"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?" Bella affectionately linked arms with her. "Once a teacher, always a... you know."

"Taking advantage of me, huh?" Roza teased, hooking Bella's chin with the hand holding the cigarette.

Roza was taller and had a bigger frame than Bella. 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 the lazy 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.

a glass of ice water. They had not seen each other for a while and had not been in touch. Yet he found himself checking her

them closer. However, Roza had

it in one go, regardless of what it was. "Holy crap! Ax, you've really outdone yourself!" Ralph exclaimed, slapping his back excitedly. "A full glass of absinthe, and you chugged it in one go?! Even I need to sip

Axel froze. 'Absinthe?!'

entire digestive tract was

Axel's retreating figure,

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,

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

her eyes playfully, glancing toward

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