Winnie was exhausted. Despite the bumpy ride, she still fell asleep with her head on Xavierâs shoulder.However, it was not a good sleep. Groggily, she returned to the waking world with Xavierâs voice. He sounded like he was on a call.Her eyes were half-opened, but she noticed that the sky was still dark. Thus, she muttered, âWhat time is it?âBy the time she asked the question, Xavier had ended his call. He glanced at his phone and replied, âItâs thirty minutes past twelve. Weâll be meeting with Christopher and the others soon.âWinnie continued mumbling, âWeâre reaching Salinsburgh so soon?âXavier smiled. âNo, weâre only resting here for a while. Iâve asked around and found out that the authorities at Salinsburgh have been strict recently. No cars are allowed in or out of the city after twelve midnight, so weâll only be able to go there when the sun comes back up again.âWinnie nodded. âItâs great to have you around. I donât need to think about anything.âXavier lowered his head to plant two soft kisses on her forehead. âIâve always been great. Did you only find out about that now?âWinnie was still sleepy. She closed her eyes and quietly laughed. âItâs not too late to find out now.âXavier smiled and ruffled her hair. âRest well. Iâll wake you when youâre there. Why donât you lie down instead? Lay your head on my lap.ââOkay.â Winnie moved toward the side before lying down on Xavierâs leg. âThis is much more comfortable. By the way, who were you calling when I was sleeping?ââJosiah,â Xavier replied. âWeâre leaving this place soon, right? We canât possibly ditch him here.ââHaha!â A chuckle left Winnieâs lips. âI almost forgot about him. Where is he right now? How is he?ââYou donât need to worry about him. Heâs like a roach. Nothing will happen to someone like him.ââGood to hear that.â Winnie lifted her arm to touch Xavierâs arm. âIf anything happens to either of you, Iâll be overwhelmed with guilt.
I was the reason the two of you came to this darn place.âXavier held her hand and played with her fingers. âWhy are you saying these things when weâre about to go back?ââIâll stop, then. I donât really want to remember this moment ever again.ââDonât think about it anymore. Iâll bring you around to do happier and more meaningful things in the future. I wonât let you have the time to recall these moments.
Iâve already made a plan. Once weâre back, weâll hold the wedding. Does that sound good, Winnie?âWhen Xavier heard nothing from Winnie, he lowered his head, only to discover that she had fallen asleep again.Xavier did not know whether to feel amused or resigned. She had fallen asleep in the blink of an eye, and she had missed out on the important part of his proposal.Still, it mattered not.
He could ask her again after she woke.Approximately half an hour later, the car came to a stop.The car with Christopher in it was right in front of them. This was the place they were going to rest at before they depart for Salinsburgh before the sun rose again.Mason was in the car in front, so when the car fully stopped, Greta exited the car. She was planning to head to the front to talk to her significant other.The sound of Greta opening the door woke Winnie.As she had been tensed for long periods of time, Winnie bolted upright upon hearing the sound.Xavier, who had been closing his eyes to rest, was startled by Winnieâs abrupt motion as he too, opened his eyes.âWhatâs the matter, Winnie? Did you have a nightmare?â He held her hands.Only after Winnie heard Xavierâs voice did she remember that she was already away from the wolfâs den.Letting out a sigh, she replied, âI thought I was still at Leandroâs place. The hairs on the back of my neck raised the moment they brought me into the lab.ââSo there are things that you find hair-raising in this world.â Despite Xavierâs teasing words, his heart ached for her.As he hugged Winnie, he whispered, âWeâll be able to go back soon. By then, weâll sleep in our house, and Iâll keep you company every night whether you wake from a dream at night or you wake in the morning. The first person youâll see will always be me. That way, youâll never feel the chills running down your spine stand ever again.âWinnie could not help but laugh at Xavierâs words.
âHaha! Mr. Fairchild, youâre getting better and better with sweet nothings.âXavier drew his brows together. âI donât do sweet nothings. Everything I say is straight from my heart.âWinnieâs smile widened.
âThatâs about the same.ââAbout the same with what?â Xavier asked in confusion.Winnie held his chin and said, âWell, about the same with sweet nothings.ââIs that so?â Xavierâs eyes darkened as his voice lowered. âWhy donât I find it sweet at all?ââWhatâs your standard of sweet, then?â Winnie queried, amused by his answer.Xavier lowered his head a little. âIâll tell you when I have a taste of it.âAs he said that, he reached out to hold the back of Winnieâs head.Winnie knew what he wanted to do next, but she wanted to keep teasing him.Hence, just as he was about to kiss her, she turned her head and avoided him.Naturally, Xavier would not be happy about her avoidance, so he tried to kiss her again.However, Winnie abruptly froze in her tracks.The car window had been half-opened for ventilation. When she avoided Xavier, she accidentally looked outside.That glimpse she caught made her freeze.In the next second, she shoved Xavier away.A teasing push felt vastly different from a shove, and Xavier could differentiate them. He could sense that Winnie genuinely wanted him to move away from her.But why is she pushing me away all of a sudden?Xavier then raised his head and looked in the direction Winnie was staring at.As it turned out, Christopher was standing outside. He had not rested since he left the hospital because he was worried sick about Winnie.When he realized that the car stopped, and when he saw Greta going to Mason, he decided to come over to take a look at Winnie. He wanted to discern whether she was safe and sound.Yet, the sight that greeted him was Winnie and Xavier flirting.At that very moment, a pang of pain struck his heart. He wanted to turn and leave immediately, but unexpectedly, Winnie turned in his direction. That was how their eyes met.Now, even Xavier had noticed him.Awkwardness washed over Christopher like lapping waves, but he managed to squeeze a smile to his lips. âSorry, I just wanted to come over to say hello. Iâll leave now.â Winnie knew that Christopher was worried about her, so she told Xavier, âI have some things to talk to Christopher about, so Iâll get out of the car for a moment. Are you going to stay here, or are you going to stretch a little outside?