Take My Breath Away

Lauren chuckled in response. She patted Cecelia's hand and assured her, "It's only because those two haven't met the right girls yet. When they do meet the perfect soul-mates, they will bring them over to meet you even if you don't ask them to. Boys like to show off!"

Lauren's remark triggered a kind of bitterness inside Blair's heart. Her thoughts became melancholic instantly. She knew that the older woman did have a point. There was a very high chance that Wesley might indeed not care for her. Otherwise, they should already have been together by now, without her having to put so much effort into the non-existent relationship. If he liked her at all, he should have been chasing her. Moreover, with everything she had done for him, he should have been moved by now.

But alas! To hide her embarrassment, Blair took out her phone and pretended to search for something by firing up her browser. Meanwhile, she was secretly considering whether she should leave the room or stay.

Her dejection did not escape Cecelia's keen eyes, which were mostly focused on her these days. It pained the motherly Cecelia to see this young girl sad and she understood why. Therefore, she deliberately remarked, "That's true with Niles. But Wesley is quite introverted by nature. He might be too shy to act on his impulses. This makes him vulnerable. You know, he often lets his opportunities slip away even if he does like someone."

She wanted Blair to hear those words and she succeeded in her efforts. As for Lauren, she didn't have a clue what was going on and urged the topic of their discussion, "Wesley, your parents are worried about you. It's time to get a girlfriend."

Wesley nodded without saying a word. He did not feel comfortable discussing his love-life with these women.

Lauren had been persuading him to start seeing someone only because she wanted to fix him up with her daughter. Wesley was quite a desirable groom! By that time, the topic became too much for Blair to handle. Holding her phone in one hand, she quietly got up and left the living room.

She made a pit stop inside the bathroom on her way upstairs and then proceeded to lock herself up in her bedroom.

Niles also left the living room shortly after she did. By the time Blair had closed her door, he had already reached the second floor.

Wesley, who had seen them leave one after the other, had a look in his eyes that clearly wasn't a happy one.

Niles hesitated for a second and then knocked on her door. Blair answered. After Wesley had punched him, he didn't dare enter Blair's room anymore. So he talked with her in the doorway. "Were you bored too down there?" he asked.

Blair smiled with embarrassment and leaned on the door. "I wasn't actually bored. I just don't know them that well, so I had no idea what to talk about with them."

"Well, you didn't have to worry about that. They are always talking about the same thing. 'Find a girlfriend, ' 'Get married, ' etc. etc. You know, my brother wasn't home for Spring Festival the past two years, so he was lucky he didn't have to hear it. But me... Huh... I've been listening to that crap every year ever since I was twenty. Enough already!" Niles complained.

"Really? Did they start arranging blind dates for you when you were that young?" Blair asked.

"Hell yeah! My brother was seldom around, so they only got to try and fix me up. But this year, once Wesley got home, every single one of our relatives gathered in our house and tried to match him with someone. They didn't even ask him whether there was anyone he liked or if he had some particular choice. They just started rattling on about who would be perfect for him, and which girl had a crush on him." Niles rolled his eyes in disgust as he recalled the tale. It had been a cheesy and terrible affair.

Hearing what he was saying, Blair felt sorry for the two brothers. Now she began to understand why Wesley disliked women and their affairs. He had often been forced to do their will and he disliked that.

"Does Garnet like your brother?" she enquired, thinking that this was a good opportunity.

"You get that feeling too? Don't you think she is as rough as a guy? And I don't mean a graceful, tomboy type... Her mom wants to bring her and Wesley together, but I don't think that combination will ever work. If they ever end up having a fight, I'm afraid the whole house would be torn down. She can't defeat Wesley, of course. But let's face it, she is tough and strong; she could still put up a fight. Hey you know what? Don't mind me saying, but I think you and Wesley look real cute together. A little sweetness from you, and his heart will melt. You two could never get into a fight."

Niles was talking as if he had seen Blair act bratty around Wesley. "Pah! I've tried. Your brother really doesn't like me. I think there might be someone else," Blair retorted.

