The person who spiked the drink, never let him find out!
Gregory''s eyes narrowed dangerously as he walked over to the living room and picked up his phone, dialing quickly, "Ophelia, when did you start getting so slow at this?"
On the other line, a girl''s voice responded, "Mr. Ford, I was just heading to the elevator, I''ll be there in a minute."
A minuteter, the front door was pushed open from the outside.
Ophelia, d in a striking red dress and heels, stepped in, freezing for a second when she saw Gregory standing in the living room perfectly fine.
No herbal concoctions, why did he need her to deliver medication?
Gregory, worried about the person in the bathroom, immediately reached out, "The pill?"
Snapping back to reality, Ophelia quickly rummaged through her purse and handed him something, "One should do the trick."
While talking, her gaze swept through the living room.
In an inconspicuous corner of the sofa, there was a pair of women''s high heels.
Gregory was usually meticulous, but the nket on the sofa was crumpled, as if someone had just been lying there...
"Good."
Gregory pocketed the pill, finally sparing her a nce, his voicezy, "Decided to switch up your style, huh? Ditching the usual monochrome for once?"Ccontent ? exclusive by N?/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.
"Ah... Yes!"
As his right-hand woman, Ophelia knew how sharp his instincts were. She immediatelyughed, "My mom insisted I go on a blind date, even bought this red dress for me."
"Your mom''s got good taste."
Gregory smiled lightly, a hint of apology in his voice, "Sorry for messing up your date. This all happened so suddenly..."
"No worries!"
Ophelia shed a professional smile, shrugging, "Workes first, and besides, that guy and I weren''t a good match anyway. Your call came at the right time to save me."
"Alright then."
Ophelia nced through the slightly ajar bedroom door, hearing the faint sound of water from the bathroom, and tactfully said, "I should get going then!"
Once out of the building, Ophelia took off her heels and angrily threw them to the ground.
After all these years...
She thought, if it wasn''t her, Gregory wouldn''t have anyone else either.
Yet, here we are, some temptress making herself at home.
But then, Ophelia smiled.
It was a failed seduction attempt anyway.
Even after being drugged, Gregory only had her deliver the antidote, didn''t spend the night with that siren!
No real victory there.
...
After a cold shower, the heat inside me finally subsided a bit.
My sanity was more or less restored.
Thinking back on my actions just now, I felt a mix of embarrassment and shame.
"Knock, knock-"
The bathroom door was knocked on, and Gregory''s voice came from the other side: "All done?"
"Yeah, finished!"
I put on a gray bathrobe, didn''t even lift my head as I walked past him, "Christine Jackson and Ike must be home by now, I should head back." "Wait."
Gregory grabbed my arm, handing me a small bottle, "The effects might not have fully worn off yet, take one of these." "Okay."
I took the pill, and he chuckled softly, "nning to head back in my bathrobe?"
My mind was a mess, only then realizing that going back like this would be impossible to exin, "What should I do then?"
"Your clothes."
Gregory pointed towards a green sundress hanging on the bathroom door handle.
Surprised, I looked at him, "How did you have..."
-My clothes.
Before I could finish, I remembered.
It was left here when I visited him at River Vi, soaked from the rain, and somehow it made its way to Vista Town.
Meeting his amused gaze, I quickly grabbed the dress and retreated back into the bathroom.
After quickly changing, I rushed out, feeling the awkwardness and guilt of what felt like a one-night stand.
I hurried back home, not even waiting for the elevator, taking the stairs instead.
Hearing my entrance, Ike looked up from his puzzle, "Auntie! You''re back!"
As he said it, he scrambled up and ran over to hug me.
I lifted him, pinching his cheek, "Yeah, I''m back."
"Gregory picked you up early, howe you''re just getting back?"
Christine observed, then noticed, "Wait, you changed clothes?"
I stayed silent, heading to the kitchen to pour a ss of water, taking the pill first.
Then I faced Christine, "There was a bit of an incident at the party."
Christine frowned, "What happened?"
It wasn''t something for kids, so I looked at Ike, "Ike, how about you go take a bath, alright? I''ll tell you a bedtime storyter."
"Okay!"
The promise of a bedtime story sent Ike darting into the bathroom.
After adjusting the shower for him, I came back out.
I tossed the pill bottle to Christine, "Someone drugged me."
"Drugged? What kind of drug?"
"What else could it be that''s not for kids'' ears?" I retorted.
Christine shook the pill bottle, quickly asking, "So, this is like the antidote?" "Seems like it."
"And then..."
Christine gestured downwards, getting into the gossip, "Gregory didn''t do anything to you? Even after you were drugged, he''s still hang up on something from two years ago?"
"It''s not that."
Thinking back to the recent events made my cheeks warm, but I managed to keep a cool facade, "He didn''t want to take advantage of the situation."
Christine held up a finger, marveling. "I didn''t expect the guy to be such a knight in shining armor."
...
The next afternoon, Gregory received a call from Edith Ford.
"I heard from the doctor you had him
check on
mor your leg first thing in t leg? I thought it was gettin
What''s going on
e
This doctor should''ve been in broadcasting, not medicine.
Gregory, with little appetite, idly yed with his takeout, his voicezy, "Couldn''t resist, did a bit of exercising."
"Exercising?"
Edith echoed.
It was unbelievable. Her brother was
the kind of person who would lies
down rather than sit, sit rather than stand, and even lean againsto something when standing
And now he took up exercising.
Edith had a sudden realization, "Wait, what kind of exercise are we talking about?"
Gregory choked, noticing the cleaningdy entering the bathroom, he quickly said, "Auntie, don''t bother with the gray bathrobe."