Cynthia froze, her little mouth falling slightly open in surprise. Clearly, she had not expected Heath to say something so direct out of nowhere.
Cynthia had originally come today to celebrate the New Year with Heath. After all, back in Sinnoh, she had already sensed that Heath treated her differently. But annoyingly, the guy had barely contacted her lately, and even for the New Year, he had only sent her a message to celebrate. It left Cynthia a little confused. He could not understand whether Heath actually liked her or simply thought of her as a friend.
But thinking of how utterly focused Heath looked when he cooked, Cynthia had gritted her teeth, stamped her foot, and come to celebrate the New Year with him herself. Of course, her ostensible excuse was that she was visiting Vermilion City for fun.
What Cynthia had not expected, however, was for Heath to confess his feelings so abruptly. It caught her off guard. She had already prepared herself for the possibility that Heath only saw her as a friend. After all, the annoying guy hardly ever contacted her, and calling the two of them friends would have been more fitting. Yet, to her surprise, Heath liked her too, and this time he had told her outright, leaving Cynthia at a loss.
At that moment, Heath was actually under even more pressure than Cynthia. After all, he had confessed on impulse under the influence of the atmosphere, his emotions, and various other factors. That confession had left him rather uneasy. He did not know what Cynthia was thinking, and a string of incidents where confessions had cost people even their friendships flashed through his mind, making him all the more nervous.
He did not know how long had passed. Heath felt as though he