It was almost 10 o'clock at night when they entered City M. Ashton had tried to stretch his time with Phoenix, as much as he could. They stayed at the waterfall till 6.30pm and he deliberately drove slowly on the way back to City M, stopping at a few roadside stalls that sell local fruits, snacks and drinks. Since they had been eating non stop, they both agreed to skip dinner and just decided to come back and rest.
Phoenix's presence around him gave him comfort and he liked that feeling. Even if they both were sitting in silence in the car, he felt content with that. But now that they were already entering City M, Ashton was restless and unwilling to part ways with Phoenix. He started to think of something to talk to Phoenix about.
"Is your house still under renovation? You have been staying in Camellia Hotel for more than a month now, right?"
"Yes. The renovation was still ongoing. It takes longer than what I anticipated."
"Is there a problem with the renovation company?"
"No. it's not them. It's my fault. I'm busy and don't have much time to go to The Grandeur to oversee the progress. Besides, I haven't bought a car yet. So my movement is restricted. I don't like to use the company car for my personal matters."
"Owh. It would be tiring for you to move around from the hotel, your office and The Grandeur without a car," Ashton agreed. "Do you want me to give you a hand? I also live in The Grandeur. I can help you with making sure the renovation goes smoothly and seamlessly, and if you want to buy a car, I can also help you with that."
"It's okay. I have put some time to go to The Grandeur tomorrow to look at the job that they have done so far, and for the car, Ms Mia has offered to help me find one."
Hearing that Phoenix would be at The Grandeur tomorrow, the sour feeling that he felt before disappeared and an idea was brewing in Ashton mind.
"If you said so," Ashton said with a glint in his eyes that Phoenix didn't notice as Ashton was facing the road. "Do you need a lift to go to The Grandeur tomorrow? I can pick you up and drive you there."
"No. It's okay. I already made an arrangement to go there tomorrow."
'Is she really like to say No to me. Or is she really someone who doesn't need others' help? But she always said Yes to Mia.' Ashton was feeling jealous of his little sister. It seemed like he needed to be as persistent as Mia in order to pursue Phoenix.
They arrived at Camellia Hotel and Ashton dropped Phoenix at the entrance. Phoenix got out of Ashton's car and thanked Ashton for safely dropping her off.
Ashton watched Phoenix walk into the hotel and cross the lobby, his eyes didn't leave Phoenix until she was out of his view, only then he drove away with a satisfying smile on his handsome face.
Normally, Ashton would come back to the Qin Mansion on the weekends, but tonight he drove towards his villa in The Grandeur, as he had something to plan for tomorrow.
*****
Ethan had prepared an Italian cuisine for their fifth anniversary. It was Tiana's favourite cuisine. He had called for a special Chef to prepare tonight's meal which were minestrone, ravioli, carpaccio and panna cotta. For this extra special day, everything that he prepared are Tiana's favourite things.
They both have a bright smile on their faces, and they couldn't take their eyes from each other. Their gazed towards each other was so intense that they could feel the burning desire for each other in their body.
Without finishing their dinner and just having a spoonful of the delicious Panna Cotta, they headed towards their bedroom on the yacht.
As soon as the door was closed, Ethan trapped Tiana on the door and kissed her senselessly, while Tiana responded with the same enthusiasm.
They both parted when they were breathless and resumed their kiss after taking a mouthful of air.
Tiana hooked her hand on Ethan's neck while Ethan traced his hands on Tiana curves until it reached her waist and pulled her closer to him like he wanted to blend their body together.
He was desperate to touch her but he was holding himself back. The girl in front of him was too precious to be handled mindlessly. Tiana was as pure and precious as the diamond that he had presented to her that evening. All these five years, they had kissed, teased and pleased each other, but they never did more beyond that and even though he had successfully proposed to her, he wouldn't break his resolve.
If he could wait for five years, a couple more months wouldn't be a problem for him, that was what he thought. For now, they could do all the other things, and he was content with that. Soon, the room was filled with the sound of Tiana mourned that was like music as much as it was a torture for Ethan.
