Female Novel
Chapter 1994
Gary didn't pry further, and he nodded.
They ate slowly, and Gary wanted to pay in the end. Cindy wouldn't let him, and she insisted on payingthe bill herself.
Gary sighed. "I know the boss, and I can enjoy a price cut. We're adults here, so you should know thatthis is a better deal."
The waiter knew Gary, so he said, "Mr. Frye is a regular here. We have a discount for him."
That still didn't sit right with Cindy. "It's alright. I can pay the full price."
She tried to pay, but Gary held her hand. "Now you're being too formal."
Cindy frowned. She didn't want to step back. "You do this every time. I won't come out with you nexttime if you do this."
Gary gave it some thought. "Why don't we go around, and you can treat me to something else."
Cindy might have given him an ultimatum, but she owed Gary a big favor, so she could never refusehim completely every time he called. Since Gary was stepping back, she stepped back as well. "Fine,but no next time. I need to repay you somehow."
"Okay, okay. Fine. No next time," Gary said.
After he paid the bill, they came out and took a stroll. Night had descended, and everyone was coming
out to enjoy their night life. Stalls were being set up on the streets, and Gary didn't ask her to treat himanything too fancy. They only got some snacks and juice.
The snacks weren't too heavy. They might have had dinner, but they could still eat it. They only got thejuice because it came with the snack. They didn't like it, so they held it all the way.
A while later, Cindy's phone rang again. She thought it was from her mother again, so she didn't evenbother to look. As they walked down the street, Gary talked about how he built his business, and Cindylistened closely. Gary might make it sound simple, but she could see that he used to be in a difficultstate.
And that was why she knew Gary built his success up bit by bit. He could take the hits, so he couldbuild his empire. She admired people like Gary, but she didn't want to be like him. Even though he wassuccessful, that didn't change the fact that he used to suffer a lot. Even when Gary was recounting histale, she could hear the sadness in his voice.
They went around, and eventually, they finished their snacks, though they didn't drink much of theirjuice. They went back to the restaurant, and she got in Gary's car. Cindy finally took her phone out, butto her surprise, the one who called her earlier was Ian. novelbin
Since she didn't pick up, he texted her to ask what she was doing and why she didn't take the call.Cindy felt frustrated. She didn't know it was Ian, but she couldn't call him back now since she was inGary's car. In the end, she put her phone away and decided to call Ian back when she got home.
They were silent all the way. They exhausted all topics during the dinner and the stroll earlier. AfterGary sent her home, she got out of the car and said goodbye to him. "Drive safely." She saw him off,and when she came back home, Aurora called her first.