When Asher entered his room, he immediately put Lucy out of his mind. He didn't have the energy to obsess over a girl just because she was beautiful.
The word "beautiful" might be too cheesy , but it was the only thing that came to mind when he looked at her face. This wasn't a biased thought; he was simply stating facts.
And that was saying something, coming from him—a guy who was pretty much immune to attractive women.
She might have been a little weird though, but who was he to judge?
He was in that same boat himself. He wasn't like ordinary teenagers; if he was, he would have already used his looks to mess around with a lot of girls.
After dropping his bag on the floor, Asher sat on the sofa and pulled out the envelope.
He began counting the money.
It wasn't that he thought James would cheat him—he knew that would ruin their partnership, and that cunning guy wouldn't burn bridges over something as petty as cash.
As he counted, he couldn't help but let out a small smile. There was just something about hard-earned money, even though he knew it would be gone in just a few hours.
'So right now I have a total of 57,000 credits overall,' he muttered to himself.
That amount could buy him an entry level motorcycle, something most high schoolers would love to have.
Unfortunately, he had to pay at least 50K credits to the hospital to show them he wasn't avoiding his bills, leaving him with only 7Kcredits.
He placed the 50K back into the envelope and tucked the 7K into his wallet.
Then, he hid the envelope in a small compartment in his sofa, knowing it would be safe there.
After that, he lay down, and the exhaustion hit him hard. His eyes grew heavy, and before he knew it, he had already fallen asleep.
RING RING RING
Asher's alarm rang, pulling him out of sleep. He moved on autopilot, getting ready for his part-time job. Everything was a routine already.
But as he stepped out of his room, he stopped.
His new neighbor was outside, leaning on the rail and looking up at the dark sky.
The moonlight illuminated her face, and for some reason, she looked even more stunning than before.
But that was just it: he found her attractive, yet it didn't stir anything in his heart.
With so many problems weighing him down, romance was the last thing on his mind.
"Are you going to work?" her sweet voice cut through the silence. She sounded casual, with no trace of arrogance in her tone.
"Um," Asher nodded, not really sure how to respond.
She giggled, tilting her head slightly. "You're funny. Is that the only word you know?"
Asher blinked, caught off guard. 'Is she flirting with me?'
He wasn't sure, but her playful smile threw him off.
Clearing his throat, he tried again. "I know how to talk; I just don't say much,"
"I see. Well, it's not a bad trait at all. Sometimes, people who talk a lot make more mistakes."
"My name's Lucy, by the way," she said, her voice a little quieter now. "I'm really sorry about earlier. I'm just not very good at talking with boys."
Her face turned a bit pink as she spoke, and she scratched her nose, a shy little move that made her look even more adorable.
Asher blinked, a bit thrown by her sudden expression. "It's fine," he said, a little awkward himself. "I'm also not use to talking to girls."
She giggled softly, still looking bashful. "It's good to know we have a lot in common. Please treat me well,".
It was a polite gesture, the kind neighbors say to each other.
"Likewise," Asher replied with a small nod. He glanced at his watch. "I really have to go—I'm gonna be late for work."
She gave a playful wave. "Good luck"
"Thank you, " He turned and headed off, unaware that she was still observing him.
Her expression shifted from playful to something far more calculated.
"You don't have to spy on me every time I talk to him," she muttered, her voice low and cold.
Behind her, the female landlord stepped out of the shadows
"Just making sure you're staying in line," the landlord replied, her tone cold and detached.
She rolled her eyes, her smile lingering. "Relax, you sound like a jealous wife. I won't steal him from you."
"I hope for your sake, you don't."
Lucy's smile quickly faded. She had meant it as a joke, but the way the specter responded caught her off guard.