Pick-up Lines
Helen broke into a relieved smile. “See, Heidi? James may seem like a brute at times, but he means
well. Your troubles are ours to shoulder as well. Now, all you have to do is stay here and get some rest.
Matthew happens to be the department director here, so you can look for him if you need any help.” With
that, she turned to her husband and said, “James, I won’t be going home tonight. I’ll be staying here with
my sister.”
James chortled. “That’s fine by me. I have nothing much to do for the next few days anyway, so I’ll get
groceries and make you some soup, Heidi. By the way, Matthew, I’ll be the one handling the medical
expenses on Heidi’s behalf. Have the check sent to me.”
Heidi gaped at him. “James—”
He cut her off bluntly. “Will you stay quiet? It’s not as if I can’t pay the bill. I’m no Scrooge, you know!
Matthew, don’t you and Sasha dare pay a single cent for Heidi’s expenses. I’ll be the one covering
them, got it?”
Matthew and Sasha exchanged a brief glance, and they were clearly elated to see how much James had
changed for the better. They had come a long way to witness this shift in his demeanor, after all.
It was only after James had made his intentions clear that he waved his hand and said, “Alright then, get
some rest, Heidi. I’ll go back and get started on that soup. Helen, be sure to take good care of your
sister, okay?” Then, he turned on his heels and left the room.
Tears welled up in Helen’s eyes, and her heart twisted with newfound gratitude for her brother-in-law.
Helen, on the other hand, offered up words of solace. “There, you’ve completely misunderstood James.
He’s a good man at heart. Whatever happened with Chloe and Norman was entirely their fault; they were
the ones who crossed the line first. That’s enough crying now, Heidi. You get some rest, and I’ll be right
here. Matthew, Sasha, the both of you can leave and get back to your work now.”
Having heard this, Matthew and Sasha walked out of the room.
Sasha broke the silence with a small sigh. “Heidi loves Leia more than anyone else; she lives for her.
How could the girl do something like this?”
Matthew sighed as well. If he had to be honest, Leia’s angst and rebellion were by-products of Heidi’s
overindulgent parenting.
Sasha’s musings on the subject lasted only a few lines, after which she did not linger in the hospital and
instead walked down the stairs to leave.
She had parked her car out in the yard, and when she arrived, she saw that there were several figures
hovering near her vehicle. From where she stood, she could see two girls standing by her car, posing for
photos.
One of the girls then proceeded to perch on the bonnet, thereafter putting on several more poses.
Sasha frowned at this. Okay, it’s one thing for you to take photos with my car, but to sit on it for the sake
of looking good for the camera is just plain rude! With that in mind, she sauntered over and pressed on
her car key to unlock the doors, which was just another way for her to ask these people to leave.
Several heads turned at that moment, and when the young men registered Sasha’s presence, their eyes
lit up with interest.
“Wow, there’s a hottie coming our way!”
“Damn, so this is what they mean by rich, young, and pretty. Look at her outfit! It’s entirely designer. And
look at her car—it’s a luxury ride!”
“Having a hottie like her as a girlfriend would be a complete dream come true!”
“Okay, stop, let’s try getting her number first…”
The men were whispering among themselves as Sasha approached. One of them—the better-looking
one of the lot—had an ambitious gleam in his eyes.
He waited until Sasha was drawing close to the car before he quickly walked up to her, then rushed to
block the driver’s side door just as she was about to open it. With a crooked smile on his face, he blew
his hair away from his brows and stared at her keenly.
Sasha, however, merely frowned and took a wary step back.
The young man was clearly pleased with himself as he kept his gaze on her and drawled, “Hey,
gorgeous. Have I seen you somewhere before?”
She glowered at him coldly.
Slightly embarrassed by her indifference, he let out a dry laugh and continued, “Oh, I remember now.
You’re the girl in my dreams!”
His friends started wolf-whistling from where they stood by the side, as if boosting his morale.
Sasha didn’t even bother answering him and instead regarded him with a freezing look.
At the sight of this, he grinned and went on with his pick-up lines. “I was feeling a little off today.”
“Clearly,” she pointed out witheringly.
He laughed and said, “But then you turned me on again!”
His friends once again erupted into a round of earnest wolf-whistling. The two girls who had been taking
photos with Sasha’s car earlier crooned, “Wow, he’s so smooth!”
“How can anyone be so charming?”
“If he said that to me, I would have married him on the spot!”
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