Chapter 163 - Stephen And Sofia's Sweet Moments In Library

"The banks require several documents to open your account. If you trust me, I can open an account first and let you borrow it. Once the squad gets sufficient documents, I will transfer the money to you," Jing Jing proposed over the phone. She was standing outside the lavish blue building of the Blue Bank in district 6.

There was no available bank in their district. But, the nearest branch location of the Blue Bank was just near the boundary between District 7 and District 6.

"Okay, sister Jing. Sorry for the trouble. I am not so aware of banking rules. Please do, what you must do," Sofia answered. She knew about the documents yet, it had slipped in her mind that the business is not yet in operation and they are still teens. The bank would be reluctant to allow them to have an account.

"Then, I'll go inside the Blue Bank now before they would impose a cut-off. I'll tell you the progress," Jing Jing stated. It was already almost time that the bank would close and usually, this establishment would no longer accept transactions 20 minutes before the business hours of their office.

"Thank you, sister Jing. So sorry to trouble you," Sofia said before their call ended.

She was already in the library of their school, sitting near the entrace. But instead of reading a book, she was drawing few vertical lines to create a column on the back page of her notebook.

She then wrote for each column the labels: "Employee" "Salary" "Contract Status"

One by one, she wrote the names that were in the photo, the list that Derek sent to her in the chat message.

Sofia was immersed in writing the details until she occupied another page of her notebook. She sometimes changed her sitting position whenever she felt her neck numb.

It could be seen that she was creating a manual record for their employees.

After a while, she flipped on the other page and wrote a to-do list. Her pace in writing the information was not slow nor fast. But, she was too oblivious of her surrounding.

Stephen suddenly appeared behind her and place a cup of coffee on her table. He then pulled a chair near her and took a seat.

"Class is done?" Sofia casually asked without looking at him. Her fingers continued to scribble, filling in the page with all her wholesome penmanship.

"Yes, it's done. What is this to-do list for?" Stephen asked as he secretly took a peek at what Sofia was writing.

"It's our tasks... we have to at least change few things in the building once we acquire it," Sofia answered.

"Why are you writing that manually? You can just type them easily,"

Stephen suggested. He was baffled as to why Sofia would take her time to write when there was an easy way to do it. She could just send the to-do list in their message instead of placing them in the paper!

"Writing calms me," Sofia answered and was still unbothered by Stephen.

"Huh? That's weird," Stephen commented. He had never heard someone talked about writing in this manner.

Sofia finally placed her pen on the table and looked straight at his face. She smiled at him before taking a sip of the coffee that he placed on the table. It was obviously for her.

"My brain can focus more on the details when I am writing them rather than typing. Try it, when you study and write the points that you want to remember, you'll easily retain the information this way," Sofia said and placed back the coffee. "No more coffee for me this week, starting tomorrow," she added.

"Ohh, right. I'll be sure to remember that. Anyway, how's all your errands?" Stephen inquired.

"It's great. Oh, let me ask someone about their errand too," Sofia fished out her phone and type a message for Grace. She then sent her a brief question: "Did you reached into an agreement?"

Stephen furrowed his brows, "What deal? This Grace, is she the mayor's daughter?" he consequently asked with a blank tone on his voice.

"Yes, she is. You're so hostile with your arranged fiance," Sofia commented.

Stephen suddenly froze and stared at her for a long time. It never occurred to him that Sofia was aware of the reason why he was hostile towards Grace.

"What nonsense! I never agreed to be a fiance of anyone else, unless, you want to be my fiance now? Hehe," he cheekily stated.

Sofia slightly laughed. "What a poor proposal is that?" she playfully said.

"Alright, alright, I'll make a grand proposal when the time is right. But, how did you know about that wicked lady?" Stephen curiously asked.

"Oh, well... Let's just say that not every girl has fallen in your charms!" Sofia vaguely replied.

"I only need to charm one girl," Stephen gently smiled and gave her a wink.

"Yeah, yeah, I think you are charming enough," Sofia slightly waved her hand before picking the pen and writing back.

If she had just taken a glance at Stephen's face, she would surely notice the undisguised warmth and blush on it. However, because she already concentrates back on writing, she had missed this expression.

"Hehe, then, I'm at ease. I remember that you owe me an answer last time. Are you accepting me as your boyfriend, now?" he boldly asked.

"Ohh? I do remember that it's not the same question," Sofia refuted. This time she could feel the hotness of her cheek and the back of her ears.

"I could revise the question then?" Stephen asked as he leaned closer to the table and his hand supported his face.

"Let's wait for Grace to respond to my message first," Sofia replied.

"Oh, don't trust that girl. She is manipulative. This kind of girl is not up for good," Stephen sat back and sighed.

"I could also manipulate you. Be careful," Sofia joked. But with her knowledge and ability, this statement was actually not possible. 

"Oh please, feel free. I'll give you all the consent. What do you want me to do?" Stephen did not back down. "As long as it is you," he emphasized.

"I'll remember that. Anyway, Grace likes Brent, not you. Don't be hostile towards her," Sofia softly reprimanded him.

A wide grin appeared on Stephen's face as he crossed his arms on his chest. 

"Oh? This is new! The last time I heard, she was willing to wait for me on a dinner date. Now, she wants the young master of the Lee Clan. Hehe, I am not surprised. I hope that your friend won't fall for her trap," he muttered with a skeptical tone.

"I think her feelings are genuine. Don't judge her," Sofia defended before finishing her writing. She then place the notebook inside her bag, then looked at her phone.

"Hehe, If they become a couple, then, my old man would not complain about me. This is also a piece of good news," Stephen beamed.

Sofia shook her head helplessly. She remembered how hostile Stephen's father was during their last meeting. She could not help but sigh at their animosity. 

"You want a romantic relationship with me? Your father seemed to not approve that," Sofia stated. For her, it was better to confront this type of issue so that they could talk about it. Lest any misunderstanding would come between them.

"Ohh? Are you afraid? From what I could tell since we met, you have this aura that tells everyone that you do not need any approval?" Stephen smiled. It was true that he and been observing how Sofia handles things on her own. And every time this lady spoke, her tone sounded firm.

"You have good observation skills. But, I still need approval for the things that I am not familiar with. I am not reckless, you know," Sofia emphasized.

She could decide right away using her wise judgment. But, she was also aware that she was not an expert on everything in life. There are limitations to her wisdom.

"That's why I am super attractive to you. Hehe, Are you ready to agree and be my girlfriend? We should be the first to become a couple before Clark and Claire," Stephen suggested.

"Huh? Why? Is there a competition?" Sofia sighed

"No competition of course! But, hehe, ehem! What if other girls will steal me? I'm still an attractive fella after all," Stephen smirked while his face beamed with full of confidence.

"Oh? Did you know, what's mine, no one dares to steal," Sofia curled her lips and copied Stephen's smirk. It was also true. In her past life, no one had the guts to even compete with her in terms of business for any competitor were doomed to lose.

The two stared for a while in silence, then, they burst into soft giggles... trying to suppress their laughter.

They had no idea how they had reached this level of comfort in speaking such flirty rebuttals. Yet, all they were certain was that they were sharing a moment that would be worthy to cherish.