With this thought, Julien suddenly began to reflect on the things he had learned from those works.
He glanced at Sydney, who blinked her eyes at him with a significant smile.
After a moment, he cleared his throat and said, "Leaf, have I been unctuous, perplexing, and foolish with some of my actions?"
He had often witnessed in movies and novels how the male protagonist's romantic gestures and words would deeply touch and enchant the female protagonist. And the female protagonist would also find such a man captivating.
Although he had been curious back then about whether these actions were genuinely romantic and if the male protagonist was truly attractive, he couldn't find a definitive answer. Since the female protagonist was deeply moved, it must be true.
As a result, he noted down these actions and lines from the male lead, made slight modifications, and tried them out on Sydney.
Previously, he hadn't considered that these actions might confuse and repel her. But now, after hearing her evaluation of those works, he began to question whether he had appeared unctuous and perplexing to her, just like the characters in those stories.
If that were the case, Julien wished he could instantly find a hole to hide in.
Observing Julien's constant flickering gaze and occasional awkwardness, Sydney knew what was on his mind. She responded with a smile, "It's not unctuous. After all, you have your good looks and charm, and your behavior isn't as exaggerated as those male protagonists in movies and novels. So, I didn't find it unctuous, but it did feel a little old-fashioned and confusing."
Upon hearing this, Julien let out a sigh of relief, and his embarrassment subsided a bit.
Although Sydney still found his actions somewhat corny and confusing, it was a far cry from what he had initially feared.
In Julien's opinion, the term "unctuous" referred to middle-aged men who were bald, overweight, and self-proclaimed handsome and confident, but Sydney's description wasn't too far off from that.
Therefore, he preferred being labeled as corny and confusing rather than unctuous.
At least it was somewhat reassuring.
"What kind of corny and confusing?" Julien inquired further.
Although these two descriptions were slightly better than "unctuous", neither of them conveyed a positive connotation.
Sydney smiled at Julien. "It's in an endearingly."
"Endearingly?" Julien raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Sydney nodded, "Yes, sometimes when you suddenly say or do something flirtatious, it does confuse me. But my confusion is simply about why you would use such corny words. I never think there's a problem with your mental state." She pointed to her head.
Julien's face darkened.
Was he supposed to feel relieved that she hadn't considered him a lunatic?
Seeing Julien's unhappy expression, Sydney playfully pinched his fingers and said, "Don't dwell on it too much. As I said before, there's something endearing about your corny behaviors. I have to admit that your words and actions can make me blush and my heart race. The stark contrast between your usually cold and aloof demeanor and these behaviors is what makes it cute, don't you think?"
Certainly, Julien's exceptional appearance and temperament played a significant role in this.
If he were ordinary-looking, such words and actions would not be cute, but genuinely corny, confusing, and cloying.
Julien's gaze turned cold as he looked towards the partition, as if trying to see Zach on the other side through it.
"I will never rely on methods borrowed from others. Let's forge our own path. Even though we may face challenges along the way, we'll grow through the process. Only by discovering things on our own can we truly appreciate the value of a relationship and understand the effort required to sustain it. Perhaps in this way, we'll cherish and love each other even more." Julien redirected his gaze from the partition, tilting his head slightly to gaze at Sydney, who leaned against his shoulder. His eyes brimmed with tenderness.
"You're right." Sydney nodded. "But considering that you tried so hard to improve our relationship, I still want to reward you."
Reward?
Julien's eyes brightened for a moment, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down as his voice deepened. "What kind of reward? Are you taking back the words that made me sleep on the couch?"
Sydney let go of his arm and sat up straight, giving him a flirtatious glance. "Are you hoping to use this as an opportunity to sleep in the room? No way! The reward is a completely separate matter."
Julien's aura visibly deflated.
Sydney sensed his disappointment, feeling both amused and annoyed.
'I just disagreed to let him sleep in the room tonight. Is it necessary to be this disappointed?' she thought.
Shaking her head with a smile, Sydney leaned in to plant a kiss on Julien's cheek. "That's your reward. Alright, it's getting late, and I need to head to the office. You should go find Dallin quickly and retrieve your mom's belongings. Don't take too long though, or Dallin might assume you're not interested and put them up for auction. That would be troublesome. So hurry up, and I'll see you tonight."
Before Julien could react, Sydney swiftly got out of the car.
She knew that once he snapped out of his daze, he would detain her in the car and indulge in more passionate moments with her.
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