Chapter 18 🥒
At 6:30 in the morning, the small room shared by the Snow siblings buzzed with the soft hum of an electric fan. Milim woke up, drenched in sweat. Her old pajamas stuck to her back like glue. She quickly got up, turned off the fan, and left the room quietly. The house was still and silent—everyone else was fast asleep.
This was her usual routine. Milim was the only one who had to wake up early to work her part-time job. Every morning, she rose around six.
She looked out the bathroom window. The town was slowly waking up too. Soon, it would be filled with noise and movement. As she finished brushing her teeth, her phone vibrated in the pocket of her baggy pants.
"Are you up? I'll be downstairs in ten minutes."
Milim rinsed her mouth, wiped the foam from her lips with a towel, and replied drowsily:
"OK."
She hurried to wash her face and take a quick shower. Afterward, she rushed back to her room to change. Her slender, pale body still had that youthful look. She didn't have much flesh or hair, which once made Dylan tease her by saying she still looked like a baby. In some ways, he wasn't wrong—she still had many years before becoming a full-grown woman.
Just then, another message came:
"I'm downstairs."
Milim put on her trousers and searched around for her baseball cap. She clearly remembered taking it out of her backpack the day before. After unzipping the bag, she saw the white cap lying inside.
"This memory of mine…" she mumbled.
Slinging the backpack over one shoulder and grabbing her phone, she left the room. Her tall nose had small beads of sweat forming. Passing the living room, she grabbed a tissue to wipe it.
"I'll be waiting for you in the elevator," another message read. Dylan was clearly in a hurry.
Without replying, Milim headed straight to the elevator.
Ding.
The doors opened, and there stood Mister Dylan, dressed in a sharp suit. For a moment, he froze when he saw her in the hallway.
"Morning, Mister Dylan," Milim greeted him with a small nod.
"Morning," he replied, finally snapping out of it. He closed the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor.
"We're getting breakfast. What do you want to eat?" he asked.
Milim held her backpack straps tightly. "You decide. I don't know what's good."
In her life, the best breakfast she ever had was five-dollar rice noodle rolls from an old lady's stall downstairs. That was already a luxury.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Dylan asked, looking straight ahead.
Milim replied casually, "It was okay, just hot."
He frowned. "Was the air conditioner on?"
She quickly added, "No, just the fan. Using the air conditioner is too expensive. The electricity bill gets too high overnight."
Dylan, born into a rich family, was stunned. He couldn't believe someone actually counted how much using an air conditioner would cost.
"Don't do that again," he said firmly.
Milim looked at him but stayed silent. His presence was always overwhelming, hard to deal with. Dylan thought she hadn't heard him properly.
"You need to take care of your health. The baby you're carrying will be the heir of the Maverick family."
Milim's lips tightened. She looked up. "What if it's a little princess?"
Dylan was surprised. After a moment, he replied in a softer voice, "That's unlikely… but even a daughter can be an heir."
Outside, the fresh morning air made them feel better.
"What if she doesn't want to be the heir?" Milim asked.
"Walk carefully," Dylan said while holding her arm gently. "We'll worry about that later."
Milim nodded, but her heart was heavy. "I might not even be a part of this child's future. Will they like a father as strict as him?"
She kept her thoughts to herself and stayed quiet. Dylan looked at her a few times, unsure what to say. The girl didn't seem interested in talking to him. Maybe she didn't even like him.
"Is it okay to eat here?" Dylan asked, stopping in front of a luxurious hotel.
Milim looked at the fancy restaurant. A breakfast here could pay two months' worth of utility bills, she thought.
"You decide," she replied.
Normally, Dylan only drank a glass of water and worked out in the morning. Today, he skipped all that just to pick her up. This would probably be his new routine for the next month.
He watched her eat slowly. She seemed to enjoy the food, which was new to her. Looking at her made him feel… unsettled. His life had changed completely—taking care of a girl and an unborn baby.
"Let's go for a walk afterward. I'll buy you clothes, shoes, and a hat," he said.
Milim nodded. "Since I'm carrying his baby, I can't throw a tantrum. But once I give birth, I swear I'll slap him hard one day."
Shopping was unexpectedly fun. Everything looked so fancy and expensive.
What's this brand? That logo? I've only seen these on TV… and they're so expensive!
She held a hat and looked over at Dylan. He was picking out clothes like he was choosing vegetables.
"Come here," he called.
Milim thought he wanted her to try on clothes, but instead, he just held them up to her body, judged the fit, and gave the size to the saleswoman.
"Are you tired?" he asked. It had only been thirty minutes.
Milim rolled her eyes inside but shook her head. "No." Still, she sat down.
"Drink some water," Dylan said, pouring hot water from a flask and handing it to her.
"Thank you." She took it and noticed some red berries floating on top. The warm water tasted a little sweet.
A young sales assistant watched them and thought, Are they father and daughter? He spoils her so much.
If Milim knew what that girl was thinking, she'd be furious. She had never acted like a spoiled child. Not even once.
"Talk," Dylan said after they sat at a small tea bar.
Milim asked for lemon tea, but Dylan only ordered more berry water. Then he picked up a call from his assistant, Van.
"Mister Dylan, are you coming to the office today? Mister Enzo will be there soon."
"I'm near Silis," Dylan answered after checking his watch. "Tell him I'll come to meet him."
Van sounded relieved. "Okay, I'll let him know."
After hanging up, Dylan looked at Milim.
"Are you going to work?" she asked quietly.
"I'll take you out to play when I'm free," he replied.
Milim stared at him. He really did treat her like a kid.
She didn't want to go to his company or meet people there, but Dylan refused to leave her alone in the car.
When they arrived at the office and took the elevator to the 17th floor, Dylan told her to walk ahead.
"Turn left. Walk slowly."
Milim almost said, "Can't you just find me a place to stay?" but the words died on her lips.
She froze when she saw someone familiar walking down the hall. Her eyes widened.
Dad?
All the color drained from her face. She turned around and, without thinking, ran into Dylan's arms, hiding her face in his chest.
Dylan stood completely still, frozen in surprise, unable to move a muscle.