Zuko's imposing aura, which was intimidating even without anger, made everyone in the room stand still, afraid to make a sound. After a while, Melissa gathered her courage.
"You... What else do you want?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Zuko looked at her. Melissa was just a regular middle-aged woman, overweight and exuding no sense of sophistication. Compared to his mother, this woman appeared at least ten years older.
Despite her fear, she confronted him like an old sparrow protecting a young sparrow with fluttering wings. Zuko suddenly remembered the saying about a mother's love. Melissa's love for Lina was no less than his mother's love for him.
"Oh, honey..." Jesse gently pulled Melissa and looked anxious as he whispered, "Don't provoke him. You can't handle him—"
"Stop talking!" Melissa glared at him and then turned her wary gaze back to Zuko.
Zuko found it disdainful to argue with them. After a moment of silence, he simply put his luggage in the corner and went to sit on the porch.
After a long time, the three people in the room finally regained their senses. They took deep breaths, looked at each other, and quietly returned to their respective rooms. The whole afternoon passed peacefully.
...
Lina had been at the library all this time. There were too many troubles recently. Studying hard was the only way for her to temporarily escape from those disturbing emotions. Gia was both envious and distressed seeing her like this. She bought two cups of vanilla latte and gently placed one in front of Lina.
Lina said, "Are you trying to keep me awake at night with coffee in the afternoon?"
"Even if I didn't buy coffee, you'd still have trouble sleeping! With an extra person at home, can you sleep?" Gia chuckled.
"I..."
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