Chapter 13

Stephenie has been in pursuit of her aunt for weeks, hoping to persuade her to provide any information about her mother. But she has been unsuccessful so far though. No matter how hard Stephenie tried to please her aunt, she would always be driven away or refused to open the door.

She made the decision to stay with Perry, a childhood acquaintance, for a while until she was able to find a place to live on her own again. Perry, in contrast to his parents, was gracious enough to allow her to stay. His parents secretly despised the fact that Stephenie had been reunited with their son once more, let alone that their son had chosen to let her live with them under the same roof.

Every time Perry would leave for work, his parents would ask Stephenie to take care of the hard chores around the house. Stephenie was cool with it because she understood she would have to repay them for their goodwill in permitting her to stay. After all, Perry didn't just offer her with a temporary home; he also provided her with food while she was staying with him. Stephenie isn't concerned if Perry's parents ask her to help out with household tasks every now and again.

Perry's parents, on the other hand, were the opposite of Stephenie's point of view on the matter. Perry's mother, Mrs. Morgan, in particular, was enraged by Stephenie's existence. She has always been critical of her upbringing, even back then when they were still young children. Perry would even receive a stern warning from her to keep away from people like Stephenie.

Perry and Stephenie have been friends since kindergarten at their local community day care center. Perry had become fond of Stephenie when she stood up for him once after he had been bullied back in the day.

"You're overworking yourself again," Perry told Stephenie as he walked through the door after coming from his day job.

Stephenie had just finished folding the clean laundry when she got up to go talk to Perry.

"Dinner is ready, I've already prepared it. Would you like to take a bath first before you sit down to eat your meal?"

Perry couldn't help but give Stephenie a shy smile when he walked into the room. The flash of crimson across his cheeks became obvious, and he was unable to keep it hidden from her.

"Can you tell me what's wrong, Perry? What's with your face being red so suddenly? Do you happen to be sick?"

In order to check his body temperature, Stephenie placed her hand on his forehead. She was a little confused because she had found his body temperature to be normal. Stephenie couldn't help but be a little worried about what could have happened to Perry all of a sudden until Perry parted his lips to say something back.

"No, I'm perfectly fine. Sorry for being so sentimental. I was—I was…nothing." And yet, he was unable to say it in the end.

Perry wanted to express how overwhelmed he was by the fact that she had been serving him as if they were a married couple. Regrettably, Perry changed his mind about telling Stephenie. He was afraid that if he tried to talk about it, Stephenie's perception and treatment would change.

Stephenie remained unconvinced. She expected Perry to tell her the truth, but she received no response to her questions. Perry, on the other hand, squeezed her left cheek and smiled back.

"What did you make for dinner?" he inquired.

Stephenie yanked Perry's hand away from her cheek, which was already swollen from his pinch. Perry seemed to enjoy her irritated reaction as she caressed it to take the edge off. He enjoyed it whenever Stephenie became grumpy rather than sweet every now and then. For in this way, he would be able to prevent his emotions from getting the better of him.

He observed Stephenie's frowning brows change to a neutral expression before she responded to him, "I made your favorite miso soup for you."

"Great."

Upon hearing her response, he expressed his delight, which Stephenie picked up on right away. The gesture was completely sweet and caring to get a positive response from her. It was with this that she quickly dragged Perry into the kitchen. To Perry's surprise, he found the dinner table already set and ready to be consumed.

"Wow for the effort."

"Thanks."

"Is there a special occasion? I have no recollection of either of us celebrating birthdays really." Perry inquired. With all of the nice setup, he was a little puzzled.

Stephenie went out of her way to set a beautiful table for the dinner. It wasn't particularly exquisite, but it was different from the usual table setting and food they served when they dined. It's decorated with a lovely bouquet of white carnation flowers that she picked up from the plaza area. In order to leave it a little more aesthetically pleasing, she created a simple arrangement and placed a single piece of yellow scented candle in the center.

"There's nothing special about it. I just wanted to take you by surprise." She said with a cute giggle at the end of her response.

Stephenie then lit the candle with a matchstick she had been keeping in her pocket for a while before she continued to serve Perry with the miso soup that she had prepared earlier.

"It's fine, I can handle it." Perry told her when Stephenie was about to serve her the soup.

"Nah. This is the least I could do to repay you for your generosity, Perry. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't allowed me to stay here for the time being." She admitted. Stephenie set down the bowl of miso soup and gave Perry a back hug.

Perry's mood had changed a little.

Stephenie had been under the impression that he was doing this out of generosity rather than because he liked her the entire time. Afterwards though, he reasoned that perhaps it was his fault that she didn't feel the same way because he had not made it clear that he was truly in love with her.

He just smiled.

"Don't mention it, I only did what was the right thing." He replied before swallowing a spoonful of the soup.

His pupils constricted as he was taken aback by the exquisite flavor of the miso soup.

"It goes without saying that you're indeed a talented cook. It's great to have you here, Steph." She received high praise from him.

Stephenie quickly hushed him, "Don't say it too loudly. It's possible that your mother will hear it, and she will not be pleased. Like Nuh-uh!" She told him as she shoved her index finger towards Perry.

Perry was just all smiles and laughter at the time.

"It's possible she's up in their room binge-watching Netflix or a Korean drama or something by now. I swear to you, she won't even notice a single hush." Perry made a remark that caused them to laugh afterward.

After he pinned his gray eyes on Stephenie though, Perry's entire atmosphere changed in an instant. He felt a throbbing sensation in his chest that compelled him to express his true feelings outward. It was determined to push through him, and this time it succeeded.

"Stephenie—"

However, when Stephenie looked at him with a lot of anticipation in her eyes, a brief moment nearly robbed him of the opportunity yet again.

"Yes?" She inquired which had triggered Perry's further uneasiness.

"Well, I'll tell you what, Stephenie—" He heaved a sigh before he continued, "—I was thinking that because we've known each other since we were kids, and because we already have this wonderful setting in front of us, I didn't want this opportunity to pass me by without telling you this."

Stephenie burst out a laughter. She was confused, but at the same time she thought Perry was acting and speaking in a more humorous manner than he usually did. "Can you tell me what's wrong, Perry?"

Following that, Perry pushed himself out of the chair and began walking closer to Stephenie's side. He then knelt in front of her and took her hand in his.

"I've been holding out for the right moment to tell you this, Steph. And I think that the right time has come…today. Will you, no—would you become my wife?"