âXavier studied Christopher and Winnie before muttering, âGo on. Iâll be waiting for you in the car.âWhile speaking, he moved his hand away from Winnieâs shoulder and leaned over to open the car door for her.Winnie stepped out of the car and walked by Christopherâs side for a while. Soon, the two of them came to a stop not far from the car.The area they had stopped at had beautiful scenery without any traces of air pollution. Moreover, the night sky was starry.Christopher stared at the twinkling stars above for a moment before lowering his head to look at Winnie, who looked even more brilliant than those stars.With a smile, he said, âIt looks like everythingâs going well tonight. You arenât hurt, are you?ââIâm not. I set Leandroâs warehouse on fire. He doesnât have enough men, so his focus was full on saving the warehouse instead of coming after me.âChristopher sucked in a deep breath. âThe name Vivian is going to shake the entire Lightspring and maybe the entire world too. Youâve gotten rid of two nests of evil at once.âWinnie turned to look at Christopher with smiling eyes. âAre you teasing me?âIt was only after Winnie turned did she notice the way Christopher looked at her.Stumped, she scratched her head. âI⦠I didnât tell Xavier about what happened in the basement. After allâ¦ââI understand.â
Christopher was not going to put Winnie in a tight spot. He tucked away the yearning in his eyes and sighed. âSorry for interrupting you just now. I know that Iâve crossed the line.âChristopher dared not look at Winnie anymore when he thought about what happened in the basement and in the forest. He was afraid that he would not be able to control his feelings if he did that.Therefore, he looked up and stared at a glowing firefly a distance away before continuing, âI know that Iâve requested something absurd in the basement. As for the promise⦠I know that you were pitying me because I was about to die. You think of me as a friend, and that was why you want me to leave this world without regret. I know that.
Soâ¦âChristopher recomposed himself and made it seem as if he was unperturbed by all that. âJust pretend as if those things hadnât happened. I donât want you to look at me strangely anymore.âWinnie lowered her head and chuckled. âDo I? Are you talking about the look I had just now? Thatâs because I was feeling awkward. Iâm sure you feel that too.ââYes. Anywayâ¦â Christopher rubbed the back of his head. âWeâre still good friends. Do tell me if you need any help just like how you order Lucas around.âWinnie nodded. âThatâs great.âThe two of them then shared a smile.Meanwhile, although Xavier did not leave the car, he wound down the window and stared at Winnie and Christopher.He had sensed something amiss about Winnie when Christopher came over earlier.It felt as if there was something happening between the two.However, before anything happened to the ring communication device, he noticed nothing amiss about the two.Unfortunately, that device broke down midway. Xavier realized something must have happened during that period of time and there was an oddity in the air between the two of them.A good example would be the way Christopher looked at Winnie earlier.Furthermore, Winnie seemed to have reacted strongly upon her discovery of Christopherâs presence.My Dumbo is no ordinary woman. She kissed me by force in front of the reporters in the elevator the other time, so there was no way she would be afraid to kiss her husband in front of Christopher.The more Xavier thought about it, the more uncomfortable he became.After letting out a grim sigh, he opened the door and exited the car.However, he did not head toward Winnie and Christopher. Instead, he went to the driverâs seat to grab a pack of cigarettes.Even though he did not have a tobacco addiction, he would still smoke once in a while just like the time when he thought Winnie was dead.At that moment, he was feeling frustrated, and the darn toxin in him made it difficult for him to recollect himself.Maybe some nicotine will help with the frustration.He leaned back on the car a little roughly before letting his eyes drift toward Winnie again. Then, he took out a cigarette and placed it between his lips.However, just as he lit the cigarette, he recalled how Winnie disliked the scent of tobacco, so he threw the cigarette on the ground.Then, Xavier saw Christopher catching a firefly for Winnie. He could not hold himself back anymore.The blood coursing in him threatened to boil. How dare they flirt with each other in front of me? What have they been doing when I wasnât around?Xavier crushed the cigarette under his foot until it was nothing but a pile of mush before striding over to the two.Frankly, Christopher was not catching the firefly for Winnie. It had been a subconscious action.A bug had flown to his face, and he had instinctively caught it. Only after catching it did he recall it was but a harmless firefly.Thus, he uncurled his fingers and let the poor bug fly offâhe had no intention to gift the bug to Winnie.It only seemed like he was gifting the firefly to Winnie from Xavierâs angle.Xavier strode over without a hint of hesitance in his steps. He knew he must look terrible at that moment as anger enveloped him like a blanket.Still, it was not as if he could control himself. He did not even know what he would do once he reached themâwhether to question them or to declare that Winnie was his.He was even wondering who Winnie would defend if he lost control of himself and attacked Christopher.Unfortunately, that was something he would not get an answer to as Christopher turned around and walked away before he could reach them.Naturally, Christopher saw Xavier on his way back.The two met each other in no time, and Christopher said to Xavier, âGood timing. She wanted to stay here for a little longer, so head over to her. Iâm going back to rest first.âXavier hummed in response and nearly let Christopher go.Nevertheless, he somehow managed to remind himself to stop Christopher and ask, âCan you tell me what happened to you two after you encountered Yulissa?ââYes, that dayâ¦â Christopher began to explain what happened. Winnie had talked to him about that earlier, so Christopherâs explanation was the same as Winnieâs.âOkay.â Xavierâs lips curled. âRest well.âThe way he described it was almost identical. Either it was the truth, or theyâd had a discussion on how to describe the event. Which would it be?It felt as if bugs were gnawing away at his heart. Every bite was not agonizing, but it was rather irritating.