A chopstick, damp with warm tea, fell onto the table, leaving a wet streak across the wood grain.
"If, between her original world and our current world, there was another world that we all experienced but have since forgotten, then that would explain everything."
"Proving this would certainly be difficult. All our hopes rest on Felix Sinclair alone."
"But I think this possibility is at least somewhat logical."
"It just sounds..." Simon Adler shrugged, the rest of his sentence going without saying.
’Anyone who believed this theory would probably be locked up as a lunatic if it got out.’
The cigarette in his hand had burned down to his fingertips without him noticing. Yates Donovan was jolted back to his senses by the heat.
"She only told you a few fragments of her dreams, and you’re this convinced by something you just pieced together in your head?"
"I minored in psychology and philosophy in college," Simon Adler said calmly. "So I can accept the results of my own analysis."
"There are many things in this world that science can’t explain."
"I also think that for something this important, we can’t just jump to a conclusion so carelessly. There should be evidence."
"But verifying all of this takes time."
"And time is exactly what we lack right now."
Spurred by Simon Adler’s words, Yates Donovan fell silent. His quietness for the rest of the meeting was almost eerie, a stark contrast to his usual self—the man who loved to liven things up and command a room.
Simon Adler just assumed he was processing everything and didn’t disturb him.
As they were about to finish, he finally brought it up. "What are your thoughts on her faking her death?"
Yates Donovan finally glanced at him and smiled. "The only reason you’ve latched onto this conclusion of yours so hastily and firmly is to stop her, isn’t it?"
Yates Donovan didn’t believe someone as meticulous as Simon Adler could convince himself of something like this in a single night.
"Does it need a lot of time?" Simon Adler didn’t understand why he was so hung up on this point.
Yates Donovan retorted, "Then what does it need?"
Simon Adler thought for a moment, then answered, "Love?"
He even laughed after saying it.
’Wasn’t it because of love? If not, he must have lost his mind to say something so ridiculous.’
But Yates Donovan didn’t laugh.
This rival in love, whom he had never taken seriously before, now seemed to pose a significant threat.
’Whatever.’
’Now’s not the time to think about this.’
Yates Donovan flicked the ash from his cigarette. "You want to stop her? I thought you were on her side."
"You’re on her side too. Don’t you want to stop her?" Simon Adler didn’t even need to ask; he knew Yates Donovan didn’t want Mia Grant to go down such an extreme path.
"She’s only doing this because she hasn’t been able to make sense of these dreams."
"That’s the root of the problem."
"She needs an explanation."
"Then why don’t you tell her? What’s the point of telling me?"
"I don’t think she’ll believe me if I’m the one to tell her all this."
"Actually, I considered finding Felix Sinclair. If it came from him, she’d probably believe it without hesitation."
"But the problem is, Felix Sinclair doesn’t know what she’s planning to do right now."
"I was agonizing over how to bring this up, and then you appeared." Simon Adler looked at him and said after a long pause, "To her, you’ve always seemed... special."
Yates Donovan let out a laugh. "I like that conclusion of yours very much."
Perhaps because he was in a good mood, he agreed readily.
"I’ll go talk to her."
***
Mia Grant drank a lot, and in the end, her two roommates had to practically carry her back to their dorm room.
They had gone to a newly opened lounge nearby.
Mia Grant didn’t seem to be in a good mood. After sitting down, she barely spoke, just quietly listened to the music and drank.
By the time they realized she was drunk, she had already fallen asleep in her chair.
She was very quiet.
This time, she wasn’t loud or disruptive when drunk. When they woke her up to go home, she just looked at them quietly for a good while before standing up with a smile.
In the car, she didn’t get sick. She just sat silently between her two friends in the back seat.
Her body swayed left and right with the car’s jolts.
The lighting in the car was dim. It wasn’t until they got out and were back in the dorm room that they noticed her eyes were red. She had been crying at some point, and even though they were so close to her, they hadn’t realized...
Mia Grant had barely slept the previous night, so under the influence of alcohol, she slept very, very deeply.
The System was also gentle tonight. It didn’t keep blaring alarms as it had during the day, trying to connect with her and communicate.
The next morning, one of her roommates called out to the person in bed, but found she was still fast asleep, showing no signs of waking.
After a moment of hesitation, they called in sick for her, leaving her to rest alone in the dorm.
Mia Grant woke up once around eight in the morning.
Her head was throbbing. She checked the time, thought for a moment, then rolled over and went back to sleep.
But the quality of her sleep this time wasn’t as good as the night before.
It was probably intentional; she was hoping to dream of more details.
Details about anyone would do.
Unfortunately, there was nothing.
When she opened her eyes again, Mia Grant stared blankly at the ceiling. After a long moment, she blinked and reached for her phone.
Eleven o’clock.
Letting out a slow breath, Mia Grant got out of bed to wash up.
Coming out of the bathroom, she opened WeChat and saw a message from Yates Donovan sent last night, asking her to have a meal with him once she woke up.
To be honest, Mia Grant didn’t feel like going out today.
It was the rainy season in Jynsia. She had just pushed open the window to see a light drizzle outside.
She didn’t even want to go to class.
She just wanted to sleep until the world ended, but she knew that was impossible.
She was always like this, wanting to escape while her rational mind told her she couldn’t.
’Sooner or later, I’ll have to face it.’
’Might as well be proactive. What if it leads to a good outcome?’
Mia Grant sighed, changed her clothes, and headed out.
She didn’t have an umbrella, so she borrowed a clear one from the dorm manager.
Luckily, the wind in Jynsia was still gentle this season and wouldn’t break the plastic umbrella.
She walked over fallen leaves toward the campus exit. She didn’t have to wait long at the gate before she saw Yates Donovan’s car turn the corner, its hazard lights flashing.
Mia Grant got in the car, shook the raindrops off the umbrella through the window, and then placed it by her feet.
"What do you want to eat today?"
"Noodles, I guess."
Whenever Mia Grant couldn’t think of what to eat, she always fell back on this safe choice.
"Alright." Yates Donovan made a U-turn, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "Did you sleep well last night?"
Mia Grant nodded. "I had a little to drink last night."
"I know. Heard you even got drunk?" Yates Donovan had found out last night.
"Does your head still hurt?"
Mia Grant rubbed her temples. "It’s okay. It’s not too bad."
"That’s good."
Mia Grant stopped rubbing her temples and finally gave him a proper look for the first time since getting in the car.
Sensing her gaze, Yates Donovan met it openly and smiled. "What’s wrong?"
Mia Grant studied him, frowning. "You look like you didn’t sleep well."
Yates Donovan instinctively glanced at the mirror. He had even specifically asked his assistant to cover up his dark circles and had carefully styled his hair before leaving.
’I still look like the same old dashing, roguish young master.’
"Who says? I had a wonderful night’s sleep."
Mia Grant didn’t believe him.
Pausing, he probably remembered this was a good opportunity, so Yates Donovan chose his words carefully and began:
"You know... if we go by your previous theory."
"Is it possible that..."
"...after your so-called ’transmigration into a book,’ there was also a ’rebirth’?"