On the Way
"Mom, do you know, Dad didn't come home again last night," Rey revealed.
Liana, hearing this, could only pretend not to know.
"Oh really? Why didn't he come home, Rey?" Liana asked, acting as if she knew nothing.
"Must be work again, Mom, Dad definitely worked all day yesterday," Rey explained.
"Does he often do that?" Liana asked curiously.
"Very often, Rey is tired of waiting for Dad to come home," Rey added.
"Rey, does your father often have nosebleeds?" Liana asked.
"Nosebleeds...? What is that, Mom?" Rey replied, genuinely not knowing the new word he heard.
"Nosebleed is when blood suddenly comes out of the nose," Liana explained.
"Yes, Rey has seen Dad often have blood coming out of his nose, Mom," Rey chimed in.
"So that's common, huh?" Liana worried inwardly, because she knew that no matter how tired someone was, a nosebleed meant their body was truly exhausted.
Upon arriving at the apartment
"Mom... Can Rey sleep here?" pointing to the sofa in the living room.
"Sleep there?" Liana recalled David also sleeping there last night.
"Yes, Mom, Rey wants to stay the night. Tomorrow is a school holiday, so Rey got permission from Dad to stay over," Rey said excitedly.
"Yesterday his father, now his son. Why am I always stuck with these two?" Liana thought resignedly.
At David's house
David was currently in his study room at home.
"Sir, what would you like to eat tonight?" asked Bik Mirna.
"Anything, Bik," David answered briefly.
Bik Mirna, sensing that her employer was preoccupied with something, decided to cheer him up.
"Sir... Are you thinking about Miss Liana?" Bik Mirna teased.
"What are you talking about, Bik? Don't bother me right now," David replied, although he was actually thinking about Liana.
"Miss Liana is a kind person, Sir. If you don't make an effort, how can she come into your life by herself?" Bik Mirna added.
David just stayed silent, listening to Bik Mirna's words.
"Young Master Rey, too, I've never seen him become this close to anyone. If I may give some advice, please fight for Miss Liana, Sir. I'll take my leave now," Bik Mirna explained, then immediately went to the kitchen.
A short while after Bik Mirna left, David received a phone call from Liana's mobile phone.
"Liana... She rarely calls," David thought, feeling happy, and immediately answered the call.
"Hello Liana," David said excitedly.
"Dad, it's Rey," Rey said in a quiet voice.
David's excitement instantly vanished, as he thought it was Liana calling him.
"Rey, it's you. What is it now?" David asked.
"Dad, this is serious. A man came here and plans to take Mom Liana out to watch a movie tonight," Rey revealed over the phone. He was using Liana's phone to contact his father. He actually disliked it when a man approached his mother.
"A man? Who is he, Rey? Do you know him...?" David asked, full of interrogation.
"No, Rey doesn't know. But Dad, Mom Liana called him Bram," Rey chimed in.
"Bram... Isn't he one of the employees at my company?" David thought, annoyed.
"Are you two still at the apartment, Rey?" David asked.
"Yes, Dad, we are still here. Mom Liana is cooking for us," Rey explained on the phone.
"Alright, Dad will come over immediately," David stated firmly, then immediately hung up.
David quickly rushed to change his clothes. And immediately went out to go to Liana's apartment.
"Bik... David is leaving first," David said, running off just like that.
"Sir, the food is ready," Bik Mirna interjected.
"Later, Bik, later, this is much more important," David added from a distance.
"What's wrong with Mr. David? He was gloomy in the study just now. Why is he panicked now?" Bik Mirna said, confused by David.
At the apartment
"Please make way, make room," Liana said while carrying a pot of hotpot to place on the table.
"Wow Liana, this is amazing. It looks delicious," Bram said, eager to eat.
"Well, look who's cooking," Liana boasted.
"Alright, alright. Honorable Miss Liana. Rey, let's eat," Bram invited.
"Hold on... Wait a minute. Wash your hands before eating. Don't you two know about cleanliness or what?" Liana insisted.
"Yes, yes. We're just about to wash our hands," Bram replied.
Bram and Rey went to the bathroom to wash their hands.
A moment later, the apartment door was knocked on by someone from outside.
"Who could that be? I don't recall ordering anything," Liana said, confused.
Liana went to open the door. She was very surprised to see that it was David who had come.
