I hummed a response but didn’t probe further. Instead, my mind drifted to Danny and I said, “Nora, since I won’t be in A City for several days, I trust you to take care of that matter I mentioned to you before. By the way, there’s also Danny. I met him in an alley a while ago. He looked like a pitiful mess, so I told him to come to me if he needs anything. I may need your help on that since I won’t be around for the time being.”
Even through the phone, I could feel her pouting as she answered, “Alright, alright. I got it. Honestly, you’re too kind for your own good. People like Danny are already beyond saving. Why are you getting yourself involved with him? You’ll only bring unnecessary trouble to yourself.”
I chuckled softly and merely said, “Thanks for your help, anyway. I’ll make it up to you!”
She sighed again. “I know.”
After we ended the call, the taxi coincidently arrived at the airport. I got off and took my suitcase before heading toward the boarding gates. When I was collecting my ticket, I inadvertently spotted a friend.
Well, maybe not a friend… she’s more like an acquaintance.
After collecting her ticket, Tessa scanned her surroundings, as if hiding from someone. Then, she walked toward the international boarding gate.
She’s going abroad? Where?
I wasn’t close with her to begin with, so I didn’t intend to approach her and pry for information. As the distance between us increased, I headed to the terminal to wait for my flight.
At some point in time, I had unwittingly developed a habit of reading a book before boarding a plane and all the way to my destination. But I was happy about it since it was a good habit.
The flight lasted for four hours. By the time I arrived in K City, it was already quite late. I fished out my phone and checked my WhatsApp. Even though I didn’t receive any messages from Ashton, I didn’t feel that sad about it.
It was eight o’clock in the evening and I wondered if Summer was still awake. After giving it some thought, I dismissed the idea of calling her and took a cab to a hotel, planning to see Summer the next morning instead.
When I reached the hotel, I approached the front desk to settle the check-in procedures. To my dismay, the lady working the desk was quite slow at her job. She spoke on the phone while handling my check-in information, and would occasionally throw apologetic glances at me.
I wasn’t exactly in a hurry, so I would smile in response without rushing her.
After she put down the phone, she sent me another apologetic look and stated, “I’m sorry, Miss. Our hotel is fully booked. We can’t check you in anymore.”
I was dumbfounded. “But it’s only eight.”
She smiled and patiently explained, “Well, Independence Day is coming soon, so our hotel is mostly receiving tourists groups lately. Individual guests usually have to arrive earlier to book a room, so I’m really sorry!”
It hit me just then. There would be an Independence Day Parade. Not to mention, K City had a large population. Adding on the momentous occasion that was just around the corner, most hotels would basically be overcrowded.
Thinking that most of the hotels were in the same situation, I hesitated for a while before calling Emery. Fortunately, she answered after the first ring. “You finally called me! For a moment there, I thought you’d disappeared!”
I chuckled and went straight to the point. “I have a situation right now and might need your help.”
“Tell me. What is it? I’ll do everything in my power to help you!” she responded earnestly.
A laugh escaped my lips at her flair for drama and I elaborated, “I’m in K City now. All the hotels are fully booked, so I might have to stay at your house for a few days.”
“What the f*ck?” she cursed without restraint. “Scarlett, I treat you as one of my own, but here you are, treating me like a d*mn outsider! You really are something, huh? Anyway, where are you now? I’ll come and pick you up. We have so many rooms at the Moore Residence, you could’ve come straight here and picked one. But you just had to go to a hotel. Seriously?”
I cut to the chase and simply sent her my location.
Luckily, traffic wasn’t heavy and she reached not long after.
Her red Lexus sportscar pulled to a stop in front of the hotel entrance, garnering a lot of attention. She rolled down her window and peered at me. “Get in, hot stuff!”
Tickled pink by her rowdy behavior, I giggled before motioning at my suitcase. “Will it fit into your car?”
She pursed her lips and swore loudly, “Well, f*ck! Why is your suitcase so big? Are you moving a corpse?”
After a short pause, she suggested, “I’ll get Hunter to come over to pick it up later. Let’s go home first.” Then, she politely gave the hotel doorman some instructions and even thanked him with a large tip.
In the car, she scrutinized me with a frown on her face. “Where have you been? Why did you leave without saying a word? Do you and Ashton both have the habit of doing this?”
I rolled my eyes at her and changed the subject. “Everyone’s been doing fine, I presume?”
“My brother and sister-in-law seemed to have aged a whole decade. If it wasn’t for Summer, I think they would’ve agreed to die together to atone for their sins. Cut them some slack, hmm? Life is like that, so let bygones be bygones. How long are you going to keep this up? Are you really going to push everyone away and live in solitude for the rest of your life?”
I pressed my lips together and kept silent.
When the car rolled to a stop at the entrance of the Moore Residence, I was stunned for a split second but got down from the car without thinking too much. Before I could get my bearings, Summer threw herself into my arms.
