700 High Technological Inflatable Doll

The ultimate rule of the natural world was as follows: no matter what humanity desired, the Earth would still rotate every day and continue orbiting around the sun. In other words, despite Twain's headache, Shania would still be there.

"How did you find the time to come over?" Twain asked as he drove her from London back to the house in Nottingham, a broad grin stretched across his face.

"To promote the movie in London," Shania replied. "It's just one day, then I'm going to Italy."

Twain set her luggage down while she looked around downstairs. In the absence of a woman, the house had become messy again; a bachelor's life was just too tragic. In the past, she'd had a job too, but she would regularly clean the place when she had time off. After all, no woman would want to live in a dumpster. She wrinkled her brow as she took a deep breath as if she'd smelled something foul.

As she looked around she saw the film magazines on the table. She was on the cover. Her face relaxed and the corners of her mouth started to rise.

Footsteps sounded from the top of the staircase. Twain came down and saw Shania reading the magazines but he did not sit down. He was embarrassed because even the sofa was too messy to sit on. He did not want such a big star to have to lounge on a dirty sofa. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

"I'm sorry. I wanted to tidy up yesterday but I was so busy I fell asleep as soon as I came home," Twain apologized as he frantically tidied up the room.

Shania did not walk forward to help, she only stood and watched him.

"Are you very busy?" she asked.

"Yes, I am." Twain carried a pile of books and walked in front of the bookcase, slotting them back into their respective places according to their index.

"Did you miss me, Uncle Tony?"

Before Twain's birthday, every time Shania asked this Twain would giggle and say, "I missed you so much I could die!" But now...

He hesitated then continued slotting the books. "Yes, I missed you."

"Liar," Shania pouted. "You sound so insincere. You didn't call or text. You've forgotten about our chat, haven't you?"

Twain felt his heart tighten. He stood rooted to the ground, unable to decide whether the book in hand should be placed back on the shelf.

"I think we're drifting, Uncle Tony."

"You're in America, I'm in England," Twain said clumsily.

"No, since that incident I've felt like that. Are you angry at me?"

"No, why would I--"

"You think I'm too capricious right?" she interrupted. "My dad used to reprimand me like this frequently, saying I was too playful as a girl, making things tough for my parents. I know I was being unreasonable. You have your life. You are you, and I am me. But...nevermind, I should stop talking about this. I only came back to see you, Uncle Tony. Don't look so startled, alright? The more polite you try to be, the more it feels like you're trying to distance yourself from me."

Twain turned to look at Shania with a smile.

"Silly girl, I was afraid you'd scold me for being so careless when I lived alone. Look at this, my house is too messy."

He was afraid Shania would ask him directly, "I love you, do you love me?" He had no idea what to answer if it came to that. Twain could not reject her bluntly. There was no reason why he just could not do it. He did not hate Shania, but did this type of "like" equal "love?" He still did not know. What exactly was love? He was older than Shania by 22 years, and the age gap was hindering him from understanding his true feelings. Even if he did love her, was it like the love of a couple or the love of an older person to a younger one?

Age gap aside, he was also emotionally older than Shania. He knew this world had no lack of odd couples. Yang Zhenning even married a young lady who had a master's degree. Though they'd had intense quarrels back in China, both of them continued to live together. Of course, it was easy to observe the lives of other people but it was a whole new matter to put such expectations on himself.

Thinking of this problem gave him a headache. He was not an expert when it came to women. Though he was very thoughtful and confident, he was still relatively dull when it came to understanding women. He did not know what Shania thought of this; he just wanted to figure out his own thoughts.

This girl, whose beauty was comparable to an angel's, had a lot of potential in Hollywood, a superstar with fame in both the modeling and the acting world. They had already known each other for five years. When they were alone together, he had never thought of her the way the public did. In his eyes, Shania was still a strong individual who had been brave enough to leave her house before she'd even turned 14. Someone who'd risked everything and ventured far away to England. A mischievous girl who'd met him on the streets back then. Twain liked this girl, he did, but did he love her?

"What do you want to eat tonight, Shania?"

Twain decided to temporarily forget about the unspoken words and troubles that were plaguing his mind because it was late and it was time for dinner. Although he was a bachelor, he was still somewhat confident in his culinary skills. At the end of the day, he was still a man from Sichuan; how could he not know how to make a few common dishes? However, Shania turned and vivaciously ran into the kitchen first.

"You clear the living room first, alright? Let me make dinner. I learned a few new dishes in the States!" She peeked out of the doorway, staring at the helpless Twain. "You're not allowed to say it's bad!"

※※※

After dinner, Twain went into the kitchen to do the dishes and clean the dining table. Shania went upstairs to fetch her Chinchilla doll and sat on the sofa with her legs crossed as she watched the television. Just like any ordinary night, she did not pester Twain to go shopping, to nightclubs, or to play around.

