“Rose, stop! We need to talk!” Ryan called out, confusion written all over his face. Rose continued to pull him through the park without stopping until she reached another road on the other side of the neighborhood.

She didn’t stop because she wanted to but because her lungs couldn’t keep up to provide enough air for her body. Her physical condition was poor so any short-run was enough to tire her out.

Despite hurried breathing, she still pushed forward, dragging her legs step by step on the sidewalk.

It wasn’t what he asked for but at least it was easier to talk while walking.

“Rose… you do realize you put me in danger with your actions then? And what do you mean by he will kill me?' Don’t tell me your father is a mafia boss?” Ryan asked multiple questions, slowly getting anxious.

If what she said was true, he would be forced to accept her conditions and to top it off, there was a huge possibility she would become his future wife. Ryan wasn’t stupid. He knew that if Rose wins his grandma’s selection by any chance, the two of them would be stuck forever.

It wasn’t a matter that should be decided by one random encounter.

“Hu... What do you want me to tell you? That I’m sorry?” Rose asked back, taking a deep breath. “It’s not going to change anything. It was my impulsive decision that led to such a situation and I’m trying my best to fix it now.”

“About my father…” Rose continued. “I don’t really know what he does but he provides different services for many influential people. He just said his job is dangerous and didn’t want to tell me any details. They want me to focus on my studies instead.”

“Uhm… Then maybe it shouldn’t be that bad, right?” Ryan suggested what he secretly hoped was the truth but Rose shook her head.

She looked at his face as they walked side by side now and admitted with a serious expression, “I asked my dad if he ever killed before and he confirmed.”

Cough...

Ryan almost choked when he heard it. “Is this something you should be telling me…?” he asked awkwardly, not knowing how to react. Internally, he already started to panic, thinking her father was some kind of hitman.

“Isn’t it fine?” Rose shot back with a smile, finding his reaction amusing. “You are already my boyfriend. You are not going to call the cops on us, right?”

“...” Ryan stared at her speechlessly, almost knocking to the ground over his own legs. His face paled, feeling genuinely scared. Being a boyfriend of a hitman’s daughter wouldn’t even cross his mind in his dreams.

Thankfully, he was just being played.

“Hahaha, look at your face! You are so scared and even your hands turned cold. I was obviously joking,” Rose admitted as she laughed, grabbing his hands with both of hers as if trying to warm them up. Ryan has never had a bigger up and down moment than at that time.

His hands were still cold even after she rubbed them so she stopped their walk and put both of them into her hoodie pouch. She let him lean against the fence made of flat white rock and shared her warmth, smiling playfully at him.

“Are you feeling better?” Rose asked after a moment, watching his expressions from up close. She acted much bolder compared to before.

“I’m better…” Ryan replied while keeping her on a distance with his hands. She was risking once again by nearing her soft lips this close to his face. This wasn’t the time for losing control.

Sigh...

“Do you want me to get a panic attack?” He scolded after a deep sigh. “You shouldn’t joke like that.”

“Well, I only lied about the cops as they would be useless. My father was in the army before so he knows everyone in the Police Department,” Rose replied with a shrug.

“So he killed as a soldier then? Couldn’t you say that from the start…?” Ryan asked helplessly, not expecting an answer to that question and said seriously, “We need to talk about my case. You don’t know what you are getting into.”

“Does it matter?” Rose replied casually, pulling his hands out of her hoodie and let go of him, walking slowly alongside the fence. “We don’t have a choice anyway. We can only be free if we mutually help each other. There is no other way. How about you tell me about it after dinner? I said we will arrive shortly.”

She turned back to him and added from the distance, showing a glistening set of teeth, “Shall we go?”

He started at her for a moment and realized she was right. They barely had options in the current situation. He was now trapped with Rose as his only choice.

'I guess I will have to wait a bit longer. She will probably give up once she learns the possible outcomes.' Ryan thought and couldn’t help but smile back. ‘Though, it wouldn’t be as bad to have such a pretty girl as a girlfriend…’

Ryan couldn't deny that he was really attracted to her from the moment he saw her. If he wanted to find someone outside of his mother's candidates, wouldn't she be like Rose?

Kind and gentle but also cheerful with a little bit of playfulness. If he wasn't troubled by this selection, Ryan wouldn't hesitate to agree, even if they were only meant to pretend.

"Alright," Ryan finally decided, walking up to her and grabbed her extended hand. "You can lead the way."

"Great!" Rose exclaimed as she squeezed his hand. "Let's go!"

They walked next to the white fence for a short moment before stopping about fifty meters away, right in front of the entrance gate. It turned out they were right outside her home this whole time.

They went inside and Ryan got immediately captivated by the beautiful flowery garden that stretched throughout the property. The villa looked like a medium-sized house compared to how far the garden stretched.

"Oh no, my mom is waiting…" Rose suddenly muttered as they approached the villa and saw a lady standing by the entrance.

She was like a mature version of Rose with the only difference being her stern gaze. She wore a kitchen apron as if they stopped her in the middle of cooking and observed Ryan from afar. She didn't look really happy about his arrival.

"Let me do the talking," Rose decided as her hand tightened around his own and called out to her mother with a smile, "Mom, we are back."

Her mother didn't spare a glance at her, staring into Ryan's eyes the whole time and asked calmly, "What's your name boy?"

Rose didn't mind being ignored and hugged into Ryan's arm, introducing him, "His name is Ryan. He is my boyfriend that I always talked about. I told him to come today as I couldn't stand your actions anymore."

"I heard from your father. You two seem quite intimate with each other," her mother commented before asking out of nowhere, "Did you have sex already?"

Rose couldn't help but blush and cried out, "Mom! What are you even saying!?"

She wasn't prepared for such a question and fell victim to trickery.

"I guess you didn't yet," her mother deduced from her reaction and sighed in relief. "You two can go to your room. Dinner will be in an hour."

Rose immediately pouted and pulled on Ryan's hand, running into the house while dragging him inside.

As they passed next to Rose's mother, he noticed a smirk on her face which he swore he recognized. His mother had the same type of smirk on her face whenever she schemed something and it could be translated into one sentence.

"The game has only just begun."