Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

He was definitely not a pro at this.

His movements were awkward, sure, but the real kicker was his method of squeezing dish soap on each and every bowl and plate. Under Roseanne's bewildered gaze, he looked up with an innocent expression and asked, "Isn't this how it's done?" Roseanne was speechless.

"If you don't mind, maybe you could show me?" Corley cleared his throat. "Back when I lived abroad, I usually only used a couple of dishes at a time, so I'd just put a little soap on each..."

"There's really no set way to do dishes, and there's more than one way to use dish soap. It varies from person to person. The main thing is to get the dishes clean. However..."

She shifted gears, "From a conservation standpoint, it might be better to squirt some soap into the water, dissolve it, and then use a sponge to wash everything. Rinse with clean water afterward, dry them off, and you're set."

"Is that how it's done..." Corley listened and followed her instructions.

Just as he was about to dissolve the dish soap in water, Roseanne suddenly spoke up -

"Wait!"

Corley stopped.

"Use hot water."

"Oh, right!"

After cleaning up, the two lingered for a bit before noticing it was getting late. They said their goodbyes to Madeleine.

Corley: "I drove here. Need a lift?"

The subway had stopped running by that hour.

Roseanne wasn't one to play coy. "Thanks, that'd be great."

They got in the car.

Corley said, "I'd actually prefer if you called me 'senior' or just Corley. Or you could just use my first name?"

"Sure thing, Mr. Sullivan."

"...Are you doing this on purpose?"

Roseanne feigned innocence: "Just habit, I guess. Hard to break."

"Fine, call me whatever you like."

He was determined, though. One day, he'd make her willingly change how she addressed him.

...

Half an hour later, they reached College Road.

Roseanne: "Just drop me at the entrance to Kingswell University."

"You're not going home?"

"Need to stop by the lab. Got some data analysis that can't wait." "Alright then."

He didn't pry further, just stopped the car at the university entrance.

Roseanne got out, thanking him again.

Corley just waved: "Take care on your way."

"Will do."

By the time Roseanne reached the lab, it was already 10 p.m.

After waiting for the data to process and tidying up her workspace, it was nearly midnight. She turned off the lights, checked that everything was powered down, and locked up.

Lumina City was just entering its pre-summer rainy season. It been drizzling non-stop for

e of days. Content bet

Under the glow of the streetlights, the rain looked like fine threads.

It was late, and the streets were nearly empty, with just the occasional car passing by.

The already dark night felt even more secluded.

Roseanne opened her umbrella and stepped into the rain.

The silence was so profound, she could only hear her footsteps.

Halfway home, a gust of wind carrying droplets of rain suddenly picked up, and a cat's wail echoed from a corner.

Startled, Roseanne nearly let her

umbrella fly away. Saged to catch it, but not before

drenched on one side.

Then, footsteps sounded from behind her.

?x

They were the dull thuds of men's shoes on the asphalt.

At first, Roseanne didn't think much

of it. But then she noticed: when she sped

up, the footsteps behind herAll content is property © NôvelDrama.Org.

quickened; when she

they slowed as well.wed down,

Someone was following her!