Chapter 25
Three days later, David rolled into Aurora City.
Rocking a black trench coat and dragging a suitcase, he strolled out of the airport.
Owen Rodriguez, the driver, was there to scoop him up.
Owen filled David in on Alice's antics over the past few days. Apart from that one time she got busted for street racing, she’d been pretty chill.
David thought about shooting Alice a text to let her know he was back, but then he figured, nah. Maybe she hadn’t done her self-criticism yet. If he texted her, she might just be scared and Google one, tweak it a bit, and hand it in.
He glanced at the gift bag he was holding and sighed. Just as he was about to say something, his throat tickled, and he coughed a few times.
David suddenly felt a weird mix of excitement and dread about what kind of surprise Alice might have cooked up for him this time.
The trip home was supposed to be half an hour, but thanks to traffic, it took a whole hour.
It was getting late. After grabbing his suitcase from the trunk, David told Owen to take off.
He lugged his suitcase up the steps, punched in the code, and walked into the house.
The place was dead quiet. David sighed, thinking Alice had probably gone out to mess around again.
He dragged his suitcase upstairs to his room, pulled out some clothes, and headed to the bathroom.
Meanwhile, Alice was on her way back home.
After a long, exhausting day, Alice kicked off her shoes at the door and padded straight to the kitchen in her socks.
Upstairs, David stepped out of the shower, his hair still dripping. His face was all cold and distant. As he grabbed the hairdryer, he heard a noise from downstairs.
He paused, put the hairdryer down, opened the door, and walked to the top of the stairs to peek into the living room.
A delicious smell wafted up from downstairs. Turning his head, he spotted a pair of black high-tops by the door.
David pressed his lips together and headed straight to the kitchen.
Alice was rocking an apron, holding a frying pan with one hand and flipping a steak with chopsticks in the other. She looked super focused, with a few loose strands of hair tucked behind her ear, showing off her delicate ears, high nose, and full lips. Maybe she was starving, 'cause she suddenly licked her lips, making them all shiny.
David stood there quietly, taking it all in. His gaze darkened, and his throat felt weird. He couldn’t help but look down and cough into his fist.
Alice jumped at the sound, almost flipping the pan. Her heart raced as she looked at David, who had somehow snuck into the villa without her noticing.
David had a towel around his neck, was in his pajamas, and his hair was still wet.
Alice held back for a moment, then fought the urge to curse. She said, "You could’ve given me a heads-up. You nearly scared me to death."
David was caught off guard for a second, then a small smile tugged at his lips. He said in a low voice, "My bad, I'm back."
Alice pouted, slapped the steak on a plate, washed up a knife and fork, and set it all on the dining table.
"If you're hungry, chow down on the steak. I got a few more dishes to whip up," Alice said.
David ruffled her hair. "Didn't know you had kitchen skills."
Before he could finish, Alice shot him a wary look. "Just 'cause I can cook doesn't mean you can stop giving me cash for takeout!"
David eyed the steak. If she hadn't cooked for him, he might've docked her takeout money just for that sass.
"Get back to it," he said, patting the back of her head twice. He pulled out a chair and sat down, cutting into the steak like it was the most natural thing in the world.
He was so casual about it that Alice wanted to deck him.
She glared at the back of his head, raised her fist, and stomped back to the kitchen. As she scanned the ingredients, she thought about making something nasty for him.
But in the end, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Instead, she made her best dishes for him.
They said good food put people in a good mood. If David was in a good mood, maybe he'd forget about the self-criticism. If he forgot that, maybe the whole street racing thing would blow over too.
If not, she could always pin it on James.
David didn't really expect the self-criticism from Alice. He just wanted her to know he was genuinely pissed. But since she knew she messed up and cooked to make it up to him, he let it slide.
"Go wash the dishes."
Seeing her face full of bottled-up emotions, his eyes twinkled with amusement. As he stood up, he ruffled her hair and said gently, "Come to my room when you're done."
After cleaning up the kitchen, Alice went to find David.
This was her second time in his room.
David was drying his hair in the bathroom. When he came out, he saw Alice peeking around the door, looking all sneaky.
He flicked her forehead. "What are you sneaking around for? There's nothing valuable in here."
Alice had already spotted the gift bag on the table. When David handed it to her, she was a bit excited and unsure. "Is this really for me?"
"Yep."
Alice immediately grabbed the gift bag and bowed to David. "Thanks!"
She took the gift back to her room. After unwrapping it, she found a women's watch inside.
The watch was totally her style. She put it on and raised her hand, shaking it from side to side.
"It's pretty sweet," Alice said.
This was the first meaningful gift she had ever gotten.
Lucas used to give her stuff, but no one else had ever bothered. After meeting Simon, he would always give her little trinkets and take her out for a big meal on her birthday.
And now, there was David.
She didn't know exactly what this feeling was, but she liked it. It made her realize that in this world, besides Lucas and Simon, there were actually other people who cared about her.
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