novelraw Chapter 132 - 130: Be Careful, or Your Sister-in-Law Will Break Up with You
Chapter 132 - 130: Be Careful, or Your Sister-in-Law Will Break Up with You
["The club is having a get-together in a bit. Would you be free to come? We could meet and talk there."]
When Mia Grant received the invitation, her first instinct was to refuse.
She didn’t like crowds.
She just wanted to meet with Felix Sinclair alone. Whether they ate or not was secondary; the main point was to discuss the engagement.
If possible, she hoped he would be the one to step in and resolve the issue.
Based on her understanding of Felix Sinclair, he wasn’t the type to force things on others.
Besides, the Sinclair family’s parents doted on their eldest son. As long as Felix Sinclair spoke up, this matter should be easily resolved.
Meanwhile, in a men’s dormitory.
Dixon looked at Felix Sinclair, exasperated by his lack of finesse. "Speaking from experience, an invitation like that is almost guaranteed to get you rejected. Phrase it differently."
Felix Sinclair glanced up, giving him a confused look.
Dixon sighed and decided to coach him step-by-step. "Alright, alright. I’ll dictate, you type."
Felix gave him a doubtful look and didn’t move.
"You’re always so rigid. Watch out, or your girl will break up with you!"
Felix Sinclair’s brow furrowed, then quickly smoothed out. He nodded and uttered a single word, "Okay."
["It might not be convenient, I have..."] Before she could finish typing her refusal, a new message popped up in the chat.
Mia Grant looked closely.
Felix: ["Everyone else is bringing friends or family. I’m the only one who’s alone. So, can you please come with me?"]
"..." Mia Grant’s fingers froze over her keyboard.
’Felix Sinclair rarely asked anyone for anything.’
’She even wondered if it was Ian Sinclair on the other end.’
’But if Ian Sinclair were trying to be persuasive, he’d be much more effusive.’
’He’d probably say something like: "Come on, come on, please come with me! Everyone else has someone, but I’m all by my lonesome. How can you bear to leave me like this?"’
’By comparison, Felix Sinclair’s message was still quite reserved.’
After a moment’s hesitation, Mia Grant deleted the text in her message box and typed a new reply—
["Okay, you can come pick me up then."]
After sending the message, she let out a small sigh.
’If it had been Ian Sinclair, she definitely would have refused.’
’But Felix Sinclair so rarely asked for anything...’
’Thinking about his psychological state, she really didn’t have the heart to say no.’
「5:30 p.m.」
Mia Grant changed her clothes and went downstairs on time.
Felix Sinclair was already waiting for her below the dormitory building.
Dixon, ever perceptive, had already left on his own so as not to disturb the two of them.
Mia Grant got into the car, fastened her seatbelt, and then turned to ask him, "Does your club have dinner together often?"
"I think so."
Felix Sinclair kept his eyes on the road ahead.
"You think so?"
"Yeah." He blinked and explained slowly, "I’ve never gone before."
"Why not? You’re all in the same club, it’s just a meal." Mia Grant advised him with painstaking earnestness, genuinely worried about his psychological state.
’In her memory, Felix Sinclair had had zero social life since high school. He had no friends. Whether at school or at home, all he ever did was study.’
’It was nothing like Ian Sinclair, who had a whole pack of rowdy friends and was constantly turning down invitations.’
Mia Grant rambled on until her mouth was dry. Seeing that he hadn’t said a word, she realized she might have said too much...
She glanced over at him cautiously. "Um, I was just rambling. If you don’t want to hear it, just pretend I..."
"I want to hear it."
Before she could finish, he softly interrupted her.
Mia Grant blinked. Seeing his calm expression, he explained to her in a very deliberate manner, "I was just listening to you intently. I wasn’t ignoring you."
"I’ve taken note of everything you said. Another day, I’ll try to go out with my roommates."
At his words, Mia Grant broke into a smile that widened across her lips. "Now that’s more like it."
The atmosphere wasn’t as heavy as before. They were still half an hour from their destination.
Mia Grant cleared her throat and got to the point.
"Did you go home for the Mid-Autumn Festival?"
"Yeah." He was still as taciturn as ever, but perhaps afraid she’d misunderstand again, he thought for a moment and forced himself to say a few more words. "I stayed at home for one night, then went back to my apartment the next day. I was going to visit you, but I heard you’d been transferred to another hospital."
"Oh, right, right." Mia Grant scratched her head awkwardly. "Does everyone in your family get together for the Mid-Autumn Festival?"
"Yes. The elders place a lot of importance on the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Spring Festival, so everyone has to go back."
"I see."
Mia Grant asked two or three more questions that, at first glance, sounded like casual small talk with no real substance.
But Felix Sinclair still caught on to her strangeness. After indulging her in another unimportant topic, he took the initiative to ask, "You said you needed to talk to me about something. Is it about my family’s Mid-Autumn banquet?"
"Er... yes, but also no."
She stammered, seeming to want to speak but holding back. Felix Sinclair let out a resigned sigh and told her not to be so conflicted.
"It’s okay, you can just say it. There’s no one else here."
He glanced at her slightly parted lips from the corner of his eye, waiting for her to speak.
"It’s just... has your mother mentioned... me to you?"
"No."
There was almost no hesitation.
Mia Grant gestured vaguely in the air a few times, as if she didn’t know how to put it. "She wouldn’t necessarily have to mention my name, but... you know?"
Felix Sinclair lifted his gaze, a few images flashing through his mind.
After a few seconds, as if he’d confirmed something, he spoke. "I get it."
"The housekeeper from the main house came over to deliver some soup and helped me put away my summer clothes. Then she found the clothes you left at my place last time. So, my parents might have gotten the wrong idea."
"Don’t worry, I explained it to them."
Mia Grant’s lips twitched. ’Yeah, right. Reassured my ass,’ she thought.
After a pause, Felix Sinclair took advantage of a red light to glance over at her. "Did someone come see you? Did they say something to you?"
"My parents? Or... Ian Sinclair?"
Though he hated to even mention that name, they were the only people he could think of at the moment.
Mia Grant shook her head. "The Grant family."
"They told me your parents came to their home to propose an engagement."
"..." A flash of astonishment crossed Felix Sinclair’s eyes. His surprise was genuine.
Mia Grant sighed. "Basically, your parents misunderstood our relationship, and now this has happened. The news I received is that, barring any surprises, our engagement party will be held at the beginning of next month."
Felix Sinclair gripped the steering wheel tightly. After a long moment, he said, "I’m sorry. I didn’t know anything about this."
Mia Grant nodded. "It’s okay. Your parents probably just haven’t had a chance to tell you yet. I know it has nothing to do with you."
"But the problem is the engagement party..."
She glanced at the "corruption value" above his head, swallowed nervously, and said in a small voice, "There’s no way I’m entering a marriage alliance as a daughter of the Grant family. So this engagement party definitely has to be canceled."
"And I don’t want to deal with the Grant family, so..."
"I’ll go talk to my parents and make things clear." ’It was his fault to begin with; she shouldn’t have to be the one to handle it.’
"This is my problem. I’m the one who didn’t explain things clearly, which led to this situation."
"I’ll resolve this. You don’t need to worry. And don’t contact the Grant family anymore."
Mia Grant had been about to offer a few words of comfort, but when she met his gaze, the words caught in her throat.
The young man stared at her, fragmented light glinting in his eyes. He looked guilty and pained. "I’m sorry. Did they give you a hard time again because of me?"