Chapter 180 - THEY ARE STRANGERS
Kevin wasn't alright.
After Kris dropped him in front of his laboratory building this morning, he opened his phone right away only to find dozen of texts from his foster father.
["Dad and mom believe that it's just a phase for you, Kevin. We believe that you're normal."]
["We can introduce you to some pretty girls, Kevin. I'm sure that you will like them, so please let me know when you have time."]
["You're just confused, Kevin. After a while, I'm certain that you will go back to the right path."]
Kevin sighed as he read the texts one by one. His parents were so stubborn and insisted that he was just in a phase and would eventually return to 'normal' again..
What was the real definition of normal? Did he have to love a girl to be called normal? He was abnormal because he was dating a man?
Kevin felt completely normal and happy now. Yes, homosexual couples were indeed a minority in their country, but Kevin and Kris were not the only ones in such a relationship. Moreover, same-sex marriage was now legal in their country, so why were people still calling homosexuals abnormal?
The young scientist was so frustrated, and he didn't reply to his father's texts. He turned off his phone and avoided looking at the phone ever again. He didn't want to think about his parents again, and he also didn't want to talk to them again before they changed their minds.
He seemed to be an unfilial son, but he had no choice. He was angry with his parents now.
"Hey, Kevin. You okay?"
The question that came from the front broke his reverie. He blinked and looked up at the man, who was sitting across from him.
He just realized that he was having lunch with Luke White now. The deal was still ongoing, so he had to accompany Luke for his lunch.
It still felt strange for him. Even Anna also felt the same way when he spilled their deal to her, but he couldn't run away because he had promised the grey-haired man.
"Oh, I'm sorry, luke. I was just thinking about something."
A pair of green eyes stared at him intensely, and the cerulean ones were a bit nervous under the sharp gaze.
He wasn't quite familiar with the green-eyed man, so he didn't know what the man was thinking right now.
"Just eat."
Those two words came out of the man's sexy lips before the man went back to his food at the plate.
They were eating at a humble tavern not far from their laboratory building. Luke was not picky when it came to food, and he said that anything was fine for him as long as it wasn't seafood.
Luke wasn't so glamorous when it came to food as well. He could eat at any kind of place, whether it was a luxury place or a humble place like the tavern where they were currently having lunch.
Luke was still the same, though. He was still cold and distant toward him. Even though the two of them had been lunch buddies for several days, they weren't close at all.
When they were having lunch together, they mostly would just eat and didn't chat. But, Kevin had a hunch that today would be different when he heard a heavy sigh come from the grey-haired guy.
Kevin looked up and found the guy was gawking at him intensely.
"I just want to have a lunch buddy, but when my lunch buddy gets distracted, it distracts me as well."
The raven-haired man blinked innocently at the man. "What do you mean?" He asked the other man.
Again, a heavy sigh came out of Luke's lips.
"I don't want to be a busybody, but you need to release it, dude. I can see your mind is like a washing machine. The machine keeps rolling with various dirty clothes inside it, and you have to sort them out so that they can come out clean."
Kevin frowned at the taller man. 'Why does this icy man suddenly sound like a nonsense psychic?' He wondered in his heart.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disturb your lunch with my issue."
"You have disturbed my lunch, so you better spill it!"
Kevin was a bit taken aback when the man suddenly raised his tone when he replied to his apology.
Luke seemed to notice Kevin was feeling uncomfortable, and that was why he said, "Forget it. You don't have to share the burden with me if you don't want to. After all, we're not that close."
Kevin widened his blue eyes when he heard the cold statement. "No!" He exclaimed. "You're right that I have a problem now, but I'm not sure if you want to hear me out."
The owner of the pair of green eyes frowned before he stretched out his hand for a tissue. He then elegantly used the tissue to wipe his lips.
"We are strangers, right?" Luke spoke again. "I've heard some people say that it's better to share your problem with a stranger. A stranger won't judge you, so you can rest assured."
Kevin had never imagined the day when he would share his problem with a stranger, and the stranger was none other than Luke White, the ice prince of Orka.
But Luke was probably right with his words. Maybe it was not so bad to be honest with strangers. The stranger would just be neutral and wouldn't judge him, right?
That was why Kevin decided to tell everything to Luke.
"My parents oppose my relationship with my lover."
Kevin said 'lover' instead of 'boyfriend,' not because he was ashamed of his relationship with Kris, but because he didn't want to make Luke feel uncomfortable with him.
"Oh? You have a lover?"
"Yes."
Luke nodded his head several times at Kevin's answer.
"Why did your parents oppose your relationship with your lover?"
"..."
Kevin had guessed that his colleague would ask that question. If he intended to tell the truth to Luke, then he needed to be honest, right? But, what if Luke felt uncomfortable with him upon hearing his confession?
Kevin was troubled, and on the other hand, Luke was furrowing his brows and kept observing Kevin in silence. Instead of rushing the raven-haired man to answer his question, Luke seemed to try to find the answer himself.
"Did your parents oppose your relationship because you're dating a man?"
Kevin was at a loss for words when he heard Luke's question. His eyes widened as he stared at the other man in horror.
'Did Luke just read my mind?'
"I didn't read your mind. I just made a random guess."
Instead of feeling better after hearing Luke's statement, Kevin felt goosebumps even more. This Luke guy was dangerous!
"You're right. I'm currently dating a man, and my parents don't like it."
Kevin was nervous when he observed the other man. He was expecting a disgusted expression, but he didn't find any. The emerald-eyed man was still calm like before.
"It's not your fault," Luke commented. "Whether you're dating a man or a woman, it's not your fault. You have the right to choose what you like."
Kevin's heart was a bit touched by Luke's words. Aside from the people who were closed to him, he only told Anna and Luke about his orientation. He was glad that Luke was cool with it.
"Instead of feeling upset with your parents, you better talk it out with them. It will be hard, but they're your parents. I believe they only wish for the best for you, and you just need to show them that your lover is the best choice for you."
Kevin had never expected that the ice prince would advise him for his love problem. Luke seemed to be careless and indifferent, but it turned out that the grey-haired guy wasn't that bad. He was still a human with a warm heart.
"Thank you."
Hearing the whisper, Luke looked up at Kevin, and a hint of a blush crept on his fair cheeks. It seemed that he was embarrassed by his previous action.
Luke cleared his throat for a moment before grabbing a glass of water and sipping it hungrily.
Kevin held back his laughter when he saw the funny attitude. Luke was just a tsundere guy. He wasn't bad at all.
"Anyway," the taller man spoke again after he finished his drinking. "How is your investigation about Senior Felix?"
Kevin didn't expect the question, so he looked a bit startled.
"We're still investigating him. No significant result so far."
The dark-haired man shifted his gaze away from Luke. He didn't want to tell the man about their senior, so he better avoided the man's gaze.
The matter about Felix Smith was still grey, so he couldn't tell Felix about everything. Kris and Jack were still investigating the buried valley, so he had to wait for the result of the investigation before making a conclusion.
However, the shorter one promptly turned to the taller man after he heard the man speak.
"I have another information about Senior Felix."