Chapter 257 - Hannah's Decision

Hannah had never met such an impressive and kind man as Friedrich. Right then and there.. she knew she fell in love with him.

However, sadly ... Friedrich didn't seem to feel the same way about her. Ahh.... she really regretted treating him as a male escort on their first encounter. She felt so ashamed about it now.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" asked the young man in amazement. "Is there something on my face?"

Hannah hurriedly shook her head. "No. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be staring like that ... It was rude."

"So?" Friedrich couldn't understand why Hannah was looking at him with teary eyes. He didn't do anything wrong, right? If Hannah was fine, why did she seem like she was going to cry?

"Uhm .. I just feel grateful and indebted. All my life, I will remember your kindness." Hannah rubbed her eyes and tried to pull herself together. "I've also thought carefully about what to do while you were gone. I want to leave my family. I will find a job and support myself."

"Hmm .." Friedrich nodded as he took a sip of his wine. "Good. You think about it and don't try to rely on other people. Then what work can you do?"

"I can do anything ... I can wait tables in restaurants. I think some places would accept temporary workers with under table payments since I don't have a visa to work in this country," Hannah said briskly. "I promise I will not bother you."

"Very well," Friedrich said. "I might be able to find you a job at my company. Maybe they can accept you to work at the company cafeteria. What do you think?"

Hannah was delighted to hear that. She was completely new to Seattle and could not possibly find a legal job because she was not a permanent resident in United States. If Friedrich helped her find a job, it would certainly be a great help.

"I would like that," said the girl excitedly. "Thank you!"

Hannah's enthusiasm touched Friedrich's heart. He actually only offered for the sake of saying something, not expecting Hannah to accept it right away.

This girl .. is a princess right? And she is okay working as a waiter at the company cafeteria?

Frederick took a good look at the girl, and at once his impression of Hannah took a turn for the better. At first, he just wanted to help the girl out of pity. 

However, now that he saw Hannah's determination and enthusiasm for work and to support herself, unwilling to rely on him, Friedrich became impressed.

It turned out that this princess was not a spoiled brat. Friedrich was very happy to see her.

"Very well, then. When can you start working?" asked the man.

"As soon as possible," said Hannah sheepishly. "I ... I need money. I have absolutely no money with me right now."

She was unable to contact Aurora to bring her clothes and she was sure her account must have been frozen too.

"You don't have money?" Friedrich asked in amazement. "You didn't have a wallet?"

Hannah shook her head. "I brought my wallet, but I'm sure my account has been frozen by my parents,"

"Oh ..." Friedrich nodded in understanding. He took a small wallet from his pocket and took out a card from it. He put it on the table. "You can spend the money on this card for whatever you need. I'll send you the PIN code. Where's your cell phone?"

"Dead," Hannah replied. "I turned it off on purpose so they can't track me down."

"Hmm .. you're smart too," said Friedrich. "Then I'll buy you a new cell phone."

Hannah nodded. "Thank you. I'll pay it back as soon as I get paid."

"Hmm .." Friedrich just nodded. He took out a pen from his pocket and a small piece of paper, then wrote down the PIN for the debit card he gave her just now.

He then handed it over to Hannah. "Here's the PIN. You can use the money to buy everything you need. You don't have to worry of being traced. Everything is under my name."

"Thank you." Hannah kept the paper after reading its contents. Slowly the burden on her chest became lighter.

"Then, what about the place to live?" Friedrich asked again. "I don't mind if you stay here until you earn a living and can rent your own room or flat."

Hannah nodded happily. "Thank you so much! I would love that. I can cook and clean the house to pay it back. I won't live her for free!"

Friedrich shook his head. "No need. Harley's really good at it. I guess all you need to do is teach Harley how to cook the dishes you made earlier. I want my robot to be better."

Hannah smiled in relief and nodded. "Very well. With pleasure. I'll do it."

"Good. Then everything is fine."

Hannah felt so light when Friedrich said that everything was fine. For some reason, all the worry and fear she felt earlier now disappeared into the air. 

She felt that she had become more courageous and was able to face anything.

She felt very grateful to Friedrich.

"Okay, then, please buy all your necessities and make yourself comfortable. Harley has shown you your room, right? You can ask his help with various things. I have to work. Tomorrow, I have a lot of important meetings."

Friedrich finished his prosecco and walked from the terrace into the house. Hannah just stared at the young man's back until he was out of sight. 

Ahh .. she felt so relieved.

After finishing her drink, Hannah immediately cleaned up the prosecco bottle and glasses and washed them in the kitchen. After that, she rushed to find Harley.

"Harley, I need a computer to shop for women's necessities. Can you help me?" she asked the robot.

"Of course, Miss. Come with me," said Harley respectfully. He walked into a room next to the living room and showed a computer there.

"Thanks, Harley." Hannah immediately sat down by the computer table and opened the marketplace. She then ordered some simple clothes and other necessities. She also ordered a new cell phone to replace her old one

While opening a marketplace and ordering the items she needed, Hannah tried to find news about herself in various media. She checked news sites from Moravia, American media sites, and international media.

She wanted to know whether her family already knew that she disappeared or not, and what were their actions now ...

Hmm .. nothing.

There was no way Valentino had not told Hannah's parents about the events this morning. Surely, he quickly reported everything to the Moravian monarchs. They should have started sending people to look for Hannah by now.

Ah ... no news is good news, Hannah thought. She then turned off the computer and decided to return to her room and rest again to calm down.

Everything that happened since last night until now still felt like a dream to her. Her fate changed so drastically, from being a princess from the Moravian royal family, now a runaway kid.

In fact, she would soon become an illegal immigrant in America who worked illegally because she didn't have a residence visa in this country that allowed her to get a job.

However, Hannah felt a lot happier with her life now compared to when she was still living surrounded by wealth as a princess. In her case, it's true, money couldn't buy happiness.

***

The next morning, Friedrich woke up to the smell of very delicious cooking. Unknowingly, his nose sniffed the air. Hmm .. Did Harley learn a new recipe, he thought, nodding off.

"Gosh ... that girl!" Friedrich muttered suddenly, as he remembered about Hannah, the girl he had helped yesterday.

He wondered if Hannah had got up and cooked this early. He let out a big yawn and hurried into his robe, and walked toward the kitchen. There, he found the girl chopping vegetables and starting to cook.

For a moment, Friedrich was stunned in his place. Why did Hannah wake up so early and cook?

"What are you cooking?" Friedrich asked as he walked over to the girl. Hannah, who was taken aback by his sudden voice, immediately jumped up in shock.

"Gosh .. you startled me," said the girl. A broad smile immediately etched on her face. "I cooked your favorite pancakes. Harley told me you really like pancakes for breakfast."

"Oh ..." Friedrich fell silent. He didn't want to correct Hannah and offend her.

Actually, the information she received from Harley was only half accurate. Friedrich DIDN'T LIKE pancakes for breakfast. 

He only liked pancakes made by his mother, because that woman used to make pancakes for him when he was a child, and those memories were kept deep in his heart after his father and mother died.