Hearing her voice, Julius Goodman, who was tidying up behind the counter, looked up. His eyes, as beautiful as glazed glass, sparkled with a gentle, slightly elated tone. "Ava, what brings you here?"
Ava Kent tilted her head, a smile appearing on her face. "I have something to discuss with you. Are you off work?"
Julius Goodman glanced at the shop that was not yet fully cleaned up. "Almost done, just wait for me a bit."
Seeing they knew each other, Kane Sears raised his eyebrows and teased, "Julius, you're quite something. Where did you find such a pretty little sister? She's even come looking for you!"
"Kane, it's not what you think."
Julius Goodman smiled wryly, quickly finishing the task at hand, removed his gloves, and politely said goodbye to him, "Everything inside has been tidied up. Ava has something for me to do, so I'll leave first. Could you please close the store later?"
"Sure, go ahead."
Kane Sears waved his hand, his eyes still filled with gossip as he watched them.
Julius Goodman came out and saw her still staring at Kane Sears. He waved his hand in front of her face, "What are you looking at? Snap out of it."
Ava Kent withdrew her gaze and shook her head. "It's nothing, let's go."
Julius Goodman needed to get the car, and Ava Kent had no choice but to follow.
Walking side by side, Julius Goodman would occasionally steal a glance at her, with a slight smile on his attractive thin lips.
"What made you think of coming to our shop?"
"I just wanted to see where you work."
Ava Kent walked with her hands in her coat pockets, stepping on the cobblestones, and occasionally hopping on the uneven parts, looking much more playful than the properly walking Julius Goodman beside her.
She really enjoyed such a carefree and relaxed feeling.
Her previous life lasted 28 years, but looking back, she realizes she was happiest before meeting Baron Roan. She truly enjoyed the present moments.
Speaking, she took out an Alpine lollipop from her pocket and handed it to Julius Goodman with a grin.
"Right, to thank you for taking me to school this morning, here's something for you."
"Am I really of age to still be eating sweets?" Julius Goodman smiled wryly but took the lollipop nonetheless.
He glanced at the red packaging and said, "Next time, buy the cola flavor."
Ava Kent: "..." Didn't you say you don't eat candy?
"By the way, Julius, are you close with that person from earlier?" Ava Kent probed.
"You mean Kane?" Julius Goodman thought for a moment and said, "He's quite nice, always looks after me. He's a pretty decent guy."
Ava Kent pursed her lips, thinking that it's because he currently doesn't see you as a threat.
Julius Goodman stopped in his tracks and seriously looked at her, "Ava, why did you suddenly ask about him? Is there a problem?"
Ava Kent forced a smile. "It's nothing, just felt his gaze on me earlier was odd and I didn't like it."
Bang—
The sudden noise startled Ava Kent.
Upon closer inspection, she realized it was the lollipop packaging that Julius Goodman had accidentally crushed.
Seeing her startled expression, Julius Goodman reached over to gently pat her on the head with a somewhat unnatural smile, "Sorry, did I scare you?"
"It's fine." Ava Kent shook her head.
Julius Goodman pointed to a milk tea shop up ahead, "Want to have a drink?"
Ava Kent, still a bit dazed, nodded subconsciously.
In her heart, she was pondering whether his sudden crushing of the candy wrapper was because of her words.
Was he bothered?
Hmm!
Exactly!
Julius Goodman casually bought her a milk tea, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
Ava Kent thought that this guy indeed had the potential of becoming a villain.
Though he appeared gentle and harmless, there was a little beast hidden inside waiting to explode unexpectedly.
Maybe this was how the original author designed his character—clean and pure like a neighborly brother, then turning into a mad, ruthless villain. Because his early gentle demeanor was so heartening, the later transformation left a significant impact.
Realizing that the world she lived in was merely a fictional setting written by someone else made Ava Kent feel somewhat uncertain.
Does the original author know she has been reborn?
Will they modify this plot loophole?
While she was lost in thought, Julius Goodman had already fetched the car and handed over a lady's helmet to her.
Ava Kent bit the straw, a bit surprised. "When did you buy this?"
It wasn't there when she rode the car this morning.
Suddenly meeting her bright eyes, Julius Goodman turned away, slightly blushing. "Mom kept nagging about not feeling safe without a helmet when she rode the car."
Oh, so it was bought for your mom.
Ava Kent pouted, grabbed his arm, and climbed onto the bike's back seat. To avoid the mishap from the morning, she made sure to hold onto his waist the moment she sat steady.
Julius Goodman glanced at the hand around his waist, his ears turned even redder.
Pulling down the visor of his helmet, he cautioned before starting, "Sit tight and be careful not to fall."
"Mhm."
Ava Kent dutifully nodded and even moved the hand holding the milk tea a bit outward to prevent accidentally spilling it on him.
Passing by the Palmer Jade Store on the way back, they saw Kane Sears locking the door. Julius Goodman's gaze slightly hardened, and the curve of his pressed lips exuded a hint of chill.
When Jennifer Von returned home late in the evening, Julius Goodman had already dropped Ava Kent off, and she was still not off from work.
"Make sure to rest early once home, or you'll be too tired for class tomorrow." Julius Goodman reminded.
"Okay, I got it." Ava Kent smiled sweetly at him.
Julius Goodman's gaze flickered, quickly averting his eyes from her. He felt his cheeks grow warm.
Her smile was bright and radiant, just like the noonday sun, too dazzling to look at directly.
"I'm heading back."
"Bye-bye."
After seeing her off, Ava Kent took out her keys to unlock the door.
In the following days, Ava Kent went about her school routine, and once she settled into the new life pattern, she found time to visit the Rawstone Market.
The trip to the Rawstone Market was a bit long, taking almost an hour by bus.
Perhaps the author intended to make her the perfect white moonlight between the male protagonist and the villain, endowing her with a warm personality and an incredibly beautiful face, that leaves a lasting impression at first glance.
Most importantly, she was born with a golden finger.
In her previous life, she could sense whether there was jade in the raw stones, thus becoming a major asset to Baron Roan's career.
She wondered if she still possessed this ability in her reborn life.
Ava Kent circled the market twice and chose a raw material shop she frequently visited in her past life and had a great impression of.
The shop had a few scattered customers and a girl who seemed to be an influencer, accompanied by two assistants, with a phone live streaming. At this moment, she was eloquently discussing a piece of raw stone.
The shop staff watched from the side. When they saw Ava entering, they eagerly approached her as if spotting prey. "Hey little girl, you're into stones too, huh? Come over here and take a look. We just got a new batch of materials today. I'm sure you'll find something you like."