Main Characters in This Batch

Evelyn (Evelyn Carter)

Adrian Vale (Mr. Vale / Baby boy)

With the manga deadline looming, Evelyn clutched that set of out-of-print books like a total lifeline.

Once she got home, she didn't even stop for dinner and dove straight into her work.

Time slipped through her fingers as the night outside grew darker. By the time she finally finished the last panel and stretched her aching back, she realized the clock was already pointing to midnight.

Her phone screen lit up, and the date flipped to a new day.

Her birthday.

Evelyn rubbed her eyes, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. The first thing she did was open the game for a fresh session.

It was a tiny birthday ritual she was giving herself.

The game loaded, and as per their agreement, she had to let Adrian know as soon as she was online.

However, on the screen, the boy was lying in bed. His breathing was steady, and he seemed to be in a deep sleep, looking quite exhausted.

Evelyn hesitated for a moment.

But then she thought about their promise, and how this boy spent so much time waiting for her alone whenever she was gone. She reached out and gave the screen a soft poke.

Almost instantly, the boy on the bed opened his eyes.

"You're here."

The sleepiness in Adrian's eyes brightened immediately, and he sat up.

"Yeah," Evelyn typed, feeling a bit guilty. "Did I wake you? I'm sorry, you look really tired."

"I'm not," Adrian replied, sitting up as his shirt slipped slightly with the movement. "The competition just ended. It went well. We should have the results in a few days."

Despite his words, he did look worn out, with faint dark circles under his eyes.

"You should probably get some more rest then. I'll come find you tomorrow."

"No," he shot back instantly, his tone stubborn. "I don't know how many days your 'tomorrow' actually lasts."

She always forgot that time in the game didn't sync with reality. A casual "tomorrow" to her meant a long, hopeless wait for Adrian.

"Stay with me," the boy whispered. His voice trailed upward at the end, almost like he was rareley acting spoiled. "Think of it as my reward."

Evelyn's heart melted immediately, and she gave in. "Okay."

Adrian seemed satisfied with the answer. He smiled and walked to the window, pulling back the heavy curtains in one go.

"Want to watch the sunrise?" he asked. "The view over the river is beautiful."

Since starting high school, Adrian lived alone in this high-rise apartment by the river for convenience. The decor was minimalist and cool-toned, just like his personality.

Watch the sunrise?

One person inside the game, one person outside, waiting for a sunrise together.

The feeling was... totally new.

"I'd love to," she blurted out.

And so, the two of them—one behind a screen, one standing by a window—waited in silence.

The horizon turned a pale dawn white, then slowly bled into a soft orange-pink.

The first ray of golden light broke through the clouds, dyeing the entire river surface in a dazzling gold. The sheer surge of vitality was enough to take her breath away, even through the manga-style filter of her phone.

It was stunning.

Evelyn's heart hammered against her ribs, and an unprecedented urge to create washed over her.

It wasn't for work, and it wasn't for her series; she just wanted to draw this moment.

She'd consider it the first gift to her twenty-three-year-old self.

She would draw the magnificent sunrise, the silhouette of the lean boy by the river, and herself, illuminated by the glow in front of her screen.

On the other side of the game, Adrian watched quietly, though his mind was far from peaceful.

This was the first time he had watched a sunrise with her.

Did this count as... a date?

The thought flashed through his mind, making his chest tighten. He pulled out his phone, snapped a picture of the most special sunrise of his life, and set it as his WhatsApp profile picture.

"Thank you for watching the sunrise with me," Adrian said softly as the sun fully emerged, brilliant and blinding.

"...No, it was beautiful. I should be the one thanking you."

Thank you for giving me such a special gift.

Even if it was just in a game, even if it was just cold lines of code.

In that moment, she truly felt a sense of surprise and a romance she had never known before.

Once the game time was up, Evelyn crashed and slept like a log. When she woke up the next morning, she felt completely recharged.

Right then, her phone started vibrating like crazy.

[Evelyn honey! Happy birthday! Mom sent you a huge gift card!]

[Happy birthday, Evelyn! Stay beautiful!]

...

Evelyn replied to them one by one and called her mother. They chatted for about fifteen minutes before a random local number called in.

"Hello, is this Miss Evelyn Carter? Your flowers are at the door."

Evelyn was totally confused. "Flowers? Is there a mistake? I didn't order any flowers."

"The address and number were confirmed. Happy birthday."

Who would send her flowers?

Full of doubt, she checked the peephole. The hallway was empty; the delivery guy was already gone.

She opened the door carefully.

A bouquet of beautifully wrapped champagne roses was leaning against her door, petals still glistening with water droplets—fresh and delicate.

A card was tucked into the bouquet.

She pulled it out. On it was a line of handwriting she had never seen before—sharp, elegant calligraphy.

[To my Evelyn: Happy 23rd birthday.]

There seemed to be another line after it, but it had been intentionally blurred out, leaving only a faint smudge of ink.

"To my Evelyn"...

The intimate address gave Evelyn goosebumps. She quickly ran through a mental list of everyone she knew.

She brought the flowers inside and immediately went on WhatsApp to ask who sent them.

[Who did this? Speak up now!]

Her friends all claimed it wasn't them, sending back a string of jealous emojis.

[Whoa, champagne roses! The meaning is 'I'm only devoted to you.' That's so romantic!]

[The handwriting is gorgeous, so much character.]

[Could it be a secret admirer from university? You were basically a legend back then; the line of people crushing on you could wrap around campus twice!]

But who would know her home address?

Since she didn't know who it was, she couldn't even say thank you.

After thinking it over, Evelyn just took a close-up photo of the roses and posted it to her Status.

[Such beautiful flowers. I love them, thank you! [Heart]]

That way, whoever sent them would probably see it.

...

In Ravenfall City, in the top-floor office of the Vale Group.

Adrian Vale listened expressionlessly to a department head's report, his long fingers tapping rhythmically on the desk.

His phone screen lit up.

He glanced at it casually, then raised a hand to signal the manager to stop. Under the man's anxious gaze, he confirmed the flowers had been delivered and opened WhatsApp.

The champagne roses he had personally picked were posted on Evelyn's Status with the caption: [Such beautiful flowers. I love them, thank you! [Heart]]

"I love them."

The "do-not-approach" chill surrounding him seemed to melt away slightly at that moment. His face remained neutral, but his eyes stayed fixed on the photo and that one sentence.

His assistant stood by, not daring to breathe, wondering why Mr. Vale had suddenly gone silent.

Adrian's thumb brushed against the photo of the flowers on his screen, almost greedily.

He remembered how he felt when he wrote that card.

"To my Evelyn."

The sentence he had erased was—

[I finally found you.]

It was too rushed; it would scare her. So Adrian had wiped it away, telling himself to wait a little longer.

He had already waited seven years; he didn't mind waiting a bit more.

He was going to be like a spider weaving a web, silently seeping into her life until she was used to him, dependent on him, and could never leave him again.

"I love them."

As long as she liked them, that was enough.

He turned off the screen and placed it face down on the desk again.

When he looked up, he was the commanding Mr. Vale once more.

"Keep going," he said to the manager.

It was as if the man whose emotions had just been sent spiraling by a single sentence was nothing more than an illusion.