Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 225: Isn’t this a café…

Ryan narrowly escaped from his old home, still shaken as he stood by the roadside.

Reflecting on the recent events, everything seemed eerily out of place.

The room was untouched, the bloodstains on the girl’s shirt, that familiar figure.

Even the way things oddly turned out safe in the end, each aspect on its own was baffling.

He stuffed the rabbit plushie and the notebook into his messenger bag, thinking he might not be so lucky if he lost them again.

Without any real understanding, no one could make sense of it out of thin air.

Ryan was no exception,he had no clue who that girl really was.

Just thinking about it gave him a headache, and his way of dealing with it was to simply push it aside for now, not giving it another thought.

After all, he only spent one day a week outside,the rest of the time he was at Alice’s villa.

Even if someone was after him, they wouldn’t dare go to Alice’s villa, right?

And besides, what was there to gain from him?

He had no money, no power, and no relatives to demand a ransom from—Ryan felt a chill for any potential kidnapper.

As for targeting him personally? That was even more far-fetched.

Ryan didn’t think his personal charm was so great that strangers would take notice.

He was modest in life, got along well with everyone, and maintained healthy, respectful relationships with women.

After being revived by the system, if anything, his luck in love had improved a bit.

Alice, Mia, and maybe even Anna—had his charm really increased?

“Never mind all that, the main thing now is to call Anna and ease her worries.”

With that thought, Ryan opened his phone and casually looked up a nearby café on an app.

He already had her number,a simple call would suffice, but it felt insufficiently sincere.

Anna had come to find him without regard for her own safety, even ready to use force to take him away—a resolve Ryan didn’t think he possessed.

Given how Anna had treated him, more honorably than even his closest friends before he disappeared, a mere phone call wouldn’t do.

And the sadness in the girl’s eyes as she left haunted Ryan,it felt like months of guilt, though it had only been a day.

What was she thinking when she left?

Now at the café, Ryan secured a table for two and then took out his notebook to dial the number.

His number was new,Anna probably didn’t know it, and he wondered if she would pick up.

But within two seconds, Ryan realized his worries were unnecessary as he heard her voice, unexpectedly sweet.

“Ryan, is that you?”

Her voice was as sweet as ever, just like back in the school library.

In Ryan’s memory, Anna was shy and introverted, often at a disadvantage in social interactions.

Initially, Ryan found her difficult to get along with, but as he inadvertently showed kindness, they gradually became closer.

Anna still stumbled in her interactions with others, but with Ryan, she was no different from anyone else.

Ryan had thought Anna would still be upset about yesterday, but her voice sounded normal, just like when they were still in school.

“Uh, yeah, it’s me.”

Ryan didn’t know why Anna knew it was him calling,maybe she had only given that number to a few people.

“So, Ryan, what’s up? Why did you call?”

Anna sounded genuinely happy to hear from him. She paused to gather her thoughts before asking.

Ryan didn’t sense anything amiss. Although her attitude was more upbeat than he expected, it still made sense.

After all, they weren’t that close, and it was natural for her to be hurt by his rejection yesterday. But it was also natural for her to move on and get back to normal life today.

“Should we even meet up…” Ryan muttered to himself, feeling a weight lift off his chest now that he knew Anna was okay.

Then he remembered Alice’s rule about not interacting with other girls. Making a call was already bending the rules, but it wasn’t too serious yet.

If he met up with Anna behind Alice’s back and she found out, he’d be in deep trouble.

“Huh? Ryan, what did you say?”

“Uh, nothing, nothing at all.”

Ryan quickly responded, awkwardly touching his nose, realizing he shouldn’t let Anna hear those thoughts.

It seemed he really needed to kick his habit of talking to himself.

While Ryan was still pondering his next move, Anna’s voice came through the phone again, sweet as marshmallow, melting like sugar in his heart.

If only Alice spoke to him like that, he might be more eager to go above and beyond for her, Ryan thought, stroking his chin and entertaining another wild thought.

But everyone is unique, Anna is Anna, and Alice is Alice.

“I’m actually near the school right now, it wouldn’t be a hassle to come over.”

Anna, seemingly afraid of being rejected, didn’t even wait for Ryan’s response and continued hurriedly.

“Everyone misses you… I miss you too.”

The line went silent after her confession, as if the girl was shy about her own boldness.

Ryan hadn’t expected Anna to say something like that, but rejecting her now would seem downright cold.

He simply told Anna where he was and hung up, thinking about what he should do next.

But there was one thing he definitely needed to do right now. Ryan picked up his phone to call Alice, intending to report his plans first.

Yesterday, when Anna and Mia showed up at the villa, Ryan had been torn about whether to tell Miss Alice first.

Because he hadn’t reported in advance, it ended up causing trouble, and although Alice’s anger wasn’t directed at Ryan, it was still better to keep her from getting upset.

Meeting Anna now was partly out of guilt and partly to clear up any lingering feelings Anna might have, so it wouldn’t affect his relationship with Alice.

In a way, Ryan was doing this for Alice, considering her current difficulties.

Looking at the contact labeled “Master” on his phone, Ryan decided the first thing he’d do was change that nickname.

The phone beeped, indicating a call in progress, but after a minute with no answer, it hung up.

Alice seemed to be busy with something. Since he couldn’t reach her by phone, he’d have to try later.

Ryan changed the nickname and opened a text message to draft something to Alice.

But before he could finish, a familiar scent hit him, one he felt he had just smelled.

Ryan frowned, trying to place the familiar aroma, but his view was already blocked by someone sitting across from him, looking at him with interest.

A youthful and beautiful girl sat in front of him, her skin pale as snow, lips rosy, wearing a long dress that reached her ankles, adorned with delicate pink and white floral petals.

“What’s up, senior? Lost in thought?”

Ryan had never seen Anna like this, and for a moment, he was caught off guard.

Anna seemed pleased with his reaction, a beautiful smile curving her lips as she leaned forward, waving her pale hand in front of Ryan’s eyes.

But wasn’t this a bit too close? Was this really okay?

“Uh, no, nothing’s wrong.”

“What would you like to drink? Coke, tea?”

“Senior… isn’t this a café…”

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