Niles shook his head. For the first time in his life, he spoke in a serious tone. "Blair, have some faith in Wesley. Believe me, you are the 'someone else' you're talking about. You're special to him."

'Really?' Blair felt hopeful. With a smile, she raised a hand and hit Niles on the arm to cover up her excitement. "Knock it off. I don't think you know him that well. You don't see him often."

"Why is it so hard to believe me? Well, never mind. Time will tell how right or wrong I am. Wanna bet?"

"Bet on what?"

"Mmmm, lemme see. Ah! If you and Wesley get married someday, you'll have to buy me a million-dollar watch. If not, I do the same for you. How about that?"

Blair was taken aback by the huge price. "You're greedy, you know. Besides, I'm not a billionaire. If I lose the bet, where would I find a million dollars just to buy a watch?"

"Don't worry. My brother is loaded. He is the firstborn of our family after all. He used to buy me a lot of things. But recently, he has been acting rather cheap. I wonder why." Niles rolled his eyes as he thought of the changes in his brother.

Blair didn't take the bait though; she wasn't stupid. Instead, she started to push him out of the doorway. "I won't bet on this. And anyway, I don't have that kind of money. Go. I want to take a nap."

Niles didn't leave, though. And by now, he had forgotten all about his brother's warning in his excitement. He grabbed her coat and tried to convince her. "All right! How about a half-million-dollar watch? Would that work?" Just at that time, Wesley stepped on the landing on the second floor. He could see the interaction between the duo at a single glance. Immediately, he roared, "What are you doing?"

Upon hearing his voice, Niles quickly withdrew his hand as if he had been electrified. Letting go of Blair's coat, he exclaimed in a resigned tone under his breath, "What the hell? Did he put a tail on us? How come he walks in on us every time?"

Blair had fled into her room after the sudden shout. But she had kept the door ajar and now craned her head to look at Wesley. When he was close enough, she told him provocatively, "We were flirting with each other. Didn't you see it?" Actually, she was mad. She and Niles had been upstairs for quite a while now, but Wesley hadn't shown up till now. He must have been enjoying his chat with Garnet, his dear playmate!

Her remark was like a bomb going off without warning, and Niles knew that he would be the victim in any case, no matter who was the culprit. If Wesley believed what Blair had said, Niles was dead. He could barely contain his impulse to cover her mouth. "Wesley, don't listen to her. It's nothing like that. I'm going to my room now," he explained hastily.

After that, he ran towards his room. Full pelt!

Bam! The door to his room was shut in fear.

Slam! The door to Blair's room was slammed closed too. But in fury! Wesley was left standing alone in the hallway.

Leaning against the door, Blair put her ear to it and listened carefully to find out what Wesley was doing now.

However, she couldn't tell. Even if he began to walk, his steps were always too quiet to make any sound. So Blair wasn't sure whether he was still outside the door.

In less than a minute, she heard Garnet's voice float in. "Wesley, what are you doing here? I was looking for you..." she asked.

Wesley looked at her and replied, "Nothing. I'm on my way to my room."

"Oh. Listen, do you have time this afternoon? I'm leaving tomorrow. Can you please come to the shooting gallery with me?" Garnet looked around as she asked.

"Sorry. I'm going to visit a former superior of mine about your transfer this afternoon, so I can't go with you," Wesley replied. When she heard that he was going to tend to something that concerned herself, Garnet didn't insist on her request.

"All right. I saw Blair and Niles come up just now. Where are they?" she enquired.

"In their rooms." With that short reply, Wesley made his way towards his own room.

Blair wasn't sure whether Garnet followed him into his bedroom or not. The hallway was quiet afterwards and she couldn't hear anything.

Near noon, Cecelia climbed to the second floor and asked her to come downstairs for lunch. "Blair, lunch is ready."

Blair nodded and began to tidy her bed. Then, as she was about to go downstairs with Cecelia, she was stopped by the older woman and told, "Blair, I get Lauren's point. She wants her daughter to be Wesley's girlfriend. But I like you. So I'm on your side."