Twain finished the dishes and dried his hands as he stood at the entrance to the kitchen. As he looked at Shania, who was sitting on the couch, an idea materialized in his head. This was just like a regular family. No socializing, no flashing lights. The time after dinner was theirs to enjoy in peace.

"I didn't think you'd be able to make it. Having you here makes me happy," Twain said softly as he sat beside Shania. "Besides, your cooking skills are getting better."

Shania beamed. "I'll take that as the truth!"

Twain opened his arms, his face was innocent and sincere. "I only speak the truth," he said. "I'm the most honest person; I have never lied."

Shania covered her mouth as she chuckled. As her laughter died down, she tilted her head back and leaned on Twain's shoulders. Twain tensed for a moment before relaxing. He did not struggle, letting her rest her head on his shoulder.

"Uncle Tony, do you hate me?"

"No, why would you ask that?"

"Then that's great," she said without answering his question.

She adjusted her posture, like a cat curling into itself, and snuggled into Twain. His hands hovered for a while before he gently settled them onto her shoulders.

※※※

On the dawn of the second day, while the sky was still pitch black, Shania rushed back to London to participate in the promotional activities for the movie. It was Mr. Fascal who fetched her. Twain had not even been out of bed yet.

After he got up, he discovered a warm breakfast coupled with a paper slip that read: Remember you still owe me an answer, Uncle Tony.

Beckham had already applied for leave yesterday to participate in this event. Of course, the most popular superstar had to appear at England's promotional events. On account of their friendship, Twain had agreed. He was not interested in these types of activities. Shania had even invited him to go with her but he'd rejected her. Beckham was a soccer player so missing some training was nothing much, but he was the head coach, how could he leave his position?

In the blink of an eye, it was already December. The league schedule had started to clutter, so he had to give 120% of his attention to deal with various issues.

After finishing the delicious breakfast Shania had prepared for him, he carefully put the slip of paper in his wallet and walked out of the house. Just as he stepped out of the door…

*Snap!*

A blur of white flashed before his eyes and almost knocked him to the ground. After his vision cleared, all he saw was a somewhat familiar car driving down to the end of the street, drifting out of his sight.

He cursed. What was going on?

Dunn opened the door and saw Twain looking angry and dazed.

"What happened?" he asked.

"How would I know?" Twain answered sourly.

※※※

Twain and Dunn were not kept in suspense for long. Other than the two of them, it seemed like everyone in all of England knew what had happened.

The promotional team for Shania and Tom Cruise had just left, and explosive news had appeared in a star gossip tabloid, which the newspapers quickly spread to even more media companies.

One of the main characters was undoubtedly Tony Twain who had been quite popular recently between the rumors and the book by Carl Spicer. The other main character was Judy Shania Jordana, an international supermodel who'd recently left London. The content of the news: the huge reveal of the relationship between Shania and Tony Twain!

It was the same reporter behind this: Lisa Aria. This time, however, the news had taken off because Aria finally had critical evidence. Photographs. The four photographs were displayed on the top of the title, sequenced much like a four-panel comic.

In the first one, Twain and Shania were returning home and both were at the door. He was carrying her luggage while searching for his keys. Shania was beside him holding his arm in a way that seemed intimate.

The second was taken when both were entering the house. Shania had turned to close the door so the angle rendered her face visible. Even with the shades and the bad angle, however, her tall build and other distinct facial features made it hard to believe this girl was not the world-renowned model Judy Shania Jordana.

One look at the third picture made it obvious. It was taken at dawn when the streetlights were still bright. Shania was walking out of Twain's house without her shades, and everyone could properly recognize her face.

The fourth was of her getting into a car and driving away.

From the time stamp on the bottom right corner of the pictures, it was apparent that these four pictures were taken over the course of the whole night. Therefore Aria's claim in the article that "Shania stayed over with Twain for the whole night," was beyond doubt.

But what did staying over entail?

In the past, though everyone knew Twain and Shania had a good relationship, both said that they were only friends so no one thought too much about it. Plus the age gap was so big that no one even thought about them as a couple.

Staying over at Twain's house was not a big deal to both of them and it was not the first time. To the media and the audience, however, this was big news because it was new information.

Lisa Aria had staged a beautiful comeback. In the past, people had mocked her for being a small reporter from the village who wanted to become famous so desperately she would make up lies and fabricate news. Now, no one was saying that. Seeing these four pictures, the public was in an uproar.

In the past, any conjectures from the media about Tony Twain's personal life were just that: conjectures. There were even rumors that he was gay. No one would have thought a soccer coach would get together with a supermodel.

This rumor should have been one involving a soccer superstar instead. Professional soccer had developed for more than a hundred years. There was a tremendous number of soccer players who had become superstars due to their high income. They dated various famous women and lived lives of luxury. No one, however, had ever heard of a soccer coach dating a model. Of all the great head coaches who had achieved numerous stellar results and left behind great legacies, how many of them had dealt with such rumors during their careers? There was not even one.

