Chapter 27 It's Hard to Not Overthink
Natalie couldn't tell when she had begun to become easily blushed in front of Luke. By the time she realized it, it was already an inevitable situation.
It wasn't that Natalie was nonchalant, but she was unwilling to give a deeper thought. Before some things became clear, acting dumb was the best option.
But maintaining boundaries was difficult and uncontrollable, just like a bird that just left its cage. Acting dumb was meaningless. Without anyone knowing, Luke had entered deeply into Natalie's world. The knot that was tying up her heart was starting to loosen up from an unknown corner.
It was a situation where she hadn't acknowledged it yet.
Natalie kept silent for a while. She then tried to speak calmly, "I eat a lot every day."
"A lot?" Luke's voice was full of doubt.
"Yes." Natalie replied swiftly, "I eat randomly."
Luke threw away the cigarette butts lazily, "I think you're spouting nonsense. There were full of meat dishes, but I didn't see you eat a lot."
What he meant was clear. Natalie was speechless. She turned her head suddenly and looked at him bewilderingly, "The idiot who came and sent money yesterday in the livestreaming room is really you?"
"..."
Luke wasn't happy with the title "idiot". He placed his arm on the steering wheel, twisted his body to face her, and spoke in a tone as if he was educating a child, "What did you say?"
"You've spent that much money but didn't want others to talk about it?" Natalie felt it pity to the loss of money that was worth a thousand rockets.
Luke smiled, "Wasn't I trying to support you?"
In just one sentence, Natalie's imposing manner dissipated in an instance. She stayed quiet and couldn't say anything, just like a protestor who was lowering the flag in her hand.
Nataliebegan to soften, but she wasn't willing to admit it.
She turned her head aside, placed her backpack in front of her body, and whispered, "You're... you're wasting money."
Luke didn't expose her and smiled. He started the car engine, and as the car moved, he said randomly, "Oh, then you should look after me."
Natalie's heart trembled, but she replied with guts, "No."
While driving the car, Luke had a taste of the word. Suddenly, he said, "Natalie, you try saying 'no' again."
He addressed her name, and there was a trace of warning.
It seemed that he was scolding her for no reason. Natalie pursed her lips and glanced at him rebelliously, "No, no, no."
Obviously she was purposely singing in a different tune. But the smile on Luke's face deepened. He was playing dumb, "What are you doing? Are you trying to make me head over heels for you?"
At first, Natalie was confused.
But after a while, she understood what he meant. She remembered what Mia said yesterday when streaming, "Say 'no' and you will make the male protagonist head over heels for you." She also remembered the incident where she was tricked to provide a demonstration in public.
"..."
Did he purposely go to see the replay? How did he know about this?
This was... so embarrassing!
Natalie refused to talk with him anymore.
-
Girls could share their belongings. Therefore, during her stay in Mia's home, Natalie just carried a small bag with her. 
But it was different this time. Natalie had to bring a lot of things to stay in Luke's house.
Luke drove to Clovervale Residence and parked the car downstairs.
Natalie unfastened the seatbelt and was about to leave the car. However, as she saw that Luke was planning to stay and wait in the car, she asked hesitantly, "Do you want to go up and sit for a while?"
"It depends on you." Luke leaned his arm on the window and was in a carefree, amenable state.
Natalie took a look outside. The sky was gloomy and filled with dark clouds. It looked like rain was going to pour at anytime. Natalie thought that it was impolite to leave him alone downstairs. Moreover, she couldn't bear to do so either.
"You can follow me upstairs. It's cold in the car." Natalie blinked her eyes and said with full sincerity.
Luke looked at her and smiled. He gladly accepted her suggestion.
The buildings in Clovervale Residence were tall. Natalie was living on the ninth floor. It was a unit with two bedrooms, but it was enough for someone who was living alone.
The unit wasn't big, but its warm-toned decor was cozy and harmonious.
After inviting Luke into the unit, Natalie went straight to her bedroom. She pulled out her small suitcase and started packing.
It was the first time that Luke visited Natalie's home. He didn't sit still but stood up and walked around in the living room leisurely.
It was said that if one wanted to truly understand a person, it was useless to just check on their glamorous appearances. In fact, one should go to the other person's home to take a visit and observe their home decor and cleanness. This was because every detail one saw would reflect the true nature of the owner.
After a brief stroll, Luke smiled lightly.
Everyone in the world liked to hide their hideous side behind their masks and display flawless fake faces to the public.
But this young girl was like a turtle that had taken off its shell. She was the same both inside and out.
