After work at the library, Mai had messaged Lin to let him know she was heading home just to update him in case he was worried about her safety. Johannes hadn't shown up since then, but on her way to work, she felt like he was nearby. She just sensed it. Still, it was reassuring to know that Lin worked in the building almost next to hers, even though they didn't physically see each other. He had managed to rearrange his schedule, so on Saturday, he had time to meet with her. Mai couldn't and wouldn't refuse him since he had moved another appointment to be with her and felt bad about it.

"Imagine if that appointment was very important," she said as she looked at herself in the mirror that Saturday.

She wore a short-sleeved salmon-colored dress that fell just below her knees, a pair of matching suede heels, and a matching thin short-sleeved coat. Her hair was styled in a loose bun with the silver flower hairpin bought in Kyoto, and the small Hawaiian pearl earrings with flower petals completed her look.

"Do I look too fancy or not fancy enough?" she muttered, about to change into something else, but remembered she was going out to eat with Lin.

"We'll be sitting most of the time, so it doesn't matter," she reminded herself.

She met Lin at The Diamond, for the restaurant was located on a side street nearby.

His eyes immediately fell on her dress, making her feel embarrassed, and she asked, "Do I look weird?"

He smiled and replied in a gentle voice, "No. I'm just enjoying what I see. You're very beautiful."

Mai had invited him to an Italian restaurant that looked like a tavern from the outside, but they served restaurant food, and it was delicious. The owner was an older Italian man with a good build, and he was always kind to all his customers.

He was surprised to see Lin and asked Mai why she hadn't mentioned it when she made the reservation. But she had mentioned that they were two people.

"Should I have mentioned that we were a couple?" she asked, confused.

The owner looked at Lin, who furrowed his brows, prompting the owner to say, "We have a special couple's menu. So if you had mentioned it, I could have prepared it."

Mai didn't like couple's menus because they usually didn't taste very good but were just for show.

"Do you have a table in a quiet spot?" she asked, noticing that the place was crowded.

After all, it was Saturday

"Give me 30 seconds," the owner replied immediately.

Shortly after, they got a table in a corner all to themselves, shielded from the others by an aquarium and a large, wide pillar, which was perfect for Mai and Lin.

Mai suggested they order a bunch of small dishes they could share, to which he was perfectly fine with.

"How did your job interview go?" Lin suddenly asked, looking at her.

"It wasn't a job interview. They just needed to see me and get me started. But it went well. They're a bit snobbish compared to Reddville, but then again, this is Redwick, so I was prepared for that," she replied, taking a bite of her arugula salad.

Lin smiled and said, "Everything here is snobbish. Even the supermarket Ema. 50 kr. for a 1.5 L soda is excessive even if it's organic. Who the hell drinks organic soda anyway?"

Climate change was happening every second, and Denmark had made beef expensive to get people to not buy it, and they had promised to lower the prices for fruits and vegetables so people could eat healthier. But avocados were still ridiculously expensive. Everyone wanted to save money, even the rich.

After they finished eating, Lin asked Mai what she wanted to do, and since it was Saturday, she wanted to go to Fredwick's Amusement Park.

"But only if you want to. There are probably a lot of people there today. I just want to go for a walk there," Mai added, not interested in a ride pass.

"Let's go there. It's close by. I've only seen it from the hotel," said Lin, and they headed towards Fredwick's Amusement Park, which was only two blocks away.

As they walked, their hands bumped into each other, and Lin automatically held Mai's hand, which made her feel a nice sensation inside.

"We're not a couple. People are looking and getting the wrong impression," she said in a low voice but squeezed his hand tighter and smiled.

"You don't seem as affected by it as your words," said Lin, unable to resist smiling.

He reminded her of Johannes and that he wouldn't let her out of his sight all evening.

"You mean all evening?" Mai asked, feeling her heart beat faster.

Lin repeated his words and revealed he didn't have anything to do tomorrow and asked if she wanted to hang out, which she naturally didn't refuse. They talked about their hobbies, and Lin didn't inquire once about her background.

Before Mai could say anything, they were let in for free at Fredwick's Amusement Park, which surprised her, but the ticket lady had said they had a special event tonight for couples, and everything was prepaid. She had never heard of such an event, especially not at Fredwick's Amusement Park, which was the most expensive and largest in Denmark. Even though everything was free, they just walked around and looked at things. There were enlightening rides and beautiful decorations that were summer-themed with flowers and sea people. People looked at Mai and Lin, who ignored them and enjoyed each other's company while getting to know each other better. Mai was surprised at how much they had in common, especially in terms of nerdy things, especially computer games.

