At that, Dustin’s expression turned solemn as well. “Come, let’s talk in my office.”
However, Joan couldn’t wait anymore. Following him closely, she asked in a voice colored with urgency, “Did Larry ever come and look for you a few days ago? Did he say anything to you?”
Hearing that, Dustin glanced over his shoulder at her. “Why do you ask? And what makes you think that he’d definitely come and seek me out?”
“Because the meeting at the hospital that day was definitely not the last time you two saw each other. Considering his temperament, he’ll certainly seek you out to get to the bottom of things.” Then, Joan continued, “I haven’t seen him for many days now, so I need to know where he is!”
“I’m sorry, but I have no idea on his whereabout,” Dustin replied unhurriedly.
All at once, Joan again reached out and grabbed the hem of his shirt. “I don’t need you to tell me where he is. I only want to know whether he came and sought you out!”
Stopping shortly, Dustin whirled around. His movement was so sudden that Joan almost smacked into him in her distracted state. Even then, she almost fell to the ground due to inertia. Unexpectedly, Dustin reached out and wrapped an arm around her waist.
As the warmth of his palm seeped through her quality clothes to reach her waist, it burned like a brand and scorched her.
This time, Joan reacted swiftly. She still had her wits and she knew that she should keep some boundaries between them. Her hands shot out without even thinking about it, and she pushed his shoulders to immediately put a distance of at least one meter between them.
Dustin, however, disregarded her wishes. Instead, his arm around her waist tightened a fraction. Sure enough, she’s still the same as before! The moment something related to Larry is brought up, she’ll behave like a porcupine with all her quills standing up straight as she’s seized by the urge to lash her tail at me.
“Let go of me, Dustin!” Joan screeched. Afraid that he would do something that crossed the line even further when he was hugging her, she timidly reminded, “We’re in the college.”
Nonetheless, Dustin was unfazed although a few people were already drawing close to them to watch the show. Inwardly, Joan whined, Argh! I’m dead now! With this, not only will the rumors of me and Dustin flying around the college cease to abate, but it’ll even escalate instead! It’s precisely the slew of rumors about us that caused the misunderstanding between me and Larry to deepen…
At the direction of her thoughts, she didn’t dare contemplate further. She simply couldn’t shake off the feeling that Dustin would grow even closer to her, while her beloved Larry would swiftly leave her at a speed indiscernible to the naked eye.
“What if I were to tell you that I did something to him?”
The gentle voice was no different than before, but as it fell into Joan’s ears at that moment, a chill ran down her spine. Did Dustin… really do something to him? Feigning calmness, she countered, “T-That’s impossible. You’ll never use such a stupid method. You know full well that I’ll lose my mind if something really happens to him, so you won’t make waves on a tranquil sea.”
Finally, Dustin released his hold on her. “Sure enough, it’s Joan Watts who knows me even better than myself in this entire world.”
When he mentioned her name, his jet-black eyes stared right at her. Every time he gazed into her eyes, he always wondered whether he could see through her and fathom her thoughts by looking into her eyes.
Conversely, Joan couldn’t understand what he meant. How could a person think that somebody else understands him better than himself? Furthermore, I think I don’t understand him at all. I’m merely speculating from what I know about him without having any inkling whether it’s accurate or otherwise.
“He indeed came to seek me out. I told him that we’re merely friends, and that has never changed since the beginning. Thereafter, he left. As for where he went, he merely said that he’s going to clear his head. That’s all I know.”
Huh? Larry only told him that he’s going to clear his head? So, I merely came here for an answer that’s of little value in the end? Are there no other leads for me to find him?
