Chapter 287 - Will You...

Stephen's eyes widened when he saw this sudden movement from Lina.

'She's leaving already!?' He cried out as he stood up as well.

Lina stopped in her tracks as if she were to take another step then she would have collided into Stephen's tall and lanky body.

"Why are you leaving?" He inquired with a worried look on his face.

Lina tilted her head as though she was wondering whether he wished for her to stay back here for the entire day.

This action of hers caused Steph to pout with a glare.

"I called you here because I had something to say!" The young man pointed at his nose as he uttered those words in a loud voice.

When Lina was reminded of why she had come here in the first place, she stuck her tongue out and shot him an apologetic smile.

"Yes, yes! What was it about?" She inquired while taking her seat back on the couch.

With his lips jutted out, he took his seat next to her and held her hands in his.

"Noona, will you…" He began but soon paused.

The tremble in his voice and the anxious look in his eyes were causing Lina's mind to wander in dangerous waters.

Lina's eyes widened when she saw the pleading look on his face coupled with the words pouring out of his mouth.

'Why is this looking like a failed confession in the making?' She wondered incredulously as she continued to stare at his face.

Each second that Stephen delayed caused Lina's anxiety to rise as she gulped in nervousness at what he might say.

"Will you be my…" He continued and once again he stopped before he could finish his sentence.

The addition of these two words now made Lina to shut her eyes as she refused to believe that her cute puppy had such intentions towards her.

'No! He is not confessing to me! He calls me his Noona for God's sake!' She declared in her mind yet the tremble in her hands proved that she wasn't as confident as she appeared to be.

Stephen held her hands tighter when he saw that she had attempted to withdraw her slightly trembling and excessively sweating palms from his grasp.

'Is she just as nervous as I am?' He wondered while taking a deep breath in.

Once he had calmed himself, he decided that delaying this topic any further would only worsen his anxiety and he needed to get an answer from her as soon as possible.

"Will you be my muse and model for the winter collection!?" 

"I like Reuben!"

Two loud screams were heard in the silent room following which another round of silence took over their surroundings.

While he blurted out in a single breath his request and hoped that she would agree, she had also blurted out what was in her heart.

'Eh? What did I just hear?' They had the same thought as they opened their eyes.

The awkwardness in Lina's face made her turn a deep red as she realized that she had imagined things and had mad silly assumptions.

'Was I just rejected before I even got to try?' Stephen stared at the woman who sat before him with a blank gaze.

*Cough*

Lina coughed to relieve the awkward air around them and let out a sheepish chuckle.

"Ha ha… Sure, I would love to be your muse and model." She accepted his proposal with a smile that stretched out to the ends of her face.

By now, Stephen had recovered from the shock of being rejected and tried to smile back at the beautiful woman who was smiling at him.

"Noona, you rejected me…?" He whispered after a few moments as an aggrieved look soon appeared on his face.

This question made her choke for a couple of seconds before she could find her bearings.

Though he did not have feelings for his Noona in a romantic fashion, it still hurt to know that he would have been rejected if he ever got such a thought in his mind.

'Shit! What should I do?' She pondered on how to explain things to him without hurting him any further.

"I am Steph's Noona so I do like you but not in that way…' She muttered in a soft and calming voice in order to make him feel a little comforted.

"Is it because you have Mr. Ming now?" His rebuttal made her freeze for a few seconds.

'Would I like Steph if I had not met Ruby?' She polled her heart and was well aware of what the answer would be.

She would not have chosen to date Steph even if Reuben was not in the equation and this was a truth she could not deny.

However, making this known to the young man did not seem like a proper solution to her.

'Sorry, Ruby! Take the blame this time around!' She apologized to him in her heart and nodded to Stephen.

"That is correct." She acquiesced to the earlier question that he had tossed at her.

"If he doesn't treat you right then I am snatching you away from him! Even if it is just to stay as my Noona!" He declared while pointing out that he did not have romantic feelings for her.

This declaration made her chuckle as she nodded, agreeing to his words.

"Yes! Snatch me away if Ruby treats me wrong!" She goaded him on which made them let out a chuckle.

Having sorted out the confusion between them and also coming to the conclusion that Lina would soon be his muse and model, Stephen was on the highest heavens.

As he had promised the employees that once the culprit was caught he would take back his decision of canceling the winter collection, he would soon be up to his neck in work.

Lina patted his head as everything that had happened was because of her.

"You have extra work and the only cause of that is me… I'm sorry for increasing your burdens, Steph." She muttered with her head bowed to express her guilt.

Steph shook his head and smiled at her as he leaned forward, bringing out a long and thick drawing notebook which was inside a cabinet under the table before them.

"Take a look at this." He nudged the book in her hands as he winked at her.

Confused at why he had done so, Lina opened the book and was stunned to see the rough sketches of various dresses and gowns drawn inside.

As she flipped through the pages, each page held exquisite yet rough drafts of masterpieces in need of polishing.

'I can work with these!' She exclaimed, excited that her creative juices were flowing after seeing these sketches.

Turning in his direction, Lina smirked as she pointed at the book in her hand.

"Steph, how would you like to create a collaborative collection with the artist LY!?" She quizzed with a wide smile as she said for his answer.

Of course, just as she had thought, she witnessed Steph's face blossoming with a brilliant smile as he nodded his head to show his admittance.

"Yes!" Was all he could utter in his excitement.