"I. Will. Take. Her. Ho." Ro emphasized each word in a cold, emotionless tone.
A chill ran down my spine at the way he looked at —as if warning that if I went with Alpheus, he’d do sothing I wouldn’t like.
"H-Hey now! Hold up, guys! H-haha..."
Dave suddenly stepped in, forcing an awkward laugh as he tried to ease the growing tension.
"Wouldn’t it be better if we let Sylvia decide? She’s the one being escorted ho, after all."
"No, she’s going with —"
"I would like Sir Alpheus to take ho!" I blurted out, cutting Ro off before he could finish. I didn’t even spare him a glance as I made my decision.
That single sentence made everyone in the group turn to Ro, silently waiting to see how he’d react to my clear rejection.
"Fine," Ro muttered through gritted teeth. "Go on your own, then. Go."
His jaw was tight, his expression unreadable—but the restrained fury in his voice was unmistakable. He clearly didn’t like my answer at all.
------
I sat quietly, staring straight ahead at the road in front of Alpheus’s car. He was focused on driving, but I could feel him glancing at every so often—like he wanted to say sothing but wasn’t sure how to start.
After a while, I noticed that we were no longer taking the usual route to my house. My eyes widened slightly as I turned to him.
"U-Um, Sir... this isn’t the way to my house.." I said hesitantly.
His eyes widened a bit in realization, and he quickly adjusted the steering wheel to follow the direction I pointed out—completely opposite of the road he had been about to take.
"Sorry... I didn’t an to take you sowhere else," he said, a little embarrassed. "I just didn’t know how to start a conversation. You seed so deep in thought."
"Oh no, I should be the one apologizing, Sir," I said quickly, feeling a bit flustered. "I should’ve given you directions earlier. I was just too shy... especially since you went out of your way to take ho."
Now it made sense—why he kept glancing at earlier. He didn’t know how to talk to , and I didn’t know how to talk to him either.
"N-no, you don’t have to call sir, and please... drop the formality." Alpheus said, letting out a soft chuckle.
"You can talk to like we’re friends. After all, I’ve seen you plenty of tis eating at the restaurant where you work."
"N-no, sir. You’re one of our custors—I can’t just treat you like we’re friends!" I blurted out, my voice a bit louder than I intended. Embarrassed, I quickly covered my mouth as the words sank in.
He let out a soft chuckle in response.
"I-I an... if it makes you uncomfortable, I understand," he said gently. "But... if it’s alright with you, you can just call Alpheus whenever we’re outside your workplace."
"N-no, sir. That would be too embarrassing." I replied shyly, lowering my gaze. After all, I had no reason to et him outside of work, and more importantly—I didn’t want to form any sort of connection with him. He was Ro’s friend, and that alone made things complicated.
"No, I insist, Sylvia." he said again, this ti with a softness in his voice as he said my na.
I glanced at him, caught off guard by the gentle, almost affectionate way he spoke—but the mont our eyes t, I quickly looked away.
A long silence settled between us, but I could still feel his gaze flicking toward now and then. It was subtle, hesitant, as if he wanted to ask sothing but wasn’t sure how.
"Ah... I an, is it okay if I ask you sothing?" he asked, his tone hesitant as he glanced at before quickly returning his focus to the road.
"Uhm, sure, Sir.." I replied, a bit unsure.
"It’s kind of personal, but... I’ve been really curious. What’s going on between you and Ro?" he asked, catching completely off guard.
I wasn’t expecting that question—especially not from him. I thought I’d already avoided it when his friends asked earlier.
He must’ve sensed my discomfort because he quickly added, "Ah—sorry. That was out of line. I didn’t an to pry. You don’t have to answer... I didn’t an to make you uncomfortable." he said, sounding genuinely apologetic and a bit embarrassed.
A long silence followed after that. It hung between us, likely because of his question—one I couldn’t bring myself to answer. I didn’t want anyone digging any deeper into that part of my life.
A few minutes later, we were nearing my neighborhood. I turned to glance at Alpheus, only to find him already looking at . His gaze was focused, maybe even thoughtful—but when our eyes t, he quickly looked away, flustered.
"Ahm... Sir, I an, A-Alpheus—we’re almost there. Just keep going straight through that narrow path." I said, trying to change the subject while pointing toward the small alley that led to our neighborhood.
"Just pull over by the side, right there.." I added, gesturing toward a spot near the entrance of the alley. Our house was just a short walk from there.
"Okay, we’re here" he said, then quickly stepped out of the car. To my surprise, he walked around to the passenger side and opened the door for .
"Uhm... Thank you, Sir— I an, A-Alpheus.." I said shyly as I stepped out of the car.
Alpheus took a mont to glance around, taking in the dim surroundings. The only source of light was a flickering street lamp that looked like it was about to burn out.
Despite the shadows, it didn’t take much for him to realize we were in a squatter area. The sll of garbage lingered in the air, and broken-down houses lined the narrow street.
Even in the dark, the harsh reality of where I lived was hard to hide.
From the way Alpheus looked around, he must’ve thought the area wasn’t safe—especially for soone unfamiliar with the place. It was the kind of neighborhood where, if you weren’t known by the residents, sothing bad could easily happen to you.
Sylvia noticed how Alpheus’s eyes carefully scanned the surroundings, quietly taking everything in. Embarrassed, she quickly looked away when his gaze briefly landed on her.
"Is your house close by? Or is it just around here?" he asked gently. "Co on, I’ll walk you to your doorstep—just to make sure you get there safely."
There was no judgnt in his voice, no hint of discomfort about where she lived—just pure sincerity.
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