Chapter 886: A Heart That Belongs
The night was as cold as water. The wind swirled around the two of them, but the distance between them was growing little by little. All the intimacy and familiarity of the past now turned into swords that hurt each other. Vaguely, Lu Ke could even see the gloom and pain on Julia's face.
In the past, Lu Ke would have reached out and pulled Julia into his arms and said with determination, "Who is that guy who dared to bully my Julia? Let me go teach him a lesson." But now, Lu Ke couldn't do that because he was the bad guy who was bullying Julia.
Lu Ke had never encountered a situation like this before and didn't know how to handle it. He hesitated, wondering if he should just turn around and leave, completely cutting off the last bit of contact. But wouldn't that be too cold and heartless?
"Haha! I got you!" Julia suddenly looked up and showed a big, bright smile. Her eyes twinkled with a mischievous light, and she jumped up happily.
Lu Ke was slightly stunned. His mind couldn't keep up with her pace. A girl's mind was too hard to figure out. That was definitely not Lu Ke's strong suit.
Julia caught Lu Ke's stunned look and opened her mouth wide in surprise. "You didn't really believe me, did you? You didn't really think I like you, did you? God, no wonder Logan always says you're so naive. I've seen all your messy habits since we were kids, and I know all your ugly habits. And Logan always complains about you too. How could I possibly like you?"
"Haha! I got you this time, didn't I?" Julia laughed and held her stomach. Her face was full of schadenfreude. "Today is your birthday, right? So Logan and I made a bet to see if I could trick you. Hahahaha, look at your face just now. It's so funny. It's really so funny. I should have recorded it."
Julia kept rambling on. Her words were like a non-stop flood. "But wait, what did you mean by that rejection just now? How dare you reject my confession? What's going on?" Julia clenched her right fist and kept waving it in front of Lu Ke, protesting.
A hint of realization dawned on Lu Ke.
Although Julia was hiding it well, the slightly red eyes and the sadness deep in her eyes still gave her away. The beginning was real, and the end was fake. To maintain the relationship between the two families, Julia pretended that nothing had happened and hid her vulnerability.
Lu Ke also felt a silent pang of sadness, but he had already made his stance clear. Julia had received the signal, so now, he had to help Julia continue with this act.
"I can only reject you. You know Logan. He's absolutely ruthless toward the flies buzzing around you," Lu Ke said, spreading his hands to show his innocence. "Even if I wanted to say yes, I could only silently and painfully reject you." Lu Ke even made a look of deep regret, as if he was acting in a comedy.
Julia raised her chin and put on an arrogant pose, as if she was saying, You're smart.
Then, Julia took out a gift from behind her back. It was only palm-sized, and the thick mint green wrapping paper felt very textured, subtle yet exquisite. It was clear that it was carefully prepared.
But at this moment, Julia had no desire to show it. She simply said, "I wasn't going to give you a gift, because your performance just now was really bad. But... this is a gift that Logan and I prepared together. Thinking about it, based on your performance in today's game, this is for you."
After saying that, Julia handed the gift to Lu Ke.
"Okay, my mission is complete. I'm going home now to call Logan and brag. Haha, you dummy." Julia laughed happily and didn't wait for Lu Ke's response. She quickly turned around and walked toward her house. But she seemed overly light and bouncy. Her bouncing walk home seemed to reveal a clumsy pretense.
Lu Ke lowered his head to look at the gift box in his hand and let out a long sigh. After watching Julia go home, he walked toward the taxi parked by the side of the road.
The driver had arrived on time and had been waiting for about three or four minutes but never honked or called out. He just waited patiently.
After Lu Ke got into the taxi, the driver said meaningfully, "A beautiful night, huh?"
Lu Ke laughed but was not in the mood for jokes. He replied lightly, "I hope your night is just as beautiful." Then, Lu Ke told him the address of his apartment, and the taxi slowly left the neighborhood.
Lu Ke took out his phone and called Logan. "You'd better go home and check on Julia."
Logan was also living in his own apartment now and only went home on the weekends. "What? Julia? Isn't she in Los Angeles?"
