She thought she had never seen those questions before. But when the exam started, every single one looked familiar.
“Evie, how did it go?” Stella turned to ask.
“Same as always,” Evie replied modestly.
“You study so hard. There’s no way you messed up,” Em said, patting her shoulder.
Evie could only smile.
“The steakhouse we’re going to later isn’t cheap, right?” Stella asked.
“With the coupon, it’s about a hundred each.”
“That’s fine. Where’d you get the coupon?”
“My sister gave it to me.”
“Must be nice having a sibling.”
“Stella, you still have a chance.”
“What chance?”
“Become a sister yourself. Ask your parents for a sibling,” Em joked.
“I’d rather stay an only child. My parents are old now. If they had another kid, people would think it’s mine,” Stella rolled her eyes.
“True.”
“Better to be like Evie. Her sister’s not much older, and she gets all the perks.”
Evie smiled and kept quiet. If she argued, they’d call her ungrateful.
The three girls chatted nonstop. Soon, they arrived near the steakhouse.
They got out of the car and looked around.
“Evie, haven’t you been here before?” Stella asked.
“No. I remember it’s around here. I’ve passed by, but never went in,” Evie answered.
They found the restaurant and sat by the window. They looked at the menu, ready to order.
The prices surprised them.
“Evie, are you sure the coupon works?” Em hesitated.
“Yes. I checked. It hasn’t expired,” Evie said. She took the coupon out of her bag and asked the waiter, “Can we still use this?”
The waiter looked at it. “Yes. These coupons are valid for three months. They’re good until the end of next month.”
“Great. We’ll order the set meals,” Evie smiled.
The three girls each ordered a set.
While waiting, they drank water and chatted.
“The atmosphere here is amazing,” Em said, looking around.
“This is my first time at a restaurant with live music,” Stella added.
“Mine too,” Evie agreed.
The food arrived one by one. It looked and smelled delicious.
“Can we finish all this?” Stella asked excitedly.
“Take your time. We’re not in a hurry,” Em forked a piece of bread and took a bite.
“Yeah, slow and steady,” Evie nodded.
Later, Evie went to the restroom. When she came out, she saw a familiar figure.
Why does he look so much like Alexander?
There was a slim, beautiful woman beside him.
They were laughing and talking, heading toward the bakery section.
Evie followed. Is he cheating?
If so, what should she say? What would be appropriate?
The next second, she stopped.
No.
Alexander is gay.
He’s with a beautiful woman. What kind of cheating is she catching?
Besides, their relationship wasn’t that close. She had no right to catch him.
Better to pretend she saw nothing.
So Evie turned around and went back.
Around the corner, Alexander’s gaze caught her.
“Evie?”
Evie froze when she heard his voice.
The next second, she lowered her head. She pretended not to hear and walked faster.
In her mind, she kept repeating.
Wrong person. Wrong person.
Then she broke into a run.
When she got back to her seat, she wondered why she ran. It seemed so confusing.
“Evie, what’s wrong?” Em and Stella stared at her.
“Nothing,” Evie replied awkwardly.
“You look flustered. Like you’re running from someone,” Stella said.
“No, I’m not,” Evie answered. Then she changed the subject. “The cake here is delicious.”
“It is. I’ve already had two slices. If I weren’t so full, I’d keep eating.”
“You can still eat two more?” Evie asked in surprise.
“Yeah. Fruits and desserts are self-serve. You can get more after you finish,” Stella pointed to the self-serve area.
“Oh, that’s nice. But I’m full,” Evie said regretfully.
“Em just said we should have starved ourselves all day before coming here,” Stella laughed.
“Exactly,” Em said, still chewing.
Evie laughed with them.
They ate slowly, chatting as they ate.
Eventually, they couldn’t eat anymore. It was almost time to go back to school, so they rang the bell to pay.
“It’s already settled,” the waiter said.
“Settled? Are you sure? We haven’t paid yet,” Evie said, confused.
“I’m sorry. One moment. Let me confirm,” the waiter apologized.
“If we just left without paying, would we end up on some blacklist?” Em joked.
“Probably. But for this amount, it’s not worth the trouble,” Evie said, resting her chin on her hand.
“True. Too bad. Rare chance to get free food,” Em smiled.
After a while, the waiter returned. “The guest in the Moonlight Pavilion paid for your table together. Maybe it was your friend.”
Evie suddenly remembered seeing Alexander earlier. Was it him?
“I have a coupon here. Can I still use it?”
“The bill is already paid. You can use it next time. It’s valid for another month. Even if it expires, you can exchange it for a new one,” the waiter explained.
“Okay, thank you,” Evie said. She turned to Em and Stella. “Let’s go.”
“Was that your friend, Evie?” Em asked.
“Not a friend. A relative. I ran into him in the restroom earlier. I didn’t expect him to pay for us.”
“We’ll give you the money when we get back to the dorm,” Em and Stella exchanged glances.
“It’s fine. He’s rich. Let him treat us once,” Evie smiled.
“That’s not right. It’s so expensive here. What kind of relative is he?”
“It’s nothing. He’s just…” Evie started. Then she saw a group of people coming from another direction toward the stairs. She stiffened and finished her sentence. “A good friend of my cousin’s good friend.”