Chapter 19: Chapter 19

Arya called Jayden and thanked him sincerely.  As to her dinner invitation, Jayden refused, saying that it was only a small effort on his part.

Moreover, this matter originally should have been handled properly by the police and it was also within their scope of work.

Although this was the case, Arya still did not feel at ease.

If the police were not given pressure, this internal matter would not be so easily settled.  Before this, she had run around until she was exhausted and in the end, this matter had dragged on for a long time.

Jayden also said that since they were friends, later there will be a lot of opportunities to get together and finally, he said this matter was requested by Jack to be settled.

If Arya still insisted on finding someone to thank, she should thank Jack instead.

His words made Arya think for a long time.  She knew she should be thankful to Jack but how to thank him?  This proved to be a big difficulty for her.

Provoke him, it would annoy him.  If provoked by him, she would feel annoyed herself. There was no easy way to deal with this guy.

Arya thought a lot but then stopped.  Forget it, it is better to discuss with Soph to Let her change another method and avoid getting Mr.Bully annoyed.

In this way, this could be considered as helping him, right?  Then later she will give him a call and thank him.

At night, taking advantage they were watching TV together, she asked Sophia.

"How are you with Dr. Jack recently?"

"What?  Did he complain to you?"

Arya was surprised.  Do you have to be so astute?  She had not said anything yet.

Sophia smiled "The nurses told me that Dr. Jack was a bit unhappy about their inquiries."

"Oh, so he is not happy, ah."

Arya pretended to be stupid and thought to herself about his 'a bit unhappy'.  Obviously, he is violent and difficult.

"So, he complained to you, did he?"

"Oh, that cannot be said as complaining."  Overbearing would be more appropriate as a description.  Arya changed the topic and said.  "What do you intend to do?"

"Nothing."  Arya answered nonchalantly.

"Take it easy and slowly infiltrate. This is about love, not a fighting match and it is not something that is needed to be solved in the shortest time.”

Arya nodded but felt sorry for Sophia being delusional.

"So do you plan to let him go for the time being?"  She asked.

Sophia glared at her.  "What do you mean by letting him go?  I'm not that type of scheming woman and neither is he a good man.  Our combination is called an ideal couple."

Arya nodded and asked again.  "Then do you intend to let him go for the time being?"  If Sophia says she will let him go, then Mr.Bully will at least be left alone for a while.

When she calls him later, then she can take a little credit for doing her part and together with a 'thank you', things will be resolved satisfactorily.

The two of us will not owe each other and need not to be involved further.

"Yes."  Sophia answered casually.

Arya felt happy.

"Anyway I will be going on a business trip for a few days and after I come back, I will continue."

Ah!  Only a few days?  Then she must hurry up to take credit for her help as soon as possible.  She must take advantage of these few days to clarify with him so that he will no longer bother her again.

"I cannot rely on the nurses now, so I have to depend on myself."  Sophia muttered to herself about her future plans.  "When I return from my business trip, I will buy him a gift as an apology.  Then I will express myself appropriately to attract his attention and leave a way for myself to retreat in the future.  Then all that follows will have to be handled slowly."

Arya shook her head.  "Dr.Jack doesn’t like gifts."

"Everyone likes gifts.  It only depends on the person who is presenting the gift and the gift itself."  Sophia said.  "Right now he doesn't have feelings for me so the situation is not good.  However, if the gift is appropriate then it will be better.  Ary, do you know the most suitable gift for a surgeon?"

Arya looked at her friend and blinked her eyes.  Suddenly she brightened up.  "Insurance!  let me tell you that insurance is the most practical for them.  They are under a lot of stress and they work long hours. Their exposure to disease and occupational risks are high.  You should buy insurance for him.  This is very practical and you don’t have to worry that he will refuse.  Not only he will not refuse and if something really does happen, he will also remember you.  Multiple purposes with one swoop, right?  I can help you with this.  You must buy from me!"

Sophia sighed and spoke helplessly.  "Are you so poor that you have gone crazy?  Or do you hate him so much that you hope something bad will happen to him?  Why are you like this?"

