The next morning, I was still half asleep when I vaguely heard noises from the living room. Listening closely, I could make out hushed whispers and the sound of things being moved.
Was it a group of burglars?
Last night, Alastair had forcibly carried me into the room, and my phone wasn't nearby, so I couldn't contact security or call the police. Taking a deep breath, I grabbed a baseball bat and quietly tiptoed to the door, peeking through the tiny crack.
Three movers, dressed in uniform, were quietly carrying box after box inside, and the person directing them in a low voice, wearing a suit and tie, was none other than Alastair.
I dropped the bat and opened the door. "Alastair! What are you doing?"
Some boxes were open, and their contents were fully visible.
Especially a few headache-inducing, obscure books that I had only seen in Alastair's study. Why was he bringing them here?
"Moving," he replied without even blinking, as if it was the most casual thing in the world.
...Moving?
Moving what?
Why would you move to my place?
The questions piled up, and my brain started to short-circuit.
It took a while before I found my voice again. "Alastair, are you suffering from alcohol poisoning, or has your nervous system completely shut down?"
Otherwise, how would you move into the wrong house?
Unfazed by my sharp remark, Alastair calmly responded, "No.
"Aurelia, I'm sorry for what happened last night after I got drunk, but I'll take responsibility for it." The three movers froze, their ears almost instinctively twitching. We just kissed, can we not make it sound so… suggestive?
"Alastair, get this straight. Nothing happened last night," I said, pulling him into the room. "Hurry up and move your stuff back."
"No," he replied, his tone resolute. "I need to take responsibility."
"Responsibility for what?"
I started regretting not throwing Alastair out last night. I hadn't been able to see the show I had hoped for, but instead had walked right into a trap. I quickly added, "I don't need you to take responsibility. If kissing someone requires responsibility, I'd have to take responsibility for hundreds of people by now."
"Besides, last night wasn't even a proper kiss."
"Just go!"
Alastair furrowed his brows. "How is that not a proper kiss? How many people have you kissed, exactly?" ...Is that really the point? The real focus should be the last part.
"I'm not leaving," he said firmly. "I've already canceled my lease. I have nowhere else to go."
"?"
Alastair, the person who planned every detail of his life with spreadsheets, would ever be without a place to go?
I didn't believe him. "Just leave!"
"Mm."
Alastair replied with a sound, as if he had given up.
Before I could feel any satisfaction, he pulled out his phone. "In that case, I still need to explain what happened last night to your parents..."
"!"
My parents had always been incredibly fond of Alastair, practically eager to have him as their son-in-law. If they found out about me and Alastair, they'd undoubtedly force me to marry him. I snatched the phone from Alastair's hand. "No!"
"It was just moving, just being responsible," I forced a smile. "If you like, just stay here! No need to trouble my parents."
