Flash Marriage: Pampered by Mr.Bigshot-Chapter 378 - 377: Sword-wielding bodyguard, you are too cruel
Fiona Sutton was very happy today; Charles Northwood had asked her out to dinner.
"The Boiled Meat Slices at this place are tastier than those near the school. They’re spicy enough, and this Spicy Lotus Root is especially famous. You can try some."
Excited, Fiona handed the menu to Charles. Previously, because Nia Mitchell couldn’t eat spicy food, he had always avoided ordering spicy dishes.
Today, with Nia not there, he didn’t need to do that anymore.
Fiona was actually quite upset. When Nia didn’t eat spicy food, he would order sweet and sour dishes instead, never once considering that she, Fiona Sutton, also couldn’t live without spice.
"Do you often come to this restaurant?"
Charles looked around. It was a small restaurant, but exceptionally clean.
"Yes, the owner even knows me. She gives me a 20% discount every time."
Fiona smiled radiantly, picking up the water jug to pour Charles a glass of water.
After they had ordered, Fiona returned with two bottles of beer.
"Do you drink beer? The owner gave them to us."
Fiona sat down and casually popped open a bottle cap.
"No, you drink it."
Charles forced a smile, his brows furrowing as he watched her uninhibited actions.
When the food arrived, Fiona smiled at Charles.
"If you have something to say, just spit it out. If you keep hemming and hawing, how will you be able to enjoy this meal? I certainly don’t want you to think this restaurant I brought you to is bad."
Fiona reached out with her chopsticks and picked up a piece of the Boiled Meat Slices.
Charles hesitated for a moment, looking at Fiona before him.
She had always been straightforward and unconcerned with trivialities, possessing a remarkably strong resilience. He figured that no matter what he said, she would be able to accept it.
"Fiona, I think you’ve truly misunderstood your feelings for me."
Charles finally said the words. Fiona, who had been reaching for more food, froze, her chopsticks hovering mid-air as she slightly lowered her head.
It seemed that in an instant, a warm surge welled up in her eyes, instantly blurring her vision.
"What’s between us is friendship. You’ll understand one day. I don’t want you to persist in a mistake."
Fiona nodded, blinking back the tears that welled in her eyes, and withdrew her outstretched chopsticks.
"Is it because I pushed you too hard?"
Perhaps it was because she cared too much, making her afraid of missing her chance due to her own missteps. If that were the case, she would regret it terribly. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶
"No, it’s that you don’t love me."
Charles had always been refined and gentle, his voice soft. Even now, there was no anger or any other discernible emotion in his eyes.
Only a profound sense of helplessness and pity, as if she were the one who had truly misunderstood.
Looking at Charles like this, Fiona clenched her left hand, hidden beneath the table, so tightly that her nails dug deeply into her palm.
"Charles, I’ve told you before: you don’t have to love me, but don’t deny my love for you. Isn’t it too cruel of you to say that?"
The air was thick with the aroma of spicy food. The freshly cooked dishes, still steaming, created a warm cloud between them.
Charles’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but the words on the tip of his tongue remained unspoken.
"Charles, I genuinely like you, I genuinely love you. Why won’t you believe me?"
Fiona picked up her glass, full of beer, and drained it in one gulp.
"Or is it not that you don’t believe me, but that you simply... you’re just unwilling to accept it?"
Towards the end, Fiona’s voice grew a bit hoarse.
He was unwilling to accept her feelings, so he deceived himself, trying to persuade her, to tell her it wasn’t love.
"Charles, if I had known back then that I would fall for you, I would rather we never had those seven years of friendship."