Arya said.  "I'm serious."

"Get lost, troublemaker!"  Sophia waved her hand.  "You can buy him hand creams."

"Hand creams?"

"Yes.  The nurses told me that they always do surgery and often wash and disinfect their hands.  The damage to their skin is great and so surgeons have to use hand creams and the male doctors also use them.  Therefore giving hand creams as a gift is not expensive but also caring and it will also not be a pressure.  Anyway, it is more romantic than your insurance policies!"

She actually also has this trick!

Aryafelt that Soph really is a high-level master, ah!

So, eventually one day, Mr.Bully will be subdued by her.

"Soph, are you really sincere to Dr. Jack?"

"Why?"

"Dr. Jack is a very good man.  If you are really together later, you must control your waywardness and don’t let him down."

With the rate that Soph start and ends relationships, Arya suddenly felt worried for Jack.

"Why are you behaving so weird today?  To maintain a relationship, it does not only depend on me alone.  Do you think that every time I break up, I am the initiator?  I also have been dumped numerous times, okay?  So before you start to worry about Dr. Jack, you should start to worry about me."

"I just hope the both of you will be good.  Dr. Jack's temper is bad and your personality is also very strong.  That is the reason why I said that.  One of you must always be a bit more tolerant, right?"

"Why should I be the one who must be tolerant?  If he loves me, shouldn't it be him who should be tolerant towards me?"

Arya opened her mouth and did not know what to say.

This night, there was no result for the discussion.

The next day, Sophia left on a business trip.

In the afternoon, after a meeting with a customer, Arya passed by a department store and saw a men's skincare product advertisement in the display window.

Her interest was ignited and went in to look around.

The counter salesgirl put in a lot of effort to introduce the products to her and praised the products.

She also handed Arya the advertisement leaflet for her to read the benefits of the product.

After taking the leaflet from the salesgirl, at the same time, she peeked at the price of hand creams and the exaggerated figure made her speechless.

Then she turned around and walked out.

Standing by the roadside, she thought for a while and then called Jack.

Jack picked up the call.

Arya politely thanked him for his help.

The other end of the phone was silent for a few seconds and she was thinking to take this lapse to say goodbye when Jack said.  "Is this Arya?"

"Yes."

"Suddenly you talk to me in this soft voice, I thought I was mistaken."

Her face was full of black lines.  She had really spoken politely to him and he was still the deadly poisonous tongue.

"Dr. Jack, you must be tired therefore your hearing is affected.  Take a good rest.  I'll hang up now."

"Well, this time, you sound like the real Arya."

Jack seems not to hear her say she was going to hang up her call and continued.  "Does your gratitude end with just a thank you on the phone?"

She was silent for a moment.  "One of these days, I will invite you and Jayden to have a meal together to properly thank the both of you."

"Today is my rest day."

"Oh, then I'll."  She wanted to say she will give Jayden a call and ask what time will he be free but Jack had continued to say.  "Do you still remember you owe me a meal the last time?"

She swallowed the words she wanted to say.

"That sweet dinner in that beautiful scenic garden where birds chirped and fragrant flowers bloom……that garden restaurant."  He actually reminded her of that silly text message she sent to him.  "Now is just the time for dinner."

With such obvious hints, Arya could not ignore him and sigh.  "ok Fine. Let’s meet."

He had really given her a big help and if he wanted to eat, then let him eat.

"Where are you now?"

Arya told him the address.

Jack told her to wait and since he was not far away, he will pick her up.

Arya sat down on a bench outside the department and waited.

As she waited, she thought of what food should she treat Jack.

There was not much cash on her but there was a credit card which she could use.

But to go to a place where a credit card could be swiped, the price would definitely be more expensive than a roadside shop.

She looked through her purse and then looked at the pitiful banknotes, trying to figure out a place where she could swipe her credit card which was not too expensive.

At this time, her cell phone rang.  She thought it was Jack but when she pulled out her phone and looked, it was her family's number.

Arya felt a bit nervous.

