Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

The car stopped at the end of the alley, and Roseanne stepped out.

Scales and Mamie had already made their way ahead.

Roseanne walked towards the apartment building.

The moonlight was soft, and the stars were sparse, scattered thinly across the night sky.

The breeze carried the heat of high summer, offering no cool relief.

Suddenly, she paused in her tracks.

A man was leaning against a tree at the foot of the building, hands in his pockets. When he saw her, he subconsciously straightened up. Then, he flashed a smile.

"Surprised to see me?" Corley Sullivan stepped forward.

Roseanne was taken aback for a moment: "...A bit."

"Getting used to the new term?"

"Yeah."

"Classes filling up?"

That hit right on the mark for Roseanne. It wasn't just full; it was overwhelmingly so!

Corley shrugged: "Your expression says it all."

"...Is it that obvious?" she touched her face.

"Not really."

did

"I've got a

Roseanne was speechless.

and I know you won't invite me up. So, how about we find somewhere cooler

He was quite self-aware.

bet you're thinking, huh, this guy's pretty considerate, knows

Roseanne was shocked.

I guessed right again,

up at a café they'd been

the street, it had air conditioning, making

his business suit, seemed out of place among the café's casual vibe, drawing curious

"What'll you have?

and cream frappe, no ice, extra sugar." Roseanne

touched his

Roseanne went to the counter: "Two cookies and cream

"So you like it too. Does that mean

"Just a

Corley smirked.

many coincidences

not be aware, but over the years, he had come to know her preferences-what she liked to eat, what she liked to drink-perhaps not all, but

drinks were

they sat down to sip and

did you want

without a reason?" he raised an

IMS

a moment: "...I don't think you

just wanted to chat, he

under her apartment