A meow startled Sydney Sawyer wide awake. Timmy Lockwood had already jumped off the bed.
The girl and the cat stared at each other.
'This is Sebastian Lockwood's cat, so this must be his home. Did I sleep here last night?'
AHHH—
The string in Sydney Sawyer's mind instantly snapped. She had absolutely no idea how she'd gotten from the dinner table to Sebastian Lockwood's bed. Instinctively, her first reaction was to check her clothes.
Nothing seemed out of place. Her nerves eased slightly.
She tried to calm herself down, but just then, the bedroom door was pushed open.
Sebastian Lockwood stood in the doorway, looking her over. "You're awake? How are you feeling?"
'Feeling?'
'I feel like I'm about to die.'
"I... Last night..."
"What? You don't remember?"
Sydney Sawyer frowned. "What am I supposed to remember?"
"What do you think?"
The eyes behind his lenses were deep and dark, and when they stared intently at a person, they exuded an oppressive feeling.
For some reason, Sydney Sawyer felt intimidated. She lowered her head guiltily and began to agonize over what she could have possibly done to him last night.
'Did I... force myself on him? Take advantage of him?'
"Go wash up and come out for breakfast. The slippers are new." With that, Sebastian Lockwood thoughtfully closed the door.
Sydney Sawyer's mind was a mess, but she could only force herself to act calm as she threw back the covers and got out of bed. Beside the bed was a pair of light pink women's slippers. 'New shoes?'
She was a lightweight; normally, a few small sips were no problem.
But last night, Donovan Sheridan had coaxed and tricked her into mixing red and white wine, and she'd quickly lost consciousness.
The last time she'd gotten drunk was after confessing her feelings to Sebastian Lockwood. To celebrate her recovery and discharge from the hospital, a few of her roommates had taken her out, and after dinner, they'd gone to karaoke.
There was alcohol on the table in the private karaoke room. She'd been feeling down, and since they say alcohol drowns your sorrows, she had dragged her roommates along, ready to drink her troubles away.
In the end, she drank too much, hugged the microphone, and shouted Sebastian Lockwood's name all night. She even put a song on for him titled "You'll Come to a Bad End" and played it on a loop for the rest of the night.
When she was leaving the next day, a karaoke attendant had even smiled at her and said:
"To make you this heartbroken, that Sebastian Lockwood guy must be a real scumbag."
Ever since then, Sydney Sawyer would take a detour whenever she passed that karaoke bar, never daring to set foot inside again.
...
The room's layout was the same. The master bedroom had an en suite bathroom where a new toothbrush and towel were already laid out. But her mind was a tangled mess, leaving her no capacity to consider anything else. She grabbed her phone to text Donovan Sheridan.
They had added each other as friends while drinking last night.
[Mr. Shaw?]
[I'm here.]
Sydney Sawyer frowned. [What happened last night? How did I end up sleeping at my uncle's house?]
[You drank too much. Your uncle took you home.]
[He took me?]
[I don't know where you live. Besides, we're not related or anything, so it wouldn't be appropriate—an unmarried man and woman alone. Your uncle is practically family, so it's no big deal to sleep at his place for a night. Unless... did something happen?]
[No, I was just asking. I drank a lot last night and my memory is a little hazy.] Sydney Sawyer immediately denied it.
[Is that so? You messaging me first thing in the morning made me think something happened.]
Donovan Sheridan sighed. 'Nothing actually happened?'
'Is Sebastian Lockwood really that much of a gentleman?'
'Is he even capable!'
***
Sydney Sawyer tried to carefully recall the events of last night. She vaguely remembered Sebastian Lockwood whispering in her ear that he wanted to be her boyfriend, but it was all tangled up with her dreams, and she couldn't tell what was real and what she had imagined.
After dazedly washing up, she walked out of the bedroom to find breakfast already on the table. On the living room floor were many wooden planks of varying lengths, along with screws and some tools.
"It's a cat tree I bought for Timmy a while ago. I just haven't had time to assemble it," Sebastian Lockwood explained. "You drank so much last night. Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?"
"No." Sydney Sawyer shook her head.
"Let's eat."
Sydney Sawyer had only ever dreamed of having breakfast at the same table as Sebastian Lockwood. Although the breakfast was sumptuous, she couldn't taste a thing, her eyes constantly stealing glances at the man sitting across from her.
He wore a dress shirt and black pants, the top few buttons of his collar undone, looking effortlessly refined.
Perhaps because her glances had become too frequent, Sebastian Lockwood put down his chopsticks and looked at her. "What's wrong? Is the breakfast not to your liking?"
"No, it's delicious."
"Then why aren't you eating? Why do you keep staring at me?"
Sebastian Lockwood was exactly her type. To her, even a single glance from him felt like blatant seduction. Sydney ducked her head, not daring to look at him again, which in turn caused the corners of his lips to curl up in an unconscious smile.
'This girl's the same as ever. So easy to tease.'
After the meal, Sebastian Lockwood naturally began to clear the dishes, while Sydney Sawyer sat on the sofa hugging Timmy Lockwood, feeling like she was on pins and needles.
'I feel so guilty. I want to go home, but it doesn't feel right. It would be rude to just run off after sleeping over and mooching breakfast.'
She secretly texted her friend, seeking tactical support.
Her friend replied:
[You spent the night at his place and *just* slept?]
[I don't remember.]
[Sydney Sawyer, knowing you, you definitely did something. You probably clung to his leg and begged him to take you home.]
[...]
[Relax. As long as you're sure you didn't sleep with him, I think the situation is salvageable.]
Just then, her phone rang. It was a call from Jane Spencer. Timmy Lockwood jumped out of her arms as she picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Are you awake? Are you at home? How are your allergies?"
Ever since she learned about the allergies, Jane Spencer had been calling every day to check in.
"I'm home. Didn't I already tell you? They cleared up a few days ago."
"You still need to be careful. Keep avoiding those foods for a few more days..."
After jumping down, Timmy Lockwood started batting at the screw caps on the floor. Sebastian Lockwood came out of the kitchen, saw what the cat was doing, and chided in a low voice, "Timmy Lockwood!"
Timmy Lockwood scurried obediently back to his cat bed, but Jane Spencer heard the voice on the other end of the line.
Although she couldn't make out the words, she could clearly tell it was a man's voice. Jane Spencer immediately grew wary and asked, "Who are you with so early in the morning?"
Sydney Sawyer panicked. She had just said she was home, so it would be inappropriate to say anyone else was there with her.
A sudden idea flashed through her mind, and she said:
"My dad. He brought me breakfast."
Thinking it was nice that Edwin Sawyer still knew how to show concern for his daughter, Jane Spencer didn't press the issue.
After hanging up, Sydney Sawyer's eyes met Sebastian Lockwood's.
His gold-rimmed glasses glinted. The corners of his lips curved into a smile that was both casual and teasing. "Hmm? 'Dad'?"
Sydney Sawyer timidly lowered her head, her heart pounding with guilt.
'Her only regret was that his windows were sealed shut. If she could jump from here, she'd surely die on the spot.'