The girl’s gaze met the man’s gentle and deep eyes. He was smiling at her, suave and kind. In the twilight, the girl was slightly taken aback. Tom Fritz, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, turned to look at her and softly said, “What a coincidence.”
Agnes snapped out of her daze and smiled, “What a coincidence.”
“Do you want a ride?” he asked warmly. “Where are you headed? I can take you there.”
Looking at the luxurious Volvo in front of her and the man she had met once before, Agnes felt a bit uneasy. After all, she didn’t know him well, and getting into a stranger’s car wasn’t her style; it felt awkward.
Tom didn’t rush her. He just looked at her gently, waiting for her to decide. “Bubu?”
The girl regained her composure and looked into his eyes. She didn’t explicitly refuse. For some reason, Agnes felt a strange yet familiar connection with him, as if their souls recognized each other. Was it because of his impressive aura as a chemistry professor? It made her, who was usually cautious around men, feel no sense of defense against him.
Sensing that he might have startled her with his presence, Tom quickly got out of the car, walked around to the passenger side, and opened the door for her. “Get in. I want to take this chance to learn more about Bubu. I can take you wherever you want to go; I’m just out for a drive anyway.”
Agnes didn’t hesitate for long. She smiled at him and got into the car. She couldn’t explain why she felt like her thoughts were out of her control at that moment.
Tom closed the door for her and happily returned to the driver’s seat. He started the car slowly and glanced over at her. “Where do you want to go?”
Agnes turned to him and softly replied, “Home.”
Tom seemed thoughtful. “Are you feeling down tonight?”
The girl snapped back to reality and smiled. “Why do you say that? Not really.”
“I saw you walking in the opposite direction,” Tom said with a slight smile. “You looked aimless, as if you were lost in thought.”
“Actually, no,” Agnes quickly thought of an excuse. “I was just planning to buy some milk tea from that popular shop nearby.”
Tom activated the left turn signal and changed lanes before planning to make a U-turn ahead.
Realizing they were going in the wrong direction, Agnes glanced at him but didn’t dare ask anything. Maybe he had something else to do along the way.
“How much longer? What’s the name of the milk tea shop? Keep an eye out and remind me,” Tom said after making the U-turn, driving slowly while looking out for the shop.
So he really intended to buy milk tea?
“This isn’t necessary,” Agnes said nervously with an apologetic smile. “It will take up a lot of your time!”
“I have nothing planned tonight; I have plenty of time,” Tom replied gently as he glanced at her.
He himself wasn’t sure why he was doing this. Normally, he would spend his free time reading or doing research-never wasting it on taking a newly acquainted girl home and then detouring to buy milk tea.
Perhaps it was because of Bubu.
Soon enough, they reached the popular milk tea shop. The store wasn’t large but brightly lit, with a long line outside.
“Is this the place?” Tom pointed.
Agnes looked at his profile and nodded. “Yes.” She felt a bit conflicted.
In truth, mentioning buying milk tea was just an excuse; she didn’t really want any.
After a moment, Tom pulled over by the curb and turned to her. “Would you like to buy it yourself? I’m not familiar with milk tea; I’ve never bought it before. I’ll wait here since this isn’t a parking spot-if someone stays in the car, traffic police won’t give us a ticket.”
Agnes felt particularly embarrassed; his time must be very valuable.
But since he had already made the U-turn, wouldn’t it be awkward not to buy anything now?
“What flavor do you like?” Agnes unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door.