Raise Love-12-Daughter in law

Aria was stunned for two seconds, gently rubbed her nose with her fingers, felt a bit happy at first, but then became rather downcast, with a sour and astringent feeling in her heart.

This girl was always a bit slow in reacting.

Ryder leaned lazily against the door, let out a soft sigh, and patiently repeated, "Let's go back together."

Maya Brooks had been called away by a phone call and hadn't come back. She sent an apologetic message to Aria, asking her to go back with Ryder and the others. It seemed that she had also sent a message to Ryder at the same time.

Aria had originally planned to leave by herself after they left. After all, among the people who came today, she only knew Ryder and Finn Alvarez, and she wasn't really familiar with either of them.

The private room was in a mess after being messed around. She didn't know where her coat had been thrown, and she hadn't found it yet. When Ryder called her like that, she had to speed up.

Once a person got anxious, they would become even more aimless.

She didn't want him to think that she was a troublemaker.

Seeing that her movements had obviously become hurried, Ryder raised his chin towards the people beside him and said faintly, "You guys go first. I'll wait for someone."

"Alright. Has our princess left this person in your care again?" Finn Alvarez raised his eyebrows and smiled.

Ryder gave him a half-smile and a glance.

It had been like this since junior high and high school. Ryder had escorted Maya Brooks and Aria home like a knight in shining armor. Although Aria was just an add-on, sometimes when Maya Brooks had something to do, she would threaten Ryder by coaxing and coercing him to send Aria home safely.

Aria's home was three bus stops further than his.

Nobody knew that those three stops had once been the most precious time for Aria.

Since the time when she was squatting at the bus stop crying and was taken home by Ryder for a night, every time they went home after that, Ryder would silently follow her to the last stop.

He had never taken the initiative to talk to her.

And out of timidity and some unspeakable selfish motives, she had never asked about it either.

This situation had continued until they graduated.

As a close friend, Finn Alvarez of course knew how dutiful Ryder was as a knight in shining armor. He teased meaningfully, "Isn't it?"

He tutted and sighed, "Even those who are raising their little wives don't do as well as you."

Ryder: "Get lost quickly."

"Alright, Mr. Ryder." Finn Alvarez dragged the reluctant Lila Torres along, called out to the others to leave, and waved his arm backwards, deliberately raising his voice, "Continue to be your knight in shining armor. I'll take away the peach blossoms for you first."

During the two days of freshmen registration at Harvard University, there was no curfew in the dormitories. The group of people had been having fun until almost early morning, and they had drunk a lot of alcohol. Those with poor alcohol tolerance got drunk and were dragged along. A few of them left while joking and laughing.

The voices gradually drifted away.

Only then did Ryder slowly withdraw his gaze, leaned against the door and looked back into the private room. Aria was putting on her coat with her face lowered.

Since the gathering was over, in order to make it convenient to check if anything had been left behind when leaving, someone had turned off the small lights and only left the bright light in the middle of the private room on. This light, perhaps because it was old, was a bit dim, with a faint white glow.

The girl's side face was delicate and fair, with very soft lines. Her long and fine eyelashes were trembling gently as she put on her coat. Aria's light makeup had been washed off when she was in the washroom.

Now she was wearing no makeup at all. When she came, she was wearing a white short skirt with puff sleeves and a denim jacket. She actually looked rather plain.

Ryder was bored waiting, so his gaze slowly fell on her.

He tugged at his lips.

She was a bit different from before.

During the day when he was receiving freshmen at the anime base, he was feeling sleepy and just casually glanced at her. In the evening, the private room was dark. This was the first time he had seriously looked at her since graduating from high school.

It seemed that she had grown up and also grown taller.

Aria was two years younger than them.

Before, she was just a little girl in school uniform. When going home, she would carry a black backpack on her back, tightly grasp the straps of the backpack, and keep her back straight.

Maya Brooks would get off the bus one stop earlier than him, and she would get off three stops later. After getting off, she still had to walk a short distance. The girl's steps were small, and she didn't walk fast. He would just follow her slowly behind.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no communication throughout the whole journey.

She seemed a bit afraid of him and always avoided him. Whenever she met his gaze, she would dodge, as if he were some kind of villain.

Even after staying at his home for a night later, this situation hadn't changed.

Ryder was born lucky. There had always been beautiful girls around him. If it weren't for Maya Brooks, he wouldn't have noticed Aria. He had good grades, but he wasn't a pure good student. Skipping classes, fighting, and giving speeches under the national flag were almost evenly split.

It was normal for a good girl to be afraid of him.

Now Aria was really different from that time. It had something to do with taking off the school uniform. She was still equally quiet and cold. The white dress suited her very well, with a sense of purity mixed with an indescribable feeling.

A very appealing sense of contradiction.

Even with Ryder's picky eyes, he could also see something eye-catching about her.

There was just one thing that was still the same as before, that she loved to cry.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but lower his head and smile with a tug at his lips.

After all, she was just a little girl.

The temperature in Cambridge, Massachusetts dropped sharply at night, completely different from the heat during the day. Aria wrapped her coat tightly around her, slung her small bag over her shoulder, and followed Ryder out of the disco. The slightly cool night wind blew, and she subconsciously shivered.

Seeing her shiver, Ryder chuckled softly. Aria immediately felt a bit embarrassed and covered her face in embarrassment.

What was so funny about that...

Ryder curved his lips and handed the white medicine bottle that he had been playing with in his hand to her. His somewhat hoarse voice was unhurried, teasing as he said, "Here."

"Ah?" Aria's eyelashes trembled slightly, made a puzzled sound, moved her hand covering her face away, and looked at him with clear eyes.

The familiar small white medicine bottle.

Her stomach medicine.

Ryder lengthened his tone: "—The life-saving medicine. Here it is, back to you."

"Oh."

Aria took it and stuffed it into her bag.

The medicine bottle had his faint body temperature on it, and that warmth remained on her palm as soon as she touched it.

She didn't dare to look at him for a long time, quickly withdrew her gaze, quickened her pace a little, and was half a step ahead of him. She thought to herself that there was no need to be so affectionate when returning the medicine.

In Massachusetts, most people spoke standard Mandarin without much of an accent. But Ryder's way of speaking was actually quite distinctive. He always spoke at an unhurried pace and was never in a hurry.

He was very composed.

However, if this composure was combined with a tone of teasing or taunting, along with a smile, even if it was very faint, it would seem to change the flavor, with the ending tone rising a little.

It was as if he was luring people.

She had always quietly listened to him joking and laughing with others before. His voice was deep, and it would become a bit hoarse if he smoked, which was very sexy and especially nice to listen to. She had always envied Maya Brooks and the people around him.

The distance to Harvard University wasn't far. After the two of them came out, they had been walking at a steady pace. They could reach there in half an hour without taking a taxi.

Ryder didn't mention taking a taxi, so Aria didn't bring it up either.

Away from the bustling city center, the streets gradually became quiet. The street lamps were on, the traffic lights were changing in an orderly manner, the passing vehicles had their lights flashing, the pedestrians were leisurely, and the alternating footsteps of the two of them also became clear.

Aria inadvertently turned her head slightly.

And then, as she had hoped, Ryder came into her peripheral vision.