Being Pursued By Ex-husband

Sophia's cheeks flushed under the dim lights as the sounds of insects resonated in the area.

The woman was just about to ask Alexander what he was doing here when he suddenly covered her eyes with one hand and took her palm with the other. “Come with me.”

Then, he added with a chuckle, “I'm not going to sell you or anything.”

Sophia's ears turned crimson as she heard that. Thankfully, despite the bright moonlight, it was still too dark for the man to see her clearly.

“Okay.”

She let him tug her along as he pleased.

After a two-minute walk, she felt as though they had entered a forest. Alexander then stopped in his tracks and removed his hand from her eyes.

It took a couple of seconds for Sophia's eyes to adapt to her new surroundings, although she could vaguely see some twinkling lights.

Then, she finally regained her sight completely. “Fireflies?”

“Yeah.”

Alexander had stumbled upon this field of fireflies by chance almost a decade ago and wasn't sure if it even still existed today. That was why he had led her here without telling her where they were headed.

He didn't want to disappoint her in case the field no longer existed.

Despite Sophia's age, this was only her second time seeing so many fireflies. The first time was the age her father brought her to a forest near where the factory he worked at was located.

She never saw fireflies again when he left the village to work in the city.

After her parents passed away, she had tried returning to the same woodland, only to find that the factory had long been razed and replaced with other buildings nearby, and the spot where fireflies once dwelled had been turned into concrete roads. There was not a single strand of grass left, let alone fireflies.

Sophia never saw fireflies again after reaching adulthood, yet Alexander had taken her to such a place now.

Feeling moved, she remained frozen in place and said nothing for a long while.

It's been so many years, but I still miss Mom and Dad.

“Sophia?” the man called out, worried by her long silence.

“Did you know, Alexander? I didn't grow up in the best household when I was young. My parents both worked their butts off at a factory, only to earn peanuts each month. Every time anyone got sick, we'd lose all our savings.”

Sophia didn't like recounting these moments or drawing pity from others, but now, she wanted Alexander to know about her past. “The first time I saw these many fireflies was when I was eight. I was having a fever and wouldn't stop crying, so my dad's coworkers got annoyed. My dad had to take me outside in the middle of the night while covering me with a blanket. He carried me and walked really far, and I cried for what felt like ages—until I saw all those 'flying stars.' At that moment, I felt like the happiest girl in the world, and the fever didn't affect me as much anymore.”

She concluded, “Life became a bit better when we moved to the city, but I never got to see so many fireflies after that. And then, I never saw my dad again.”

Alexander pulled her into an embrace upon hearing that. “I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought you here.”

Sophia smiled while leaning against his shoulder. “After visiting that place, I couldn't stop wondering how my dad found a place with so many fireflies, so I asked my mom about it. It turned out that she once told him about wanting him to grab the stars in the sky for her, but he couldn't, so he caught her fireflies instead.”

She didn't get it at first, but it eventually dawned on her—that was the only act of romance her father could give her mother at the time.

And now, this man's doing the same for me.

At the thought of this, Sophia glanced up at him. “Thank you, Alexander.”

The man gulped as he stared into her dazzling eyes, but just as he was about to kiss her, the phone in his pocket rang.

His expression clouded over at the ruined moment.

The call came from Samuel, and he answered it. “What is it?”

It'd better be important, or he's going to get it.

“Your car's here, but where are you and Sophia? I just arrived but don't see any of you.”

Samuel had sped his way over right after getting home, only to find Alexander's car empty.

Then, he had no choice but to make a call after searching everywhere for his friend, only to hear the latter answer the phone in a grim tone.

“Did I disturb you two?” Samuel asked, rubbing his nose awkwardly.

“Scram!”

Samuel froze briefly. I'll take that as a yes. It looks like I won't be having a very good night.

Sophia was right next to Alexander, so she had overheard the conversation loud and clear even if the call wasn't on speaker.

“It's about time we head back,” she remarked with a smile after seeing him hang up.

The man gazed down at her for a while before answering reluctantly, “Okay.”

How perfect would the moment have been if he got to kiss her?

Godd*mmit, Samuel!

Sophia cast him a glance and looked down to conceal a giggle.

After taking a few steps forward, she suddenly stopped and tugged his hand. “Alexander.”

“What's wrong?”

He turned to look back at her.

The woman smiled. “I think I was bitten by a mosquito.”

While speaking, she lifted an arm and raised her sleeve, revealing her smooth skin.

Alexander began to inspect her arm without any hesitation, but he couldn't find a single mosquito bite on it.

His brows furrowed slightly. “Maybe it's just a—”

Suddenly, he felt something soft on his lips.

It was her.

In a split second, the man snaked an arm around her waist and held her chin up before passionately returning the kiss.

Perhaps because they were outside in the middle of nowhere, but things began to get steamy for them really quickly.