"It''s fine." Roza squinted her eyes and flicked the ash from her cigarette with her slender, pale fingers. "I have no family. I make my home wherever I go."
"What are you talking about? If you have no family, what am I?" Be affectionately linked arms with her. "Once a teacher, always a... you know."
"Taking advantage of me, huh?" Roza teased, hooking Be''s chin with the hand holding the cigarette.
Roza was taller and had a bigger frame than Be. Combined with her bold and sassy gestures, their close interaction invoked a strange chemistry between them.
Axel sat among the crowd, but his gaze was fixed solely on Roza''s every move. He did not like people who smoked. Every time Ralph had a cigarette, he would find a way to snatch it from him.
Yet, for some reason, seeing Roza''s slender fingers holding a cigarette captivated him. The smoke softly obscured her cool, delicate features and thezy elegance in her half-closed eyes as she exhaled. At this moment, even though she was doing something he disliked, she looked like a mesmerizing sketch imprinted on his soul.
Axel''s breath quickened. He hurriedly looked away and downed a ss of ice water. They had not seen each other for a while and had not been in touch. Yet he found himself checking her Instagram almost daily, silently following and keeping up with her updates.
Seeing her tonight, he had thought that their previous encounter would naturally bring them closer. However, Roza had not spoken a word to him or even spared him a nce up until now.
He felt uneasy. The more Axel thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. On an impulse, he grabbed another ss without checking its contents and downed it in one go, regardless of what it was. "Holy crap! Ax, you''ve really outdone yourself!" Ralph eximed, pping his back excitedly. "A full ss of absinthe, and you chugged it in one go?! Even I need to sip on that. You''ve got potential!"
Axel froze. ''Absinthe?!''
The next second, he felt like his entire digestive tract was on fire. He dropped everything and sprinted toward the restroom.
Roza nced casually at Axel''s retreating figure, her eyes trembling slightly.
"You should drink less and quit smoking. My man gave up smoking! Why can''t you?" Be slipped back into her mentor role, taking the cigarette from Roza''s fingers and extinguishing it. "I know you need inspiration for your designs, but there are many ways to find it. Ruining your health is the worst choice. Besides, smoking will turn your teeth, fingers, and face yellow. You''ll look terrible."
"So what if I look terrible? I don''t need a man. As long as my designs look good, that''s all that matters," Roza replied with a dismissive smile, though it carried a hint of resignation.N?velDrama.Org owns all ? content.
"You might not need a man, but some men won''t enjoy their meals without you." Be squinted her eyes yfully, ncing toward where Axel had been sitting, only to find the spot empty. "Hey, where''s my second brother?"
"He looked a bit unwell just now. Maybe he drank too much and went to throw up," Roza said lightly, though her heart tightened.
"Oh? Then go check on him." Be urged, gently nudging her. "After all, Axel helped youst time. Go see how he is."