Chapter 28 Rare Tenderness


    The poem read, "Today ofst year, I met you in this gate. Your face was extremely charming against


    the flowers'' beauties.


    Now you are no longer here in this gate, only the peach flowers smiling in gentle breeze."


    Anne was attracted by this book at first sight. She excitedly went through several pages of the book in


    a sh. It was like she had forgotten that Kevin ever existed.


    The door creaked open, but she was so engrossed in reading the book that she didn''t even notice that


    someone had entered the room.


    "What are you looking at? Don''t move around so much. Your body still needs to recover,"


    Kevin uttered in a peeved tone. It took Anne quite a while before she realized that someone was talking


    to her. But when she finally did, she looked around and saw something that absolutely terrified her.


    ''What''s going on? Why is there a dark figure in my room?'' She thought to herself while holding her


    heart that almost jumped out of her chest from being startled. After a few seconds, Anne came back to


    her senses and realized who she was looking at. She couldn''t help but wonder why Kevin''s face was


    covered with ash and why he was wearing all ck.


    "What happened to you? Did you clean someone''s chimney or something?" Anne asked with a


    confused look on her face.


    "Stop talking nonsense. I was just in the kitchen,"


    Kevin replied in an aggrieved tone. After that, he walked forward and ced a bowl of porridge on a


    nearby table. No matter how dirty he looked at that moment, he still looked as handsome and dashing


    as his usual self. And his newfound kindness just added more to his charm.


    "Why are you here?" Anne asked while trying her best not to giggle in front of him. When she walked


    closer to take a look at what he brought, she was surprised and asked him in disbelief, "Did you make


    this by yourself?"


    "Of course, I did. Do you really think a grown man like myself can''t cook something that simple?" Kevin


    responded while furrowing his eyebrows at her. He was slightly offended by her question and felt a little


    upset. About a few secondster, he frigidly handed the porridge to Anne and said, "Here, try it. Tell me


    if you like it."


    Anne''s stomach rumbled from hunger so she eagerly took the bowl from him. But when she looked


    down and saw how unappetizing the food looked, her enthusiasm quickly disappeared. After a while,


    the whole room was covered with the aroma of porridge. At that point, she was too hungry to fuss over


    food anymore. It was the first time in a long while that she had had an appetite.


    Additionally, she felt quite fond of the fact that Kevin cooked for her, especially since a kind gesture like


    this was a rare sight to see from him. However, she always knew in her heart that Kevin would never


    choose her to be by his side.


    But she would never admit defeat. She kept fighting for her love which only led her to pain.


    No matter how tired her body was from trying to pursue him, she would always believe she could


    conquer any difficulties.


    Looking at Kevin''s face which was covered with ash, she felt somewhat sad. ''Why would I feel sad?''


    Anne curiously asked herself. She should have felt warm by Kevin''s sweet actions, but she couldn''t get


    rid of the nagging feeling in her heart.


    ''He''s probably doing all of this for the baby,'' she thought while slowly caressing her stomach.


    "What are you waiting for? Eat it before it gets cold,"


    Kevin said in apelling voice. He couldn''t understand why Anne was so deep in thought since all he


    did was just bring her some food.


    His words brought Anne back to her senses. With his bright eyes staring right at her, she ced down


    the book and picked up a spoon to eat. In her mind, the food didn''t look appetizing so she would just


    gulp it down for her baby. But as soon as she tasted it, her eyes widened in shock. The simple bowl of


    porridge was one of the best she had ever eaten.


    Kevin watched closely for her reaction. When he saw the look of delight in her eyes, he quickly asked,


    "How is it?" The first spoonful was always the best indicator if the person liked the food or not. Kevin


    knew this and excitedly waited for her reaction. He even bent down to match her gaze so he could see


    if she was telling the truth or not.


    Seeing Kevin''s nervous expression, Anne gleefully replied, "It''s surprisingly good, to be honest with


    you."


    That bowl of porridge was her first meal in days and it tasted absolutely delicious.


    "Really? Do you really think it''s good?" Kevin asked with a rare smile on his face.


    "Yup!" Anne replied while cheerfully nodding at him. Kevin didn''t want to show it but he was over the


    moon when he made Anne''s mood better. Unfortunately for him, she could easily tell how happy he


    was by his actions. "It''s really very delicious," she said with a blissful smile, assuring him even more.


    N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    Right after that, she lowered her head and continued to eat the porridge bit by bit.


    After a few minutes, the sunshine came through the tin curtains on the window. The sunlight shone on


    Anne''s fair face and nobody could deny how beautiful she was.


