To the Love of My Life

Steve watched Ruby enter the elevator and go upstairs before he returned to his car, still holding the umbrella.

There was a routine meeting at the company in the afternoon, but Steve wasn’t in the mood to go. The rain outside continued to patter down, drumming against the car. He hesitated for a moment, then decided to simply wait in the car for Ruby to finish her class.

He had drunk quite a bit of alcohol that morning at the Capital Club. He went to bed late last night, and now he felt a bit sleepy. Steve flattened the seat and lay down, closing his eyes. He tried to fall asleep, but his mind was too alert. Just as he was about to drift off, his cellphone rang. It was a call from his secretary, Ms. Taylor.

He had to go to Lilliput next week to meet with clients. Ms. Taylor was helping him book flights and asked him to choose from several time slots.

As Steve held his phone, pondering whether to leave in the morning or afternoon, he saw Ruby leaving the building after her class. He immediately spoke up, without even thinking, and told Ms. Taylor, “You decide.”

He then hung up the call, didn’t bother grabbing the umbrella, and directly pushed open the car door to get out.

Ruby assumed Steve had left, but to her surprise, his car was still parked there when she walked out of the building. She hesitated for a moment, then saw Steve get out of the car.

He walked straight towards her, took two steps, seemed to remember something, turned back and went to the car to get the umbrella before coming back over.

When he approached, Ruby asked, “Why didn’t you leave?”

Steve placed the umbrella above her head: “I had some drinks and felt a bit tired, so I decided to rest for a while.”

Ruby pursed her lips, chuckled, and got into Steve’s car.

Seeing her smile, Steve also smiled back and got into the car. As he started the car, he glanced at Ruby and said, “How about having dinner together tonight?”

He paused for a moment, then added, “There’s a new Fire Deer Restaurant near your place. I’ve been there once, and the taste is not bad.”

Ruby was unsure of Steve’s intentions. She could tell that although he said he was resting, he was actually waiting for her class to end.

They had both moved on, but every time he saw her, he still treated her so tenderly. What exactly did he mean?

Ruby could feel an indescribable sense of hope welling up in her heart. She stared at Steve for a moment and finally nodded, saying, “Okay.”

When Steve heard her response, the lingering smile in his eyes deepened. He glanced at the rearview mirror and then started the car.

The Fire Deer Restaurant Steve took Ruby to was indeed very close to her apartment. The atmosphere inside was elegant, and the waitresses wore beautiful cheongsams with professional smiles plastered on their faces.

Although the restaurant had only recently opened, it was doing very well. Steve hadn’t made reservations in advance, and all the private rooms were booked, so they had to settle for a relatively quiet corner in the main hall.

After the two sat down, a waitress handed them the menu.