When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

###Chapter 96: A Distracted Day

Nothing Sharon Winters said could get Hazel Hawthorne’s attention. She spent the entire morning slumped over her desk, utterly dejected. She had no inspiration for the design draft Holly Shaw had assigned her and was in a complete stupor. During the lunch break, seeing that Hazel was still listless, Sharon couldn’t help but ask what was wrong.

The cafeteria was crowded, and Hazel Hawthorne found the topic embarrassing. After a long hesitation, she leaned close to Sharon Winters’s ear and whispered, "Have you ever had a wet dream?"

Sharon Winters froze for a second. "A wet dream? You had a wet dream?"

Horrified, Hazel Hawthorne quickly covered Sharon Winters’s mouth. "Keep your voice down! Are you afraid people *can’t* hear us? I was just asking if *you’ve* ever had one."

Sharon Winters pried Hazel Hawthorne’s hand away, gasping for air. ’My voice wasn’t even that loud,’ she thought. ’Hazel’s just being overly sensitive, always worried someone will overhear.’ "It’s not weird to have a wet dream," she said. "Why are you reacting like this? Have you really never had one before?"

From Hazel Hawthorne’s reaction, Sharon Winters knew this must have been her first time. She pulled Hazel closer and whispered in her ear, "I had my first one in high school. I had a huge crush on this celebrity at the time, and I dreamed about him."

"You had one in high school?" Hazel Hawthorne’s jaw nearly hit the floor in astonishment. She stared at Sharon Winters in disbelief. ’Why does she look so proud of it?’

"When you have a wet dream, you’re probably the only one who knows. But have you ever experienced the feeling of getting caught? It was complete social suicide! I was so mortified. I’ve never been so humiliated in my entire life." Hazel Hawthorne looked utterly horrified, unwilling to relive the details of that morning.

"Tch, having a wet dream isn’t something to be ashamed of. We’re adults. Isn’t it normal to have physical needs? Don’t you?" Sharon Winters asked, puzzled. "Have you and Aiden Xavier never... done it?"

Hazel Hawthorne was speechless. ’How could I tell Sharon that Aiden Xavier and I have never even held hands? We’re both so chaste. Besides, our relationship doesn’t allow for any further development.’

"Hazel," Sharon Winters said, placing a hand on her shoulder in an earnest tone. "Don’t be so sensitive. A wet dream is a small thing. You really don’t need to be like this. You look like you’ve done something terrible."

After a pause, Sharon Winters connected the dots with Hazel’s strange behavior that morning and said instinctively, "Don’t tell me this is why you were so out of it this morning? That’s a bit of an overreaction. I have them occasionally, too. It’s not just you and me; other women do, too. If you don’t believe me, you can ask..."

Afraid Sharon Winters would actually go and ask someone else, Hazel Hawthorne quickly stopped her. Just then, Nathan Miller and Aaron Shaw walked over. Hazel quickly made a "zip it" gesture, and Sharon winked back with tacit understanding.

"Sharon, welcome back," Nathan Miller said gently, though his eyes were on Hazel Hawthorne.

Sharon Winters shot Hazel Hawthorne a suggestive smile. Hazel’s lip twitched, and she pretended not to see it.

"Mind if we join you?"

Sharon Winters replied cheerfully, "Of course not."

Sharon Winters didn’t mind, but Hazel Hawthorne, remembering what Aiden Xavier had said, wanted to refuse. She couldn’t think of a good reason, so she just stayed silent. ’Thankfully, Sharon didn’t let Nathan Miller sit next to me. At least she has that much sense.’

Sharon Winters vividly recounted her previous day to them. After finding out she’d been fired, she had been job hunting when she suddenly got a call from HR telling her to come back to work today.

Hazel Hawthorne ate silently beside her, her mind completely elsewhere. Her phone vibrated next to her, and she instantly snatched it, thinking it was a message from Aiden Xavier. But when she opened it, it was just a generic news notification.

Sitting across from her, Nathan Miller didn’t miss the flash of disappointment on Hazel Hawthorne’s face. He asked, half-joking and half-serious, "Hazel, are you waiting for a call from Aiden Xavier?"

When Hazel Hawthorne didn’t answer, Sharon Winters secretly nudged her arm. "Are you waiting for Mr. Xavier’s call? Did you two have a fight?"

"No. You’re overthinking it," Hazel Hawthorne said with a flat expression, putting her phone away. ’My reaction must have been too obvious, that’s why they’re suspicious,’ she thought.

She hadn’t really thought about it, but Aiden Xavier had been showing up around her and messaging her on WeChat so often lately. Now that he’d suddenly gone silent today, Hazel Hawthorne found she wasn’t used to it. She’d already lost count of how many times she’d checked her phone.

Even Sharon Winters asked quizzically, "You’ve been distracted all day. What’s wrong with you? Did you really have a fight with Aiden Xavier?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"We didn’t fight. Do I really seem that distracted?"

Sharon Winters nodded solemnly. "Anyone with eyes can see you’re absent-minded."

Hazel Hawthorne subconsciously touched her face. ’Is it that obvious? I don’t even know what expression I’m making.’

"Here," Sharon Winters said, pulling out a mirror. "Look. Don’t you just look like you have something on your mind?"

Hazel Hawthorne looked from side to side. ’She’s just talking nonsense.’

By the time work ended, Hazel Hawthorne still hadn’t received any message from Aiden Xavier. She tapped on his profile picture multiple times, wanting to ask if he was coming home that night, but she would type out the words only to silently delete them. ’Wait,’ she thought suddenly, ’why should I be the one to ask?’

’It must be because Aiden Xavier has been hanging around me so much lately that I’ve gotten used to having him here.’ Sitting in the car, she shook her head. ’It’s all his fault. He hovers around me when he has nothing better to do, but the moment he gets busy, he just ignores me.’

* * *

Meanwhile, Raina Lowell was gazing joyfully at Aiden Xavier, who had appeared before her. She had tried to find him many times, but he always avoided her, using his busy schedule as an excuse. She had exhausted every method to get him to show himself.

She knew all too well that if Aiden Xavier didn’t want to see her, she would never have the chance to find him.

Now, looking at Aiden Xavier, Raina Lowell couldn’t bear to take her eyes off him for even a second. Whatever he did, her gaze followed him intently.

"Aiden, what have you been so busy with lately? You haven’t had any time to spend with me," Raina Lowell said, cupping her cheeks with her hands, her eyes full of affection.

Aiden Xavier glanced at Raina Lowell with an indifferent look. "Company business."

"I wanted to come find you at the company, but I was afraid you’d get angry, so I stopped myself. I thought you would definitely come find me. I waited for you for so long, but you never came. I started to think you were with Hazel Hawthorne."

It seemed like she was airing her grievances, but she was actually trying to sound out Aiden Xavier.

How could Aiden Xavier not see through such a petty trick? He poured Raina Lowell a glass of water. "My life isn’t all about romance."

"I know. It’s not that I want to think this way, but I can’t help it. As long as you’re not divorced from Hazel Hawthorne, I just feel like you’re going to fall in love with her."

"You have that little confidence in yourself?"

"I just..." Raina Lowell paused for a few seconds. "I just think you’ve been acting very strange lately."