Chapter 22

“What exactly do you want?” I grumbled, yet still climbed onto his back.

“What do I want, you don’t know?” He said, carrying me upstairs.

I live on the tenth floor. I think he’s crazy.

Since I always lose in arguments with him, I chose to shut up and obediently stayed on his back.

“Am I heavy?” Halfway up, I noticed his hair was almost soaked with sweat and couldn’t help but ask.

“Not really.” He smiled and continued forward.

I didn’t know what he was insisting on.

“Why don’t you put me down?” I was worried he wouldn’t be able to get up tomorrow after climbing all these stairs.

“If you’re worried about me being tired, just stay quiet.” He snapped back.

Me: … His stubbornness is practically his true nature.

“I’m leaving tomorrow.” He suddenly said.

I was startled, “Oh.”

Another long silence followed.

“Have you reconciled with your dad?” I asked again.

“Sort of.” His mood inexplicably seemed a bit down.

“Congratulations then.”

It’s good that they’ve reconciled. He can finally leave my house and go get engaged to that Sophia Martinez?

It should be a good thing, but for some reason, I felt a strange emotion inside.

“Are you really that eager for me to leave?” He suddenly stopped and asked.

“Do you plan to stay at my place forever?” I casually replied.

He froze there, not moving.

“I might go abroad for three or four years.” He sighed and continued walking.

“That’s great, there are so many pretty girls abroad, you’re lucky.” A perfectly normal sentence came out of my mouth, yet it was full of bitterness.

He didn’t say anything.

The atmosphere became so stifling that I wanted to jump down and walk myself.

I watched his sweat-soaked hair, his reflection in the stairwell, calculating his age three or four years later. In three or four years, he’ll only be 24, in the prime of youth, while I’ll be nearly 30.

For the first time, I felt the pressure of age, and it was because of a boy destined to have no intersection with my life.

“Ella Thompson.” He suddenly called me.

It was the first time he called my name, and it felt strange.

“What?”

“You…” He paused, “How old do you plan to be when you get married?”

My heart skipped a beat, “I haven’t thought about it.”

“Then think about it.”

“I…” It’s not something you can decide on a whim, especially when I don’t even have a boyfriend.

“I’m asking you a question.” He urged me.

So annoying.

“26, I guess.” I randomly picked an age to placate him.

He visibly stiffened, then seemed a bit displeased, “Why are you so casual?”

How am I casual?

“I’ve thought it through, how is it casual? Get married at 26, have a kid at 27, have a second one at 30, isn’t that the process? What do you know, you’re just a kid.”

My mom’s theory is deeply ingrained, and I’ve memorized it thoroughly.

“Can’t it… change a bit?” He asked again.

“Why change?” It’s baffling.

“You don’t have a boyfriend now, your job isn’t stable, you haven’t grown up yet, it’s too early…” He stammered, speaking illogically and hitting my sore spot.

I immediately refused to accept it.

“How is it unstable? I earn enough for myself, and I’ll have a boyfriend soon.” I won’t accept a kid pointing fingers at my life.

“You like that type?” He was referring to Ryan Chen.

“He’s alright, has a good job, is a good person, and looks handsome…”

“We’re here.” Before I finished speaking, he shouted at me to get down. What did I do to offend him?

Luckily, we reached the tenth floor, showing he had a tiny bit of conscience.

“Thanks.” I adjusted my skirt and turned to leave.

Remembering something, I turned back and asked, “Do you need help packing?”

I swear I only offered because I felt guilty for making him carry me up.

In return, I got a fierce glare.

“No need.”

Then, he quickly opened the door ahead of me, completely ignoring me behind him, and entered without a shred of gentlemanly conduct.

So rude.

I stood there, stunned. When he asked what type I liked, the name that flashed in my mind was actually his.

This realization startled even me.

If I said it out loud, he’d definitely laugh at me. I sighed.