"Alma.

"Where's your tattoo?"

When Shane Powell said this, I was bending down to get the glass.

My shirt was a bit short. Once I moved slightly, half of my fair, smooth waist could be seen.

My name was suddenly called, and I was stunned.

When I came to my senses, I saw that Shane was staring at my exposed waist, his face gloomy.

He said the word "your" in an extremely deep voice.

I used to have a tattoo on my waist. Two letters, SP, wrapped around a black and red rose branch.

Shane had the same pattern on his waist, but the letters were different. It was my name, Alma.

I forced him to have this tattoo. I wanted to make it clear to everyone that the cold, aloof Shane was mine!

After he had the tattoo, I fiercely warned him not to get rid of it.

He asked me with a casual smile, "What if I do?"

"Then... I... I'll leave you!"

I said so after a long time, which meant nothing to him. After all, he didn't have feelings for me.

For some reason, Shane suddenly became angry and refused to talk to me.

"Got rid of it."

I took a sip of the water in the glass, sat back on the sofa, and said so instinctively.

I said calmly, and Shane's face darkened even more. A few seconds later, he suddenly chuckled.

His chuckle was very soft, and I had no idea what he was thinking. Sounded like he was mocking himself.

The lights in the private room were flickering and dim, just like his dark eyes.

I looked away and felt inexplicably annoyed. I grabbed the glass and took a few more sips of water.

Suddenly, Craig Santos, the class president, started to sing. His voice was horrifying, as he was mourning a relationship that never got to start.

He was dumped and heartbroken. I admired him for still being in the mood to gather us, his classmates, on time for the annual class reunion.

He said it'd be so cruel of me if I turned him down, given that he was so miserable now. That was why I showed up today.

He also said with certainty that Shane wouldn't come because of how busy he was.

It had been five years since I graduated, and I had just returned to the country. I figured that it'd be nice to see my classmates again since we had gotten along well, so I agreed.

Craig didn't lie to me. I didn't see Shane.

But in the middle of the party, when I and my friends were chatting and asking about how each other had been doing, the door of the private room was pushed open.

Someone whose figure was slender and cold stood at the door and looked in my direction.

The moment our eyes met, I held my breath and felt frozen. I had no idea what to do.

People were laughing and talking, yet at this moment, the entire private room fell silent. Dozens of gazes fell on me and Shane.

The air was filled with a trace of indescribable embarrassment.

When I started dating Shane, I told everyone in a high-profile way, and practically everyone in school knew that I successfully became the girlfriend of Shane, the Prince Charming.

And they also knew that we didn't part on good terms.

Craig, who was a little tipsy, was the first to react. He stepped forward and greeted Shane, breaking the silence.

Shane chatted with him for a few seconds, then said hi to the others and went straight to me.

We hadn't seen each other for five years, and his youthfulness had been replaced by maturity. His face, which was flawless to begin with, had become imposing as time passed by.

He stared at me without blinking, his eyes deep, and walked towards me.

I almost thought that he was gonna hit me. I sat on the sofa and tightened my grip on the corner of my clothes.

Craig almost couldn't stand it anymore. He tried to stop the fight, saying, "Calm down, Shane..."

Shane walked toward me step by step, and he was getting closer and closer...

There was a shadow over my head. Then he stopped when he was right next to me.

The sofa next to me sank. He sat next to me with the distance of a fist and didn't look at me again.

"Don't mind me. Continue."

As if he had finally noticed the atmosphere around him, he half-opened his eyes and said indifferently.

"OK! Let's continue. Enjoy my singing!"

Craig was quick to smooth things over, and the private room once more became lively.

Except for the corner where Shane and I were.

After saying that, Shane did not speak again. He sat in situ silently, but no one could ignore his existence.

After an unknown period of time, I felt bored as I had no one to talk to, and my throat was a little dry. I went to fetch some water.

That was what had happened just now.

The more I drank, the thirstier I felt. It was not until I felt a burning pain in my throat that I realized that I had taken the wrong glass.

I choked and coughed a few times. I took a glass of water from someone and poured it into my mouth.

The ice-cold water ran down my throat, and I finally felt comfortable.

When I looked out of the corner of my eye, I found that he was gone.

I was relieved. After a while, I took my bag and planned to leave early.

I had accidentally drunk some wine and didn't know how strong it was.

I couldn't hold my liquor well. I had to go home before the alcohol effects kicked in.

As I walked from the private room to the front door of the karaoke bar, the alcohol had already kicked in, and I had a headache.

I leaned against a pillar and waited for the designated driver.

A few minutes later, a dark green car stopped in front of me.

Cars with a dark green color were very rare, and the car shape was very similar to that of mine.

Feeling dizzy, I opened the door and got in the car.

