The wall clock hanging above the entrance to Sebastian's room showed half past eleven at night. Time flew so quickly when I was with someone so precious.

Sebastian tried to stifle a yawn. While covering his mouth, he gently shook his head.

"You must be tired, right? Just go to sleep first, I'll clean this up." I asked Sebastian to go rest ahead of me.

"Nope. Let’s rest together." He rejected my request. Instead, he promptly began clearing the dirty plates, spoons, and glasses from our dim sum dinner. "Come on, I’ll wash the dishes, and you can keep me company," he said gently.

"I was planning to do it myself..." I followed him out of the room.

"It’s already late, El. All the kitchen staff must be resting by now. Let me do the dishes, you just keep me company. Besides, washing dishes won’t take long." Sebastian gave me a warm smile as I walked slowly beside him.

"Then what should I do?"

"Your job is to keep me company!"
Sebastian, holding the dirty dishes, winked at me.

"Ew, you flirt..." I playfully hit his shoulder.

Suddenly, a voice from behind startled both of us.

"Where are you going, Miss El? Young master?"

Oh my! It was one of the kitchen assistants. I quickly answered her question, "Ah, we were just going to wash the dishes from our dinner earlier."

"Let me take those, Miss. I’ll wash them myself," the assistant said, taking the dishes from Sebastian’s hands.

"You two should go back to your room and get some rest."

Sebastian smiled, "Thank you very much for your help."

"It’s my duty, sir. No need to feel awkward about it," the assistant replied, then slowly walked toward the kitchen area.

"Let’s head back. Let the assistant take care of the dishes quickly and focus," Sebastian tugged my arm gently with a smile. I gave in since I was feeling tired and sleepy too.

"You look really sleepy, El." Sebastian took my hand. I nodded hesitantly. "Yeah... I actually do feel a bit tired and... yeah, sleepy," I admitted honestly.

Sebastian suddenly looked a bit deflated.

"See? That’s what you get for teasing me earlier. Karma!" He pulled me closer to him. "Such a shame you’re sleepy..." He chose not to finish the sentence, though I could sense what he was implying.

"What is it? Is there something else you want to talk about?" I asked, pretending not to get his signal.

Sebastian cleared his throat, "Hmm, not like that, El. Don’t you have anything you want to talk to me about?"

I sighed. Honestly, there were many things I wanted to discuss with him, but I decided to wait. I wasn’t ready for how he might react as my husband.

"Not right now. Besides, I have class early tomorrow."

His face suddenly showed disappointment. "Tomorrow morning, your dear sister and I have plans to go out together."

"Hmm, okay." Sebastian gave a weak smile. "Classes are a duty, right? So you can graduate soon."

"I’ll give you a present after class," I said, pulling him closer and whispering.

"A present? What kind of present?" Sebastian asked as he hugged me and walked me back to the room.

"It’s a secret! If I tell you now, it won’t be a surprise." I gave a mischievous smile. Sebastian pinched my cheek playfully. "You’re so mean! Now I’m both curious and excited!"

---

Amelie stroked my hair. We were sitting side by side on the classroom chairs, waiting for the lecturer to arrive.
"Hmm. Why didn’t you wash your hair?" Amelie looked at me with a suspicious gaze.

"What are you talking about, Mel?" My eyes widened at her comment.

"Aw, lame. I was gonna make fun of your hair." Amelie laughed.
She probably thought Sebastian and I had spent the night doing something romantic. I laughed when I realized that.

"Focus on studying, Mel. Think about the presentation—we’re presenting today and you’re the one who has to speak in front of the class."

Amelie slumped onto the desk. "Ugh, thanks for the reminder. Yeah, yeah, I’ll think about it later. Right now, I just wanna wait for the lecturer."

"Wait, really? You’re lying down." I gently tapped her shoulder. "Look, the lecturer’s here!" I said seriously, even though I was just teasing her. Amelie immediately sat up straight, glancing around.

"Where? Where’s the lecturer?"

"Hmm, probably still on the way..." I added, chuckling softly.

Now it was Amelie’s turn to hit my shoulder playfully. "El, that was so mean! I was relaxing!"

"Hey, this is a university, not a place to lounge around!" I kept laughing at her reaction.

---

"El, before we head to the library, can I ask a favor?" Amelie was still busy with her fruit salad, sounding a bit hesitant.

"What is it? Need help writing the presentation script?" I guessed.

"Ugh, no! That’s not it. This is way more urgent!"

"Nope..." I cut her off abruptly.

She looked at me wide-eyed. "Ugh, El! Be serious for once," Amelie pouted, her lips moving in frustration as she chewed. She didn’t continue.

"Aw, come on, don’t sulk."

"Well, it’s your fault." Amelie grumbled.

"Geez, Mel, don’t be so sensitive. Stop sulking." I sipped from my glass.

"Let me sulk for once!" Amelie kept eating her salad while pretending to pout.

"So you’re not asking for help anymore? You said it was urgent? Okay then, I won’t force you." I put on a serious expression, making Amelie stop mid-bite.

"Okay, fine... no more sulking. He’s coming this way!" Amelie quickly wiped her mouth and drank her juice hurriedly. I was confused by her sudden change.

"Mel? What’s going on?" I waved my hand in front of her face.

"El, that’s him—the reason I wanted your help..." Amelie nodded toward someone behind me. I was about to turn around when she stopped me.

"Don’t, El! Don’t turn around! He’ll notice I’m watching him," she whispered. Honestly, even if she spoke normally, the guy probably wouldn’t hear us.

Judging by her reaction, I was sure she was stalking a guy.

"El, do you think I’m pretty?" Amelie suddenly asked.

"What kind of question is that, Mel? Of course, you’re pretty!" I answered confidently.

"I’m scared he’ll reject me..." Amelie’s voice was sad and pleading.

"Reject you!? Did you already confess your feelings?" I looked at Amelie, who still had her head down, speaking softly.

She gave a bitter smile, shook her head, and sighed. "I wouldn’t dare. That’s why I wanted to ask for your help."

I could now guess what kind of help she needed.

"Let me guess—you want me to play matchmaker with the guy you’ve been watching. Am I right?"

I saw her blush and smile shyly. "How did you know, El?"

"It’s obvious! Your face gives it away, Mel."

"Really, El?"

"From your body language. From the way you whispered. Even though he wouldn’t hear us anyway."

Amelie giggled, trying to cover her face.

"El, listen, it’s not a big favor. I just want to know his phone number."

Amelie kept pleading with her eyes, making me feel both sad and sympathetic.

"Hmm, just his number, right?"

Amelie nodded quickly. "Yes, just his number—if you don’t mind." Her face looked anxious.

"Alright then. After you finish your fruit salad, I’ll get his number for you. How about that? Deal?"

Amelie nodded excitedly. "Deal, El, totally!"

So I agreed to help Amelie. At first, I thought she needed help with college stuff. Turns out I was wrong—she’s got a crush. I never expected a guy could make Amelie this shy.

As I walked toward the guy in question...

***