"Do you build your own PC?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"It's cheaper. But I don't go to nerd conventions anymore. As a kid, I used to go with my friends," replied Lin, scratching his cheek as his eyes fell on the ducks in the lake in front of them.

He stopped, looked at her, and asked, "Should we sail?"

"I can't row. Last time I ended up in the water, which I'm not proud of," Mai replied, pursing her lips.

There was a long line for the boats, but when people saw Lin, they automatically stepped away from it, which Mai immediately noticed.

"Where are they going?" she asked, looking for all the couples who had quickly disappeared from the area.

"They probably found something else they wanted to do," Lin replied, nodding to a ticket person who handed them a boat.

With Lin's help, Mai got into the boat, and it rocked as she sat in it. Lin immediately took the oars and rowed slowly out onto the lake. It was dark, quiet, and windless. A perfect June evening, except for the screaming guests from the wild rides. There was a view of the large green ship with a big mermaid that looked like a man with blue facial hair, and it was missing one breast.

"They still haven't fixed that after like 20 years or something," Mai said, unable to keep a straight face and giggling.

"It's art, just like the Greek statues," Lin said, also looking over at the mermaid's missing breast.

Mai noticed that people who had been standing and walking around the lake had slowly left, bringing a smile to her face. Finally, they could have some peace together. But she had never experienced this before. She looked at Lin, who was busy rowing slowly while keeping an eye on the boat sailing in the right direction.

"I thought the CEO was an older gentleman. Isn't his name Wayan Nord?" Mai asked.

"Wayan is my father," Lin replied, stopping rowing, and looking at her. "Why?"

He suddenly held up his hand in front of her and said, "Wait. You thought I was my father?"

"I thought you were the CEO of Nen Nord," Mai replied.

"Are you disappointed?" Lin asked, furrowing his brow.

She shook her head, leaned forward, and whispered, "Do you want to hear a secret?"

He leaned forward so far that their noses almost touched and nodded.

"I'm relieved you're not him," she whispered, smiling.

Lin pressed his lips together and whispered in a crisp voice, "If we weren't in public right now, I would have kissed your full lips."

Mai felt her heart crawl quickly up her throat, her ears pounding loudly, and her cheeks suddenly felt very warm. She could suddenly smell his scent while feeling butterflies in her stomach and couldn't help but smile. She held her hands to her cheeks as a shield and leaned towards him.

"No one can tell the difference now. If you dare," she whispered in a teasing voice.

Lin held his hands on hers and whispered back, "Is that a challenge?"

She gently bit her lip, which he couldn't resist, and leaned in. He gently pressed his lips against hers, and she felt how warm and soft they were. Mai didn't know how long they kissed, but she only felt his tongue, and that was enough. When they both needed to catch their breath, she slowly pulled her head back and saw Lin licking his lips as he looked deeply into her eyes.

"That's cheating. You can't stop in the middle of it all. I want more," he said in a crisp voice, bringing a smile to her face.

"Later. But first, I need a candied apple," she replied, revealing that the only reason she went to Fredwick's Amusement Park was for the candied apples they made there, and there were also churros.

They sat on a bench by the flower beds where it was completely quiet. They were the only ones present.

"It's nice we have it to ourselves. It's always so crowded," Mai said, noticing a butterfly sitting on a yellow marigold in a flower bed in front of them.

She took a bite of her large green apple and tasted the sticky red sugar stuff on the outside that stuck to her teeth. But it tasted good, so it was worth it.

"Why do you like them? They always stick to your teeth," Lin suddenly said, staring at the apple on its way to her mouth.

"There's something chewy about it, like mochi but a bit harder," Mai replied, offering the apple to him. "Have you tried them before?"

"No, but they remind me of candy floss, which also sticks to your teeth," Lin replied, leaning forward and taking a small bite from the side where she had already taken a bite.

He chewed on it for a bit and said, "I'd rather eat you. You taste better."

Mai got a piece of apple stuck in her throat and coughed it up while tasting something sweet.

"Your jokes are pretty wild," she commented.

"I wasn't joking. You challenged me earlier, so I'll challenge you later at my place," Lin said, now smiling mischievously at her.

>>> <<<

Later in the evening, Mai sat on a bench on a large balcony with a beautiful view of the glowing city twinkling all around. She had a soft red blanket over her and suddenly saw Lin come out with a glass of water for her. He sat down to her left and looked out towards the city.

"Thank you. You have a beautiful view here," she said, taking a sip of her water and placing it on the table to her right.

