Chapter 44 - The Ultimate Client (1/2)

Early the next morning, Halia headed towards the hutongs again to meet with Sean. But, just as she reached the beginning of one of the alleyways, she smelled some chestnuts being roasted on the side of the street.

The smell felt oddly nostalgic...even though she barely bought roasted chestnuts.

As Halia closed her eyes to breathe in the warm fragrance, she suddenly felt a a shiver down her spine. It was meant to be Spring, but an icy breeze suddenly brushed past her nose.

She opened her eyes in confusion.

As she looked around, she was shocked to find that the floor was covered...in snow! One moment ago, it was still a warm spring day, where did this snow come from?

She then realized that her t-shirt and jeans was now covered in a thick down jacket, she had a scarf around her neck and a beanie on her head. She rubbed her hands together, desperately trying to warm them up. ”I forgot my gloves,” she said.

Halia was surprised by her own voice for a minute. It had been roughly a week since she last heard this voice. It was Sara's. She had almost forgotten that she still had Sara's memories in her mind since nothing had triggered them for a while.

”Wait here, I'll be right back,” a man's voice said beside her.

She then watched as a man ran across the road and stood in front of a little stall with a huge wok of chestnuts being roasted on a fire. She couldn't see the man's face, but from the back, he looked oddly familiar.

After a few minutes, the man handed some money to the stall owner and received a bag of roasted chestnuts. As he turned around, she saw a warm smile. The smile released a swarm of butterflies in her stomach and she suddenly felt a little hot.

Halia recognized the man. It was her handler, Sean Qin. The smile on his face; Halia had yet to see him smile so happily. He always seemed so serious. Was it because he was still upset from Sara's death?

As the man walked towards her, she felt her heart race. She could tell from the look on Sean's face that he loved Sara...a lot!

Sean placed the bag of hot roasted chestnuts in her hands and said gently, ”Here, this will keep you warm.” Her heart melted. As she looked down at the roasted chestnuts, she suddenly felt the urge to kiss the man. Stretching her neck, she began to lean forward. The man realized what was happening, so he quickly wrapped his arms around her waist. Just as their lips were about to touch...

”Beep!”

A beep from a car brought Halia back to reality.