Stella Grace went to the place near the university.
The restaurant was in an alley where cars couldn’t enter.
They walked past the university.
At the gate of Stella’s alma mater, many students came and left.
She had graduated almost seven years ago. When she visited her alma mater again, she felt an inexplicable sense of nostalgia.
“Do you know what I wanted most when I was in college?” Stella asked Jasper Milton.
“To graduate?” he guessed.
Stella smiled and closed her eyes. “Yes, you’re right. It was to leave this school.”
“Why?” Jasper was puzzled. “You must have had good grades.”
“Actually, I think it’s easy for university life to change a person’s outlook on life and values.
The gap in wealth, different personalities, heartbreaks, struggles, different lifestyles, friends. All these would change a person.
After leaving college, most of my perspectives changed again due to the huge decisions that I had made in my life. The impact was unprecedented.” Stella sighed.
“I remember that every school has a psychological consulting room attended by part-time psychologists,” Jasper said, following the topic.
“The people from Greg’s institutes have many psychological counselors from major universities. However, our field has somewhat of stigma among some people. Many people deny they have a mental illness just to save their image. Do you know how high suicide rates have gone up due to depression over the past ten years?”
“I don’t know much about this field, but I think there are more and more people with psychological problems now. Last I heard, everyone has psychological problems and two out of ten people have depression. I’m very curious, why did you choose to go from being a gynecologist to a psychologist?” he asked.
A student rushed out of the school on a bicycle.
Jasper put his arms around Stella’s waist and pulled her to the side.
Stella did not pull away.
The lights from the street lamps fell on both of them, forming a warm glow.
Stella looked at him.
There were several reasons why she decided to learn psychology.
The first was when she happened to meet Greg Miles by chance. Secondly, her mother was mentally ill. Thirdly, she felt that there was something very wrong with her, and it was not just depression. She wanted to save herself.
However, she did not want to say that she was mentally ill. “There are a variety of reasons. When my mother recovers, I’ll take you to see her.”
“Oh, okay.” Jasper did not speak again.
Stella stopped talking too. She quietly enjoyed the happiness of two people being together. The wind blowing on her face was not as cold as she imagined.
Jasper took off his suit and put it on her.
She tidied up her clothes and said softly, “Thank you.”
He took her hand and asked, “How far is that place from here?”
“It’s not too far. We should be there soon.” Stella looked around and frowned.
The changes around the university were quite prominent. A lot of high-rise buildings were built and all the small stores from the past were gone.
“I remember there being a small shop here. It was run by a couple. They had a little girl, she was very funny and chubby. She couldn’t tell between the words ‘you’ and ‘me’ clearly.
When you told her you are a naughty girl, she would angrily reply, “I am a naughty girl.”
Their carrot soup was very good. It cost only one dollar. The pasta here was only 5 dollars. So you can easily have a hearty meal here for only 6 dollars.
The steaks here were also very good. The steaks were prepared on the spot, and they were delicious. It only cost 15 dollars.” Stella recalled.
“I want to eat all the things that you just said,” Jasper said. He meant it.
Stella smiled and said, “Unfortunately, we can’t get the pumpkin bisque and everything else. I’ve wasted your time here tonight.”
“Aren’t there a lot of restaurants here? Let’s just pick one.” Jasper took her to a small restaurant nearby.
There were a lot of people having dinner there and the TV was switched to a live NBA game.
Stella felt like she was back in college.
She chose a spot behind them and sat down. Then she wiped the table with the napkins.
The staff came over. “Hello there, what would you like to eat?”
Stella’s eyes flashed with surprise when she saw the waiter. “Miss, it’s you. Your shop has become so huge.”
“Haha, the old shop was torn down. We bought this new one ourselves,” she said in a simple and honest way.
“Your food is the best. Do you still have your carrot soup and roasted lamb?” Stella asked.
The lady boss handed over the menu. “Yes, of course, those are our specialties. What else do you want?”
“Do you also have fish and chips and pumpkin bisque?” Stella asked.
“Yes, we do.”
“Then we’ll have carrot soup, roasted lamb, pumpkin bisque and fish and chips, and a large bottle of Sprite. The fish must be fresh!”
“Okay.” The lady boss returned to the kitchen.
Stella looked at Jasper.
He was smiling, his face softening.
Stella was puzzled. “What are you smiling at?”
“When I first saw you, I felt that you were very cold. There was no smile on your face when you were dealing with people and things. Even if you were smiling, you were still on guard. I wanted to get to know you. The more I knew you, the more I found that you have a fiery heart. When you are passionate, you can even melt the ice and snow,” Jasper said seriously.
“I’ll tell you this, everyone has different sides to them, be it good, dark, cold, and passionate. These vary with mood, character, and environment.
I’ll give you an example.
There was once a murder case that caused a sensation in B country. The murderer was a gentle and elegant professor of distinction. His lectures were lively and interesting. He was very kind and handsome. He was very good to his wife and loved his son very much. He treated people with sincerity and respect. Everyone thought he was perfect.
It was raining on the day of the crime. He was on duty, and his wife and son had gone abroad for a vacation. He was watching adult videos in his dormitory and happened to be seduced by the campus belle. He slept with the girl. After that, the girl revealed that she had recorded everything and tried to force him to marry her.
The professor, enraged, and humiliated, killed the girl. The method he used was cruel and effective, no one found out that it was him.
Twenty years later, he turned himself in.”
Jasper patiently listened to her and kissed her forehead.
Stella stared at him.
Jasper was a little disappointed. “I had just kissed you. Is that your reaction?”
Stella pressed her forehead with one hand and pointed to the table in the corner.
Jasper looked in the direction she was pointing.
A male student and a female student were deep in each other’s embrace, making out as if they were the only ones there…