CHAPTER 30: CHAPTER 30: SHE LIKES YOU?

On the other end of the phone, Clarissa Morgan said, "I’m afraid your wife might misunderstand. If necessary, I can explain it to her in person."

Shane heard footsteps coming from the stairway, glanced sideways, and said, "No need; don’t call again."

After finishing the call, he watched Audrey Sutton walk straight to the fridge, take out a can of fruit, and head upstairs.

Shane sat downstairs for another two or three minutes, thinking she should come down asking him for help since she couldn’t open it. Why is there no sound?

Feeling puzzled, he followed her upstairs. Standing outside her room, he heard unusual sounds of "bang bang bang" coming from inside.

He unlocked the door and pushed it open, seeing her holding a pair of scissors against the lid of the jar with her left hand, and a rubber mallet with her right hand, hammering the scissors as if it were a nail.

The lid was thin. In the few seconds he stood by the door, she successfully punched a hole, then used the scissors to enlarge it, pouring the fruit inside into a bowl...

Shane: "..."

He couldn’t understand her method. Shouldn’t she have acted coy and asked him to help open the jar?

Only then did Audrey Sutton turn her head and notice him, puzzled, asking, "What?"

Shane: "Nothing."

"Why didn’t you knock?"

"Next time." After speaking, Shane exited the room and closed the door.

Audrey Sutton looked thoughtfully at the door for a moment, then turned to gaze at the anime playing on the computer, and continued eating from her bowl.

Shane was troubled, lying in the bathtub thinking about why he said those words. He should have explained clearly then, instead of causing so many issues.

Study room.

Looking at the files sent to his computer, Shane found himself utterly unable to focus on work.

After pondering for a while, he picked up his phone...

In the next moment, Audrey Sutton received a WhatsApp message.

Y: Come to my study.

Audrey Sutton quickly scrambled out of the bathtub, casually wiped herself with a towel, threw on a nightgown, and went to his study door.

The door was ajar, but Audrey Sutton still knocked slightly to signify her presence, then poked half her head in to take a look.

Sitting at the desk, Shane gestured to her, "Come over."

Audrey Sutton pushed the door open and went in; he patted the empty chair beside him to indicate Audrey Sutton to sit down.

"What is it?" Audrey Sutton looked around cluelessly.

Shane reached to open a drawer, lowered his head, rummaging for something inside, "Let me show you something."

Curious, Audrey Sutton walked over and sat down, watching as he pulled out a black album-like object from the drawer, roughly as thick as a dictionary.

Shane handed the album to her, and Audrey Sutton flipped through it.

Though it’s called an album, it more closely resembles a yearbook, containing many pictures from Shane’s student days.

His appearance hadn’t changed much compared to now, but back then he looked a bit more youthful. The only constant was his reluctance to smile.

Audrey Sutton flipped through a few pages, turned to ask him, "Why show me this?"

"These are all photos from my university days."

Audrey Sutton paused, looking at him cautiously, asking, "Is your female schoolmate inside?"

Shane nodded, reached into the album, and found a group photo taken during a competition, showing about twenty people, roughly split between genders.

He pointed to a girl standing in the front row and softly said, "The caller was her, named Clarissa Morgan. We were in the same club, and this photo was taken during a competition."

Audrey Sutton looked down earnestly at the girl in the photo; just from the photo, she appeared quite graceful, tall, and slim, like a dancer, with a certain charm.

"Have you ever been together?" Audrey Sutton hesitated but still asked the question weighing on her mind, more out of sheer curiosity than the confrontational tone from the day before.

Shane glanced at her, guessing her mood, and replied, "Technically, not really together. But at school, rumors made it appear somewhat ambiguous, like the trending ’shipping’ online."

Audrey Sutton gave a small pout, saying, "There must have been something for such rumors to spread, right?"

Shane explained, "One year at the New Year’s eve party, the teacher asked us to do a program together—I played the piano, she sang. It started unknowingly from there."

"Then... did she like you?"

Shane nodded, "When I graduated, she confessed to me, but I didn’t accept. So, to be clear, she and I were only schoolmates."

She hadn’t expected him to explain all this to her, but after hearing his words, Audrey Sutton suddenly felt enlightened.

Shane observed her as she lowered her head again to seriously look through the album, seemingly no longer upset; he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After flipping a few pages, Audrey Sutton asked him again, "You don’t seem to smile much, do you? Judging only from these pictures, you’d seem expressionless to others, showing the same face."

Shane frowned unhappily, hurriedly retrieving the album to stuff back into the drawer, beginning to shoo her away, "Alright, I need to work."

Audrey Sutton pouted, seeing him open the computer looking ready to work, she got up and left quietly.

With this issue resolved, Shane could finally focus and handle work matters.

And with the matters about the female schoolmate clarified, Audrey Sutton could settle down to draw comics.

The next morning, Shane woke up hearing her preparing breakfast downstairs, which was back to normal.

After exercising downstairs, he happened to see Audrey Sutton moving chairs by the dining table, he hurriedly quickened his pace to approach, "Let me."

Audrey Sutton put down the chair, held out her hand to make a ’V’ sign toward him, "Two round plates, please."

Even reaching on tiptoe she couldn’t reach that high, but he slightly extended his hand and got it, asking, "Anything else?"

"Two glasses too." She accepted the plates, placing the breakfast she’d prepared while asking, "Why did you put things up there?"

Shane paused as he grabbed the glasses, stating nonchalantly, "Planning to buy new ones to put at the bottom."

Audrey Sutton wasn’t suspicious, suggesting, "Can I pick them out?"

Shane raised his eyebrows lightly, saying, "Sure, I have a lunch meeting, free in the afternoon."

"I don’t have classes in the afternoon either, I’ll come find you then."

"Alright."

Like sunshine after rain, she turned back into a little sunbeam, her eyes always holding laughter.

Having been tormented for a day, Shane learned a truth: never upset this little girl again.

Audrey Sutton also remembered Fifth Brother’s advice, to remain calm in future matters, striving to be Shane’s virtuous wife.

Yet she mustn’t forget their marriage certificate is real, but feelings between them are fake. Until grounded in reality, if she keeps acting out and annoying him, he’ll definitely divorce her.

She mustn’t let this cooked duck fly onto another woman’s dining table.