Tony Twain had done it. A sweet, beautiful girl who was 22 years his junior had followed this middle-aged man into his house and stayed the night. The hopes and dreams of teenage boys and middle-aged women were shattered simultaneously.

※※※

Just seeing Lisa Aria's name was enough to anger Twain. He called her immediately.

"Are you deliberately trying to make me angry?" he shouted into the phone.

"All I wanted to do was prove I'm not a liar, Mr. Twain," Aria said calmly. She was not intimidated by him.

"How did you know Shania was coming to my place?" He immediately asked the question he wanted to know most.

"She was going to be promoting the movie here in London, so I knew she would swing by Nottingham," Aria replied.

"You're quite smart, aren't you?" Twain ground his teeth.

This woman had analyzed something so trivial and spun it into a paragraph.

"I'm a woman, I understand the mind of a woman, Mr. Twain."

"But you don't understand me!" Twain roared, and then hung up.

He sat down defeated. He knew Shania's intentions, she probably wouldn't be angry when she saw this article, she might even be pleased. He was the only angry one. Lisa Aria had pushed him down the road of no return. The article had said Shania had stayed the entire night at his house, but what they did, no one knew but them.

Twain knew the phrasing of the article made it appear to the audience as though he and Shania had hooked up, but the problem was, nothing had happened between them. Shania might have confessed her feelings to him before, but he had not accepted those feelings and now their relationship proceeded as before. How could he explain all of this to everyone? Who would understand him?

※※※

"Since the reporter Lisa Aria caught Twain and Judy Shania Jordana returning to his house together," said an anchor, "Tony Twain has stood in front of the media and explained this incident for the first time today."

The camera cut to the vibrant outdoors. Twain's house was already swarming with reporters from various places. They were all very concerned with the personal life of this famously ill-tempered coach. Everyone wanted to hear him admit his relationship with Shania. Once he admitted it, this forgotten relationship would be officially established.

Twain stood in front of this bunch of excited reporters, looking at the microphones which were almost stuffed into his mouth. He coughed and the lively scene quietened immediately.

"I have nothing much to say, Lisa Aria's every word cannot be believed. Shania and I are friends, but our relationship is not what you all are thinking."

Twain was still as stubborn as a mule.

"But it's clear from her picture that you and Shania went home together," insisted a reporter.

The crowd was unhappy and bombarded him with evidence. They wanted Twain to clear everything up. Lisa Aria was also in the crowd. She raised her hand to attract everyone's attention.

"I can guarantee on my dignity, all of these photographs are real and are not fabricated or edited via Photoshop!" she declared.

Twain stared at her. His peaceful and quiet life had been destroyed by this woman. He wondered if the time he had mistaken her for a prostitute had hurt her pride so much that she'd created this mess for revenge.

This was too much. This was worse than when Twain gave Carl Spicer ten thousand plus books to sign on live TV!

"Your photograph is not fake, Ms. Lisa Aria," Twain said and stared at her coldly. "But that is not Judy Shania Jordana. That is just my newly ordered inflatable doll."

Everyone was shocked! Even Lisa Aria did not think that Twain would go this far to cover up his relationship with Shania.

"I saw her walk in and out!" she screamed. "How can an inflatable doll walk on its own!

Twain smiled. "It's the latest model. What's so impressive about it walking? It can cook, too. With the press of a button, it will cook me anything I want. Ah, the wonders of technology"

Suddenly, everyone felt very stupid.

※※※

The entrances to both Twain's house and the Wilford training grounds were filled with reporters who'd rushed there from various places around the world. When they huddled to discuss, they buzzed like a group of flies.

After Twain's "inflatable doll" speech, the people surrounding the Wilford training grounds retreated first. Only a few who refused to give up continued to camp at Twain's door. They wanted to mimic Lisa Aria's one-night stakeout in the car during the winter's harsh winds, seeing if they could dig out some more breaking news.

Twain did not entertain them. He would wave to greet them when he entered and left the house, shouting in a Chinese accent, "Hi my fellow partners! You all worked hard!"

As long as his heart was at peace, these reporters blocking the entrance to his house posed no problem to him. He even wanted to thank them. Now that there were so many more reporters here, the security at Branford Garden street was a lot better and there were virtually no thieves or pickpockets.

Twain made a note in his column to remind the Nottingham police to quickly present a medal to these heroes who persevered in protecting the citizens' property, openly complimented them. After this move, the reporters had no idea how long they would have to wait to beat a hasty retreat.

In another face-off against the media, Tony Twain was victorious. Unfortunately, this victory started a small fire on the homefront. He received a message from Shania that read: I am not an inflatable doll who knows how to cook, Uncle Tony! If you speak carelessly about me again, be careful I might fly back and hit you!