Ⅳ
The moment Arthur's voice reached her ears, his affectionate words began echoing through Malinda's study.
The corners of Malinda's mouth began to lift.
Then her smile blossomed.
Her anxious heart calmed in an instant.
Her unease vanished entirely.
Malinda felt a sense of security unlike anything she had ever known.
Arthur knew that the Old Lion had come to South Los.
That did not surprise Malinda.
What surprised Malinda was that, even after learning the Old Lion had arrived in South Los, Arthur had still chosen to contact her-that initiative stirred an unprecedented impulse within her.
She took a deep breath and spoke.
"I..."
"I..."
At that moment, Malinda was more impulsive than she had ever been.
But Arthur interrupted her as soon as she spoke.
Their two "I"s came at the same time.
Malinda, however, managed to get her next words out first-
"You go first."
To conceal her feelings, she made her voice as calm as possible.
"Are you sure you want me to say it here?
Shouldn't we be talking face-to-face?
Oh, and bring me a late-night snack.
It's been a whole day since I last tasted Aunt Mary's cooking."
With that, Arthur ended the call.
Only then did Malinda finally break free of her own tangled emotions, her reason and wits returning to her once more.
At that moment, she realized something.
No!
Arthur's tone was wrong!
There was no urgency!
Not even any nervousness!
Could it be...
Arthur has found a solution?
Although reason told Malinda this was impossible, the instinct deep in her heart made her choose to believe that Arthur really had found a way out of their current predicament.
In an instant, Malinda's breathing quickened.
She rose and headed to the kitchen.
Because of their frequent late nights, Aunt Mary always