*****
After having a late lunch at the Indian Restaurant, Mia walked around the street to help her with digestion.
Her eyes couldn''t help but observed things around her, walking ahead she soon arrived at a playground.
She looked at the happy faces of kids that were playing in the park, and parents who were chasing after their kids.
'Ahh… it's so nice being a kid. Being young and clueless, what a blessing. I wish I had a niece or nephew to play with. Kids are so cute!'
Her family had been hoping to get a child in their family from Ashton and Ethan. Both of them have already reached 30 years old. When Ethan revealed that he was dating Tiana to his family, they found hope, but Ethan crushed their dream by telling them that he wouldn't do anything that would jeopardize Tiana's career, and Tiana could take all the time she needed before having a baby before or after they get married. While for Ashton, they were hoping he would let go of the past and find someone new.
'Maybe it won't be long till I can play with my niece and nephew.' Mia giggled softly thinking of Ashton's current situation.
Mia looked around to find an empty bench, but all of it was already occupied by the kids' family but then her eyes caught a figure standing under a big tree by the playground. Just like before, his face was shielded by the shadow and Mia was only able to see his towering figure. She recognised the clothes that the man was wearing.
Without further ado, Mia walked slowly towards the man, circling the tree to approach him from behind.
The man who was immersed in looking at the playground, soon became alert when he sensed someone's presence behind him, but before he could move, a soft hand caught his arm making him stiff at his place.
"I caught you."
After successfully holding the man's arm, Mia cicle the man and stood in front of him and smiled widely.
"You were in that Indian Restaurant right? I saw that you were alone. I thought of asking you to join me. I'm not accustomed to eating alone."
The man looked sharply at Mia. His face was dark, and he was sending a frightening aura, but Mia was still in front of him and continued talking like the danger air that he released didn't affect her at all.
"My name is Mia. What's your name?"
Mia didn't receive an answer. The man just stared at her face with his piercing eyes. Mia looked at those dark void eyes and then her eyes traced to the man's straight nose, then to his square jaw and lastly to his heavy upper lip. The man looked devilishly handsome in Mia's eyes.
"You look just like him," she blurted.
The man's eyes shook hearing what Mia said, and for the first time he spoke in a low voice, "like who?" he asked.
"You look like my future boyfriend!" Mia giggled happily showing her white row of teeth.
The man's face got darker at first hearing Mia's answer but little by little, the pressure around him disappeared hearing Mia's melodious laughter.
After some time her laughter stopped, and Mia asked him again. "What's your name?"
"Ken."
"Hey Ken, can I be your Barbie?"
"…."
Mia laughed again when she saw the man's dumbfounded reaction.
"I'm just kidding. You were so tense, so I thought of making you relax a bit."
Mia's laughter surrounded the two of them. Mia didn't stop teasing the serious looking man. The man was indeed really good looking but it didn't mean that she could just ask a random man to be her boyfriend. She wasn't that clueless and naive.
Mia stopped herself from laughing too much and smiled, she turned her face towards the kids that played in the playground.
"It's nice seeing kids play like nothing else matters in this world. Seeing them smiling makes you feel the world is not so bad, and there's hope for tomorrow."
The man followed Mia's line of sight and watched the kids play.
"Smile Ken. Don't look at the kids, with that scary look of yours. If you have a bad day, just smile. Don't you know that smiling is a free therapy?"
Smiling could be contagious. He was not a smiling kind of person. But when she saw Mia's smile and her laughter, he retracted his dark aura.
Mia just stood there beside Ken watching children in the playground play, until one by one, the kids left the playground and the sky started to change its colour.
Before the sky turned dark and the park was almost empty, she bid Ken goodbye.
"It's almost dark, I have to go. Bye Ken. May chance, let us see each other again."
Ken just watched Mia walk out of the playground and disappear around the corner.
*****
The dark starless sky and the appearance of the moonlight marked the end of the day for each of them.