Lina sat on a chair by the bed and gazed at the man who was laying down with his eyes closed.
After she had successfully filled his stomach with the light and healthy meal that Benji had prepared, she then helped him take his medicines.
She had to threaten him that she would leave his apartment immediately and never come back, only then did he agree to take a nap.
The medication was making him drowsy and the thought of his Kitten staying by his side brought a sense of relief to his mind.
Thus for the past half hour, the room was filled only with the sounds of Reuben's silent breathing and was accompanied by Lina's occasionally growling tummy.
While she had fed her boyfriend and put him to sleep, she was hungry as she had not yet eaten anything since her lunch at the office.
'Benji will be here with something to eat so calm down already!' She chastised her grumbling belly as she rubbed it in circles.
Not knowing what else to do while she waited for her food to arrive, she decided to take a look around his room.
'I'm sure he wouldn't mind.' She reckoned and then stood from her seat.
Reuben was lost in his feverish dream world and did not notice that the woman who said that she would sit by his side was now looking around his personal belongings.
Lina was not a pervert to go through his cabinets and wardrobes but at the same time, she wasn't a saint who would close her eyes to the things that were right in front of her.
She leisurely strode around the room and the first thing she desired to see was his balcony.
Silently opening the door while she made sure to not disturb his sleep, she walked out onto the balcony and shut the door.
'The hell!? It's so cold out here!' She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself to keep her body temperature from leaving her.
The twinkling lights flashed on once she stepped forward and she looked at the beautiful scenery of the city lights.
In her own cozy embrace, she sat on the seat placed out there and this was when she realized something important.
'Isn't this the spot where Ruby sat during the video call we had?' She questioned himself and was pretty sure that the answer was a big fat yes.
She turned around and glanced at the familiar wall that she had seen during the call and then at the cold winter breeze assaulting her face.
'I'm in this warm hoodie and I still feel like I'm freezing while that dummy was just in a bathrobe!' She scowled at her man who was putting aesthetics over his health.
'No wonder that he fell sick almost immediately' She shook her head and decided to pay more attention to his whereabouts especially if they spoke on such video calls late in the night.
This was how Lina would, later on, develop a habit of questioning Reuben about his exact location and surroundings before she began any conversation with him.
A habit that Reuben would gladly accept and embrace it, making it his own as well.
Spending a few minutes outside was all it took for Lina to rush back inside.
She then reveled in the warmth of the heated temperature inside the room and glanced around as her feet stepped ahead.
As her eyes scanned the room, she found his large TV which was even bigger than the one in Wayne's room at Yang Manor.
His files lay scattered on the coffee table along with his open laptop and cellphone.
Lina knew better than to touch his work stuff and hence she ignored them and kept looking around.
Moving to the other side of the room, her eyes were now fixed on the wall of pictures, the same that she had seen the last time she was here.
However, this time she wasn't seeing pictures of her friend, Reuben.
No! Now she was seeing the pictures of her boyfriend, Ruby.
This tiny addition of the word 'boy' before the 'friend' had made the world's difference as she once again viewed the same old photos.
She blushed at every picture she saw and even wished that she had her phone with her so that she might make a copy of these for her eyes only.
'Ruby was such a cute toddler!' She gushed at his childhood pictures.
As she moved along, it was as though she was watching him grow with every picture.
'Whoever had this idea is a genius! I will do the same when Ruby and I have kids!' She exclaimed and then froze.
She had not yet thought of taking their relationship to the next step and this sudden thought of having kids with him made her blush until her face turned red.
However, before she could dive deeper into this pool of sweet fluffy emotions, her eyes darted towards another picture.
She gritted her teeth and then turned towards the man who was sleeping like a baby.
Narrowing her eyes at him, she stepped in his direction following which she leaned closer to his sleeping serene face.
"She may be your first kiss but I intend to be your last and only kiss!" She declared as she booped his nose gently.
Reuben's nostrils flared feeling her touch on his skin but he did not awaken from his slumber.
Lina sighed and then decided to leave him alone… for now.
She glared one last time at the graduation ceremony picture of Reuben and the other girl whom Lina believed to be his first kiss.
Then she flipped her ponytail and strode out of the room.
As she entered the main hall of his apartment, she witnessed Benji coming in through the elevator.
"The food's-" Benji announced and raised his hand to show the different bento that he had carried with him.
But Lina did not let him finish and glared at him while shushing him.
"Shut it! He is finally sleeping now!" She whisper-yelled at him and pointed towards the kitchen which was away from Reuben's room.
Benji gave her a silent nod and then followed her to the kitchen where he opened the bento and served the food he had freshly prepared for her.
Lina's mouth watered looking at the delicious looking noodles and she did not care about her image as she began slurping them.
___
As Lina was oblivious to the mischief that Benji had played on her and continued eating the super spicy noodles, the ambiance in Yang Manor was freezing.
"Why isn't she answering my call?" Patrick yelled at his phone when the call he had made to Lina did not go through.
Mandy had been silently watching her father fret over the wellbeing of the other daughter of the Yang family.
Her anger and jealousy for the concern he was showering Lina was now about to make her burst into a big flaming ball of fury.
But looking at her mother, she decided to stay silent but not too silent.
"Who knows? She must have gone running after some man and forgotten about her family." She mocked Lina's vagrant lifestyle.
'Jeanette confessed that Lina was hellbent in her devious methods of chasing her father. Maybe she is with him right now.' Mandy speculated and then scoffed at her disgusting cousin.
When Patrick and Wade heard the demeaning words that Mandy had spoken and saw the disgust in her eyes, they were furious, to say the least.
Before Wade could utter a single word, Patrick glared at the woman who dared to speak such words in his presence.
"Watch your mouth or don't blame me for kicking you out along with your mother!" He glowered at her without holding back.
Wade was surprised when he heard uncle Pat's outburst but he did not speak up because they already were in a stressed situation as it was.
"Mrs. Rong, please take her away for now." He advised Lucille who had been watching everything from the sidelines.
For a change, Lucille did not object to it as she rose from her seat and dragged her daughter away from the room.
"Send their dinner to their rooms." He then commanded a nearby servant.
Richy gave a quick nod before entering the kitchen to follow the orders.
"Check the CCTV footage!" Patrick ordered Butler Ping through gritted teeth.
When he had reached Luo Residence after a tiring day at work, he was informed that Lina never made it back home.
He had supposed that she had moved back to the Yang Manor to avoid meeting Wayne with whom she was currently feuding.
However, when he made a trip to Yang Manor with Wade, Butler Ping informed him that he hadn't seen Lina entering the place.
The only people who had seen Lina inside the house were Lucille, Mandy, and Richy.
None of whom had uttered a single word about her appearance in the house and sat tight-lipped watching the show happening here.
Wade was wise enough to call Derek and hence it was proved that he had safely driven Lina to this place.
Now, they sat in trepidation of where she might be as they awaited the CCTV footage of the entire house.
Butler Ping called the security guard who rushed in with a Tablet in his hand which contained the live feed of all the cameras in the house.
With each second that Patrick and Wade watched Lina's movements inside the house, their faces turned darker than the bottom of a burned pot.
"I will deal with them later. Our priority is to locate Lina's car." Patrick announced as he strode out of the house.
Wade sat in the same spot as he replayed the scene of Lina's conversation with the two women and then glared at the door through which they had just left.
'Nana better be safe or else!' He grimaced and then ran out to catch up with his uncle.