She was indeed a little girl. The furniture was in Morandi color, and the wallpaper was in taro purple. The wall near the dining table was decorated with two small landscape oil paintings.
It was clean, without any bells and whistles.
"Luke --"
The girl's crystal-clear voice sounded from the bedroom. Among the alternating sound of the opening and closing of the cabinet door, Luke moved his sight from the oil paintings in the dining room to the direction of the master bedroom.
"Can you help me to put the books in the second drawer of the coffee table into my bag?" Natalie took some free time and spoke. In between, she accidentally knocked off the blue and white colored school uniform from Athana high school. She squatted down to pick up the uniform and patted it carefully before hanging it back.
It was the first time when Luke was ordered by a girl.
He stood there for a few seconds but eventually sat down on the sofa. He bent down and opened the drawer. There were several clinical manuals. It seemed that she often sat here to read books.
"Bring which ones?" he asked.
In her bedroom, Natalie replied to him with an "all".
Luke raised his eyebrows and placed her backpack on his lap without complaints. He unzipped the zipper and pulled out the books.
As he emptied the drawer, he saw a pink silicone bunny inside...
About ten minutes had passed.
Natalie was pulling the suitcase while walking out of the bedroom. She covered her empty stomach with another hand, "Luke, are you hungry?"
The lazy person who was laying on the sofa raised his head as he heard her voice. Seeing that she was ready, he placed down his long legs and stood up slowly, "What do you want to eat?"
"It's going to rain." Natalie stood still in front of the sofa and carried her backpack on her back. She didn't like to stay outside when the weather was humid, "Let's go back first. We can order takeout."
Luke had no opinions and looked like he would listen to everything she said.
He grabbed her suitcase naturally and walked two steps toward the door. Suddenly, he looked back. Upon Natalie's confused gaze, he let out an ambiguous smile.
"Next time, don't bring men to your house easily." Luke said intriguingly while looking at her eyes. "Isn't it dangerous?"
The light was off, and the room was full of obscurity. Luke was staring at Natalie with his head slightly lowered. A layer of shadow could be seen below his eyelashes. In the darkness, his eyes were full of ambiguous colors, making the atmosphere seemingly taboo.
Natalie hooked her thumb on the thin backpack strands in front of her. She looked at him with fluttering eyelashes. With such pure eyes, it was like a child being tricked home by an evil uncle.
The men gave an enigmatic smile, turned around, and walked away.
Natalie was stunned in confusion.
At that time, she had no idea about certain things. 
-
Sure enough, the rain started to pour while driving halfway through. Pea-sized raindrops were slapping on the window and were gradually tipping down. It was like a dense net covering from above, and the sky was as dark as the end of the world.
It was noon, but the cars passing through the rain curtains all had their headlights turned on.
Leaning on the passenger seat, Natalie's breath started to intensify. Her heart was like tightly wrapped by a thin thread, and she was in a state of slightly out of breath. 
"What's wrong?" Luke noticed her unusual silence.
"Nothing..." Natalie's voice was weak, "I'm fine."
Her tone was unstable, and nobody would believe what she had said. Luke turned on the lights in the car, "If you're afraid of the dark, just say it. Why would you endure?"
A beam of orange light shone in front of her eyes, dispelling the thick darkness.
Natalie was stunned for a moment. She was breathing shallowly, and her heart seemed to be immersed in the warmth of the soft halo.
Natalie was suddenly reminded of a lovers' sweet-talk - When the warm current from Chatforte met the cold current from the Dezel Island, the entire sea area would be warmed; as long as the warm Wulfsige Ocean current embraced the Ailish Ocean, Durward would be a year-round ice-free port.
No matter if she was as cold as the cold current from Dezel Island or the freezing Durward, at that moment, Natalie felt warmed and comforted.
Everybody knew that he was an arrogant and evil person. But in his bones, he was actually a warm person.
Natalie couldn't understand why such contradicting personalities could exist in one person at the same time.
But undeniably, she was constantly wandering at the edge between alienating him and being curious about him.
It seemed to have become an established situation that was beyond her control.
Perhaps of her state of mind at that time, Natalie had a moment of self-reconciliation. She looked at his perfect side face quietly and advertently, asking him in a soft voice, "Like this, will it be dangerous for you to drive?"
The car wipers went back and forth. The vision was cleared and blurred.
Luke looked at the road intently and smiled as if it was nothing, "What can I do about it? At most, I'll sacrifice for love."
"..."
"He was really outspoken." Natalie thought to herself.
