Chapter 2I Move On Instantly

At the dinner table.

Auntie Gwen, pressing for marriage, placed a piece of food on Archer’s plate. “Asteria has a boyfriend now, you need to bring a girlfriend home soon. I’m hoping for grandkids.”

My parents looked at me, surprised. “You have a boyfriend? Since when? You didn’t tell us.”

Archer, who had been silent, suddenly spoke, his tone casual yet pointed. “It’s not fake, is it? You’ve always been so obedient, how come even Auntie and Uncle don’t know about this?”

I ignored him and nodded. “Yes, but we just started dating recently.”

Out of the corner of my eye, Archer’s knuckles, gripping his chopsticks, were slightly white. I served myself a bowl of soup, my voice even. “He’s younger than me and just inherited his family’s publicly traded company, so he’s incredibly busy with work. I figured I’d wait until things settled down before officially introducing him to you all.”

Archer suddenly let out a small laugh, putting down his chopsticks and leaning back in his chair, his gaze fixed on my face. “Is your boyfriend 6’2”, looks like a model, worth millions, and the only son of the boss?”

I nearly choked on my water, surprised. “How did you know?”

Archer scoffed for a moment, then said flatly, “I guessed. Isn’t that how all rom-com heroes are?”

The table instantly fell silent. Archer’s mom immediately threw a napkin at him. “You brat, what’s wrong with you today! You sound like you’ve been eating gunpowder.”

My parents, who always trusted Archer, immediately grew anxious. “Archer makes a good point. Is your boyfriend really that amazing? So exaggerated, could he be a scammer? There are all sorts of people these days, you really need to be careful, don’t get carried away.”

Archer probably believed I couldn’t leave him and was just making up a fake boyfriend out of spite. But I couldn’t be bothered to argue with him. I patted my mom’s hand. “Don’t worry. He’ll be visiting you over the New Year.” I met Archer’s gaze, speaking each word clearly. “You’ll see for yourselves then.”

My parents relaxed, and the atmosphere became lively again.

For the latter half of the meal, Archer was unusually silent, only occasionally forcing a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. I got up to get water from the kitchen and turned to see Archer leaning against the doorframe, having watched me for who knew how long. I walked directly towards the door, intending to go around him. He stepped across, completely blocking my path.

I patiently didn’t want to argue with him in front of our parents. After all, we had broken up, and our relationship had been secret. A scene now would only make things awkward for both families.

“Move.”

Archer’s eyes held an unreadable emotion. “It’s truly something, for you to make up all these stories without batting an eyelid.”

I rolled my eyes. “Believe what you want.”

I tried to go the other way, but he blocked me again. “What do you want?”

Silence stretched for a few seconds. He reached out and, without a word, took the water glass from my hand, placing it aside. Then he put the steaming glass he was holding into my palm. “Your period is coming soon. Don’t drink anything cold.”

“Thanks.” I said, after a moment of surprise, my tone flat.