Who?

Roland smiled shyly as he answered, "Roni."

Tilly was taken aback, literally reeling in shock. "Roni? I always knew she adored you, but I didn't think that…

"Now that I think about it, it's somewhat expected of her. But Roland, you… I didn't expect you to feel that way about her…"

As she overcame the shock and calmed down, Tilly's eyes seemed to light up at the thought of their new relationship.

"Yes, yes," she said, nodding her head. "You two are a very good match. I approve of Veronica."

Without giving Roland a chance to speak, Tilly continued to yammer on ceaselessly. A warped smile appeared on Tilly's face as she thought of something funny. Then, she feigned distress.

"Um… Roland… you've always said that you see Roni as a sister, so does that mean… you and me?" she teased.

Roland merely started at her expressionlessly, refusing to respond.

"Tsk, you're no fun."

They then continued to natter. Roland described the events leading up to his kiss with Veronica, and Tilly told him about things going on in her life.

"Ah, I just thought, I need your advice on something," Roland suddenly remembered.

"Hmm, what could you need my help with?" Tilly asked. To her, there was nothing her brother couldn't solve, so this came as a shock to her.

"Anna has said that Roni is Nightingale—an infamous hacker who has hacked into our company multiple times and even framed Anna for corporate espionage."

"Um, what? Why would she say that? We've known Roni for years; she wouldn't hack into your systems and frame someone. But still… she wouldn't do something like that. Does Anna have something against Roni?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Then it should be some kind of misunderstanding, no?"

Roland nodded in agreement. "That's what I think too. Thank you for your help, I just needed someone else to talk it through with."

"You're welcome," replied Tilly. "It's nice to be able to help you with something for once."

Briefly pondering, Tilly then continued, "To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if Roni had learned coding just to have one more thing in common with you. Do you remember when she got soccer coaching just so she could play soccer with you?"

"Oh yes, I bet she still has her goal keeping gloves. Ha ha ha… that brings back some memories. She even joined the team and played until we reached the age group where boys and girls get split into different teams."

They both chuckled as they reminisced about their childhood.

"You didn't even play for a good team, she could've afforded somewhere better," commented Tilly.

"Heck, she could've bought a better team," joked Roland. "In all fairness, she was actually very good in goal. She could've continued if she wanted. It's a shame she lost her love for the sport."

Tilly rolled her eyes. "She didn't lose her love for the sport; she never loved it. Roni was only there to play more with you."