Joan lived downstairs. Her husband died of a heart attack two years ago, and her two daughters were
married and lived with their husbands. So, she was alone at home most of the time. On weekends, her
two daughters would bring their children to her house to spend time with her.
She knew that Rachel was a doctor. So, she went to Rachel whenever she had any health-related
problem. And because of this, they quickly became familiar with each other.
"Did you just get back, Joan?" Rachel asked her.
"Yes, I bought a pack of tissues from the supermarket. I have used up all the tissues at home," Joan
replied. She slightly raised the bag in her hand to show it to Rachel with a broad smile. "Were you just
calling your boyfriend, Rachel? You have such a sweet smile! And you look even more beautiful when
you are smiling."
"No, it's just a friend of mine," Rachel replied with a slight blush on her cheeks. But her words failed to
mask her true feelings as she reflexively moved her hand to touch her face. 'Was my smile really that
obvious?' she wondered.
Joan pointed at her eyes with a smile as she nodded at Rachel. "I may be old, but I can see them
clearly. Isn't the man who often visits you and picks you up your boyfriend? The two of you are a good
match."
Most of the old men that Rachel knew were like this, they loved talking endlessly.
Fortunately, the elevator arrived just in time. It dinged as it opened its doors to the two. Rachel placed a
hand on the door right away. "Joan, the elevator is here. Let's get in," she suggested.
Rachel opened the door of her apartment and entered. She then threw her keys on top of the cabinet at
the vestibule. Her cellphone suddenly rang once more. As soon as she answered the call, Lea's
excited voice came forth from her phone. "Rachel, guess where I am now."
"At home?" Rachel guessed. She brushed her hair with her fingers and set it on one side as she put on
her slippers. "Don't you always say that you have no freedom? That you are like a canary in a gilded
cage every day."
"Yes, I am at home. But do you know whose house I am at right now?" Lea asked. She walked around
the living room in circles with the phone in her hand. She then accidentally hit her foot on the tea table
near her, and she howled in pain. "Marcus! Why is this tea table so close?" she complained.
It sounded like she had never noticed the tea table before.
Rachel's heart immediately skipped a beat. "Lea, don't tell me that you have moved back to Ninwell
City!"
"Bingo!" Lea exclaimed. "You're really not stupid."
A short time later, Rachel pushed the baby stroller in the shopping mall while Lea picked up a bag of
fried chicken chops with one hand. She took a piece of bamboo stick with the other hand, poked a
piece and then brought it to her mouth. "This is so delicious, Rachel," she said with a smile. "Do you
know that I have never enjoyed delicious junk food since I became pregnant?"
"That kind of food has a large amount of reverse fatty acid. After frying it at high temperature, there will
be some harmful substances that can easily cause cancer," Rachel pointed out. It was a normal
conversation topic for them like talking about the weather.
Lea was used to the way Rachel spoke about food. So, she continued to put a big piece into her
mouth. "Then you don't get to eat," she mumbled as she chewed the food inside her filled mouth.
Rachel put a piece of fried chicken into her mouth too. "I suppose it's okay to eat a little of it
occasionally," she said with a shrug.
"Then why did you even say that?" Lea asked.
"Well, because it's common sense. Everyone should be responsible for what they eat," Rachel
reasoned.
"What? Do you really think I'm such an idiot when it comes to food?" Lea remarked.
The two of them kept talking, as if they were back to the times when they were younger and had fewer
cares. Lea threw the trash into a trash bin nearby, and walked straight towards Rachel. She then
grabbed her arm and held it tightly with a sigh. "It feels like we have never had a good conversation for
a very long time. I always felt a little restrained in the Qin family. And now, finally, I can really let it all
go," she confessed.
"And now that you're back, you can talk freely anytime you want to," Rachel said with a smile. Lea
smiled back at her.
"Yes. Definitely." Lea pointed at the furniture shop that they passed by on the right. "Let's go in and
have a look. The curtains in Henry's house look dull and ugly. I'm going to change all of them for him!"
After shopping for a day, the two of them bought a trunk-load of items. Rita had already fallen asleep in
Lea's arms. And this meant that the things that they bought would have to be moved from the car and
into the house by Rachel alone.
Even a carefree girl like Lea felt a little embarrassed. "Rachel, I think you should call Jack to help out. I
already texted Henry but he won't be back until later tonight," she said.
"Forget it. Let's get back home first," Rachel replied. She opened the door of the car for Lea. She went
to the driver's seat when Lea was comfortably seated and drove off. However, before the car reached
the gate of the community, she saw a familiar figure from a distance.
"Did you tell Jack?" Rachel asked.
"I really can't let you help me move those heavy things by yourself, Rachel," Lea admitted. "I didn't
expect you to arrive on time. I'm impressed." She waved her hand at him after she rolled down the
window of the car.
"I'm impressed by your purchasing ability. It seems that Henry has to work hard to make money," Jack
retorted jokingly as he pointed at the parking space nearby.
"Well, I think you are right," Lea said. She got out of the car and tapped Jack's shoulder. "Thank you for
taking care of the things in the car. I'll go ahead and go upstairs with Rita."
Rachel proceeded to open the trunk right away.
"There are a lot of items, really. We'd better get them all upstairs."
When she picked up something from the trunk to bring it upstairs, Jack immediately snatched it from
her. "Let me do this. You go ahead and go upstairs," he said.
"You don't have to carry everything. I can carry some of them with me upstairs.
This way,
you don't have to go up and down a lot," Rachel suggested.
She took the small decorations from the trunk and brought them with her.
She was about to press the elevator button when she heard Jack coughing from behind her.
She frowned at him and asked,
"Did you catch a cold?"
"I worked overtime at the company yesterday.
I might've caught a cold. I coughed several times earlier today,"
Jack replied back to her.
He coughed a few more times and stepped back reflexively to keep his distance from Rachel and avoid
infecting her.
When he saw that Rachel turned her head and looked at him in confusion,
he felt that he had to explain why he stepped away from her. "I think I have a cold.
I'm afraid that I might infect you.
I stepped away to keep my distance from you and not get you infected," he explained.
"I'm not that easy to infect,
you know.
I'm not a newborn baby anymore,"
Rachel point out.
She reached out to pull the edge of his sleeve
and got him by her side. Jack stared at her hand that held his sleeve. She had not yet retracted it back
yet.
It made him smile warmly.
"Don't overthink it.
I just think it's too strange for you to stand away from me like that,"
Rachel explained.
Jack lowered his head with the same smile on his lips.
"Why is it so strange?"
he asked.
Nothing.
I just find it a little strange,"
Rachel replied casually.
She turned her face away
and gritted her teeth.
'Was I too impulsive just now?'
she thought to herself as she wondered about what she did.
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