"This is my most private place where I find peace within myself where I'm not bothered by others. Not even my family members," Lin said, looking at her and holding her hand.

Mai gently traced her fingers around his hand and suddenly felt small irregularities that she immediately looked at. There were small scars and a deep one that looked very fresh now.

She suddenly felt a pang in her heart and asked, "What happened to your hand?"

"There was a mean cat that scratched me," Lin replied, coughing lightly.

Mai examined the scars closely and touched them gently with both her hands. "I've had a dog, and my parents have had a cat. They don't scratch like that."

She looked deeply into his tourmaline eyes, which lit up in the darkness, and asked, "Be honest. What happened? If you lie again, I'm leaving."

Lin revealed that he had accidentally broken the wine glass she had given him that evening at Nen Nord's because of a remark his friend had made.

Mai couldn't help but smile and said, "You're silly. You need to learn to control your temper over a few words. It's true that some women don't call when they use that phrase, but it doesn't apply to everyone."

"Are you worried about me, Mai?" Lin asked, squeezing her hands.

She told him about the expression that a scarred woman couldn't get married and she believed it applied to men as well.

"So, of course, I'm worried about you," she concluded, feeling a strange sensation in her heart.

"It's me who did that."

"You didn't call me. It's been over a week. I thought you had ghosted me," Lin said.

"I don't ghost people. I was afraid I wasn't interesting enough for you since we come from different backgrounds," Mai said in a low voice that almost sounded muted.

"I waited every day for your call," Lin said, sharing his story.

>>> <<< 

The day after Nen Nord’s reception, Lin sat in a large meeting room in The Diamond with only men in fine suits, who were looking at a large projector displaying a scale with a lot of numbers showing the year's results on the L-2 experiment, which was the next step.

Lin was the only one not looking at the projector but staring at his phone lying on the table in front of him. However, he listened carefully.

Suddenly, the person giving the presentation stopped and looked at him, asking, "Are you expecting an important call, Mr. Lin?"

Lin nodded and replied in a flat tone, "A text or call."

He looked at the person and said, "Has there been any progress with L-2, Cliff?"

The man, Cliff, replied, "We've tried several times, but we can't get past more than 5 years. It's like something is blocking. A plug we can't remove."

Another man, Gustaf, raised his hand and said, "Maybe I have a suggestion."

Cliff nodded, and Gustaf said, "So far, we've only tested L-2 on people who have already taken L-1. Maybe that's why it's not working. What about trying someone who has never been near L-1?"

"Everyone in the world has taken L-1 at least once in their life. Even the poor, so it's impossible. Who wouldn't want to test if they become younger?" interrupted another man wearing a turquoise tie.

"We can't just pick someone randomly. The person must be healthy, slim, and have a natural appearance. If it works, we can use the person as the face of the company for our future advertisements," Cliff said, looking at Lin. "What do you say, Mr. Lin?"

"If she just needs to meet the requirements, then I might have one in mind," he replied, smiling.

All the men looked at him and then at each other, making eye contact.

"If you can bring a person, we are very interested. What gender is it?" Cliff asked.

"A woman. But she might be difficult to persuade. I need to arrange a dinner with her first," Lin replied.

"Huh?" exclaimed Gustaf, scratching his ear.

"We thought you already knew someone. Hold on. It's a woman? That's perfect. Bring her here after you've talked to her."

Lin scratched his cheek and felt his ears getting warm.

"I'm working on the first step."

Several days later, Lin sat staring at his phone, but the important call he had been waiting for didn't come. The employees were also curious and now also waiting for him to receive his call. But it never came.

One day, his friend came to work, the same one who had said ‘the call sentence’ that evening.

He looked at the blank screen on Lin's phone and said, "Are you waiting for that call? I told you she wouldn't call. It's a woman thing to say to keep us waiting. Just forget about her."

Lin took Mai's ID out of his pocket and looked at it.

"But her details are here. Even her number…" he said, his eyes resting on her phone number.

"If you call her, she'll think you're stalking her. So, I advise against it," said the friend, scratching his cheek. "Speaking of the devil. It looks like she's the one walking down there."

Lin quickly pushed his chair back, which couldn't move fast enough. It squeaked loudly, and he looked out of the large window where he saw Mai heading towards Redwick Library.

"Oops. Looks like trouble brewing. That guy looks angry," his friend suddenly said, pointing to the right where a man was approaching Mai from afar.

"I'm on break anyway," Lin said, grabbing his phone and leaving the room.

"Get him removed later," he said before running out into the hallway.

