Emily was caught off guard by Elias's unexpected words. 'Even in the midst of everything, he's thinking about supporting a local artist,' she mused, her heart fluttering as she saw Elias in a new light.
It was often said that if you spend enough time with someone, their true nature will eventually reveal itself. Elias was no exception. Despite his seemingly reckless spending, a habit that was starting to grate on her nerves, he always seemed to have the best interests of others at heart, not just his own.
Of course, she still couldn't ascertain if his intentions toward her were genuine, as they had only begun to understand each other intimately. Somehow, her instincts told her he had no bad intentions behind his actions. This left her even more confused about his motives and further piqued her interest in his background.
[ Update! Emily's affection for you has increased by 2% ]
Witnessing the sudden increase in Emily's affection, Elias smiled inwardly, feeling blessed that his plan had worked.
"Alright, however, before we continue, I want to ask you something. Of course, you can choose not to respond?" Emily responded, refocusing her attention on Elias.
"What kind of question do you want to ask?" Elias responded, his heart pounding in his chest as he braced himself for what Emily wanted to know.
Did she discover his intentions, know about his system, and want to expose him? Perhaps she had secretly investigated his background, knew about yesterday's event, and decided to stay away from him after today.
Elias didn't consider himself someone special to suddenly awaken such a unique system, so it was difficult for him not to worry about whether others knew such a system, especially since he had only gotten it recently.
He had just lost his parents yesterday, and his younger brother was currently in the hospital, preparing to undergo critical surgery. Despite these personal challenges, he was out on a first date and spending money extravagantly. It wouldn't be difficult for anyone to investigate and not view him as a suspect.
Honestly, Elias was surprised by his ability to carry out such actions. He believed it might be because he had already cried the night before at the police station before he was released.
"What do you do for a living?" Emily asked, her tone serious as she awaited his response.
Hearing Emily's question, Elias felt a sudden pang of anxiety. He had been so caught up at the moment that he hadn't considered that she might be curious about his occupation.
Nonetheless, he couldn't speak up about his situation. After all, he had to leave college because he couldn't afford the tuition. Due to his father's shady history, they had failed to secure a loan. As a result, he had to take up odd jobs to earn some income and support his younger brother, hoping to prevent him from facing the same struggles in the future.
Elias picked his words carefully. "Oh, I'm involved in a few different things," he responded vaguely, lying through his teeth. "… I enjoy exploring various opportunities and projects, which keeps things interesting and flexible. It allows me to have time for the things and people I care about, like being here with you today."
A perfect response!
Elias felt a surge of relief, mentally patting himself on the back for coming up with such a quick-witty response; however, as he witnessed Emily's expression morph into a frown, his heartbeat quickened again, and he found himself in a sea of doubt.
Emily pondered over Elias's reply, discerning that he had answered her perfectly without giving her a direct response. "Like what?" Emily asked suspiciously.
Elias chuckled lightly, hiding his nervousness. "I do some freelance work here and there," he replied casually. "Some consulting gigs and investing. Nothing exciting, just enough to pay the bills and allow me to live a stress-free and comfortable life."
Witnessing Emily's expressions becoming more ridden with suspicion, Elias exhaled inwardly in defeat, understanding that they had reached the end of their date.
'At least, it's worth the effort,' Elias pondered on the little money he had made in such a short amount of time.
"Okay, it seems that you've already had your life figured out," Emily nodded, her voice lightening. "Let's get our painting together before someone else gets ahead of us." Her expression returned to normal as she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the local artist's shop.
Bewildered, Elias couldn't help but wonder why Emily's affection had not decreased yet. He had expected his vague response to be a deal-breaker, but she seemed unfazed. Her reaction left him confused.
When they arrived at the local artist's shop, Emily spoke with the artist and told him what they wanted.
"Is there anything you want him to add or avoid?" Emily smiled and refocused her gaze on Elias.
"No, he should do as he wishes and give us his best," Elias responded, shaking his head.
The local artist heard Elias' words and smiled, nodding in understanding. "Sit over there in any pose you want, and leave the rest for me," he responded, directing them towards the bench before him.
Elias and Emily nodded, sat on the bench, close to each other like couples, and stared, smiling in the local artist's direction but making no dramatic poses.
The local artist began to move his brush, mixing the colours on his palette and briefly looking at them as though ensuring his actions were correct. After twenty-five long minutes of painting, he finally put his palette down and called them over.
"Let's go see how it turned out," Emily said, smiling as she led the way forward.
Elias nodded, following beside her, still feeling weird about her behaviour.
"Here you go; I did my best to make it special," the local artist said, smiling widely as he showcased the portrait to the both of them.
The painting was a stunning life-like imagery of Elias and Emily seated together under a rustic wooden bench beneath a blooming cherry blossom tree.