"So, uncle, can I take my time going back to Australia?" Jack inquired one final time. Jack asked one last time.
"Certainly, there is no need for concern; I will ensure the security of your estate, complete your semester, and then travel to Australia. So, boy, would you like to have lunch with me?" The Ambassador rose with the intention of leaving the room.
"Sure, sir," Jack also stood up.
Ambassador walked out of his room, which was on the ground floor, and proceeded towards the gate outside.
"Josh used to be very naughty; before marrying your mother, he had dated around 40 women, and being handsome and popular within his career made him an olay boy of sorts." Mario was reminiscing about the past.
" Yeah? 40? " Jack was shocked at this information.
"Look at you; you'll break your father's record in no time, ahahaha!" Mario was walking towards the reception.
As Mario arrived at the reception, he said, "I am taking this young man here for lunch; care to join us?"
"M... me?"" Helen replied, her cheeks flushed red; she was peeking at Jack many times.
"Yes, I want to introduce you to this young man; maybe you can leave your house sometime with him," Mario insisted, acting as Helen's superior.
"Yes, join us," Jack chimed in; he also wanted to get to know her better.
"Okay," Helen nodded her head.
"Alright, that's a good girl, Tell the security team to follow us; we're going there with Jack's car." Mario waited, tapping the reception desk with his hand.
Helen, her face flushed, stood behind the reception desk, her head lowered. She would sometimes peek at Jack.
"Young lady, you have to call the security team." Mario smiled and reminded Helen of her job.
"Yes, ambassador." This time, even the tips of her ears turned red. She then called the security team to inform them about the Ambassador's departure.
"Alright, let's go." Mario walked ahead; he gave space to Helen and Jack.
Helen and Jack walked at the same pace, slow; Helen was shy, and Jack wanted to know her more.
" H...Helen is not my real name." Surprisingly, Helen initiated the conversation first.
" Oh? Helen is not your real name?" Jack asked back; Jack was actually trying to match her innocence.
Helen shook her head, allowing her curly, black hair to move with her.
" So? Tell me your real name." Jack smiles and asks.
"It's Hoa Lan," Helen said, her face looking like she was anticipating something from Jack.
"Hoa Lan, a lovely name. What's the meaning of this name?" Jack first complimented her, then inquired about the meaning of her name.
Helen appeared pleased, eagerly anticipating Jack's compliment on her name, as if she was proud of it.
"It...it means Orchid, my grandfather, who was a war hero named me." Helen looked proud.
"War hero? He must have been very brave!" Jack asked; he was actually surprised at Helen opening up to him so much.
"Yes, he was; he brought me up till I was seven, then he passed away and an Australian couple adopted me," Helen explained more and more about her.
" Oh? Where is your grandfather from?" Jack inquired, eager to learn which country Helen originally belonged to.
"Vietnam, I am Vietnamese, hehe," Helen laughed cutely.
" Ah! That's why you're so pretty." Jack smiled at Helen.
Helen's laughing face instantly turned red, and she looked at her feet the entire walk to the parking lot.
"You guys are so slow; come open the door." The ambassador was already waiting for them in front of Jack's car.
Helen's whole face was red, and she didn't talk after that, so Jack went forward with big steps and clicked on the car keys, which contained three buttons, one of which was to open the car doors.
Ambassador sat on the back seat of the car, feeling the car; he nodded his head in satisfaction.
The ambassador said, "Germans are something else," then glanced at Helen, who was attempting to sit beside him. He frowned and closed the door on her face.
"Sit in the front," the ambassador said, rolling down the window.
Helen dejectedly sat on the front passenger seat. Jack smiled, then sat in the driving seat.
Helen was attempting to fasten her seat belts, but perhaps due to her nervousness or unfamiliarity with the car, she was unable to do so.
Jack then, without asking her, helped her without any improper touch because Helen was not like Yana, who was too open; she was a proper Asian girl who was still traditional.
"T... Thank you," Helen said that in a very hushed tone.
"You are welcome." Jack just looked at her; she was too pretty—maybe 100/100. Yana was not that pretty, but she'll still get about 75/100.
