"Surprise!"
The figure that crashed into Ronan's arms suddenly raised their head and made an exaggerated grimace at him.
Ronan, instead of being startled, widened his eyes, then burst into laughter.
This wasn't the reaction Alice had expected.
She playfully imitated "Chucky" waving an imaginary dagger in protest.
"I prepared this surprise carefully, even endured mosquitoes in the grass for almost an hour, and this is how you react? So disappointing"
Alice complained, expressing her strong dissatisfaction.
Ronan blinked, and unexpectedly, he bared his teeth and claws at Alice, growling playfully, "Roar!"
Alice was taken aback, exclaiming, "Ah!" Her face went pale.
Then, she realized Ronan was just teasing her and broke into laughter. She covered her pounding heart, amused by the prank.
Before Alice could retaliate, Ronan quickly shifted gears, saying softly, "How about I treat you to some ice cream?"
"Please! I'm not seven years old anymore, you know?" Alice expressed her strong dissatisfaction.
"Chocolate or strawberry?" Ronan continued, seemingly oblivious.
"...Chocolate," Alice replied. She then turned and walked back towards the motel. Her voice carried on the breeze, "Two, I want two."
"Okay!" Ronan replied with a grin. He picked up the phone again, which was still not hung up, and said into the receiver, "Don't worry; I'll keep it a secret." He was determined not to let Alice know who spilled the beans.
After ending the call, Ronan swiftly caught up with Alice. "I want chocolate too. Don't forget mine."
Their clear voices faded into the night breeze.
Clearly, Alice's arrival was different from Ronan's anxieties.
There was no awkwardness or alienation as he had imagined, nor the tension and fear that often accompanied secrets.
The reactions seemed natural and carried a sense of relaxed intimacy.
This encounter didn't seem as bad as Ronan had feared.
Five minutes later, Ronan and Alice each had an ice cream cone, and Alice held a bag of ice cream in her hand.
They appeared before the members of the One-Day King band one by one.
This wasn't Alice's first appearance; she walked up to the band members with a bag in hand and a smile on her face.
"I'm treating you all to a late-night dessert."
The gentleman who actually paid for the ice cream stood behind her, wearing a smile but not revealing Alice's little white lie.
Ollie deftly scooped out a piece of strawberry ice cream from Alice's bag and tore open the packaging without hesitation. "I felt like something was missing tonight. Thanks."
He then asked curiously, "What brought you here all of a sudden? If you'd come in a few days, you might have missed us."
Maxim also grabbed an ice cream cone, and Cliff, initially disinterested, eventually followed suit.
Alice turned around. "I was on a road trip to find inspiration for my graduation project. Originally, I planned to create a documentary exploring Southern culture, but it didn't quite work out. I gathered some materials, but I couldn't find the inspiration I needed. Then, I thought of another idea..."
She paused for a moment and scanned the surroundings before fixing her gaze on Ronan. A mischievous smile played on her lips.
Ronan, tasting his ice cream, felt a shiver down his spine. He raised his eyes and met Alice's smile, though he couldn't tell if he saw it more clearly now, after regaining his sight.
It was Cooper familiarity that allowed him to detect a hint of mischief behind her smile.
A sense of foreboding washed over him.
Before Ronan could react, Alice shared her thoughts, "I thought, maybe I could document the band's road trip and bar tour. I'm not sure if it's a feasible idea, so I came to ask for your opinions and see what you think. If you're not interested, it's fine; if it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be. So... ta-da!"
She had actually proposed this idea!
The three Cooper siblings all attended UCLA, but they pursued different majors and career paths.
Max majored in accounting and eventually joined the prestigious PriceCoopers accounting firm after graduation, one of the world's largest and top accounting firms. They were also responsible for tallying the votes of the 6,000 Oscar judges.
Ronan studied journalism and, had he not joined the One-Day King band to become a musician, would likely be working in the media as a journalist.
In contrast to Ronan, who found his way into the arts later in life, Alice had shown artistic talent from a young age. She had already decided on her career path before entering university.
She began considering whether to pursue film in the 11th grade and ultimately chose UCLA over the more specialized University of Southern California to follow in her brothers' footsteps. She'd set her sights on this goal long before university.
Alice was now entering her senior year, preparing for her graduation project over the summer break.
Both Max and Ronan were aware of this, and Max probably understood Alice's true reason for coming to New Orleans to see Ronan.
"So, you didn't come to visit me at all? Sigh..." Ronan pretended to be disappointed, ignoring Alice's attempt to butter him up.
Alice quickly handed her ice cream cone to Ronan and playfully bumped her shoulder into his, acting a bit coquettish.
Ronan, amused, accepted the ice cream but didn't respond directly to Alice's request.
Instead, he asked curiously, "Why the sudden idea? Our band's tour is almost over, and there won't be much left to film."
Though it sounded like a complaint, Alice knew this was Ronan's way of giving her the opportunity to explain her shooting concept and sources of inspiration.
After all, the band wasn't Ronan's alone; the opinions of the other three members mattered too. Moreover, it was unknown whether the band's manager would approve of such a project.
Who knew what strategies the manager had in store for the band's future? Whether they'd be willing to appear on camera was another question.
Alice glanced around, failing to spot the band manager. She contemplated for a moment and then made her decision.
So, Alice handed the bag in her hand to Ronan, held her ice cream cone like a microphone, and walked confidently to the center of the group.
Her eyes held a self-assured look, clearly having prepared for this moment. It wasn't about leaving things to fate, as she had mentioned earlier.