07 Have Dinner Together

It was another starless night, not too late, but it was cold. The night would come early, making one want to snuggle into a cozy, soft bed. Alice stepped out of the hotel, pondering what to eat for dinner.

After some negotiation, Mr Thompson finally announced at the meeting that since Alice was busy working with Lemon, she wouldn't have to do night shifts during that period.

This way, she could finally go home every day – she just felt reassured, as if everything at work and all the pretenses could be left behind, allowing for some carefree freedom.

She continued to walk briskly – walking briskly made her feel energetic. As she approached the subway station, Alice perked up, but a familiar black car silently pulled up beside her. Alice hesitated and stopped walking.

"What a coincidence! Are you heading home? I'll give you a ride." The man in the car got out, leaning casually against the door, and simply said.

Alice was about to refuse, but then she thought of the packed subway, and finally decided to get in the car, saying cheerfully, "What a coincidence, thank you!" as she got into the car.

"Miss Smith, have you had dinner yet?" John looked ahead and asked.

"Um…" Alice didn't answer right away, and after a moment, she said, "It's getting late, and I missed the employee canteen."

"Are you working with Jack?"

"Yes."

"It's Jack's fault. Working so late and not even taking you out to eat." John smiled as he said it.

"It's not his business. Mr Wright already has plans with his girlfriend, and he even apologized to me.

Besides, this is our job, he doesn't have to take care of our meals." Alice explained earnestly, turning to look at him, and his profile was quite striking.

"Is there a restaurant near your place? I haven't eaten either, let's go together." John suggested, glancing at the young woman, who seemed rather hesitant. "Most restaurants are fully booked at this time." Alice said with a frown, and then she proposed brightly: "How about KFC ?"

John slowly turned to look at her, with a smile in his bright eyes, "Miss, let me take you out for a big dinner!", I always took a detour when I saw fast food." "I was thinking of just making dumplings at home…" Alice said without thinking.

John's eyes lit up slightly, "You can make Chinese cuisine, dumplings? Sounds good."

Alice blinked, not quite sure what he meant.

So he smiled and promptly decided, "I haven't eat that for years since I went on a business trip in China, that would really be a problem for you."

Alice's brain froze and almost blurted out, "It's instant Chinese dumplings…"

As they passed by a convenience store, Alice opened her mouth slightly. At least they could get something to eat. John quickly glanced at her and asked, "Do you need to buy something?" But she just couldn't say "yes".

So there was no other choice. He found a parking spot downstairs and they went up together. Alice opened the door slowly, saying, "Please come in."

John held his coat, scanning the floor of the entrance, which only had one pair of shoes, indicating that the owner rarely had guests at home.

Alice found a pair of new slippers for John to change into, and then she hurriedly started looking for food supplies in the kitchen – but there really wasn't anything except a bag of instant dumplings. She paused for a moment and decided to be honest.

John sat in the cozy living room, taking a quick look around the small apartment. It had a very homely, country-style vibe, with her apparent preference for beige tones making it feel fresh and welcoming.

The living room and kitchen were open, and he could see her flipping through the kitchen cabinets, looking for something, and seemed a bit panicked – he remembered seeing her walking home alone outside the hotel, and without even realizing it, he had stopped his car right in front of her.

He had only meant to give her a ride, but then he decided to tease her a bit more, and before he knew it, he had followed her up there.

Then his gaze shifted to the small, white dining table in the center, with a small bouquet of daisies, timidly in bloom, and under them was a simple glass frame.

He slowly walked over and picked up the frame, only to find that there was more than one person in the photo – she had had a ponytail back then, her face rounder than it was now, beaming brightly at the boy beside her, her eyes full of joy.

The boy beside her also had a gentle demeanor, looking down at her with eyes full of affection.

He watched the photo for a long time, until Alice's voice came, "Mr. Williams…"

John turned around with a smile, "Was that when you were in college?" Alice glanced over and laughed, "I was pretty chubby then, wasn't I?"

John looked back again, "Yes, you were just right then. Now you're too thin."

"Ah, it's easier to gain weight when you're happy," she quickly said, half-jokingly.

Alice clearly didn't want to talk about this anymore. She held up her hands, revealing the instant dumplings, "Do you really love Chinese food?"

John couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Alice boiled the dumplings and served John a generous portion. John thanked her and started eating without any hesitation.

"You like to drink coffee downstairs?" he asked, eating his dumplings.

"Yes. It was really coincidental that day. What were you doing here?" Alice also remembered that day and nodded.

"Waiting for a friend," John simply replied, glancing at the time and smiling faintly.

This meal was already quite late, and they both finished quickly.

Alice found it amusing to watch John finish his last one, and couldn't help but say, "Mr. Thompson would be furious if he knew. He would say I've treated a VIP shabbily."

After tidying up the dishes, the heavy tiredness started to set in, and Alice tried to stay awake to make John some coffee. John stopped her, John stopped her, "You should get some rest, I should be going."

Alice didn't insist, and escorted him to the door.

The man at the door had earnest eyes and a thin smile, as if he had something else to say.

Alice really felt tired, especially at her own home – a place where she never got used to wearing a mask. She chuckled, "Mr. Williams, you really don't have to thank me for the instant dumplings, I can afford them."

John nodded with a smile, "Yes, they are delicious." He paused to add, "Goodnight."

At that instant, Alice thought she might have been imagining things, but the depth of his gaze seemed bottomless.