Yana was still famous for her looks on campus, but compared to Helen, she paled in comparison.
*Weewo* * Weewoo*
Jack, who was looking at Helen, Helen, whose face was red like a tomato, jolted awake with sudden sirens.
"That's my security guards; let's go. Put your navigation to Facil Restaurant." The ambassador assisted Jack in inputting the address into his navigation map on the car screen.
Jack's car had about a 20-inch-long screen. Considering the 12-minute drive ahead, Jack started the car.
The Porsche roared louder than the sirens behind Jack's car, and he took the wheel, followed by two Jeeps filled with security team members and one police car.
Four cars went simultaneously on the road; Jack's car was a head turner in the first place, but now that three more cars were traveling with him, an entourage of cars's people had to look back.
Observing an empty road with a speed limit of 80, Jack didn't hesitate to accelerate, reaching a speed of 75 KP/H.
Reaching the destination in just 8 minutes, Jack looked satisfied.
The security team was, on the other hand, not that happy. After Jack left the car, the security team captain came in and said to Jack, Please don't speed up your car when traveling with delegates.
Jack nodded his head. Looking at the strict captain, Jack thought, 'How hard working.'
"Ahaha, boy, it's been so long that I've enjoyed this much thrill in a car." Ambassador looked pleased with Jack.
Jack smiled then followed Ambassador; Helen was still inside the car; he didn't notice.
Facil is a two-star Michelin restaurant. Jack looked around. The restaurant was beautiful. Jack thought, 'Nice restaurant, such beauty, beauty?'
On his inner monologue, he remembered about the beauty he was with; he looked around and didn't see Helen.
"Uncle, Helen?" Jack asked Mario about her.
" ah! That girl is still inside the car; go fetch her." Ambassador looked around, then, after not seeing her, he said to Jack.
"Yes." Jack ran towards his car; he was concerned about Helen.
After getting close to the car, Jack saw Helen was still sitting inside the car.
As Jack opened the door for her, he realized that her seat belt was preventing her from exiting. She was struggling to remove the seat belts, so when she saw Jack open the door, she felt a sense of relief.
"I tried, but it's maybe stuck," she stammered a little seeing Jack; she was a little flustered.
"No worries, let me help." Jack then helped her get out of the seat belt and held her hand when she got out of the car; as it was an SUV, the floor of the car was high.
"T...thank you," Helen thanked Jack, then almost instantly removed her hands from Jack's grasp.
She was a little shy, but Jack didn't mind.
"I'll take you to the ambassador; come." Jack walked a little ahead; Helen followed him.
Helen grew up in poverty and in a war-torn country; her adoptive parents were also not wealthy, and she consistently worked part-time jobs, even in Australia. Helen was fascinated by a two-star Michelin-starred restaurant that was renowned for its interior design.
"It's very beautiful." Looking around the restaurant, she murmured.
"Sir, you have an appointment?" As Jack didn't know where the goofy uncle went, he went to the reception.
"We're with the ambassador who just went inside," Jack explained.
" Ah! He's in the private chamber; wait a minute." The receptionist instantly pressed a button, and a waiter-looking man came in.
"Take them to Private Chamber No. 1." The receptionist gestured for Jsck and Helen to follow the man.
The waiter-looking man was not talkative; he just walked. Helen was mesmerized at how beautiful the restaurant was; flowers were almost everywhere, and even though the whole restaurant was full, there was a calmness around.
The whole atmosphere felt good to Helen; she was 23 this year and finishing her studies. It was her first month at the embassy.
"City life is not for me," Helen sighed.
"What do you mean?" Jack asked confusedly.
"Y...you heard that?" Helen, who was always murmuring in a hush tone, was shocked that someone heard her thought.
"Yes, why is city life not for you?" Jack asked again.
"I feel cluttered; I just want to go back and live a quiet life." Helen tried to explain her thoughts, but the waiter-looking man gestured for them to enter a room.
Jack smiled, then opened the door and saw the ambassador was sitting inside, and he was not alone inside.