It wasn't clear whether it was God's will or a coincidence, but the radio station was playing a love song by a singer. On that rainy day, the sentence "You know that even if the heavy rain turns the city upside down, I will still give you my arms." resonated with Natalie's heart.
The little cactus had put her thorns away. Natalie's voice turned much lower, "Then aren't you at loss?"
Luke was always acting unexpectedly, "You really want to die with me? Are you in a hurry? If not, we can still wait for a while."
This guy was addicted to making fun of Natalie.
Natalie peeked at him and couldn't help but be slightly annoyed, "How old are you? Why you're so not serious?"
"Why does she always think that I'm old and not serious?" Luke thought in his heart.
Luke raised his thin lips and snorted lightly, "Will an unruly old man buy you ear clips?"
After thinking about ten seconds, Natalie suddenly turned sideways to face him, with her deer-like eyes opening widely, "It was a present from you?"
"Why? You thought it was from your good old brothers?"
"..."
In fact, Natalie had guessed almost everyone to identify the person who bought her ear clips. She even thought about Forrest.
Except for Luke.
Unexpectedly, it turned out that she had ruled out the correct answer in the beginning.
Natalie was shocked by the truth and couldn't regain her senses. She couldn't understand why Luke would suddenly gift her a present. Moreover, what he bought were ear clips. Had he specifically observed whether she had any ear piercings?
Natalie was afraid of overthinking. But after much hesitation, she decided not to ask more.
The car drove into Lithern Club.
The place was the best location in Alcomara, where every inch of land was as expensive as gold. The buildings were in Italian style and could be worth up to hundreds of millions. The villas were also attached with independent gardens and fountain lawns. 
If Natalie had pay attention to the environment, she would definitely have asked Luke in disbelief, "You aren't living in Alcomara for a long period of time. Such an expensive mansion would be a pity to leave it empty when you went back to Athana!"
However, at that time, she was spacing out, and the rain was heavy. She didn't pay much attention to the scenery outside.
The car drove into the private underground garage and stopped.
With his finger hooking the keychain, Luke saw the girl sitting beside him not moving. She seemed to be stunned, and it was difficult to guess what she was thinking.
Luke felt funny and used the keychain in his hand to gently pluck her earlobe, "It's too late to regret now. Get out of the car."
Natalie pulled back her thoughts suddenly, and her ears reddened sensitively.
"Oh..." Natalie absent-mindedly went to open the door. As soon as she pressed her hand against the door, her arm was suddenly caught by someone. Luke used some strength and pulled her back to face him.
Natalie looked back at him with surprise.
His hand was holding her upper arm. The car was turned off, and the lights went out. The small space inside the car was dark, and there was only mere light coming from the aisle lamp that penetrated through the glass. The atmosphere was half-bright but not dark.
Luke leaned forward while using his right hand to reach the back of Natalie's waist. The distance between him and her shortened within a second.
His strong body became close. Natalie could feel the warm breaths of a man invading her and reaching the side of her ears.
Natalie's heart trembled, and she subconsciously moved her hands forward to block him. Her palm was pressing against the position of his heart.
"Luke..." Natalie didn't know what to do at that instance. She murmured his name quickly and quietly.
She appeared to be resisting, but there seemed to be a tinge of welcoming.
The voice of a girl at her age was soft and waxy. Just now, she was nervous and ended up gasping slightly without knowing. If the listener deliberately wanted to think about it in a bad way, it wasn't difficult to imagine that sound like a lingering gasp during foreplay.
The most primitive desire in her body was lit up.
But it only lasted for a short while.
Luke's action paused for a while. Then, he continued to move his hands down. After a "clack" sound, his faint voice sounded beside Natalie's ears.
"What do you want? Taking my car away? Why don't you unfasten the seatbelt?"
After speaking, he retreated without any hesitation.
Leaving Natalie sitting on the seat while holding back her breath. She didn't dare to breathe and was still in a panicked state. 
"Just now... I forgot." What happened in the last few seconds left a huge impression on Natalie. She gulped and finally muttered a sentence after a long while.
The hair behind her ears was a little messy. Her hands, which had just covered his chest, were placed in front of her. Through the woolen coat, one could still see the obvious up and down movements of her chest due to breathing. 
With her lips pressing down, Natalie didn't dare to look at him. The innocent-looking girl was seemingly seducing from Luke's point of view.
He didn't plan to do anything in the beginning.
But for her acting like this... It's hard for him to not overthink.
Luke chuckled. He lowered his chin slightly and remained silent for a while. Then, he looked at her.
"Do you still have the courage to go upstairs with me?"