Chapter 197: Chapter 197: His Indifference
Ariana Grant said seriously, "The assistant manager talks to us a lot less gently than he does with you, and when I came to visit you before, I bought cakes too, but didn’t get any internal pricing."
Ashley Shaw explained, "That’s because you came to play, you’re not an employee, of course, there is no internal pricing. Anyway, stop talking about these irrelevant things, you’ve never gotten it right once."
"Oh, why don’t you believe my sixth sense?"
"The sixth sense is inherently unreliable; if others hear it, they’d think we are narcissists."
As Ashley Shaw said this, she patted the back seat of the scooter.
"Come on, hop on, I’ll ride this time. I know the way."
Ariana Grant pouted, just about to get on, when a Lamborghini suddenly stopped at the parking space in front of the store.
"Wow, looks like we’re in for a big order," Ariana Grant said.
But as soon as she finished speaking, the car door opened, and the two saw a familiar figure.
It was Cillian Xavier.
Ashley Shaw was somewhat hesitant to recognize Cillian Xavier.
It wasn’t for any particular reason, but because in just a few days, Cillian Xavier had changed a lot from the inside out.
The biggest change was his hairstyle.
The formerly elegant young man had shaved his head, making it easy to assume he just returned from military service, and his fair skin had visibly tanned quite a bit.
What was more surprising was that it was just past four in the afternoon, yet he reeked of alcohol.
It was only when Ariana Grant greeted him that Cillian nodded back, confirming to Ashley Shaw that it was indeed Cillian Xavier.
What happened to Cillian Xavier?
Just as she was about to greet him with Ariana Grant, she saw Cillian Xavier walking straight into the store, as if he hadn’t seen her at all.
Ashley Shaw was momentarily stunned, wondering if her presence had become so negligible.
But she quickly realized it wasn’t that her presence was too low, but that Cillian Xavier was deliberately ignoring her.
So, has Cillian Xavier really let go?
Upon realizing this, Ashley Shaw felt a wave of relief wash over her.
It’s good to let go.
She knew how painful unrequited love could be, but though she empathized, she couldn’t reciprocate, which always left her feeling guilty when interacting with Cillian Xavier.
Now that Cillian Xavier could let go on his own, she was genuinely happy for him.
Ariana Grant also sensed something was off and tugged on her sleeve saying, "Did you guys have a fight?"
Ashley Shaw simply smiled without responding and said, "Let’s go, it takes about an hour to ride to the Prescott Family from here."
"What’s going on with you two..."
Ashley Shaw directly put a pear balm candy from the store into Ariana Grant’s mouth.
"Hurry, get on."
The refreshing taste of the pear balm candy spread in her mouth.
The foodie’s eyes lit up instantly.
"Hmm, this candy is delicious!"
"This candy is good for your health, you’re allowed to eat two a day."
"Oh yeah!"
Ariana Grant was indeed distracted by the candy and promptly got on the scooter, and soon their figures merged into the traffic.
Inside the shop.
Only when Cillian Xavier reached the cashier did his tense back finally relax.
He was pretending to be indifferent, but his tightly pressed lips betrayed his true feelings.
He thought that by doing this, Ashley Shaw would at least come in to ask a few questions.
But she didn’t.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw their scooter leave the store.
Saying he wasn’t disappointed would be a lie, but this was exactly what he wanted—letting Ashley Shaw think he had moved on, so that when he left, she wouldn’t see him off with guilt.
He was going abroad.
Because today he had exchanged his freedom for his sister’s freedom.
He agreed to his parents’ request for him to study abroad for four years, in exchange for them no longer pressuring his sister to go on blind dates.
Being abroad for four years also meant that there would be no outcome between him and Ashley Shaw.
So, this was for the best.
"Mr. Prescott Jr.?" The assistant manager turned around to find Cillian had somehow appeared at the cash register, almost giving him a fright.
This shop also had Cillian Xavier’s shares, so everyone jokingly called him "Mr. Prescott Jr."
He asked in surprise, "Why are you here? Is Ms. Xavier here too? Did she come over?"
Others also looked at Cillian Xavier in surprise.
The unanimous source of surprise was his newly shaved head.
"My sister has some matters today and asked me to drop off the keys. She might be in late tomorrow, so I’m leaving the keys with you, whoever comes in early tomorrow can open the store."
As Cillian spoke, he placed the keys on the countertop of the cash register.
Just as he was about to leave, he heard the assistant manager call out to him, asking, "Is the boss okay?"
Cillian shook his head and replied, "It’s nothing serious, just some guests at home today, she has to entertain them."
"Oh, oh, as long as everything’s okay. I thought something serious happened and was thinking to let Ashley Shaw go check on her, but in that case, I’ll send Ashley a message not to go."
When mentioning Ashley Wyatt, Cillian’s pupils gently trembled but quickly returned to calm.
"Mm, there’s no need for her to go, my sister’s fine."
"Alright, then you go ahead, we’re also about to clean up and close the store."
Cillian responded with another "mm" before stepping out the door.
As soon as Cillian left, the employees began chattering away.
"Why did Mr. Prescott Jr. suddenly get a buzz cut?"
"Did he break up? I’ve heard that people cut their hair after a breakup."
"What breakup? Are you on a 2G network? Don’t you know Mr. Prescott Jr. likes Ashley Shaw?"
"What? What! Am I the only one who didn’t know?"
"Yes, you are the only one who didn’t know."
"So, did he get rejected when he confessed?"
"Who knows, maybe he just wanted to try a buzz cut to see if he still looks good. Turns out, handsome folks can pull off any hairstyle."
The assistant manager spoke with a straight face, "Is everyone so free? How about staying back for a thorough cleaning?"
The employees groaned in despair.
"Seriously, assistant manager, didn’t you say we could all leave early today?"
"Who asked you to gossip so much? Chatting about Mr. Prescott Jr.’s personal affairs during work hours? Hurry up, grab the brooms, mops, and cloths."
The assistant manager’s tone left no room for argument, so they all grimaced and prepared for a thorough cleaning.
Once everyone dispersed to start cleaning, the assistant manager reached into his pocket and pulled out a long box.
Inside was a brand-name pen.
It was a gift he had intended for Ashley Shaw...
But, like they said, if even Cillian Xavier got rejected, what chances did he have?
The assistant manager pursed his lips with a bitter smile, then directly tossed the pen box into the trash can.
Meanwhile, Warren Prescott sat in the car, his expression so dark it could almost drip water.
Assistant Lowell had to muster great courage to ask, "Mr. Prescott Jr., aren’t you really going to buy the cake? The old man specifically instructed..."
"It’s not good for his health to eat too much cake."
"But..."
"If you talk so much, do you need me to transfer you to the public relations department? With your mouth, I bet you could charm the clients beyond words."