Blair noticed how Wesley walked on without saying a word. She sensed a brewing headache and wondered, 'Is he seriously giving me the silent treatment?'
They reached a crossroad; if they went right, they would reach the parking lot. The other led to the front gate. Wesley stopped in his tracks, hesitating for a few seconds. He gestured to the path that would bring them to the entrance. "I'll walk you to the gate," he said.
"Sure," Blair agreed as she let out a sigh of relief. He finally said something.
On their way to the front gate, Blair phoned Adalson. "Uncle Adalson, I have something to do and I'm leaving now. Yes, he's with me now. Okay. Bye."
Wesley escorted Blair on the way out. With him by her side, she got through the gate's heavy security without any difficulty. As soon as they got out of the base, a gust of cold wind hit her face.
It was dark outside, with only a few street lamps on. Blair jumped a few times to keep herself warm. She turned to Wesley and told him, "You can go back to your office. I'll just wait for Orion here. I won't go anywhere."
He put a cigarette between his lips and took out the lighter from his pocket. "Keep your distance from me, please."
Blair's lips twitched. Nonetheless, she took a few steps back and watched him light his cigarette.
"You… Are you a heavy smoker?" She'd seen him smoke more than a few times before.
He blew out a cloud of smoke opposite Blair's direction. He made sure his secondhand smoke would not reach the girl. "Not really." He only smoked heavily whenever he was annoyed.
'Not really?' Blair was not buying it. She tried her best not to nag, but she still ended up reminding him, "Don't smoke too much. It's bad for your health."
Wesley turned to look at her. He was puzzled by the girl's sudden concern for him. 'Is she worried about me?'
The way Wesley was looking at her made Blair uneasy. She was trying to make out what was going on behind his eyes. A few seconds passed and Blair finally started speaking again. "Well, it was not my intention to meddle with your business," she said quietly. "I purely meant what I said. Smoking kills, you know?"
Wesley pulled his gaze away from Blair and huffed another puff.
Blair sighed. She gave up trying to read Wesley's thoughts.
Wesley seemed off to her. She just couldn't quite put her finger on it.
'Is it because of my poor singing? Is he disappointed in me? Did I let him down?
But I don't think that's the case. The younger soldiers told me I sang well, ' she thought to herself.
Blair kept moving around to keep herself warm. She tried jumping up and down, and stomping her feet. Aside from Blair's minimal squirming, there was only silence. The quiet was instantly interrupted by the buzzing of Wesley's phone. "Hello?" he promptly answered.
After exchanging a few words with the person on the other side of the line, Wesley hung up and looked at Blair. She knew exactly what that look meant. It meant he was going to get busy again. "Please, go on with your work. I'll wait here," she told the soldier.
"Wait at the security room."
Wesley led Blair into the security room. She sat down and waited for Orion. Wesley gave the security guard a few instructions. He gave Blair one last look before dashing out and disappearing without uttering another word.
Twenty minutes later, Orion finally arrived. Blair heard the brakes of his car, but before she could peek out the window to check if it really was Orion, her phone rang. "Blair, I'm right outside. Where are you now?" he asked the girl.
"I'm coming." Blair hung up and notified the security guard that she was leaving. She ran towards the parked Lamborghini in which Orion was waiting.
Orion got out of the car to open the car door for Blair. "Why are you in such a remote place?" he asked curiously. "If it weren't a military base, I would've thought you were kidnapped or something!"
Blair chuckled. "Just running a few errands." She didn't tell him more.
The Lamborghini disappeared into the horizon and the security guard gave Wesley a call.
It was 24 minutes to eleven. Wesley ended the call and continued with his work.
Orion drove Blair to a high-class pub. He accompanied her to a private room inside, and there they found Blair's schoolmate who they both knew.
Aside from that one schoolmate that was familiar with Blair, the rest of the people in the group were all Orion's friends. They were all around the same age. Blair felt at ease with them.
After greeting everyone, Blair did not beat around the bush and asked, "Orion, how did you know I'm no longer working at the Jin Group?"
Orion handed her a glass of red wine. "We heard that the Jin Group, for some unknown reason, dismantled the translation department. I went to the company looking for you but they told me you resigned."
Blair nodded. "Yes, that's true. But I resigned because I was no longer happy with my job in the Jin Group, and no other reason."
Orion clapped his hands in excitement at what Blair just said. "Then work for my company. My Chinese isn't that good. You could be my Chinese translator. Blair, this job is perfect for you!"
She smiled. "Where are you located? I didn't know you had a branch here."
"It's not that far away from the company you used to work for. This branch is still quite new. I still have a lot of things to handle. You might get busy." He clinked glasses with her and they both sipped at their respective glasses of red wine.
The other people in the room all drank and socialized with each other.
"That's not a problem. But regarding my salary, please don't give me any kind of special treatment. I'm okay with the same amount as I was given when I was in the Jin Group," Blair told Orion. The idea of her getting a higher pay because she was friends with the boss did not sit well with her.
Orion laughed at her words. "Blair, you're the kindest and most honest Chinese girl I know. I really like you."
Blair laughed as well and teased, "Thanks. But I'm sure you'll meet a lot of Chinese girls better and kinder than me. Keep an eye on the people you meet here. Maybe you can marry a Chinese girl in the future."
His eyes widened. He asked her carefully, "Blair, what do you think of cross-cultural love?"
"Cross-cultural love?" Blair thought for a second. "I believe distance won't be a problem as long as the two love each other. And it's also acceptable for one to make sacrifices for the relationship to work." It was exactly like her and Wesley. If he had said yes to her back then, she would have willingly given up her chance to study in England.
Besides, she knew there were other ways to securing a bright future aside from studying abroad. There were tons of other opportunities in this country.
Orion was happy to hear her answer and took the chance to ask, "Blair, do you have a boyfriend?"
Orion had always known that Blair was already in love with someone else. He also knew Blair had never gotten the chance to be with that man.
There was silence. Blair took a sip of the red wine, carefully calculating her next words. She shook her head. "No. But Orion, you know I already have someone else in my heart," she said sullenly.
Orion studied her face for a while. "If you can't be with him, you should look around for a few options. Look around you," he said.
'Look around for a few options?' She stayed silent at Orion's suggestion. She didn't think she could easily replace Wesley with another man. Blair smiled at him. "Orion, I am happy with where I am currently," she said quietly.
She was not Wesley's girlfriend but she could take anything she was given: his company and his protection. She was satisfied with that.
Orion's face was painted with disappointment. He grabbed a glass of liquor and chugged it. "As long as you're happy. Anyway, when will you start working in my company?" It was clear that Orion no longer wanted to continue talking about love. Blair caught on when he switched the topic back to work.
"I originally planned on getting back to work after the Spring Festival, but since you're so busy and in need of more staff, I can start tomorrow or the day after." The Spring Festival was still a month from now. Blair had wanted to rest during that time and then go job hunting after the festival.
Orion nodded without hesitation, "That's great. I need your help. Get ready tomorrow and come to work from the day after. Okay?"
"Okay!" Blair agreed promptly.
After accepting the job, Blair started socializing with everyone in the room. Soon, it was 11:40, only twenty minutes until midnight. Everyone was still elated, ordering more and more drinks. It didn't look like they were planning to end the party soon, so she decided to bid everyone farewell. After all, she promised Wesley she would be home by midnight.
Before she got the chance to leave, Orion took a bottle of red wine and was ready to pour another glass of wine for her. "Come on, Blair," he told her. "Stay a little bit longer! We rarely get the chance to hang out together. I'll just drive you home later."
