Eloise froze for a moment, then awkwardly chuckled a couple of times. She walked to the side, her fingers quickly flying over her phone as she messaged Lysander: "We've really messed up. The old witch wants to arrange a meeting between both families!"
Lysander grinned playfully after a while. "Uh-oh, does that mean I'm about to blow my cover?" Eloise didn't sense his urgency about the risk of exposing their identities. Frowning, she replied, "I don't want to complicate things either. We need to 'break up' now."
Lysander was quick to respond, "So, are you dumping me, or should I dump you?"
"Of course, you dump me!" he said with a smirk. "That way, I can pretend to be heartbroken and spiritless, so the old witch won't drag me to another blind date!" She thought for a moment, then added, "We need an excuse that will convince the old hag, to save us from more trouble."
Lysander sent a "ok" emoji. "Since I've 'wronged' you, I'll treat you to a big meal." Shortly after, he sent the location of a fancy restaurant. By noon, Eloise and Mrs. Brown headed over for the meeting.
Once seated, Eloise adjusted her expression and gave Mrs. Brown a preemptive warning. "Actually, recently, my relationship with Anthony has hit a rough patch." Mrs. Brown's eyebrows twitched, and she quickly asked, "What happened?"
Not having prepared a story beforehand, Eloise didn't dare say too much. She sighed worriedly. "Let's wait until he arrives to discuss it."
Fearing that this troublesome couple, who had only just gotten together, might break up, Mrs. Brown couldn't wait for Lysander to sit down. As soon as he did, she forced a smile and said, "Anthony, Eloise mentioned that you two have been having some arguments these past couple of days. What's going on? Young people are always impulsive, but conflicts like this are easy to resolve!"
Lysander exchanged a quick glance with Eloise, and with a knowing sigh, he said, "It's tough! We have a disagreement about our future paths in life." Mrs. Brown asked with concern, "What exactly happened?"
"I want her to go abroad with me to develop our careers, but—sigh, she's unwilling." Lysander's lies flowed easily, and his troubled expression seemed genuinely sincere.
Mrs. Brown paused for a moment, then turned to Eloise and lectured her earnestly, "Eloise, this is your fault. A wife should follow her husband. As long as you're with your loved one, what difference does it make where you are? And what's wrong with Europe? If you miss your parents, you can bring them over later..."
"It's not Europe," Lysander interrupted. Mrs. Brown was confused. Since Anthony's whole family had emigrated to Europe, she instinctively assumed he was referring to that place. "So where are you going then?"
Lysander stroked his chin and gazed seriously out the window. "The Arctic." "Huh?" Mrs. Brown thought she misheard and asked, "Where?" "The Arctic, A-R-C-T-I-C." He repeated the word clearly.
It took Mrs. Brown three seconds to confirm she wasn't dreaming. "But aren't you in finance? Going to the Arctic... this..." Lysander waved his hand and crossed his arms, resting them on the table. "I think finance and all that stuff is just too boring. I plan to dedicate the rest of my life to something that's more beneficial to natural beings."
Seeing his serious expression, Mrs. Brown swallowed and then said with earnestness to Eloise, "The Arctic is nice. It's cool, and there's less pollution."
Eloise nearly spat out her drink, choking and coughing as she shot a side-eye at Lysander, silently glaring at her. "It's cool there? Why don't you go instead?" This old witch was so shameless in matchmaking!
Lysander raised an eyebrow, silently admiring the persistence of this old witch. He couldn't believe her principles were so flexible that even the most absurd things could be used to broker a match. With a sly smile, he took out an even more outrageous card: "I'm planning to join a peacekeeping volunteer team to protect penguins, helping them fight for territory from polar bears."
Mrs. Brown seemed struck by lightning. "Is... is there such a team?" Lysander nodded very seriously. "Of course!" Mrs. Brown slapped the table, moved, and squeezed Eloise's hand. "What an idealistic and ambitious young man! In these times, such a kind-hearted person is truly rare!"
Eloise, with the air of one watching a spectacle, was casually nibbling on the food before her. Yet, as Lysander spun his tall tale, she inadvertently choked. When she heard Mrs. Brown continuing to climb the metaphorical ladder, she nearly couldn't catch her breath.
With tear-filled eyes, she glared at Mrs. Brown. "Don't you know there are no penguins at the Arctic?" Mrs. Brown, without a hint of embarrassment, smoothly responded, "Exactly because there are none, we have to help them fight for their territory, right?"
Lysander hadn't expected that giving her a topic would result in a full-blown dissertation. He twitched his lips and muttered, "Heh, sure." Mrs. Brown shook Eloise's arm. "See? How great! You should support his ideals." Eloise had to hold back from rolling her eyes.
Both were somewhat speechless, not understanding what kind of reason for breaking up would seem reasonable in the eyes of this matchmaker, who was free from any taboos.
Lysander, still not backing down, continued to challenge, "My requirement for Elly is that when we get to the Arctic, she'll help us by taking on logistical support, specifically by catching enough fish for the penguins every day!"
"Why are you unwilling?" Mrs. Brown's expression seemed genuinely reproachful, as if scolding Eloise for her lack of understanding. "Such a meaningful and heartfelt job is helping to accumulate your own good deeds! You won't find a better opportunity than this!"
She chattered incessantly, genuinely siding with Lysander's words in an attempt to prevent their breakup, urging Eloise in every possible way to go to the Arctic to help penguins catch fish. Beneath her words, there were subtle insults and manipulative tactics at play.
Eloise couldn't get a word in edgewise, her anger boiling up. She thought to herself, she'll show them something, and after a brief pause, she suddenly burst into loud tears.
"I don't like eating fish—wuwuwu—" She deliberately wailed loudly enough for the entire restaurant to hear, drawing all eyes toward them. Mrs. Brown, embarrassed and flustered, rushed to comfort her, "Oh dear, why are you crying? In public like this..."
She was growing hoarse from trying to comfort her when out of the corner of her eye, she spotted someone, as if seeing a savior. "Elly, Elly, stop crying, your cousin is here!" Eloise froze mid-cry, a look of confusion spreading across her face. "My cousin?"
She looked up and saw Isidore standing by the decorations, his tall figure slightly turned towards them. His gaze shifted between the tear-streaked face of Eloise and Lysander, who sat across from her, his expression cold and aloof. "What's going on here?"
"Perfect timing! Your cousin can be considered half a parent, come and talk some sense into your cousin!" Mrs. Brown, desperate for Eloise to stop crying and embarrassing her, waved enthusiastically at Isidore, as if seeking help.
He tilted his head slightly. "Cousin?"
Eloise didn't even dare to meet his eyes, focusing on the ground instead. Mrs. Brown, her quick tongue still running, said, "Well, it's fate if you can hit it off so well at first sight during an arranged meeting. How unfortunate it would be to break up over such trivial issues!"
"Arranged meeting?" Isidore noticed that Eloise wouldn't even look him in the eye, and he sneered coldly. "My dear cousin, come with me for a moment."
