It'll Come Naturally

"Leena, what's the matter? Are you sick?" asked Kevin with a look of deep concern marring his features. She wasn't in the bedroom. So he came upstairs when he saw the light was on in this room. Strangely, she was knocking her head against the keyboard. Why? Did she have a headache? What was going on? "Err... I'm fine. Where's Miss Ye? Did you send her home already?" Leena asked as she quickly closed the chat window. She didn't want Kevin to see what was on the screen. It was a private conversation.

"No, I just sent her downstairs. What are you doing?" He craned his neck to get a better look at the computer screen, but he saw nothing. It was just the desktop, no windows opened. What was she doing up here?

"I was chatting with a friend for a bit. Do you want some fruits? I've got some cut up. I could fetch a plate for you," Leena answered, a bit awkwardly. Her face flushed. She was afraid that Kevin would find out her little secret. And that wouldn't do at all.

"No, I'm not a big fan of fruit -- you know that. Anything you want to ask me?" Kevin took a seat on the floor, and then met Leena's gaze. Though he wondered why on earth she would have chosen Korean style for her workshop decor, it wasn't the right time to ask. He needed to explain something to her.

"You tell me. Should I ask you anything? Or is there anything you haven't told me?" she asked. Holding his gaze, she tilted her head.

"So the necklace doesn't bother you, then?" Kevin pressed his lips together firmly. He thought she would at least ask why he had gotten back so late. But the only thing she asked was whether he'd sent Louisa home, not anything more about his relationship with the girl. She also didn't ask about the necklace like he imagined she would.

"What necklace?" Leena drew a deep breath quietly. The question was too sensitive to talk about right now. It was a real sore spot. So she pretended not to know about it. Ignoring it was the best way to keep her sanity right now. She really felt like running off so she wouldn't have to talk about it.

"Nana, you know what I'm talking about. Please don't run off. We need to talk. At least give me a chance to explain." Kevin put his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look directly into his eyes. This time, there was no escaping it. She had to face it, and so did he. And they'd do so together.

"Fine. Since you seem to have something to say, spit it out. I'm your captive audience." She smiled, but it was a joyless affair. It had a taste of bitterness behind it that she couldn't hide.

"I bought the necklace as a birthday present for Louisa. A friend picked it for me. Remember that time I went away for training? Yeah, that's when he bought it for me. It's just a birthday present. I promised her I'd get her a gift. And I did. Whatever else you've heard, it isn't true." Kevin said every word clearly. He didn't want her to misunderstand a single syllable. It was an honest gift, and he was regretting ever giving Louisa a present.

"I know that. And I believe you." Leena smiled sweetly to him. She had seen the necklace when he'd just come back from training. She thought it was a gift for her. She tucked it away, resolving to act surprised when Kevin gave it to her. But instead, he gave it to Louisa, while he didn't get her a thing. How could she not know anything about the necklace? What she didn't know was why he sent the necklace to Louisa. There was a lot to unpack there. Why would he give it to that girl, and not to her? And Louisa didn't make her feel any better about it. She made it seem like it was a gift from Kevin to prove his love to her. The commander's daughter was very good at finding people's weak spots and exploiting them.

"You know? So you know that it was a gift from me?" He frowned slightly and began to search for the answer in his mind, wondering how Leena would know anything about it.

"Yeah! I happened to see it the day you came back. But I didn't know it was a gift for Miss Ye." Leena laughed bitterly. And yes, she did think it was for her. But he didn't say anything to her about it, and then it went missing. And then she found out he bought it for Louisa. "Why didn't you ask me about it? You must have felt pretty bad when the necklace was gone. And I didn't give it to you. I'm sorry." Kevin felt really guilty now. He couldn't do anything but hold her gently in his arms. He kissed the top of her head. He knew clearly how she would feel when the neckace was missing. She would have all kinds of suspicions about whom he sent the necklace to. But she just held those in her mind all this time. She must have felt nervous those days. All this made him look like a cheater.

"Because I care about you. And I wanted to trust you. If I asked about it, you'd probably think I was a jealous woman. Or that I cared more about things than people. So I figured that you'd be mad at me, or you might feel that I invaded your privacy. So I pretended everything was okay, and then it might end up being okay. It's better than having you resent me." She knew that men really valued their pride and dignity. She would never do anything to hurt a guy that way. So she kept it bottle up.00000000000