Tenant's Secret Love

Chapter 163: My Transformation

CC chased after me outside and grabbed hold of me, saying, "She left my restaurant in the afternoon and went straight to Shanghai. Can you find her in Suzhou?"

I was dumbfounded and still didn't give up hope, asking, "Didn't she say she had a flight tomorrow afternoon?"

"Yes, so she'll arrive in Shanghai tonight, saving her the trouble of rushing the next day!"

In the cold winter of the twelfth lunar month, it was like a bucket of cold water poured over my head, but the desire in my heart to see Renee did not go out. After a while, I said in a low voice, "I'll go to Shanghai to find her."

"Then you have to contact her first and know which hotel she's staying at," said CC, taking out his phone from his pocket and dialing Renee's number.

After a long time, he shrugged helplessly and said to me, "Her phone is turned off, she should be resting already."

I was in a daze, so I lit a cigarette and took a few heavy puffs. My heart gradually calmed down a little, so I asked myself: if I found her now, what would I say to her?

Most likely there would be nothing to say, and we would both be left in an awkward silence. After all, it was far-fetched for Renee to say she liked me at this point, otherwise she would not have gone to the United States with Abner.

And a mature love is not based on impulse after all, so it is better to quietly wait for that gentle breeze to blow...

CC dragged me back to the bar, so I finally extinguished the impulse I had just felt, but the desire to drink burned up.

I drank a whole bottle of beer without stopping, and then asked CC, "Actually, you don't want me to go find her now, do you?"

CC nodded and said, "You just making things difficult for her, because she's definitely going to the United States."

"I'm not trying to keep her, I just suddenly want to see her."

"Yes, you know it's sudden... I hope your relationship is based on reason, not impulse. Of course, impulse is not what Renee wants either!"

I drank half a bottle of beer in one go before saying, "CC, you may be right!"

CC patted my shoulder and said, "But don't worry. If Renee was willing to develop a relationship with Abner, they would have been boyfriend and girlfriend during their years at school in the United States. The main reason for going to the United States this time was to see her old friends there, apart from just wanting to be alone!"

I didn't respond to CC, just leaned back on the sofa, looked at the ceiling and stared, and then Renee's face kept appearing in my mind.

...

When I got home, it was already late at night. After washing up, I didn't want to let myself get too distracted, so I turned on the TV and watched the program in an attempt to distract myself.

After fiddling with the remote control for a while, I finally settled on an interview program on a certain channel. In this program, I saw Violetta, but she was not the focus of the interview. She mostly just served as a foil, occasionally saying a few words. The topic surrounding her was the scandal that was exposed last time. Violetta handled it with ease, saying that the actor was just someone she admired. This made me feel that she has gradually adapted to that circle.

I then thought about myself, and the conversation I had just had with CC in the bar. Then I reviewed this period of time since returning to Suzhou, and I just felt that I had not adapted to real life. On the contrary, I had deviated very seriously, because during this period of time, I had never calmed down and thought about how to survive in this city of Suzhou.

Counting the wasted days after graduation, I have been living in this city for almost 4 years. According to the norm, I should be like Harlan, with a stable job, a house of my own, and a woman to keep me company at night.

But I still have nothing. No wonder every time I feel an urge for Renee, I suppress it, because I really don't have the confidence to marry Renee and have her bear my children with what I have now.

At this time, I really feel fortunate that I was unable to see Renee tonight. In fact, instead of meeting her on impulse, I should be thinking about how to plan my future. Because a responsible man must know: before asking a woman for love, you must first consider what you can give her.

If it is just some ignorant impulse and empty promises, that is not enough... After all, my love for Brittany died when the promises could not be kept and the passion gradually faded.

So I started planning my life, but I didn't dare plan too far ahead, because once the bar is on the right track, I will face a choice: should I stay in Suzhou or go back to Xuzhou?

In fact, at the moment, I don't have a strong preference for either city. I could stay in Suzhou, or I could go back to Xuzhou to be with my parents, which seems like a better idea!

But no matter which city I choose in the end, I should save up some money to buy a house, and I should also think about my career. If I stay in Suzhou, I'll continue to grow the bar business; if I go back to Xuzhou, I'll find a stable job.

In the quiet of the night, I set these short-term goals for myself, and the final decision on which city to live in would depend on her. If there was no chance of love between us, I would have no reason to stay in Suzhou. If we fell in love, I would still be willing to accommodate her and stay in Suzhou with her, and then settle down and start a family!

When I thought about it this way, my heart no longer felt troubled, because after setting short-term goals, I had a little more expectation and a little more motivation for life!

The next day, I woke up close to noon. I turned on my phone to check the time, but instead I received a WeChat message from Renee. It was a simple message with a smug face emoticon and the words "I'm going to the airport!"

I couldn't help but wonder: If you're going to the airport, why add a smug face emoticon? What's there to be smug about? Are you mocking me for not having been abroad before?

I laughed and sent her a message back: "Have a safe trip... By the way, how long are you planning to stay in the US?"

After sending the message, I looked at the time. It wasn't even 12 o'clock yet. If she had an afternoon flight, then she should still be at the airport at the moment, so her phone would most likely still be on. So I fell into a state of waiting, to the point where I forgot to wash up.

The phone finally rang. I hurriedly picked it up from the coffee table, but was slightly disappointed. It wasn't Renee's reply, but Natalie calling.

I answered the phone and asked in a low mood, "What's up?"

"Be polite to your sister..." Natalie said discontentedly.

"What is it, sister?"

Natalie on the other end of the line then smiled and said, 'Come over to my place for lunch. Mark and Jack will be there too. Have a few drinks with them. It's been a long time since you all got together!"

"Sure!' I immediately agreed. In fact, apart from catching up over lunch, I also wanted to chat with them and find out about their work at Jumei, because I really hoped they could share some of Renee's pressure.

"Tell me what kind of wine you want, I'll go buy it for you."

Just as I was about to reply, the WeChat notification tone came again on my phone, so I said to Natalie, "Beer, I'm hanging up."

After saying that, I didn't give Natalie a chance to say anything else, and I really hung up, then impatiently opened the WeChat message from Renee.