The CEO's Doll ✔

Chapter 12

Six years later.

"Noah, is your work done yet?" My car is stuck on the main street, irritating and frustrating.

"I just came out of the conference." It's noisy on Noah's end.

Noah has already graduated with a Ph.D. and is now working as a psychiatrist. This year's World Sleep Congress is being held in Rome, with professionals from 55 countries participating. He flied over from the United States. We haven't seen each other in several years, so when I heard he was coming, I drove up from Florence to have dinner together.

The entire city of Rome is enveloped in the pink glow of sunset, with the Colosseum standing tall amidst it, like a gem wrapped in a veil.

Seeing the traffic jam, I decided to turn off the engine and turn on the car's music.

Italian young people nowadays like to listen to the band Maneskin, their lyrics are bold, and the drum beats are lively.

But now I'm already 26 years old, and since graduating from university, I've become a curator, and my mentality seems to have changed.

Soft music are playing in the car, a soothing piano piece, like walking barefoot on a soft grass.

Before the music ends, it is interrupted by a ringtone.

"Mom, did you see Uncle Noah?" my son Oliver says. "Is he handsome?"

"Oliver," I lengthen my voice, "Uncle Noah is just my friend, don't fantasize about us being together."

"Okay, I just hope you find someone you like. How can a person be without love?"

I shake my head with a sigh, unable to suppress my laughter.

Sometimes I'm curious about what children nowadays think about all day in their heads. Aside from his appearance, Oliver doesn't seem like a five-year-old at all.

"What about you? How are you doing at Stella's house?" Before leaving, I left him at a friend's house.

"She's great. She made lasagna for me, and later she'll take me out for a bike ride."

"Okay, remember to wear a helmet and be careful."

The car behind honks, and the traffic starts moving again. I hang up the phone and drive towards the convention center.

When I see Noah, I am taken aback.

He has changed a lot from before, from a tall and thin guy who always wears sweatshirts, to a mature man in a black suit, carrying a briefcase and sporting a classic parted hairstyle.

Time is truly frightening; it transformed us into unrecognizable adults.

"Macy!" He waves at me with a smile.

I smile and walk over.

I booked a restaurant nearby and drive him there.

Noah sits in the passenger seat, fastens his seatbelt, and his gaze pauses for a moment.

He turns to look at me. "You're really like a child."

I'm driving and glance distractedly at the row of SpongeBob SquarePants stickers on the passenger side. "Yeah. My son put them there."

That's the only part of him that resembles a child. I silently add.

Noah smiles. "Alright."

I pause and ask, "And how about you and your girlfriend?"

Noah's girlfriend is his fellow alumna. They met at an alumni gathering. She's a dentist and also very beautiful.

"Our work schedules are too busy, so we broke up."