🫥 Chapter 22
Time seemed to slip away as Rick and Rose became engrossed in their conversation with each other, and they barely noticed that the sunlight outside their window had shifted from the brilliance of midday to the softness of late afternoon. They chatted about one topic after another, from music and art to interesting facts about their lives to visions of the future, and both of them felt like they couldn't get enough.
It wasn't until soft reminder music played in the restaurant and the waiters began to gather the surrounding dishes that they realized they had been chatting well into the afternoon. Rose looked at her watch and was surprised to see how quickly the time had passed.
She smiled at Rick and said, "Wow, time flies, I lost track of time." Then she waved to the waitress for the check.
Seizing this opportunity, Rick immediately pulled out his bank card and quickly handed it to the waitress.Rose saw this and said, "As promised, it's my treat, thanks to you."
Rick smiled slightly, his manner subdued and generous, "That's okay Rose, there are many more times we can get together, it's okay to invite them."
Rose was touched by Rick's persistence and politeness, and she knew that Rick genuinely wanted to share the cost of this occasion. She smiled and accepted Rick's kindness, "Well, Rick, since you put it that way, I'll take it with a grain of salt. Next time it's on me."
Rick nodded his head, his eyes revealing the anticipation of future get-togethers, "I'm looking forward to the next party, Rose."
As the waitress left with the bank card, the two continued to chat easily, planning their next meeting.
Rick took his cell phone out of his pocket and opened his social apps. He smiled and said to Rose, "Rose, I'm glad I could spend such a nice time with you today. We can exchange social accounts and contact information so we can keep in touch."
Rose nodded in agreement as she similarly pulled out her cell phone and exchanged messages with Rick. "I enjoyed my time with you too, Rick. I'm looking forward to our next get-together."
The two of them operated on their cell phones, adding each other as friends and saving their contact information.
Rick was secretly pleased with himself, knowing that his actions had been very successful. Through this exchange over lunch, he had not only won Rose's favor, but had managed to establish a deeper connection. He realized that by continuing to work hard and showing his sincerity and concern, he might win Rose's affections.
Outside the restaurant, Rick took it upon himself to call a car for Rose to take her back to her dorm. The atmosphere in the car was warm and cozy as the two sat in the car, continuing the unfinished conversation. Rick looked sideways at Rose, the smile on her face looked stunning in the light of the setting sun.
The car drove slowly towards Rose's dormitory, and as time passed, the two men fell silent, as if they were reminiscing about the good times they had together. When the car stopped under the dormitory building, Rose turned her head to Rick and said, "I really had a great time today, thank you, Rick."
Rick smiled and replied, "I had a great time too, Rose. it felt like the time went by extraordinarily fast to be able to talk to you so much."
Rose nodded with a resigned look on her face, "Yeah, I hope we see each other again soon."
Rick looked at her fondly, "Definitely. Get some rest and I look forward to seeing you next time."
Rose smiled as she got out of the car and stood in front of the dormitory, waving goodbye, "See you later, Rick. Take care on the road."
Rick watched Rose walk into the dormitory building until her silhouette disappeared into the hallway, then he turned away with a fond smile. He re-hailed a car and sat in it, thinking back over the day with warmth and anticipation welling up in his heart. He knew that after today, he and Rose were one step closer to each other.
When Rick got home and sat down at his desk, he opened the system interface and couldn't wait to check Rose's favorability towards him. His eyes quickly searched the interface and finally found his target:
Rose Favorability: 550
Emily Favorability: 500
Rick smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the system interface where Rose's favorability had surpassed Emily's. This was obviously the result of today's bravery and the pleasant exchange in the afternoon.
He recalled the day's experience. That time when he had seen the street and fought off the harasser. Rose witnessed it and was impressed with his bravery and sense of justice. Later on, during the long exchange in the restaurant, the two of them talked about everything from music to art, and then about the interesting things about their lives and their visions for the future, and these in-depth conversations allowed them to get to know each other better, and strengthened their feelings for each other.
Rick clicked on the "Detailed Record" button on the interface to see the reason for the increase in favorability today. The system record shows:
Favorability increase recorded:
Seeing justice and taking down a harasser: +100
Enjoyable lunch exchange, discussing music and art: +100
Sharing interesting life stories and visions of the future: +80, etc. .....
Rick nodded, feeling a sense of relief in his heart. He knew these efforts had not been in vain, Rose's favorability towards him had increased significantly.
He continues to navigate the system interface, and the goal bar displays:
Goal: Increase Rose's favorability towards you to 1000 points
Rick secretly decided that in the next few days, he would continue to work hard to further increase Rose's favorability through more sincere communication and concern. He also noticed the Reward column displayed:
Reward: one-tenth of the amount spent on Rose
Rick's heart fluttered. This meant that not only could he continue to pursue Rose, but he could also gain additional rewards in the process. This definitely gave him more motivation.
He closed the system interface, his heart filled with anticipation for the future.