Me After Meeting You

“Amber, do you look down on me?”

Amber had no idea what he was insinuating. “You’re overthinking it.” She tried to struggle free, but was unable to do so. Because the two were both good-looking, they normally drew a significant amount of attention, and the minor tiff between them immediately drew much more.

Billy and Ian had arrived at the building quite a while ago, with Billy having been called over by Silvia. The two of them had met at Trysta’s birthday banquet, and after that, they had developed a certain camaraderie.

Silvia wanted to stare at a handsome man, but she also didn’t want to be blinded by their displays of affection alone. So after she received an invitation from Amber, she had called Billy up. “I’m going to be a third wheel for my sister. Do you want to be one for your brother too?”

Billy was very, very bored from visiting his friends and family for the New Year, so he had eagerly come over, even hitching a ride with Ian.

The two men were currently sitting by a table near the window, and they suddenly heard someone say, “There are two people quarrelling downstairs.”

Billy loved to gawk, so he excitedly turned around and looked at the scene before exclaiming in surprise, “Hey, isn’t that Dr. Camille? A man and woman alone, what could they be doing?”

Amber was currently being held back by Beryl, as if they were playing out the role of a couple trying to settle a dispute.

She was clueless and exasperated as to what Beryl’s intentions were. However, because of her good temper and her inability to break free from his grasp, she decided to stop struggling in order to avoid gathering more attention. She looked straight at Beryl and asked, “What’re you doing?”

Beryl actually didn’t know what he was doing either. But for some reason, he felt extremely stifled whenever he looked at Amber. “There’s no reason. I just want to ask you something. If the two of us don’t really know each other that well, then why did you help me out in the morning?”

Amber was speechless… ‘What, would you rather have me not help you?’

“You even said that I was rich earlier.” Beryl looked at her somewhat strangely, and she became even more lost. “Amber, you like me, don’t you?”

“WHAT?!”

Two voices shouted the same line in sync; one was from Amber, and the other… Amber and Beryl both turned around to see a shiny and polished bald head standing close to them with a stupefied face.

Billy turned around and exaggerated to Ian, “There’s clearly something going on between these two! This fellow says that Dr. Camille likes him.” Then, pointing at Beryl, he said with his characteristic arrogance, “Dr. Camille, are you blind? Would you really toss such a rich, powerful, handsome guy aside for some useless passerby?”

From start to end, he didn’t even look at Beryl, only looking at Amber with an expression that seemed like he was about to burst into laughter.

Amber massaged her forehead out of annoyance, and Beryl’s face turned ashen. He wasn’t dumb and could clearly see that Billy and Ian weren’t any ordinary men. They weren’t dressed quite as well as he was, but the atmosphere around them commanded a presence independent of their attire.

Beryl wasn’t particularly accomplished, but he did have some experience with reading people.

But as a nouveau riche himself, who had grown up with everyone acquiescing to his whims, it would take more than an intimidating aura to make him back down.

Furthermore, he didn’t think that he had to back down. These two fellows who had suddenly appeared might not be simple, but what right did they have to stop his conversation with Amber?

He and Amber were colleagues and students under the same professor, and this was as close a relationship as you could get.

When his thoughts reached this point, Beryl’s initial anger dissipated, and he instead took a gentle approach. “There are too many bystanders here, so it’d be inconvenient to keep talking. When we get back to the hospital ….”

Beryl couldn’t continue, because Ian had already walked up to Amber, kissed her on the face, and said, “Come on, let’s go wash your hands. They’re filthy.”

Beryl was caught off guard and rendered speechless.

Even Billy’s thoughts were delayed … ‘Damn!’

Ian ignored the bystanders’ reactions. After he finished speaking, he casually glanced down at Beryl. He instantly felt a chill shoot down his spine, and subconsciously released Amber’s hand.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

When Beryl finally reacted, his embarrassment turning into anger, Amber had already left with Ian.

***

Ian did exactly as he had said, actually bringing Amber to the washroom.

As she washed her hands, he stood by her side, doing nothing else but look at her.

Amber felt very self-conscious, and she washed her hands with the same mentality and rigor as a surgeon before an operation: from her fingertips to her elbows, making sure to reach into every crevasse and under every fingernail. When she was done, she stretched them out in front of him, and asked with a smile, “Is it clean?”

She was willing to humor these small habits of his that didn’t matter too much to her.

Ian looked at her hands. Under the light, they were white and flawless, just like a beautiful piece of jade that had just been polished.

A dark shadow flitted through his eyes, but his face remained impassive. “Wash your face too.”

When Amber had put her outfit on, she had also put on a thin layer of makeup. And upon hearing Ian’s order, she replied, “My face isn’t dirty. Why should I wash it?”

Ian dispiritedly replied, “All the better to smooch with.”

“….”

She pretended to not have heard him clearly, leaned towards the mirror, and turned her head left and right as she closely examined herself. “It’s not besmirched in the slightest. It’s perfectly clean.”

“Really?” Ian harrumped, suddenly leaned over, and bit down on her face. “And how about now?”

“….”

She silently leaned down and washed her face clean.