Chapter 17: Don’t Be So Mean

"Take it away, take it away. It's easy to get fat in the summer with that stuff." Cassie waved her hands, showing the wasted sunscreen on her hands, and smiled at her, "Don't be so mean. You know there's a domestic shop. I'll learn from you and be more frugal from today on."

"You know how expensive it is in a domestic shop? It's easy for you to say that. So you'll be more delicate on the basis of wasting my money?" Irish tried her best not to laugh, and the clean face under the visor looked bright as the sun. "If you continue, Fredrick won't be able to deal."

"Oh, you're exaggerating. Stop. He's coming." Cassie spoke so quickly. As soon as she saw him come out from the departure area, she stood up immediately and excitedly.

Irish felt her heartbeat increase and turned her head back slowly. She saw the man pushing his luggage cart from the departure. He wore a white t-shirt with clean cream-colored pants. His tall and slender figure was so attractive.

"Irish, Fredrick is over there. Be quick." Cassie was so excited she dragged Irish forward.

The man saw them from a far distance and waved his hand and smiled. His smile was so charming that the girls around him even noticed. Irish's legs were heavy as lead, but her heart was beating wildly with his smile. Her excitement showed immediately.

"Fredrick," Cassie rushed forward and ran into his arms as everyone around them watched. She hugged him.

Irish stopped, the excitement in her eyes darkened.

Fredrick stretched his hands to tousle her hair in a loving way. Then he raised his eyes to look at Irish and greeted her with a huge smile. After their eyes met, she smiled, and it distracted her from the little bit of grief in her heart.

****

She hadn't recovered from her sense of loss, but an arm hung over her shoulder idly. The voice jokingly asked, "Dear, why do you seem to be so jealous?"

She had been daydreaming it seemed, for his question shocked her. The man was looking at her intently. To put it more precisely, he was staring at her like she was some kind of prey.

This man...

"I don't know you. Please don't ask me questions." Irish swatted his hand down quickly.

The man started whining....

"Leo, you move so fast." Fredrick came forward quickly and stretched out his hand to pat the man's shoulder. Cassie was happily by his side.

"I have been with you in this cabin for seven hours. And the first thing I've wanted to do is exercise the whole time." The man called Leo did a simple lunge, then blinked at Irish, "Isn't that true, my dear?"

Fredrick looked at them both with astonishment, "You two know each other?"

"Of course."

"No, we don't."

They said nearly at the same time. Fredrick and Cassie looked at them, confused.

"What's wrong with you that you call every woman you meet dear?" Irish frowned. She didn't appreciate men when they were forward and familiar like this.

"You've really forgotten? I couldn't forget if you asked me to. The other day you kicked me down from the bungee platform." Leo appeared to be innocent but deliberately let out a scream.

Irish suddenly remembered and glanced over at Cassie. Cassie also then realized that this was the man who had a blind date with Irish. They looked at each other with great embarrassment.

"It's okay, my dear. You don't have to feel so guilty, considering we have lots of time to get to know each other." Leo raised his wrist to look at the time, "Fredrick, I'm going back to have a meeting. Let's catch up next time."

"Okay," Fredrick nodded.

Leo looked back at Irish and laughed. All of a sudden, he lowered his head and kissed her on the forehead. Irish was so surprised that she didn't have time to react, just to hear his booming laugh and see him turn to leave.

Fredrick was confused and furrowed his brow.

"Fredrick, when did you become friends with someone like that?" Irish turned and stared at Fredrick calmly.

Fredrick raised his arm in surrender, "My God, he's no ruffian."

"Who is he?" Cassie was also frightened by Leo's actions.

"Leo, the eldest son of the chairman of the board of Key Group, is also the general manager of Key Group in North America," Fredrick revealed.

****

It was a clean and fresh spa room. "Are you feeling any better?" Fredrick calmly asked Irish.

The bright sunshine was beaming through the windows. They were in a private psych treatment room that had belonged to Fredrick before he went abroad. They came here directly from the airport.

Irish sat on the sofa and seemed to be thinking, "After I returned, I haven't heard the voice and music as often, but several times I've still woken up to it. There was once..." She hesitated and looked at Fredrick.

Fredrick was her mentor not only academically but also in work. When she was in university, Fredrick was an external expert there who worked with a high salary. He was her favorite lecturer. During the years when she was expanding her education abroad, Fredrick founded a mental research institute there. That way, she was able to become an intern there and deal with individual cases.

Every psychologist needed a mentor, they were still people and needed to talk about what they were dealing with too. Fredrick was a successful psychologist and an excellent man. As a 32-year-old, he was at the peak of his career, and he showed politeness and gentleness with everything he did; therefore, he was naturally popular in the community.

"It was..." It was on that morning when she woke up in Joseph's bed. When she heard that 'run away' music, it was already the morning. And the only time in ages she hadn't woken up at one o'clock. "One day, when I woke up in the morning." She couldn't tell Fredrick the truth.

She had a lot of admiration for Fredrick. Over the years, she had grown up before his eyes. She couldn't have achieved what she had if he hadn't been there to help her. She relied on him, loved him, but...

Fredrick loved Cassie.