Aliyah Rich left her office late in the evening and stopped by the supermarket to grab some yogurt.
After purchasing her items, she entered the bustling square outside the mall, where many children were playing.
Suddenly, a rubber ball hit her hand, causing her to drop everything.
As she knelt down to pick up her belongings, a man approached, apologizing for his child's carelessness.
"It's alright," Aliyah said, not looking up as she continued to gather her things. She just heard that the little boy began to cry, apologizing to his father.
As Aliyah stood up, she finally recognized the man—her husband, Marvin Kinney!
Dressed in relaxed work attire, he gently comforted his son.
During their two years of marriage, Aliyah had never seen Marvin's gentle side.
She couldn't help but observe the child in his arms. The boy had a lovely face and sparkling eyes.
Marvin was also surprised to see Aliyah, but he quickly recovered his composure and asked the boy to apologize.
As she accepted his apology, another ball flew towards her. Marvin quickly pulled her away, and Aliyah fell into his arms.
At that moment, Aliyah's ear was pressed against his chest. She could hear the steady heartbeat in his chest, and also detect a faint smell of cigarettes and mint in his breath...
But Aliyah quickly stood up and thanked Marvin.
Then she shifted her weight to her left foot, enduring the pain from her sprain.
Marvin looked down at her foot. "Are you hurt?"
"Just a little. I'll put a warm compress on it when I get home."
Aliyah wore high heels every day, and sprains like this were a common occurrence. She knew how to deal with it.
Aiden, the little boy who Marvin was carrying, kept staring at Aliyah curiously. "Daddy, who's this lady? She's so pretty!"
"She is... Daddy's wife."
"If she's your wife, does that mean she is my mommy?"
His bright eyes lit up instantly.
Aliyah felt so embarrassed to learn of a 'son' who she never knew existed!
It just happened that her assistant was calling her, so she quickly took the opportunity to leave.
Back home, Aliyah went to take a shower.
When she came out of the shower, she found that her ankle was more swollen than before. She was about to apply a warm compress on her ankle when the doorbell rang.
Who could it be at this late hour?
Aliyah limped to the door and saw Marvin standing in the corridor with a plastic bag in his hand.
"I know it's late. I hope I am not disturbing you, am I?"
He had changed into something casual, a light gray tracksuit. He looked refreshed, probably because he had just taken a shower.
Although they didn't live together after they got married, they still lived in the same building in order to avoid unnecessary rumors.
Marvin bought the top five floors of the apartment with the best view of the city in one go. He lived on the top floor, while Aliyah lived on the floor below him.
Although they lived close by, they rarely met. Marvin had just taken over Hatchworks, his family business, so he was very busy.
Occasionally, they would run into each other in the elevator, but they would just have polite conversations.
From the beginning, they got married under familial pressure, so they always tacitly kept a distance from each other.
Therefore, Aliyah was surprised to see Marvin at her door. "What's the matter?"
Marvin showed her the plastic bag in his hand and said, "I bought you some medicine on my way home."
Aliyah felt stunned.
Marvin glanced at her foot. "You're badly injured. I doubt that a warm compress will make it any better?"
Only then did Aliyah come to her senses. She received the bag from Marvin with a smile. "Thank you."
Marvin took out something else from his pocket. "This flash drive is also yours, isn't it?"
Aliyah was always losing the little things that she carried with her. Hence, her assistant got her a bright keychain for the flash drive. At this moment, the bright pink rabbit was sitting on Marvin's palm, grinning.
Aliyah kept a lot of work documents in the flash drive.
The latest addition to that flash drive was a statement of charges that she had just started. She was supposed to work on it when she got home in the evening, but she couldn't find the flash drive.
She didn't expect Marvin to find it. She must have lost it when she fell in the square earlier.
"Thank you." Aliyah said. "I'm sorry that you have to make another trip this late."
"I thought you might have saved some important information in it. I don't think you'd be able to sleep well tonight if you lose it."
After a brief exchange, Aliyah didn't invite Marvin in, and he turned to leave.
However, just as he reached the elevator, he heard a scream followed by loud noises!