After Declan said goodbye to the Zouch family, he got into his car and drove to his favorite cafe.
Upon arriving at the cafe, a platinum-haired young man with beautiful blue sapphire eyes smiled at him and waved his hand.
"Hey, pretty boy! You came finally. I've been waiting for you."
Declan rolled his eyes lazily at the nickname 'pretty boy' from his best friend.
"What are you? Are you a kid? Until when are you going to call me like that?"
"Until you get married."
"If I get married, you will stop calling me pretty boy?" Declan snorted as if he couldn't believe his best friend would actually get rid of that nickname he had been pinning since ten years ago.
"Right. I will call you pretty man."
Declan rose to his feet and moved as if he wanted to change seats making his best friend hold his arm while laughing in amusement.
"I'm just kidding."
"…" Declan did not comment as he felt something cold on his arm.
Again… his friend's skin temperature turned cold like ice.
Axelard Canvedish was a college friend and the complete opposite of him. Axelard was someone who smiled easily and rarely got angry. He could even carry himself well no matter whether the interlocutor was a much senior or younger person.
When Axelard was reserved and dignified, Declan felt like he was talking to his father. Other times, Declan felt like talking to a child when the young man was being mischief and pulled his leg.
To be honest, Declan wasn't someone who was comfortable spending time with people like Axelard. But, somehow… he felt that the young man had his own charisma that made him feel comfortable being friends with him.
Without realizing it, time flew by, and they had been friends for more than ten years.
Even so, he still couldn't find an answer to his friend's unusual cold skin. Sometimes the man's body temperature was too cold to freeze things around him, but sometimes the man's temperature returned to normal.
Of course, Declan had asked him this and suspected that Axelard had a genetic disorder and that his body temperature would fluctuate. But the man replied casually, and he didn't need to worry about it.
"What's wrong? Why do you look like you just see a ghost?"
"Your hand is cold." came the short reply from him.
Axelard lifted his hand from Declan's arm then stuck his hand into his jacket pocket without losing his playful smile.
"Isn't it freezing today?"
"Now is summer."
"I know. But today is very cold. "
"Then stay at home."
"I can not. I have to take care of my company… hey, are you going to be sponsoring a fashion show at the gala auction event? Can I promote my accessories?"
"I've made the agreement letter. You just have to come to the office and sign it. Mrs. Perkins will help you as usual."
"Wow, that was fast. How do you know I want to offer my product?"
"I can read your pattern."
Axelard chuckled at that, then remembered the arranged marriage that Mrs. Black made for her only son.
"How was your first meeting? Is Miss Zouch as pretty as people say?"
"Just so-so."
"In what way? Is it true that she's not pretty? "
"If you are really interested in her, why don't you become her future husband?"
Axelard smiled faintly at that. "You know I can't fall in love."
"Well, try saying that when you find the one."
"It's not like you found one. Wait... Have you found it?" Axel asked teasingly.
"…" But Declan didn't answer him and just took a delicious sip of his black coffee.
"Impossible. Have you found the one? Who is it? Is it Miss Zouch?"
Declan frowned at his friend's guess. Did his best friend's ears have a problem, so he couldn't hear that he wasn't interested in Kaylee Zouch? Or maybe he had to split Axel's brain to find out what kind of circuit was formulated in it.
"Remind me why I still want to see you again even though you are so annoying?"
Axelard's laughter escaped from his throat hearing that and settled his arm around Declan's shoulder as if he were hugging a child. "You know you can't escape my charm."
Declan rolled his eyes lazily, but the corners of his lips lifted slightly because what the young man said was true.
Satisfied with enjoying coffee with his best friend, Declan returned to his apartment and turned on his laptop to view a video he had seen in the past two weeks.
The video was a recording of the recital exam at M University two weeks ago. The only thing that made him found it memorable was the piano recital of an applicant named Nicholas Larson.
The sound of the piano clinking and the way the boy channeled each melody's dynamics made him feel like walking on a green meadow.
There was no mistaking it… this child… indeed this teenage boy was the person he had been looking for! He was sure of it.
"Nicholas Larson, huh. I can't wait to see you on campus."
Why does Declan want to find someone? What will happen when Declan and 'Nick' (Kaylee in disguise) meet on campus? Will Declan realize that one of his students is his mother's daughter-in-law candidate?
Stay tuned in the next chapters.