While Khalid was still working in the office, Grandma Grant made him a call to ask why he hadn’t
returned home.
Khalid replied with deep voice, “I got a lot of work to do. So I need to work overtime tonight.”
Grandma Grant sighed, “Alright, I am left at home alone again. Both Marshall and Kathy don’t intend to
return. And nor do you. I don’t even have someone to talk to during dinner.”
Khalid smiled awkwardly, “But we seldom talk during dinner, right?”
Grandma Grant replied, “That was what happened in the old days. Now it’s different.”
Khalid was about to continue. But he held it back.
Different? So what was the difference exactly?
Grandma Grant then grumbled for a while, telling him to take care and remember to have dinner on
time.
Khalid nodded. But he looked a bit distracted when staring at the take-out food that had got cold.
After hanging up the phone, he leaned on the chair and gave out a long sigh.
The food had been delivered to his desk hours ago. But he felt no appetite to take it.
After a while, he took out his phone again and started to randomly look it through.
Then he noticed what Marshall posted on the social media.
It was pretty rare to see him post something. So Khalid carefully focused on it.
It was a post with a picture, in which there shown that they were having dinner together.
Katherine and Frances sat next to each other while chatting with happy smile.
Khalid suddenly recalled the man he saw at noon.
His name…should be Nicolas, he supposed.
But his name was too mediocre to be impressive. And so was his look.
Khalid fixed his eyes on the picture again and again, feeling less motivated to work on those files.
Actually, he wanted to call Marshall to ask what he was doing while pretending that he hadn’t seen the
picture he posted.
But his soberness still remained. He knew himself that he still needed to work here even after he made
such a call.
The more he thought about it, the more disturbed he was rendered.
He put away his phone upside down and closed the file folder.
The distraught feelings stopped his motivation to keep working.
Sitting for a while, he heard his phone buzzing.
He hurried to grab it to check. But then he paused and looked a bit upset.
It was a call from Cora.
Actually, he didn’t wanna pick it up. But he still swiped to answer it after hesitating for seconds. After all,
he was now being too distraught to work.
He could hear the sound of TV through the phone. So Cora might be watching TV at home, he
supposed.
Cora asked what he was doing. Khalid breathed out to answer, “I am working overtime.”
Cora paused, “You are still in the office? Have you had dinner?”
Khalid took a look at the cold food, saying yes.
Cora nodded, “Just leave the work tomorrow. Don’t get yourself exhausted if it’s not urgently needed.”
Actually, most of his work was not that urgent. But he would work alone in the office rather than stay at
home alone, which got him even more disturbed.
He preferred to kill time by working.
Khalid nodded and asked if Cora had something else to talk about.
Actually she did have something to discuss with him. But after some consideration, she said that was
all.
She claimed that she made this call to kill time only. And she would like to leave him back to work since
he was still busy.
After saying that, she hung up.
Khalid put down his phone, slightly rotated the chair and leaned on it. Then he looked outside the
window with his hands resting on his laps in cross.
The night view of the city looked bustling. But his heart still remained cold and gloomy.
Even he himself had no idea how long he had been sitting alone in the office. Then he checked the
time and noticed that it was time to go home.
It would probably be late enough to go to sleep after he returned home and finished a shower.
He simply cleaned up his desk and was about to leave.
As soon as he stepped out of the elevator, he paused as he happened to see Cora entered the lobby
from the outside with a thermal box in her hand.
She breathed a sigh of relief when seeing Khalid, “I am afraid if you have left before I arrive. Thank
god, I didn’t come in vain.”
She then lifted the thermal box, “I got some soup for you.”
Khalid frowned slightly while staring at her, “Why are you here? It’s so late.”
Cora smiled, “You must have eaten take-out food as you worked late tonight. I don’t think it’s tasty
enough to suffice your appetite. So I cook you something delicious.”
Cora looked around and found couch and table in the lobby, “If you may, just try some. I have been
working on this for hours. Don’t let it get in vain.”
Since then, Khalid had to agree.
He then sat on a couch with Cora.
Cora opened the box, in which there stored some soup.
Cora poured him a bowl of soup and handed it to him, “Have a try. See if it tastes good. That’s my
speciality.”
Actually, Khalid had lost his appetite because of his down mood. But when he took a sip of it, he felt
much more appetitive.
He nodded, “It tastes exactly good and not greasy.”
Cora smiled, “I am glad you like it. My efforts pay off.”
They talked about the business and then Khalid finished the box of soup.
He put down the empty box, “Thank you for coming in such a long distance.”
Cora put away the thermal box, “It’s okay. After all, I feel so bored that I wanna get myself something to
do. And it didn’t take me too long to get here.”
After sitting for a while, both of them stood up and left.
Khalid then drove her home. While he was driving, Cora mentioned that she fancied learning to do
bakery. So she asked what bakery Khalid favored the most so that she would get him some when she
finished.
Suddenly, it rendered Khalid his impression on Frances.
As she had been once spoiled in the family, she was an inapt cook.
But there was once upon a time when she wanna do bakery.
But she ended up messing the kitchen and failed to make anything eatable, which annoyed herself a
lot.
At the thought of that, Khalid couldn’t help smiling.
Cora paused while looking at him, “What’s wrong? What are you smiling at?”
Khalid suddenly paused and collected himself. He hurried to explain, “Nothing. I suddenly recalled
something funny in the past.”
Cora paused again and stared at him, “Really? Does it have something to do with bakery?”
Khalid nodded instinctively, which rendered her a bit upset.
He must be thinking of Frances, she reckoned.
Then both of them fell into silence.
The car then stopped at the gate of Cora’s home. She got off and hesitated while looking back at
Khalid, “I know there will be a movie released. I fancy watching it. But going to the cinema alone is so
boring. Khalid, do you have time to go with me?”
Khalid sighed, “You know how busy I have been recently. I suggest you ask somebody else to go with
you. I am afraid I will be occupied during these days.”
Seconds later, she nodded with her lips pressed, “Well, I’d better stay at home. You know I don’t have
many friends. And I don’t like to watch movie alone.”
Khalid replied with a smile while looking at her.
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