Chapter 2
I gave a lazy stretch and reached under the pillow for the diary.
After shoving him under the covers last night, I ended up reading a bit more.
[She hit me.]
[She actually hit me.]
[She looked so cute even when she smacked me.]
[She smells so good, like oranges from her shower gel.]
[I secretly kissed her hair.]
[I'm doomed. I must look like a total weirdo.]
[But I'm so happy.]
I closed the diary without a word, my cheeks burning.
Was this guy's brain wired differently or what?
I got up, washed up, changed, and headed downstairs.
At the long dining table, Sonny was looking sharp in his suit, sitting ramrod straight and reading a financial newspaper.
Sunlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, bathing him in golden light, making him look like a piece of art.
If I hadn't read his diary, I'd honestly think he was just some ice-cold CEO living in his own world.
I pulled out the chair across from him and sat down.
He glanced up at me, then quickly looked down, but I noticed his ears quietly turning red.
"Morning."
His voice was cool and distant, nothing like the 'hot damn' dork from his diary.
I stifled a laugh and replied, "Morning."
We fell back into silence.
The butler served up a fancy breakfast.
I took my time eating, watching him from the corner of my eye.
He kept his gaze straight ahead, sitting with perfect posture, acting like I was invisible across the table.
Go ahead, keep pretending.
After finishing breakfast, I wiped my mouth with a napkin.
"I'm done eating."
He just gave a noncommittal "Mm," without even looking up.
I stood up, ready to head upstairs, change, and go visit my father's company.
As I reached the stairs, I suddenly remembered something from his diary last night.
[She didn't say a word to me today. Does she secretly hate me now?]
I stopped in my tracks.
I turned around, eyeing Sonny, still playing the ice-cold CEO, and cleared my throat.
"Uh..."
Sonny stiffened, his hand frozen halfway through turning the page of his newspaper.
But Sonny still didn't look up, just let out a low, questioning grunt.
"Mm?"
"Uh... your tie looks really good today," I blurted out, grabbing the first thing that came to mind.
He had on a royal blue tie with a dark gray suit, and it honestly made him look even more handsome.
The room fell silent for a couple of seconds.
Then I saw his knuckles go white from gripping the newspaper so tightly.
He finally looked up, and his deep eyes were tinged with a nervousness I couldn't quite figure out.
"Really?"
"Yeah," I nodded. "It looks really good."
With that, I turned and headed upstairs.
I didn't look back, but I bet his face was priceless right then.
That night, I lay in bed and, right on schedule, opened today's "source of happiness."
[X/X/X, I'm on cloud nine!]
[She actually complimented me!]
[She talked to me first!]
[She said my tie looked good!]
[I'm gonna frame this tie and make it a family heirloom!]
[Does she like me back? She must be into me!]
[What color tie should I wear tomorrow? Red? Green? Or should I go all out with a rainbow one?]
I was laughing so hard I was rolling around on the bed.
This guy cracks me up.
In the days that followed, I fully switched into “reading his diary and feeding him exactly what he wanted” mode.
His diary said: [I really want her cola chicken wings. I once saw her make them in a cooking class back in high school, and I’ve been thinking about them ever since.]
The next day, I rolled up my sleeves and made a whole plate of cola chicken wings myself.
When the butler brought out the dish, Sonny was totally stunned, just staring at it.
He carefully picked up a piece, placed it in his mouth, and then just sat there, motionless.
I saw his eyes slowly grow red with emotion.
I tried to sound casual as I asked, "What's wrong? Don't you like it?"
He shook his head quickly, his voice thick with emotion.
"Delicious!"
"Seriously, this is amazing!"
That night, he demolished the whole plate of chicken wings, even the broccoli didn't stand a chance.
That night's diary entry:
[I finally got to eat her homemade cola chicken wings!]
[It's just like I remembered! No, it's ten thousand times better than I remembered!]
[Why is she being so nice to me? She must be totally in love with me!]
[I'm saving myself just for her! I'll only ever love her, no one else!]
[I'm so happy I could cry.]
I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt.
It turned out, winning over a goofy CEO who had been secretly crushing on me for years was way more fun than I had ever imagined.
I was starting to look forward to whatever new wish he'd written down in his diary each day.
It honestly felt like I was playing a dating sim.
And my "game character" was getting more attached and clingy to me by the day, right before my eyes.
On the surface, he still acted all aloof and cold.
But little things were starting to give him away.
Like how he started wearing a different colored tie every day, sneaking glances at me to see my reaction.
Or how his meetings kept getting shorter, and he started coming home earlier and earlier.
Or how he stopped sleeping in the study and began lying next to me every night, acting all prim and proper.
Even though there was still an invisible line down the middle of the bed, the warmth radiating from him somehow made me feel safe.
I thought we'd just keep living in our little bubble of sweetness.
But then, one day, I spotted something in his diary that stopped me cold.
[Her sister's coming back. What am I supposed to do?]
[I'm really worried she'll misunderstand.]
[I'm terrified she'll think I used to have a thing for her sister instead.]