Stuck in you

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" Lea poked Rachel gently to get her attention. "Why didn't you reply to him?"

Rachel snapped out of her stupor, turned to Lea and then frowned. "Why? Did he talk to me?" she asked and wondered what Lea meant.

"Yes. He spoke to you a few times, but you never responded to him. He probably felt embarrassed and went to the bathroom."

Rachel raised a hand to her forehead and massaged it slightly as she shook her head. There was silence as she tried to get her bearing back. She hesitated to give Lea a reply. She went there just to have a meal. She never expected that it would turn out like this.

The stranger opposite her stared at her with glittering eyes. Rachel had seen that kind of look many times before but she never knew what they actually meant.

Earlier during dinner, the man tried to start a conversation with Rachel, but whatever topic he brought up, she politely declined them all. And Lea could not understand what was wrong with her friend.

"Why don't you answer me?" Lea asked urgently. "So, do you like him or not?"

Rachel hesitated and thought about Lea's question. "What do you mean by liking him? Isn't he your friend?" she asked with a puzzled look.

"Yes, he is," Lea replied. "So, what do you think of him? He's single."

"Didn't you say that you like Henry?" Rachel asked her friend in confusion. She didn't get it.

Lea was confused. "What does it have to do with me and Henry?" she asked frowning. "I am asking for your opinion on him. Whether he's okay to you or not."

Rachel never understood what Lea meant until she saw the expression on face. As it turned out, Lea introduced her a blind date.

The realization of the situation brought mixed feelings to Rachel. She was unsure how to react. She sat there and stared blankly at the table. The man soon came back to the table with an uneasy smile. She looked down awkwardly and avoided looking into the man's eyes.

She felt awkward because she did not know how to react to the situation that she found herself in. She answered the questions that the man asked her as briefly as she could. Lea even helped facilitate some of the questions.

The thought of getting into a situation that she had no control of made Rachel wonder if she should be embarrassed or angry.

But Rachel's responses helped prevent making Alex Xiao feel even more uncomfortable. Lea initially told him that Rachel was a cold girl by nature so he expected half of the trouble he was in.

However, as time wore on, Alex Xiao quickly realized that Rachel wasn't really interested in talking. 'She is indeed a cold beautiful girl,' he thought as he sighed with a sunken heart.

After dinner, Alex Xiao did not waste time to give an excuse to leave. His car drove slowly away as Lea watched. "He's still so handsome," she exclaimed.

'Is he really handsome?' Rachel didn't think that he was that good-looking, but she was convinced that he was akin to a well-educated scholar.

"So, what do you think of him?" Lea asked as she turned to her friend.

"He's a little talkative," Rachel commented dismissively.

course, he was trying to start a conversation with you,'

Rachel. "Alex came back to conduct a play for a local theater. He is the director for a Russian theater. He gave me a few tickets for that play. I think they're visiting

"A play?"

"Yes."

No need to bring me along,"

might be winter the next time I get back. Why can't we spend

blush anymore

lying," Lea

go out on a date with Henry?"

time with Henry is different with spending time with you," Lea replied. Her shoulders

difference?"

paused and there was a moment of silence between the two friends. "I can still look for another man if I lose

there was no way that she'd lose her. But a sudden thought stopped her from saying anything further. After a moment of brief reflection, she understood

would eventually lose her

that it would all be in

made Lea feel frustrated. It was like she jumped head first into a pit. And it made Lea so

Lea by changing the subject. "Do you really believe I will

"Is there a reason why you seem to be

a momentary silence between them. Rachel contemplated the words that Lea said while Lea thought about the right words for what she had to say next. "I thought that you were in a relationship with Lucas, but I was wrong. What's wrong with Lucas

about it?" Rachel was surprised. She only found out about it the day before. Lea sounded like she knew about it

made a mistake by letting that information slip. She suddenly looked awkward and

details of that meeting by the fountain square, but Rachel could guess that Lea saw something that led her to believe

the event. "I saw them yesterday. But it's no biggie, we are

know that she had even planned to be with Lucas

on Lucas. I thought that you two

"Well, let's not talk about

think of Alex?" Lea

bad," Rachel replied casually, shrugging her shoulders a little

it

know how to respond to Lea's enthusiastic

her friend worried too much about her love life. Rachel lowered her head and unconsciously took

them were from Jack. She rubbed the

her that she was not completely

her mind. "Did you fall in love with

the answer, but deep down, she knew the answer

her phone. She reflexively dialed back Jack's number and the phone screen indicated that the