Ch. 17: Mr. Edwards’ Unraveled Life chapter 17

Chapter 17

The man put his hands in his pockets, stared at Norah with gentle eyes for a long time, and then said, "I'm Steven Lord. We were in the same class in elementary school and junior high school."

Norah’s thoughts raced. She remembered Steven as a chubby boy who always sat in the back row, largely unnoticed. They hadn’t interacted much, except when handing in homework. Now, he looked completely different.

"Steven?" Norah's lips curved into a smile. "You've changed so much. I barely recognized you."

"Yes, the change is significant, so it’s normal you didn’t recognize me," Steven replied, his eyes deep and warm. "Many classmates don’t recognize me, but I recognized you."

Norah felt happy to see an old classmate. Since she started working, she rarely attended class reunions due to her busy schedule. Her life revolved around work and family, with Gloria as her only close friend. She realized how monotonous her life had become, mostly dedicated to Kevin.

"Where did you go after junior high? I haven’t heard from you," Norah asked.

"I went abroad to study," Steven explained. "I just came back recently."

"I see," Norah said, noticing the wet spot on his suit. "Take off your jacket, I'll have it cleaned for you."

Steven hesitated. "It's really okay."

Norah insisted, "We’re old classmates. I feel bad. Let me take care of it."

Seeing her determination, Steven agreed. "Okay then."

He took off his suit jacket and handed it to Norah. Fortunately, his shirt was dry, so he wasn’t too embarrassed.

Norah took the jacket and put it away. "It's been a long time since we last met. You’re back in Craggaville! Why didn’t you notify me or visit?"

"Wait a minute," Steven said, "I need to say hello to some people. I'll come back and continue our chat."

Norah nodded. As Steven mingled with others, she discreetly checked his background. She found out that Steven was indeed impressive. He had graduated from Harvard University with a degree in finance and economics and had earned double doctorates. He had started a financial company from scratch in the highly competitive U.S. market and had become a prominent entrepreneur.

While she was lost in thought, Gloria bumped her shoulder and grinned. "Steven, do you know him?"

Norah nodded. "He’s an old classmate."

"Steven is your old classmate? That’s great," Gloria said, smiling even more. "Do you know he’s very successful? He’s the boss of a listed company and started from scratch. People in finance are great at making money, much better than Kevin. I think you two are meant to be."

Norah warned her, "He and I are just classmates. Don’t try to match us up. He’s not interested in me that way."

"How can you say that?" Gloria insisted. "He recognized you immediately, which means he’s thought about you many times."

Norah sighed, "Don’t talk nonsense."

Norah saw that Steven was right beside her and was afraid that he would hear her and make things awkward, so she asked Gloria to stop talking nonsense.

Gloria had no choice but to listen to her and said no more.

Steven exchanged a few polite words with others and returned to Norah.

Gloria shouted, "Mr. Lord, you are a rare guest."

Steven replied, "Ms. Turner's exhibition was very successful. It must have had a great influence."

"The hobbies of literati and scholars are not as great as Mr. Lord's," Gloria said, pushing Norah gently. "I just heard that you two are old classmates. How about you help me send Norah off? She has to go back to the company this afternoon."

Norah, suddenly pushed forward, felt flustered. Before she could say anything, Steven immediately responded, "Okay, I have nothing to do. I can send her off."

Gloria blinked at Norah and said politely, "Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Lord."

She pushed Norah closer to Steven. "Old classmates must want to reminisce about the past. You two can chat slowly. I won't send her off."