The first sentence confirmed Lu Ke's guess. Logan had no idea that Julia had returned, and he had nothing to do with the gift. "She's at home now. She just went back. I'm a little worried about her."
Logan was stunned for a moment. Although he was never the quick-witted type, he still vaguely caught on. "Wait, you're saying... she... she confessed? God!"
"You know?" Lu Ke immediately understood, but now was not the time to dwell on it. "We can talk about it tomorrow. Right now, Julia is more important. You should go check on her."
"You rejected her?" Logan's voice suddenly rose, and he cursed.
This made Lu Ke laugh helplessly. "Is that the point right now?"
"...Damn it, Bambi! I'll deal with you tomorrow. How dare you reject Julia!" Logan's disapproval was one thing, his friendship with Lu Ke was another, and Julia was a third. The priorities were different. "Bambi! Argh! Bambi!"
After yelling, Logan hung up the phone. Lu Ke could even imagine how anxious Logan was on the other end of the phone. This made Lu Ke's worries recede slightly. He turned his head and looked out the car window. Without realizing it, the night was getting deeper. The lights on the hills were slowly going out, and the surrounding noise had finally died down.
It had been a long day.
When he got to his front door, Lu Ke unconsciously fumbled for the key in his pocket. He then realized that a guest was waiting for him at home. Amidst his chaotic thoughts, he had forgotten about it. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up again. So, Lu Ke found the spare key in the flowerpot next to the door and quietly opened the front door.
A warm breeze mixed with melodious and moving jazz music flowed out. Norah Jones's lazy and clear voice echoed through the two-story building. He seemed to be able to smell a faint scent of jasmine in the air, slowly wafting in the warmth.
The curtains on the side facing the city were all pulled open, and he could clearly see the lights of the city. They were slowly falling asleep, which also outlined the bright moonlight and colorful stars in the sky. They fell down without reservation, and the mottled shadows became natural window patterns.
The living room was not lit, and only the light from the projector was still on.
Lu Ke walked into the house and saw Candice sitting cross-legged on the sofa. She was wearing a simple white shirt, which showed her long, tanned legs. She was lazily and casually hugging a big pillow, staring intently at the projection screen in front of her. But it wasn't a recording of Lu Ke's game. It was a movie.
Slowly, Lu Ke's footsteps stopped. He didn't rush over but stood there quietly, staring intently at Candice.
Even though their relationship had just made a breakthrough in the evening and things seemed to be different, Candice was not at all nervous. She was enjoying her alone time and space. Even though Lu Ke came back much later than expected, she was not anxious or flustered.
On the coffee table in front of her, there was a bowl of ripe cherries and a glass of mellow red wine. With the movie playing, it seemed like a normal movie night.
But it was this most ordinary and mundane scene that made a warmth surge in Lu Ke's heart, like he had just eaten chocolate. The joy and happiness quietly bloomed at the corners of his mouth.
It turned out that this was what it felt like to have someone in your heart. It was quiet, subtle, and warm, but it felt like he was soaring freely on a soft cloud. Especially after just experiencing Julia's confession, his mood was even more subtle now. Lu Ke didn't rush forward but just stood there quietly.
At this moment, Candice raised her hands and loosely tied up her smooth long hair, revealing the graceful curve of her back neck. It showed a gentle and elegant side of her. Then she picked up the shark clip from the coffee table, ready to clip all her hair up. At this moment, she caught the sight of the figure standing next to her. She couldn't help but exclaim, "Ah!"
After realizing it was Lu Ke, Candice's shoulders slumped, and she let out a long sigh of relief. Then she rolled her eyes without hesitation. "Bambi! Do you know that's the scariest thing?"
Lu Ke stood there, the smile on his face becoming a little more goofy. "I thought you were the bravest. You even enjoyed watching horror movies at midnight. I didn't expect you to be scared by this?"
"Well, why don't you try it?" Her sharp wit was still the same as before. Without changing a bit, the hair she had just tied up fell down again as she spoke. Then she bit the shark clip and tied her hair up again, quickly and neatly.
By chance, Candice noticed that Lu Ke's eyes were always on her, staring intently. This made her raise her chin and look at him with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong?"
Lu Ke said seriously, "Have I said this before? You're really beautiful."
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