With Rebella cleared of suspicion, Jason Luo finally felt at ease. The three of them set out again, ready to enjoy a carefree day together.
Taking two girls out was no small task—Jason basically became their full-time attendant. Universal Studios was enormous, and under Catherine's infectious enthusiasm, Grace completely let loose.
They posed for pictures with zombies, screamed their lungs out in the haunted house, laughed while riding a life-sized dinosaur, and played pretend as princesses in a medieval castle. For Grace, it was easily the happiest day of her life.
As for Catherine, her energy was focused entirely on teasing Jason Luo. One minute she sent him to buy ice cream, the next she demanded donuts. Finally, she faked twisting her ankle and threw a fit until Jason Luo carried her on his back.
Grace, seeing this, decided to imitate her and begged to be carried too, like a mischievous little sister. Catherine was so annoyed she called her a "little lightbulb" for getting in the way.
Truth was, all three of them were still young. Once they relaxed and had fun, their playful sides surfaced completely.
Universal Studios was far too big to see everything. When they finally tired themselves out, Catherine led them to watch a 3D movie.
After a full day of excitement, Grace—who wasn't used to so much activity—was completely exhausted. She fell asleep in the car on the way home, and Jason had to carry her inside.
Catherine, however, was still buzzing with energy. Luckily, Henry Luo had left dinner for them. It was Catherine's first time trying home-style cooking. Since she couldn't use chopsticks, she had to eat with a fork, and Jason kept serving her food, which delighted her to no end.
The dishes quickly won her over, though Catherine couldn't handle spice at all. Even the tiniest piece of green chili in a salad had her sweating buckets. Yet, stubborn as ever, she refused to back down—the spicier it got, the more she insisted on eating. Jason had to keep a glass of water ready so she could rinse her mouth.
After dinner, drenched in sweat, Catherine ran off to shower. Henry Luo finally seized the opportunity to pull Jason aside and lower his voice.
"Son, that girl's pretty and seems nice enough, but look—she can't even eat the kind of food we usually have. Are you sure you two could really live together long term?"
"Dad, we're really just friends. As for the future, I don't know. We can't judge people over small differences like that. Besides, she's helped me a lot, and she's genuinely kind."
Henry sighed. "Alright, I can't argue with you. But I'll keep my opinion. Just make sure you know what you're doing."
"Don't worry. Honestly, I'm not thinking about romance right now. But… never mind. I'll find a time to talk to her properly tomorrow."
Henry nodded. "Son, when it comes to feelings, you have to know when to stop. Otherwise, you'll only hurt yourself and others. Think it through carefully. I won't pressure you—if you truly care for each other, I won't stand in your way."
Jason nodded silently. He really did need to think it over. Catherine was a good person, but her personality was very different from his, and that could easily lead to conflict later on. It wasn't anything they couldn't work through, but it was something he needed to consider seriously.
...
The next morning, as Jason started his usual early training, he was surprised to see Catherine appear as well. Seeing his puzzled look, she smiled.
"What are you staring at? We do morning workouts too! Come on, let's run a couple of laps—see who's faster!"
Before he could reply, she took off running.
Only then did Jason remember—she was an athlete too. He hurried after her, but she was fast. He chased her for two kilometers and still couldn't catch up!
After a while, Catherine stopped, grinning. "Champion boxer, looks like your speed needs work!"
Jason finally caught up, breathing steadily. "Yeah, my morning runs focus on lung capacity and breath control. Speed isn't my priority. I didn't expect a rich young lady like you to keep up this kind of training."
Catherine laughed. "This? It's nothing! I've got plenty of hobbies—motorcycle racing, swimming, all of it. My dad always said, if you love something, chase it like crazy. That's how you stay true to yourself."
As she spoke, she looked at Jason with a soft, intent gaze. Her eyes glimmered with emotion, and her slightly parted lips made Jason lose focus for a moment.
He mentally scolded himself for being weak and quickly broke away from her gaze. "Ahem… so, what's the plan today? How about the amusement park?"
Catherine smirked, clearly enjoying his flustered reaction. "No way! I want something more exciting. Why don't you take me to your gym? I want to see how you train."
Jason shook his head immediately. He'd already let her take over his house—there was no way he'd let her invade his training ground too.
But if he refused, she'd insist anyway. What to do?
Suddenly, he remembered the kickboxing gym he'd visited before. "Wait. I finally got a day off—it'd be boring to go back to training. How about this: I'll take you somewhere else. It's kind of my hobby, and you might actually like it."
"Oh? And where's that?"
"It's a kickboxing gym. There are experts there who practice all kinds of fighting arts—judo, taekwondo, karate, aikido, sanda, Muay Thai. Everyone exchanges techniques. It's pretty fun!"
Catherine's eyes lit up. "Exchange techniques? You mean fighting?"
"Uh… we call it sparring."
"Hehe, same thing! Perfect. Let's go there!"
She grabbed his hand and took off running back the way they came.
...
It was still early when they arrived. Inside, Coach Datchai was leading his students through warm-ups. Seeing Jason walk in with a girl, he looked pleasantly surprised.
"Haha, Jason Luo! I've been keeping up with your matches since your last visit. Nicely done! I heard you just won again—not easy!"
Jason gave him a respectful fist salute. "I learned a lot from you last time. I'm sorry to bother you again with another unannounced visit."
"Hah, no bother at all! I told you—you're welcome anytime. And who's this young lady?"
"Oh, she's a friend from afar. She's also an athlete and really into combat sports, so I brought her to observe and learn."
Datchai studied Catherine thoughtfully. "Good physique. What kind of martial arts do you practice?"
That caught Catherine off guard. "Hello, I'm a rugby player. I've never trained in martial arts."
Datchai paused, a hint of regret on his face. "What a pity. You'd make a great judo practitioner. But I suppose it's normal—football's way more popular in America. Not many girls train in martial arts."
Catherine's eyes widened. "You mean I'd be good at judo?"
Datchai nodded with a grin. But then Catherine asked another unexpected question. "Is judo strong? Stronger than boxing?"
The coach glanced meaningfully at both Jason and Catherine. "Extremely strong. In fact, it's designed to counter boxing. Haha… young lady, your beauty alone could defeat any opponent!"