    It was like she was apletely different woman after eating something. The natural rosiness in her


    cheeks finally appeared on her pale face after such a long time.


    Kevin couldn''t stop his heart from melting at the sight of such a gorgeous woman in front of him.


    He couldn''t resist sitting in front of her and he just watched her quietly, like a child watching his favorite


    show.


    Unfortunately, Anne wasn''tfortable being stared at for so long. She looked up at him and asked,


    "Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?"


    Kevin was pulled back to reality and tried his best to answer normally, "No, it''s nothing."


    The air in the room quickly became awkward after that. He didn''t have the courage to stare at her


    anymore, but the smile on his face didn''t go away.


    It was the first time that she had seen him smile so much after a long time of cold looks and the


    revtion of it caused Anne to feel a bit upset. With this in mind, the expression on her face darkened


    while she softly asked, "Do you have anything else to do here?"


    "No." Kevin turned to look straight into her eyes and asked, "Are you still hungry? Do you want another


    bowl of porridge? Just tell me and I''ll get you one."


    Feeling a bit uneasy by his unusual actions, Anne replied in a distant voice, "No, thanks. I''m full." The


    food tasted good but she knew she would just throw it all up if she ate too much. In order not to ruin the


    good mood, and to show how grateful she was, she gave Kevin a soft smile and said, "Thank you."


    Kevin was surprised to hear that, so he asked, "What for?"


    "Thank you for cooking for me," she quickly answered in a blissful tone. Even if she couldn''t fully trust


    the man in front of him, she knew that any of Kevin''s attempts to be kind to her should always be


    appreciated. What was more, he didn''t seem to hate her that much as he did before, so she should be


    happy that his impression of her had changed.


    "You don''t have to thank me. This is my job,"


    he replied as his face darkened, and even his smile was gone. He was a little upset. Was he too


    humble in front of her? This was uncharacteristic of him.


    ''Will she think too much about why I cooked for her?'' he wondered.


    As the two were lost in their own thoughts, Kevin''s phone rang all of a sudden.


    After a short nce at Kevin, she picked up the book from earlier and continued where she left off.


    While watching her every move, Kevin took out his phone and looked at the name on the screen.


    Before he answered the phone, he let out a sigh of distress.


    "What''s wrong?" he asked in an irritated voice.


    "Kevin, are you still in the East Mountain Vi?" Cherry asked in a slightly flirty tone with a hint of


    unhappiness in her voice.


    As soon as he heard her question, a frown made its way on his face. After another sigh, he answered,


    "Yes, I''m still here."


    Anne could easily tell who was on the other side of the line by what she heard from Kevin. Additionally,


    Cherry was the only one who had the guts to call him at that hour.


    It was clear that Cherry was making her presence known to her.


    That being said, Anne didn''t want to show her jealousy so she continued reading her book. But her


    ears were listening to every word that came out of Kevin''s mouth.


    "Will I see you today?" Cherry asked in a needy voice.


    Even though it had only been one night since Kevin went to the East Mansion, Cherry couldn''t stand it


    anymore. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn''t get rid of the creeping feeling that Kevin would


    start liking Anne from their time together. For that reason, Cherry knew she had to keep an eye on him


    all the time.


    Feeling a bit hesitant, Kevin meekly replied, "I don''t think I can go back today."


    After Cherry heard his response, the look on her face darkened. She didn''t care whether Kevin''s


    mother was beside her on the sofa. In fact, she knew that showing a sad face to Selma was exactly the


    way to get what she wanted.


    With the saddest frown, Cherry told her about Kevin''s stay at the East Mountain Vi without a n to


    come back.


    Selma couldn''t help but butt in when she saw how upset Cherry was. "He''s been there for two days


    already. Why does he still need to stay there? Give me the phone and I''ll talk some sense into him,"


    she said to Cherry.


    As soon as Kevin heard his mother''s voice, he knew exactly what she was going to say. Feeling


    worried, he nced at Anne from the corner of his eyes. It seemed that she didn''t have a single clue to


    what was happening.


    "Auntie, just let him be. Anne is pregnant these days and can''t eat anything without feeling nauseous.


    She needs Kevin to take care of her and I''m okay with that," Cherry reassured Selma that she was fine


    with Kevin''s decision even though she really wasn''t.


    Selma''s blood instantly started to boil at what was happening around her. Because of her reaction,


    Cherry felt a bit better about herself. At least she was confident that someone was still on her side. And


    she was d that she had seized the opportune moment to help Kevin out. Kevin would appreciate her


    for that.