She sorted out her thoughts, cleared her throat and took the call.

On the other end of the phone, her mother's voice sounded.

She asked.  "Arya, how are you these days?"

"Good."  Arya bit her lip and her heartbeats were a bit fast.

"Why didn’t you send money home this month?  Is money tight?"

Arya sat up unconsciously.  "I-I was hospitalized a while ago.  Then, this month, my money is bit tight….."  She had wanted to say that she was unable to send money home and after thinking, she changed her words and said.  "I will send money home in a few days and I will make up to you."

Mrs Du Vin did not speak and Arya's heart jumped erratically.  In her mind, she was thinking quickly how to answer her mother if her mother was to ask when she was going to send money home and the amount.

She could not tell her mother that she was assaulted and she did not want her mother to worry.

But Mrs Du Vin did not ask any of those questions.  She paused for a moment and said.  "Come back to us.  You don’t have prospects in making a living in Centralford city."

Her hard tone and those simple words, all hurt Arya's heart.

"I don’t want to go back.  I like it here."

"Like?"  Her Mother's voice sharpened.  "You like to sell insurance?  Do you like to lie to us?  Do you like to bring shame to your family here?  If you don’t have the ability, it's okay.  Just be honest with your parents.  I know my own daughter.  I don’t expect you to be powerful but you lied and deceived people and let me, your old mother lose face along with you.  How do you want me and your father tell our friends and relatives?  Now as soon as I go out the door and meet acquaintances, they will ask whether it is true that my daughter is actually selling insurance.  You tell me……you tell me. You made me boast to people that you have great prospects working as a manager in a trading company, and what is the result now?"

Arya could not speak. She could only hold the phone tightly in her hand and listen quietly. She wanted to be a full time artist but irony was there was not much income unless you are famous. That’s why her parents hated that unpredictable profession as well. They don’t even know she was teaching art part time. That will bring another round of nagging.

"Anyway, I have talked to your father.  If this is the case, you might as well come back.  Your father will look for his friend and get you a job as a salesperson.  The money is not much but at least it is stable.  Don’t think about landing a good job.  Come back and we will find you a partner.  If you are able to marry a steady man, it can be considered you are blessed.  The two of us elders cannot depend on you anymore.  We will wait for your brother to graduate from college and see if he will succeed."

Arya gritted her teeth and listened to her mother nag for a long time before she finally exclaimed.  "Mom, I still want to stay here.  My job is not bad and I can make money.  My life here is good, really, I don’t want to go back."

When Mrs Du Vin heard her, she was stunned.  Then her mother became angry and shouted at her.  "Do as you like!"  Then she forcefully hung up the call.

The big sound of the phone being hung up shocked Arya.

She blankly listened to the dead tone and slowly hung up the call before she put the phone back into her bag.

She sat idly with the sun shining on her.  She still felt cold.

"What is the matter?"  Someone sat down beside her and asked.

She turned her head and saw Jack'ss handsome face.

She shook her head and did not know what to say.

"Do you want to cry?"  Jack frowned and stared at her.  "Who was that on the phone?  What happened?"

She shook her head again and lowered her head.

She looked at Jack's hand on the chair, placed just beside her hand.

His palm was very big as if it could cover her whole hand.

She did not know what she was thinking, she reached out and put her hand into his hand.

His hand was very warm and her eye-rims really felt hot but she did not want to cry.

Jack felt a bit uncomfortable but he did not avoid her.  He only muttered to himself why he had to choose this day to meet her.  It was so unlucky.

Arya blinked her eyes and pushed back the hot feeling in her eyes. Then she retracted her hand and place  it on her lap.

She heard Jack cleared his throat and say.  "If you really feel so sad, I can lend you my shoulders for the time being."

This time Arya did not shake her head.

She bit her lip and turned around, embraced Jack and buried her head in his arms.

Tears flowed from her eyes but he could not see.

Others also could not see and it made her feel better.

She clung to him and silently wept.

She heard him grumble and complain.

She heard something like he only promised to lend her his shoulders and did not say he would let her embrace him.