"Mr. Doctor, you?" Liana exclaimed in shock.
"Why... Am I not allowed to come in?" David asked, full of menace.
"What are you doing here, Sir? This is my apartment. Not just anyone is allowed to enter," Liana insisted, not daring to look David in the eye.
"Is that so? Why is that man allowed, and I am not?" David asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Because he is my colleague," Liana answered.
"Colleague, then what am I? Aren't I your superior? You should be more respectful to me," David interrupted, immediately walking inside.
"Sir... You can't..." Liana's words were cut off as she followed David's steps.
Inside Liana's apartment, David could see a pot of hotpot that looked freshly cooked.
"Mom, Rey has washed his hands properly," Rey said, running towards Liana.
"Dad, you came," Rey said, pretending not to know.
The boy was very good at acting, especially when helping his father.
"Of course, Rey. Where Rey is, Dad will definitely be there," David replied, following Rey's act.
Liana could only remain silent watching this. She had wanted to avoid David all day today.
"Rey, you left me... Hey Mr. David, you're here too," Bram said, surprised to see David there.
"Yes, of course, my son is here. Why wouldn't I be allowed to come here?" David explained.
"Son...? Rey is your son?" Bram asked, a little shocked.
"Yes, isn't it quite clear?" David chimed in.
"Liana, have you and Mr. David already m..." He was cut off because Liana interrupted him.
"No, I haven't..." Liana's words were cut off by David.
"Yes, Liana and I are married," David said with full confidence, and he did not forget to immediately put his arm around Liana's waist.
Liana was shocked by David's spontaneous behavior just now. She could only stare wide-eyed at David.
"What? When did we get married?" Liana asked spontaneously.
David, who was hugging Liana's waist, squeezed it slightly to make her keep quiet. Liana's face became very red now, caught between embarrassment and shock at what was happening.
"I see, in that case, I will leave now, Sir, Liana. Since Mr. David is here, it doesn't feel right for me to be here," Bram said, heavily disappointed by the reality he had just heard.
"Bram, but he is-" Liana wanted to speak, but David held her back.
"Go quickly, the sooner the better," David said.
Bram immediately left Liana's apartment.
"Let go," Liana immediately forcefully removed David's hand from her waist.
"What did you just do, Sir? Have you gone mad to say that?" Liana said, annoyed.
"Rey, go to the room first. Dad wants to talk to Liana alone," David requested. He didn't want Rey to hear something he shouldn't.
"Okay, Dad," Rey said obediently, immediately running to Liana's room.
"Firstly, you shouldn't allow any man into this place. You just met him. You don't know his bad behavior yet, whether he's genuinely friends with you or not. You don't know that, do you?" David explained.
"And secondly, I know you've been trying to avoid me all day long. Why and what is your reason for doing that?" David said, stepping forward until Liana walked backward.
"And thirdly, you wanted to go watch a movie with him, just the two of you. Do you know how dangerous that is, huhh?" David snapped, who had actually been holding back his emotions all this time.
Liana was quite surprised to hear all of David's statements just now. His attitude was like a boyfriend who was truly jealous of his girl.
"Listen, Sir, what does my friendship have to do with you? I can be friends with anyone without any limitations. So it's none of your business," Liana countered.
"And regarding this afternoon, I intentionally avoided you because every time I see your face, Sir. I'm always reminded of the quite embarrassing incident this morning," Liana added.
"And who I go out and socialize with is none of your business, understood?" Liana exclaimed.
"You... Ahh, never mind," David said, frustrated, pointing at Liana's face.
"Now he's gone because of you, Sir. Who knows what he'll think of me, and one more thing, who's going to finish this food," Liana lamented, having cooked all that food.
"Forget about him. Here, Rey and I will finish it," David said, immediately sitting down at the dining table.
"Rey, come here. Let's eat your mother's hot hotpot," David shouted, calling Rey who was in the room.
Liana sat with them, giving David a look full of cynicism.
"Why are you just sitting there? You said you wanted to eat," Liana asked, wondering why David was silent.
"I'm waiting for you to get it for me," David replied without a hint of guilt.
"Since when did you become so spoiled, Sir? That's so strange," Liana retorted, grumbling as she scooped a bowl of hotpot for David, but Liana deliberately added chili to the hotpot broth, as she was truly annoyed with David right now.
"Here you go, please finish it," Liana said, serving it in front of David.