a small smile that made me a little nervous and misbehave.

“If you allow me, I can enter your mind.”

I glanced sarcastically and said, “No, I need some privacy.”

We proceeded into the restaurant, and a concierge approached us, but he was more formally dressed this time.

“Welcome, sir; your table is always ready.”

I frowned but didn’t want to ask, although I had a few questions in mind. As we sat at a table separated by a maroon velvet curtain, I couldn’t help but be curious.

“Do you know the owner of this restaurant?” I asked.

“I’m the owner.”

I was silent and didn’t want to ask any more questions. After ordering our food, we waited in silence.

“Is there anything else you want to ask?”

“Nothing for now.”

I stared at the sizable medium-sized beef steak with a feeling of hunger. I couldn’t stop myself from eating immediately.

“Is that man your boyfriend?”

I frowned at the question and looked at Rion.

“The one at the college.” He clarified the object of his question.

“No, just a close friend.” I knew he meant Thomas.

“How close?”

I didn’t know how to describe my friendship with Thomas. We were close, but not to the point where he knew everything about my personal life.

“Only close in college.”

That’s the correct answer.

“Are you sure?” Rion asked again. There was emphasis there.

“Why?”

Rion looked at me with a severe gaze.

“I don’t like sharing.”

“It’s not what you think. I don’t have any special relationship with any boy. Besides, I don’t have time to deal with my feelings; my life already has enough burdens.”

“You’re a strong woman, Amelia.”

I stuffed the last piece of meat into my mouth and then shrugged as I chewed slowly.

“Maybe. If only my mother’s heart had completely stopped beating, maybe I wouldn’t have hesitated to catch up with her, too.”

Our gazes met, and we were silent momentarily. Rion said, “If that were the case, I would wait for you to be reborn.”

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