My world was spinning. I leaned against the window and closed my eyes to rest without talking to the driver.

He said nothing either, and it was very quiet in the car.

Soon, my phone rang, which broke the silence. I put it on speaker and answered the call.

"Ms. Austin, this is the designated driver. I'm here at Paradise Karaoke Bar. Where are you?"

"I..."

My drowsy head suddenly cleared up for a moment. I looked up at once and met the familiar yet strange eyes in the rearview mirror.

I was in the wrong car!

I looked away in a panic. Through the car window, I saw someone holding up a phone and looking around at the door of Paradise Karaoke Bar.

I wanted to get out of the car, but in the next second, the door was locked, and I couldn't open it.

He doesn't want me to get out?

I tilted my head and looked at him with dissatisfaction.

"Wait."

After saying that, Shane got out of the car.

I didn't know what he said to the designated driver through the car window. He glanced in my direction and paid the driver with his phone. Then the driver left happily.

The car door slammed shut, and Shane was back in the car. I felt the chilly and desolate autumn breeze.

"Why won't you let me out? Why did you get rid of my designated driver?"

I asked discontentedly.

Shane tilted his head to look at me. For some reason, the corners of his eyes turned red.

What he said was very harsh.

"Don't you know how much you can drink? Do you want the designated driver to take you home while holding you in his arms when you're drunk?"

I choked on his words and didn't know what to say.

When I was with him, I pulled out a lot of tricks just to be more intimate with him.

For example, when I was a bit tipsy, I pretended to faint in his arms when he gave me a lift home and pestered him to carry me upstairs.

I pouted and turned to look out the window.

The neon lights lit up the night scene. Not long after, he started the engine, and the scenery began to change. I didn't know where we were headed at all.

In the past five years, the city had changed a lot, and most of the shops had become unfamiliar.

"You still live in Glory Garden?"

Shane looked ahead, and there was a hint of expectation in his tone that I had not noticed.

It was as if nothing had happened between us. He was simply kindly taking his drunk college classmate home.

I nodded, and then neither of us said anything again.

My favorite peppermint scent filled the air as he drove smoothly. The wine kicked off again, and I closed my eyes.

I had no idea how long it passed, and it seemed that I had a dream.

In the dream, the car suddenly heaved and wobbled.

Shane chuckled beside me, and the security guard was asking how I was doing. But I couldn't hear their voices clearly.

"Girlfriend..."

"For now..."

I opened my eyes in a daze and happened to see the side of Shane's face. He was smiling, which made him deadly attractive.

After admiring his face for a while, I came to realize that I was in his arms. The surroundings seemed familiar.

We had arrived at Glory Garden.

I struggled in his warm embrace, trying to get down.

It's been five years since we broke up. It's not proper for him to hold me in his arms. This time, it's not me who pesters him for a hug.

His hands on my waist and legs were very strong, and I was still in his arms.

"I wanna walk on my own!" I was a bit fierce.

Shane lowered his head to look at me. There was a doting look in his eyes, which was rare and made me feel very uneasy.

"Can you walk on your own?"

"Of course!"

He put me down. Wanting to prove I was right, I strode forward. However, I overestimated myself. My legs went weak, and I fell forward out of inertia.

A pair of hands supported me in time. I didn't know if he was intentional or not, anyway, I fell into his arms. My right ear was pressed against his warm chest which was trembling slightly.

He was obviously making fun of me!

I glared at him.

However, he didn't care. He held me in his arms again and said in a gentle voice.

"Be good. The autumn wind is freezing. You'll catch a cold now that you're drunk."

Choosing between catching a cold and being held in his arms while going back home? Of course, I'll choose the latter. He has held me in his arms plenty of times.

I snorted and stopped struggling.

It was not until Shane skillfully entered the password, went inside, and put me on the big soft bed that I blushed.

The password was the day I started going out with him. I forgot to change it!

I tugged at the hem of his shirt and explained.

"I... I just came back and forgot to change the password. Don't think too much."

"I know."

He said it so casually that it made me sound a bit too intentional.

"Thanks for taking me back. You're such a nice friend. Guess I won't see you off then."

"A nice friend?"

Shane repeated those words slowly and stared at me without blinking.

Being stared at, I panicked and covered myself with the quilt. I didn't want to look at him anymore.

"I'm going to sleep!"

I refused to face him and tried to get him out, yet it seemed he had no intention of doing so at all.

"Give me the contact information of the doctor who removed your tattoo."

"What?"

I was confused and slowly popped half of my head out.

"He did a neat job. I'll go to him sometime."

Shane's tone was very calm. He wanted to tell me that he had yet to remove his tattoo simply because he hadn't found a doctor who was skilled enough.