    Even if Selma didn''t agree with her son''s decision, she kept in anger to herself and just patted Cherry''s


    hand tofort her. After that, she went upstairs, feeling dismayed at the fact that Cherry was too


    considerate.


    With everything settled, Cherry took a deep breath and told herself that she must put up with it for the


    moment.


    With a force caring voice, she clenched her fists hard and said, "I''m sorry, Kevin. I just called you


    because I miss you so much. If you''re busy right now, I''ll let you be."


    Kevin couldn''t help but feel guilty when he heard her. He knew in his heart that he had ignored her for a


    while at that point. And it wasn''t right to treat such a considerate and kinddy like that.


    With tight pressed lips and a heart full of guilt, he gave in and eventually said, "I''ll go back tomorrow


    and I promise I''ll make it up to you."


    When Anne overheard him, her hand stopped turning pages and started to tremble. She looked at


    Kevin''s back and inevitably felt disappointed since he was so kind to her that morning.


    Sure enough, Cherry was the most important person in his heart, more important than her and the


    baby.


    Because of that, she rubbed her tummy and couldn''t help but feel sorry for the life inside her.


    ''Hmp... Do what you want!'' Anne irritably thought to herself.


    After a while, Kevin was finished speaking to Cherry and hung up the phone. As soon as he did, Anne


    suddenly felt dizzy, to the point that she had to close the book in her hand so she could rub her


    temples.


    Despite feeling bad, Anne still put on her best poker face and just stared at the infusion line and a


    bottle of injection nearby. ''I should tell him that he can leave since the IV drip is almost finished,'' she


    thought to herself.


    Kevin quickly noticed that the book she was reading was closed. With a concerned tone, he asked,


    "Why''d you stop?"


    Right after that, he turned his attention to his phone and ced it back in his pocket. In that short


    amount of time, Anne hadin down on the bed. As he watched her, feelings of regret filled his heart.


    He knew it was a bad idea to talk to Cherry while Anne was with him.


    "I''m just tired." Ann replied indifferently and covered herself in the quilt.


    Kevin paused for a while, thinking hard about what he should say to her. However, nothing came out of


    his mind. Helpless, he just said, "Have a good rest, and I will leave first." He felt worse about himself


    now.


    He actually felt embarrassed when he stood in front of her. What a joke! But he couldn''t figure out why.


    "Wait a minute," Anne said in a meek voice.


    Kevin didn''t waste a single second and turned around when he heard her soft voice. With a concerned


    look on his face, he asked, "Is there something you need me to do?"


    The anxiety in his voice was evident. Kevin regretted it as soon as he heard himself.


    Due to the awkward situation, nobody uttered a single word for quite some time. When Anne finally


    regained a bit of strength to talk clearly again, she asked Kevin, "Can I use my phone right now?"


    The look on Kevin''s face turned frigid as soon as he heard her request. While crossing his arms, he


    asked in response, "Why do you need your phone? You''re pregnant and you need to rest. You


    shouldn''t be toying around with one right now."


    Anne knew he would deny her request from the moment she asked. However, she still tried pleading


    with him while biting her lower lip. "Come on, I''m so bored right now and I can''t do anything else to


    entertain myself."


    "You''re bored? Are you not enjoying reading anymore?" On second thought, Kevin realized that Anne


    was right. There was nobody to apany her and her body was too weak to move and go about


    outside. Anyone in her position would surely get bored. That being said, Kevin still didn''t want to let her


    use a phone. After a few minutes, he thought of something that made him re at Anne. In an


    using tone, he asked, "You just want to contact that man, don''t you?"


    Anne waspletely caught off-guard by what he said. With a puzzled look on her face, she asked,


    "What are you even talking about?" Right after that, she stared into his eyes while tears started


    swelling up in her eyes. "Kevin, don''t always think that everyone is bad!" Anne sorrowfully eximed.


    "I think he is bad? Or he is really bad in the first ce?" In a condescending tone, he continued, "Am I


    really at fault to think that way? Think about what kind of person you are and you''ll know why I


    suspected your motives in getting a phone."


    Anne felt a chill down her spine. Kevin''s insensitive and ice-cold words were like a knife stabbing her


    right in the chest. And worse, she was not even qualified to let him known her pain.


    "Forget it," Anne said with a lifeless, cold tone.


    After that, she turned away from Kevin and huddled up in the quilt to wallow in despair. When Kevin


    came back to his senses, he immediately regretted opening his mouth. He couldn''t believe he just said


    those words to such a beautiful, gentle, and kind woman.


    Suddenly, his feelings of pity was reced by contempt. His pride didn''t allow him to feel sorry for a


    woman of her kind. With a cold stare, he turned his back and left.