"I’m from Falkirk, you?"
"Livingston, quite far from Falkirk."
"What about Miss Karin?" William turns his gaze to the left.
"Oh, I’m from London, even farther."
"Haven’t you two graduated yet?"
Billie answers in a rush, "We have graduated from master programs, and now studying for PhD. Degree."
William smiles, "Great, quite ambitious."
"Ambitious? If it weren’t for…" She thinks for a while and swallows the rest of her words.
"For what?"
"Nothing."
William stops asking and points to the counter in the front and says, "Would you like to drink something?"
"Anything except alcohol." Karin says first.
"What about Miss Billie?"
"Oh, don’t call us Miss. It sounds weird. It’s a fate that we’ve met. Just call us by our names."
Billie has a cheerful personality, and she doesn’t like to address others as Mr. or Miss.
"Okay."
The waiter starts serving the dishes, and William says, "Bring us some bottles of beer and other drinks."
"I would definitely drink beer. A woman who can't drink can't get married nowadays."
Karin stares at her, "Nonsense. Women who like to drink can't get married. Who wants to marry an alcoholic home?"
"You don't have to be drunk. Drinking is a lifestyle, am I right? William?"
Billie raises her eyebrows and asks, but he remains silent with a smile on his face.
"I want to grow old with you, cherishing every moment of love, until that day you and I will become old, and the stars will still shine although our hair is white…"
Karin’s phone rings. She stands up hurriedly and speaks in a low voice, "I'll answer the phone."
Staring at her back, Billie smiles ambiguously, "The man calls. Look how shy she is."
"What man?"
"Her boyfriend."
William is quite surprised, "She has a boyfriend?"
"Yeah, why? You have thoughts about her?" She smirks evilly, and leans closer to his ear, "Don't say I didn't remind you, that her boyfriend is preeminent."
"No, I’m just asking."
William’s expression seems calm, but a flash of complexity appears in his eyes.
Karin finds a quiet place and answers the phone, "Hello?"
"Karin, I’ll pick you up for lunch later."
"Lunch?" She is a bit embarrassed, "But I’m having it now."
"So early?"
"Yeah, Billie and I ran into a senior, and he treated us to lunch. It’s not good not to go."
"What senior?"
Karin doesn’t hide it from him, "The one on the blind date last time."
Suddenly there is silence at the other end. After a while, Troy says earnestly, "Have you forgotten what I said?"
"What?"
"…" As expected, she forgets.
"Last time my elder sister forced you to go on a blind date, and what did I tell you then?"
Karin thinks carefully, and finally she says, "I remember."
"Tell me."
"Don't contact with unfamiliar men, especially those who claim to be alumni or old folks at home."
"And?"
"The bad guy will not write the word ‘bad guy’ on his face."
"And?"
Troy raises his eyes suddenly, "Why would you know the cause of my parents' death?"
"I went to see my mother the day before yesterday. During the night, she had a nightmare and yelled in horror. Unconsciously, she actually said the murderer's name."
The atmosphere suddenly gets tense, "No way."
"Believe it or not, anyway, I'm a weak woman, and I never thought about revenge for my parents. If you don't want to know, I will bury this secret in my heart and never tell anyone."
"Who is the murderer?"
Mia chuckles, "I thought you really didn't want to know." She stands up and walks to him, "If you want to know who it is, marry me."
"Negotiating?"
"Can’t I?"
Troy snorts coldly and says frankly, "Don't say that I don't know how true your words are. Even if it is 100% true, don't expect me to let you ask for anything."
"Is it because of Karin that there is no room for negotiation?"
"Yes." He admits revealingly.
Mia shakes her head disappointedly, "If uncle and auntie could see what you are doing right now, that you don't even want to know the cause of their death for a woman, how bitterly disappointed they would be out there..."
"This is the business of the Charles family."
"Do you believe me then?"
"Why should I believe you? Can you give me any reason to believe it?"
"Just because you have never let go of any clues that can be traced. You don't need to believe me, but you'd better not regret it, because there is only one chance."
After Mia finishes her words, she points to the second floor, "I'm going to take a shower. Think about it, carefully, and tell me your choice then."
Troy doesn’t have to think about it at all, not because he doesn’t care about the cause of his parents' death, but because if he wants to know, he has other ways to find out instead of hurting Karin.
He gets up and is about to leave, suddenly he feels dizzy in his head, and he falls back to the sofa with a bang.
His body starts to get hot, his breathing is rapid, and an original desire runs in his blood, and such desire is getting stronger and stronger, so strong that it almost bursts out of him and kills him.
His blurred sight moves to the coffee on the edge of the table, and he immediately understands everything.
"You…"
"Don't say anything." Mia reaches out to cover his mouth with her hands, "I know what you want to say."
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