The Heart System

Chapter 738: Chapter 738

Come to think of it, I seemed to run into her in the middle of the night pretty often. It happened enough that I couldn’t help wondering if she had trouble sleeping.

”You have problems sleeping?” I asked.

”Eh, I’ve always been like this.” She shrugged. ”I just randomly wake up in the middle of the night. I don’t really know why.”

”I used to wake up like that back at my old apartment.” I smiled. ”Though, mine was because of the heat. I’d wake up completely drenched in sweat.”

”Thank fuck heat isn’t a problem here.” She shook her head. ”My old apartment barely got any airflow. During summer it felt like an oven.”

”I remember mine. I thought I was going to melt half the time.”

She laughed.

”I’m glad we’re here now.”

”Me too.”

”When you first told us everything that happened with Guy, I honestly thought we were screwed.” She looked around the living room with a small smile. ”Then somehow you came out on top and got us this penthouse.”

”That’s me, baby.”

She rolled her eyes. ”Yeah... I guess that’s you, baby.”

We sat there for a while, quietly finishing our orange juice. The apartment was peaceful, with nothing but the faint hum of the air conditioner breaking the silence.

A few moments later, Mik stretched, let out a sleepy little yawn, and hopped onto Tessa’s lap. Tessa smiled immediately and began scratching behind the cat’s ears. Mik purred happily and curled into a fluffy little ball, clearly deciding that Tessa’s lap was the best place in the apartment.

I watched the two of them for a moment before checking the time on my phone.

It was getting late. Or rather, early. I had work today, and I still had to figure out what I was going to do about Tuck and Mel.

I drained the last of my orange juice and set the empty glass on the coffee table. ”We should probably get some sleep.”

Tessa glanced at the clock before nodding. ”Yeah. We should.”

We both stood up.

As we passed each other, I leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. ”Good night.”

She looked at me with an amused little smirk. ”Night, cowboy.”

Still smiling, she headed back toward the hallway with Mik trotting after her, while I followed a few steps behind, hoping I’d finally be able to get at least a couple hours of sleep.

⟁ ⟁ ⟁

A gentle tap on my shoulder woke me up.

I lifted my head off the desk and rubbed my eyes. Shit... I actually fell asleep on my first day back at work. Well, after everything that happened yesterday in that Dungeon, I guess it was to be expected. Damn... a real goblin beating me with a club. That still felt surreal.

”Evan?”

I looked up to see who’d woken me.

Amelia.

She had her usual sharp glasses on, along with that same serious expression. One hand rested on her hip while the other was still on my shoulder as she leaned over my desk, giving me a glimpse of cleavage she probably hadn’t intended.

”Oh... hey.” I rubbed my eyes again. ”Sorry.”

”It’s fine.” She smiled faintly. ”I didn’t know you were back.”

”Well, I am. Damn... I should probably go wash my face.”

”You probably should.”

As she stepped back, I got a better look at her.

She looked different.

Not different exactly, just... exhausted. Dark circles had settled under her eyes, and her shoulders were slumped as though she hadn’t gotten a proper night’s sleep in days. She’d always looked a little tired, but never like this.

”You okay?” I asked.

”I am.” She straightened up and let her arms rest by her sides. ”Just... don’t worry about it.”

Right.

Maybe it had something to do with that old man claiming to be her father. Whatever it was, I didn’t want to push, so I leaned back in my chair and rubbed the back of my head.

”How’s the driving going?”

”It’s going well.” She nodded. ”I’ve actually been learning a lot online. Parallel parking and things like that.”

”You’re learning to drive from the internet?”

She shrugged.

”I’m a visual learner. Though... I wouldn’t say no to a few more driving lessons.”

I chuckled. ”Yeah, I figured. Want to go now?”

”Sure.” She hesitated for a second. ”Won’t the boss get angry?”

I shook my head. ”Nah. She won’t. Come on.”

”Alright.”

I got up from my chair, and the two of us headed toward the elevators. Standing side by side, Amelia pressed the button, and we waited quietly for the elevator to arrive.

While we waited, I stole another glance at her. She still looked completely drained.

”Jack Hitch, was it?” I asked.

She looked surprised for a moment before quietly exhaling. ”Yeah.”

”Was Jack his real name?”

”No.”

The elevator doors slid open, and she stepped inside.

”I don’t really want to talk about him.”

”Sure. No problem.”

”Yeah... sorry.”

The ride down to the ground floor was awkward. Neither of us spoke, and the questions I’d asked seemed to linger between us. Amelia kept her eyes fixed on the elevator wall, and I had a feeling she was regretting accepting my offer.

”I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” I said. ”Sorry.”

”No, Evan.” She finally looked at me. ”You didn’t do anything wrong. I just don’t like talking about him.”

”Fair enough.”

She nodded. ”I just... don’t like him. That’s all.”

A soft chime echoed through the elevator as the doors opened.

We stepped out and walked across the lobby toward the automatic glass doors. After heading outside, we made our way down the front steps and into the parking lot.

I walked over to my car, unlocked it, and tossed the keys to Amelia.

She caught them without any trouble. ”You sure?”

”Yep. Driver’s seat.”

She nodded and climbed behind the wheel while I took the passenger seat.

Instead of starting the engine, she adjusted everything first. The seat moved forward, then back again. She adjusted the height, fixed both mirrors, repositioned the steering wheel, checked the rearview mirror one more time, and only then rested her hands on the wheel.

I waited patiently.

When she finally stopped moving, I smiled. ”Finished?”

Her ears turned slightly red.

”Oh... sorry. I just don’t want to leave anything to chance.”

I laughed. ”Yeah, I get it. Go ahead and start the car. We’ll just drive around the parking lot for a bit, then you can try some of that parallel parking you’ve been studying online.”

A small smile appeared on her face.

It was rare enough that I almost missed it. ”Let’s hope it goes well.”