>>> <<<

Mai furrowed her brows and couldn't help but giggle.

"You should have just called me. I would have been happy about it."

"I was about to contact you, but then I saw you outside," Lin said, leaning forward suddenly.

"Have you forgotten my challenge earlier?" he whispered.

Mai gently nibbled on his lips and asked, "You challenged me to eat you. Now you can't take it back."

She kissed him again and slipped her tongue inside, playing with his. He caressed her, and she suddenly felt things happening inside her, especially between her legs, where it grew cool and wet.

She pulled her head back and whispered, "I don't have a condom."

Lin smiled and said, "I'm sure you've got it under control."

She was surprised by his words and asked, "How did you know I was on the pill?"

She took them to regulate her menstrual cycle, but that couldn't be seen.

"You always wear a confident smile and know what you're doing, but you wear your emotions on the outside," Lin replied, kissing her, and moving down to her neck, where he greeted her with a gentle kiss.

Mai stopped him and whispered, "I want to eat you first."

She led him into the living room, onto the large sofa, and pushed him onto his back. She kissed him passionately on the lips as she slowly moved down his body. She planted a gentle kiss and ran her tongue slowly all over him. On his neck, chest, stomach, and moving further down with her tongue, feeling Lin moan as she moved in rhythm. She slowly loosened his leather belt as she kissed his stomach, opened his pants, and quickly and elegantly pulled them off him. She moved her mouth slowly down and felt something warm and hard bulging out. She placed her mouth on it and heard Lin moan louder as his hands gently grabbed her hair, his fingers playing with it. She stripped the rest of him off and was surprised at how large it was. She turned around, sat on him, and moved her hips up to his face, holding onto him tightly. She licked it slowly at the top and tasted something sticky and salty, licking her lips. She suddenly felt Lin's fingers inside her, moving slowly and smoothly in and out of her. She moaned softly, rubbing her hands up and down him, leaning forward. She greeted something very hard and hot with her mouth and sucked hard on it at the top, running her tongue up and down. Lin's moans grew louder as she squeezed her jaws against him harder, and when she sucked hard on the top, he moaned very loudly.

Later, unable to wait any longer, she turned around and looked at Lin, who lay with an aroused expression, breathing quickly. He sat up and helped her take off her dress. She slowly sat completely on top of him, feeling him smoothly slide into her. She rode him slowly, and they moaned in rhythm with her movements. She rode him faster, feeling him penetrate her completely, and a loud moan escaped her mouth. Lin's lips and tongue caressed her all over her body, and his fingers gripped her nipples tightly. Their bodies intertwined beautifully, moving in sync with a melody of pleasure.

>>> <<<

Many hours later, Mai lay on Lin's chest, her head buried in his neck, basking in the scent of the mildest flora in the world. She was relaxed all over and had never felt so peaceful in her life. She kissed Lin gently on the neck and smiled. She wore an oversized white T-shirt, with the duvet covering half of her, while Lin's hands rested on her back. He lay with closed eyes, a satisfied smile on his face, stroking her back.

"Is this just a one-night stand for you?" he suddenly asked.

"I don't do one-night stands," Mai replied softly, enjoying the moment with him.

"Does that mean we're a couple?" He asked, surprised.

Mai was silent for a moment as she pondered his words. She had been surprised when she first saw him. She lifted her head and looked into his colorful tourmaline eyes.

"I once dreamed of my dream man, who looked incredibly like you. Appearance and all. But I didn't believe such a dream person existed. I think fate is playing with me," she said, feeling her heart beat rapidly.

"It just means that fate brought us together. I'm not letting go of you now that I have you in my arms," Lin said, hugging her.

"I don't know if I'm ready to date right now, but I just know that I miss some company. But only yours," Mai said, biting her lip.

"Mai, I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere. You're the first person I've been with, and I know you'll be the last," Lin said, smiling at her.

She giggled and told him she thought he was experienced, which surprised him. He thought she was experienced because of the confident way she had navigated his body earlier. She revealed she had been reincarnated, which he immediately accepted.

"Do you believe me?" she asked, furrowing her brows.

Lin lifted his head and kissed her.

"This is my answer. Now I'm waiting for yours," he said.

"We can see each other, but can we keep it a secret?" Mai asked.

"Then I can't hold your hand," Lin said in a disappointed voice.

"I just want to get to know you slowly because I take you seriously. But if you can figure out how to take our relationship slowly and give me time, then you can hold my hand and..." Mai leaned forward and whispered. "You can eat me whenever you want."

"You can't take those words back now," Lin said, hugging her tightly and kissing her gently.