"Hmmm… This is good." Sera smiled before she avoided Cross' gaze. "What's wrong with you today? I thought you are hungry? Why aren't you eating?" she asked.
"I am done eating."
"So, you decided to just stare at me?" she reasoned before she used her chopstick to get one shrimp and put it on his bowl. "Seriously, try it. It's fantastic." Another smile flashed on her face before she took a few more shrimps and put them in his bowl.
"Hmm. Alright." Cross smiled and started eating his food.
"You seem different today. Did something happen in the market lately? Did you receive some big commissions?"
"Hmmm," he nodded and continued eating. "It's hot today, but you are still wearing some long-sleeved shirt. Are you feeling cold? If you want, I could buy some med— "
"No! No… No. It's fine," she awkwardly smiled. "It's fine. I just… I forgot my laundry, and this is the only pajamas that I have left."
"Then just borrow one of my big shirts," he shrugged.
"I was exhausted when I got home earlier. I just fell asleep and forgot about it." Wearing his clothes was not something new. In fact, she loved to borrow some of his clothes, especially during the summer when it got too hot. Moreover, a shirt of a six-foot-tall man was very comfortable when worn by someone so small as her. It was like wearing an enormous dress.
"I thought you went to that hotel to rest? Why were you so tired?" He added some shrimps to her bowl before adding more to his.
"Hm?"
"Why are you so tired? Did you do something while you were out there?"
"Huh?" she stilled before unknowingly biting the chopstick. Memories of the previous night made their way into her head. She immediately felt her neck turned hot. "I— I went to the spa and got a little drunk."
"Oh," Cross nodded. "Next time, you should stop spending your birthday on your own and spend it with me." A small dimple appeared on his left cheek. "We can drink together."
"Huh?" Again, thoughts of that man's kiss crossed her mind.
"I said, let's drink together to celebrate," he chuckled. "Why are you so absent-minded lately?"
"Oh, I just… My head is aching. Probably because of last night." Cross had never asked her to drink before. The man was always away because of his job and doesn't have the time to drink with her. "Do you even have the time to drink? I mean, you are so busy. How come you suddenly wanted to drink? Did something happen? You are being weird since you arrived."
"No," he shrugged. "I am a little bored. I need some time to relax."
This made her giggled. "Cross Qin, I have been telling you to relax from time to time! Have fun and take some vacation, but you never listen to me. Now, out of nowhere, you wanted to drink? Say, did someone broke your heart or something?"
He only stared at her and did his typical 'I don't know what you are talking about' shrug. She made a face before rolling her eyes.
"Hey, I've known you for over four years now and I haven't met any one of your girlfriends. You really should let them met me sometimes or I will ruin your wedding day," she snorted. In fact, she had never met anyone of Cross' friends. But that doesn't matter. For someone like her who was also busy with her various jobs and university, meeting new people is not one of her priorities.
"Are you still going to go back to the university? You mentioned taking a master's in computer science? Are you planning to teach after graduation?" Ignoring her question, Cross asked.
"Oh, no. I just changed my mind. I want to develop something that companies could use for cybersecurity." She started eating sweet and sour spareribs.
"Cybersecurity?"
"Yeah."
"That is considered in demand right now. Do you want to work for a company? Maybe I can help— "
"It's fine. I already submitted my resume to some companies," she beamed. "I already have some scheduled interviews next week."
Cross nodded as he started adding more ribs to her bowl. "Then you should eat more."
"Are you going to stay here tonight? I can make something for you."
"Yes. That would be good. I will buy some beer later."
Once again, the scene on the other night flashed in her head. They kiss and the…
"Are you alright? Are you still sick?"
"Huh?"
"You are turning red."
"Oh? No… I just… I wanna pee." She suddenly stood and run towards her room. "Let's do some groceries later, I will cook something delicious. You can buy the beers." She said before closing the door. Sera controlled her breathing as she leaned against her door. Her heartbeat was racing against her chest, her hands were already cold as she bit her lower lip.
After a few seconds, Sera lied on her bed as she thought about the embarrassing thing she did. After some thought, Sera opened her computer and hacked the system of the hotel that she was staying. She needed to delete the CCTV.
"Hm?" Sera immediately turned confused when she couldn't seem to find the videos of her and that man. "What's going on?"
Soon, the sound of tapping was the only thing that can be heard inside her room. Her fingers flew on the keyboard as she tried to find out what the hell was going on. "Someone deleted it?" she mumbled. If her guess was right, someone already deleted the video before. But why would they delete it? Slowly, her eyes widened. That man is not some super-rich entrepreneur, right?
Perhaps there was a problem on the hotel's end? Perhaps they remove the tapes? After a few more minutes, Sera decided to delete everything that would connect her to the hotel, like the video of her checking in and out in the lobby and the CCTV around the hotel. Even the CCTV from the traffic cameras were not spared.
"Hey, Sera? Are you ready?" she heard Cross before he walked inside her room.
"Hm? Oh! Groceries! Yes, just please give me a few minutes to fix my makeup," she closed her laptop and immediately went to her closet, looking for clothes that could cover her chest. After a few minutes, Sera and Cross walked out of the apartment.