Love's Change of Heart

Upon returning to her sanctuary, Zoe sensed the aroma of pizza still clinging to her, so she went to take a bath.

After emerging from the toilet, she nestled into the embrace of the couch and reached for her phone; it had a notification on it indicating a message sent from Brandon 10 minutes ago.

The text read, 'Zoe, after spending time together, you probably have a preliminary understanding of me. I don't know what you think of me, but I genuinely regard you as an exceptional woman. I recognize that our current acquaintance falls short of what is requisite for two individuals to embark upon a romantic journey. Regardless, dating itself is a process of getting to know each other. I wonder if you'd consider taking a step forward with me based on the current foundation.'

He followed up with another text, asking, 'Zoe, would you be willing to be my girlfriend?'

Zoe looked at the message and fell silent for a long time. She exited the chat with Brandon and scrolled through countless conversations until she found Daniel's profile picture and tapped on it.

Little by little, she scrolled through their past chat records. Sometime later, she drew a deep breath and resolutely deleted the remnants of their past exchanges.

Returning to Brandon's message thread, she composed her response, meticulously crafting each word. 'Certainly.'

With the dispatch of her reply, Zoe put down her phone and reclined on the couch. Let's consider this as a fresh start for myself.

Meanwhile, in the adjacent room, Leanna busied herself with cleaning when a tiny toy tumbled to the floor amidst her extraction of garments from the suitcase. Carefully setting aside the garments, she slowly lowered herself onto the floor to pick the toy up.

The little guy was playing beside me when I was packing last night; he must have put it in there at that time.

Clasping the toy within her palm, she became lost in her thoughts, sitting on the floor for an extended interlude before rising to enter the bathroom.

After she finished showering and came out, Leanna opened another small bag and took out a box from it that contained several sachets of medicinal herbs, accompanied by an array of syringes.

These were all given to her secretly by Waylen before she left.

Those were a week's worth. Waylen had repeatedly instructed her on how to take the medicine and administer the injections; the medicinal herbs were to be taken twice a day, and the injections were to be administered once a day.

Leanna let out a sigh and placed everything in the innermost compartment of the refrigerator, using several food containers as a barrier.

prepare some mushroom soup, though he had yet to be successful. For that reason, the odds of finding something edible were a mere one percent when it

of drowsiness washed over her. It appeared that the medicine also possessed

Leanna's head grazed the pillow, she swiftly succumbed to slumber.

the world outside gleamed with morning's radiance, and the

and turned around as usual, only to find Aidan's eyes still sealed shut,

must have returned late, and thus refrained from calling out to him. Instead, she leaned closer and planted a tender kiss upon his lofty nose bridge. But

was tinged with weariness, the man uttered, "Secretly kissing me

his chest, a mischievous smile adorning her lips. "I'm

opened his eyes, and his slender lips

"Good morning."

back last night? If you'd like, you can sleep a little longer. I'll

Aidan replied,

Leanna felt a sense of self-blame and guilt. "Is the situation with the Crossley Group very

the Southwest

the

will facilitate

fell into a thoughtful silence, choosing not to press for further details. Instead, she gently eased herself

"Alright," Aidan murmured.

rose to her feet, tidied her hair,

of medicine from the refrigerator and administered an injection before disposing of the syringe in

refrained from immediately calling him. Instead, she enjoyed her meal, consumed the medicine, tidied up the kitchen, and changed her attire. Only then did she approach Aidan to rouse

warm in the pot. You can eat it when you wake up. I'll be heading

her words spoken, she made a move

slowly sat up. "Wait for me. I'll go with

replied. After a brief pause, she added, "You're still planning to go to the Crossley