Chapter 146 - Do You Hate Liars?

When Zoey exited the bedroom, Matthew Xi had a glimpse of Zion Kwan sitting on one side of the bed while Cora Ma laid on her side — her back against the man. 

Even without asking, Matthew Xi figured out that Zoey had found a way for the two to talk. After all, seeing the peaceful front of Zoey, it confirmed his assumptions. 

"How's Cora?" On the other hand, the oblivious Enzo Li was still a few pages behind the current story. 

"She'll be fine. Big brother Ion will look after her." Relaxed, Zoey glanced at Enzo Li before shifting it to Matthew Xi. 

"Ahh..." Nodding his head in understanding, Enzo Li watched Zoey heading towards the kitchen and checking the refrigerator. 

"We'll do groceries for the two of them and then mission complete!" Checking the almost empty fridge, Zoey exclaimed as she grabbed a bottle of water and closed the refrigerator. 

"Groceries?! No way!" Enzo Li's face distorted, scrunching his nose up as he instantly refused. 

"Alright." Without a second hesitation, Zoey nodded her head magnanimously. "My Browny and I can do it." She added, glancing at Matthew Xi, whose expression never changed. 

"Zhou Zoey..." Grinding his teeth, Enzo Li was about to warn her to stop using that horrible endearment. However, his words trailed off for some reason. "Whatever! Do whatever you want, I'm out of here!" Enzo Li grumbled, avoiding to spout nonsense before Matthew Xi. 

Well, Enzo Li tends to spout nonsense recklessly whenever he is mad. Hence, he stopped himself before he could snap. 

Also, being away from her would help. After all, staying with her longer would only get worse overtime. 

"Good luck with the groceries." Waving his hand, Enzo Li hopped out of the couch as he glanced at Zoey. 

"Alright, see you around~!" Gulping a mouthful of water, Zoey waved her hand as she watched him stride to the apartment's entrance door. 

Enzo Li's steps didn't even falter — not even once. He also didn't look back as he went straight to the door and left just like that. 

For some reason, Zoey felt that Enzo Li's presence today was quite useless. After all, Matthew Xi didn't tag along with her just like her initial plan. 

Even so, Zoey thought it was the best last minute plan. After all, Cora Ma did break down earlier. Hence, it would be totally awkward if Cora Ma bawled her eyes out around the unconcerned Matthew Xi. 

"So..." When the door closed, Zoey slowly glided toward the couch and perched on Matthew Xi's side. "Baby, you're fine doing groceries, right?" Her eyelashes fluttered coquettishly, trailing his shoulder by her finger. 

"You can't seduce someone while talking groceries." Matthew Xi cast her a side eye and spoke his mind. Yet, although he said that, Matthew Xi was also uncertain with its accuracy. 

After all, whatever she does affects him. But it might just be him since his interest in her was slowly levelling up with time. 

*****

"How did you settle it?" Matthew Xi inquired, glancing at her who was holding the side of the cart while he moved it along with him. 

Although he figured that the tension between Cora Ma and Zion Kwan had slightly subsided, what intrigued him was what Zoey did to resolve the matter. 

"How? Hmm..." Pondering on the simplest explanation, Zoey halted in her tracks and faced him. "Easy. I made him say the truth." With a smile, Zoey explained which raised more questions than he had earlier. 

"How?" He arched his brows and stared back at her, patiently waiting for her response. 

"Well, I can't detail everything since I'm not in the place to talk about it. But, I just played a few mind and word tricks so..." Zoey shrugged, giving him a knowing look as she believed he could fill in the blanks even without stating it herself. 

"I see..." Although Matthew Xi didn't figure out the whole of it, he still got the gist of what she meant by mind games. 

"I just hope they will settle it quickly. I'd hate to see them hurting each other for a simple misunderstanding." Sighing, Zoey shook his head while Matthew Xi studied her discreetly. 

"Simple misunderstanding...?"

"Mhmm," Hearing his low-toned remarks, Zoey pursed her lips into a meek smile as she glanced at him. "You see, Cora is a very insecure lady — the very worst kind. She sees the beauty of others, but not the beauty in her. So, it's not a surprise that she would rather keep her feelings for my big brother to herself rather than confess." As Zoey described Cora Ma, she slowly began picking out ingredients the two could use for their meals for the next couple of days. 

"Although she never told me despite being her friend, did she think I will not notice?" Sounding nonchalant and cool about it, Zoey briefly raised her brows and shrugged her shoulders. 

"On the other hand, my big brother, although he's smart and a remarkable doctor, he lacks courage. He is not a type of risk taker who would take a risk against the odds. He's the type of person who takes risks only when he knows he would win." Turning her head to Matthew Xi, Zoey dropped the pack of apples in the cart. 

"See? One would rather hide things to herself until she explodes and the other is hesitant to take a leap of faith." Zoey sighed, simplifying the problems with their character. "If they weren't forced to have a conversation, nothing would get fixed and their pain will only deepen. Jeez... the word 'communication' just left the dictionary." She sighed once again, shaking her head as she continued to shop for Cora Ma's fridge to fill. 

Meanwhile, Matthew Xi stared at her silently. Her words engraved in his mind about how she perceived her best friend and Zion Kwan. Zoey… she was not the type of person who sees the good in people; she was the kind of person who sees the worst in them. 

For some reason, a quick question arose in his mind. 

'Were you observing me too?' He wondered internally, curious on what kind of person he was in her eyes.

More than that, the word communication never left his mind. It was as if that word tugged his conscience for keeping his little secret from her. 

"Do you hate liars?" Out of nowhere, he asked causing Zoey to pause and turn her attention to him. "If someone wants to tell you something important, will you listen and communicate with them patiently?"