Lola had no idea why Professor Kent wanted to see her alone.
Knocking on the door to the office with a tense expression, she entered to find Professor Kent rising from his chair and guiding her to the sofa, telling her to sit comfortably.
As Lola sat down, she tried to read something from Professor Kent’s expression, but he was not one to easily reveal his emotions, so she couldn’t glean anything.
Could he be upset about my taking a day off tomorrow?
While she speculated, Professor Kent, sitting across from her, quietly opened his mouth.
“Ms. Lola Dax, I noticed you didn’t sign up for the 4-night, 5-day hypnosis seminar. I wanted to check in with you about that.”
“Yes, Professor.”
Despite her initial anxiety, she felt a moment of relief at the unexpected question, but it was still too early to feel completely at ease.
Lola remained tense, sitting rigidly.
“Why? Haven’t you been interested in hypnosis therapy? I thought this would be a good opportunity. May I ask why?”
Professor Kent tilted his head, looking puzzled.
Taking a deep breath, Lola decided to be honest.
“Professor, actually, I’m getting married soon.”
“Wha, mar… marriage?”
Professor Kent seemed a bit surprised by the unexpected news.
Repeating the word ‘marriage’ slowly, he nodded in realization.
“Ah! So you have a lot to prepare for, and that’s why you can’t attend the seminar.”
“Marriage, that’s something to celebrate! It’s quite unexpected, though.”
“Thank you for your consideration, Professor.”
“It’s unfortunate that you can’t attend, but it can’t be helped. Congratulations on your marriage, Ms. Lola Dax.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Their conversation ended briefly.
As Lola stood up to leave the office, Professor Kent’s expression seemed a bit complicated as he watched her go.
From what he had observed, Lola Dax was a psychiatrist with a promising future.
She had a quiet demeanor but surprisingly strong and resilient traits, and she was well-regarded and trusted by her patients.
While marriage is indeed a significant life event, it could pose some challenges for her as she pursued her career as a fellow and professor.
It’s not easy for a woman to balance work and family after marriage.
In a way, it was unnecessary concern.
Yet, as a fellow doctor, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of regret, and even long after Lola had left the office, he couldn’t shake off his complicated feelings.
**
Dylan’s phone had been buzzing with text messages since morning.
Most of them were from Andy Porter.
“Dylan, I can’t wait until your wedding. I just can’t.”
What kind of nonsense is this?
Dylan frowned as another message chimed in.
“Let me see your fiancée’s face. I’m dying to know.”
Another speech bubble popped up immediately.
This time it was a message from Tadeo Leon.
“Now that Dylan is getting married, it doesn’t feel real to me. What kind of woman is she? Let’s see a picture.”
Why are you all so curious about my girlfriend?
Andy Porter, who was stirring up trouble since morning, was being a nuisance.
Dylan clicked his tongue and ignored the incoming messages.
But why are these guys so idle?
Dylan’s friends were not ordinary people.
Andy Porter was a lawyer at a major law firm, Tadeo Leon was a judge, and Frank Lewis was a prosecutor, all earning quite high salaries.
It was absurd that these busy people were texting him so early in the morning.
Just as he was about to push his phone aside to stop worrying about it, another message notification chimed.
“Big Brother, are you busy? Can we talk?”
It wasn’t a particularly welcome message, but he couldn’t just ignore it.
Dylan sighed softly and pressed the speed dial.
“Talk to me. What’s going on?”
-…….
The abrupt tone made it seem cold-hearted, and there was silence on the other end for a while.
After a moment, Gia’s worried voice came through.
“Big Brother, I think Lola is feeling a bit unwell.”
“What? Lola is sick?”
Dylan felt like he was hearing a lot of ridiculous things since morning.
“Yeah. I met Lola earlier, and she looked a bit sick. Her forehead was hot, and her face was bright red. She says she’s fine, but I’m worried she might be coming down with something.”
From Gia’s words, it didn’t sound like something to brush off lightly.
Worried, Dylan touched his forehead.
“Lola usually doesn’t show when she’s sick. Are you meeting her later?”
“Okay, hang up now.”
“Big Brother.”
Just as he was about to end the call, Gia called out again, making it hard for him to hang up.
“What?”
“Big Brother, are you really okay with Lola? Nothing happened, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay. Just take good care of Lola.”
“Yeah.”
And while the call ended, Dylan couldn’t just sit there calmly, so he splashed some cold water on his face.
