Jefferson didn't give me a chance to say no, and I knew exactly what that meant., Clutching my phone, I glanced over at Ernest and after a moment, walked over to him, just about to speak when he said,

"I'm leaving day after tomorrow.

" Leaving?, I paused,

"Where to?

", Ernest kept walking,

"Back home.

", Back home, back to Galaxy Harbor?, But he had said he would stay, and he even rented a place., Thinking about our rental brought back thoughts of the upcoming demolition and the favor Mrs. Wilson, our landlord, had asked of me-a favor I still hadn't told Ernest about., I wanted to ask why he was leaving again, but the distance in his demeanor made the words falter in my mouth, so instead, I said,

"I'll come over tomorrow night to see the test run.

" Ernest looked at me, his gaze seemed to say 'you might be free, but I'm not.', I braced for him to reject me, but after a few seconds, he simply said,

"Okay.

", I knew that word was uttered through gritted teeth., He was obviously upset but didn't want to make things hard for me, choosing to sacrifice his own comfort instead., In that moment, I suddenly felt pretty low., Taking advantage of his feelings for me, just like that., It's always the case, isn't it? The one who cares more ends up getting hurt, just like it used to be with me and Conrad., All those past grievances flooded my mind...,

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

",

"Ernest,

" I called out to him,

"I'm meeting Jefferson tonight because I asked him to look into something for me, so I can't miss it.

", Ernest's gaze deepened before he hummed in acknowledgment.,

"Make me dinner tomorrow night, and then we can go check out the lights together,

" I teased, trying to cheer him up., Ernest's lips twitched,

"Felicia, I'm not a child. A slap followed by a sweet doesn't cut it.

", I pouted,

"Oh.

", He frowned slightly, and I leaned in closer,

"Big brother, if not sweets, what then?

", At that, I saw Ernest freeze, his ears turning red and his gaze trembling intensely., I was just teasing him, but I hadn't expected this 'big brother' call to be so potent., And seeing Ernest, usually so stoic, visibly shaken was both refreshing and thrilling., Just when I thought he might respond in kind, he suddenly murmured,

"You push me away, avoid me, yet you flirt with me. Felicia, are you toying with me?

", His earnest, wounded look made me feel as if I'd truly hurt him deeply., Guiltily swallowing, I avoided answering by saying,

"See you tomorrow, then.

", With that, I turned and walked away, exhaling deeply., On my way back, I couldn't help feeling that I had gone too far., In that moment, I simply couldn't resist teasing him, wanting to see him affected by me, yet not wanting any emotional entanglement. It left me quite speechless at my own behavior. The more I thought about it, the more I felt like a terrible person, regretting not having more self-control., The self-mockery hit so hard, I almost felt like giving myself a physical scolding., Lost in these thoughts, I suddenly heard Haley's voice ahead,

"Felicia.

", Looking up, I saw her standing not far off. Considering my recent actions, there was no need to ask; she must have seen everything., Talk about awkward., Search the website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.