At a coffee house,

Aria awkwardly shifted in her chair fifth time without knowing how to start the conversation with Winston Wen who calmly waited for her to speak.

​​

'Aria Cooper, why are you feeling awkward?' Aria asked herself and inwardly sighed. Probably because she already heard how Winston had responded to Zeke Wen and Harold when they suggested he should have a woman beside him.

Aria composed herself and asked, "Uncle Wen, do you have friends?"

Winston was amused by seeing her tackle from the bottom to avoid his unreasonable questions. He quickly realized the woman in front of him is too smart and came prepared. Other than the doctors being around him, he didn't actually have a person who he could call a friend and enjoy time or share anything.

"Are colleagues considered as one?" He asked and got a quick and sharp response, "Nope."

Aria waited for him to think and then he sipped his hot coffee before responding, "Then I don't."

Aria nodded and asked her next question, "As a doctor and one of the top surgeons, you have to converse with your patient so I don't think you are an introvert. So why don't you have one at the age of fifty?"

Winston knew why Aria was with him and why she was talking all that. Since she was yet to enter the main topic, he didn't bring it up instead he gave a thought to her question of why he doesn't have a friend.

Aria faintly smiled looking at him thinking about it seriously instead of steering it off. If he is a listener and responder, Aria was becoming confident to convince him or at least hear him speak his opinion. She sipped her milk tea and silently waited for him to speak.

After collecting words upon realization, Wintson voiced. He actually wouldn't have voiced it if it's the father or somebody else but he was kind of comfortable to speak with her.

"I actually had friends but once I started to keep myself too busy with the work to avoid one's thoughts, I ignored all of them, and then nobody approached unless they needed some help from me or my position. Soo..." His voice trailed off looking at her nod in her composure.

Aria knew whose thoughts he wanted to be avoided and how he lost himself in the books of medicines. As a one who loves the love stories, she weirdly wished he should have liked somebody who wasn't in love with another one or got a second chance in love.

She knew those were just her wishful thinking. The world and her life can't bless each one with love or a second chance.

Aria didn't bring up Emily, her mother's name, "When your world had so many people, why did you abandon everything for one?"

Winston could only sigh discerning he was too rash.

Aria continued keeping her cup down, "Once my husband was drugged. Even though he wasn't drugged with poison, it really affected him. He took a promise from me that day. If anything…"

Aria choked on her words before composing swiftly and continuing, "If anything happens to him one day, I shouldn't sacrifice myself behind him, which I probably would have done. He wants me to stay however difficult it may be, not because of me but for the ones who love us, depend on us, and look up to us."

Winston, who had lived his life double her life, couldn't help but smile. He felt too small by the maturity of this couple and how strong they were to be able to talk and be aware.

Aria continued why she narrated it, "It's lovely to hear, say and also make one as our whole world, that's the fantasy world we create for us, whereas the real world has many people, many emotions and lots of responsibilities."

Winston understood where she was coming at but he just nodded letting her speak.

"As a doctor, will you see one person killing themselves for another one? You will send them to a rehabilitation center saying that person has suicidal thoughts. In that sense, don't you also need treatment at a rehabilitation center for your solitudes due to one person?" Aria raised her brow indifferently asking for a response

Winston tried to suppress but chuckled. He couldn't believe she was so easily connecting two types of cases and sounded so damn right.

"You know, it's hard to perceive when it's from a girl who can't live without her husband even for a day," Winston commented and glanced at the door where Alan looked around and spotted his wife.

Arsh elegantly walked over to them first while Arna was pointing to desserts that she was wanted to eat without knowing her father's eyes were on his wife and her smile.

Aria glanced at Winston and responded with his line while her eyes stayed on Alan and her little babies, "Well, it's undoubtedly true. We make each day special as long as we could but that doesn't mean we aren't ready to face the issues life throws at us."

Arsh first smiled at Aria and sweetly called, "Momma." then he modestly bowed at Winston, "Hello Professor Wen." Then let his mother carry him while Alan tilted his head to cue her.

Aria nodded at him before turning to Winston who was clueless about what they spoke in signaling. "He… He just titled his head and you understood?"

Aria who pulled the pastry plate nearer handed a fork to Arsh, "Yeah, he said he will feed our glutton Snow and wait for me."

Winston: "..."

Aria chuckled looking at him at the loss of words. There was nothing to decipher in the actions when you know the person too well. Now she came to the main topic, "Hence you should have somebody who could understand even a lift of your finger, furrows of your brows." Then she looked at Arsh and asked, "Isn't it, Nemo?"

Arsh took a few seconds before nodding, "Yes, Momma. You can understand my silence or… I just have to turn to you, you will help me out."

Winston: "..."

He had thought little one was concentrated on the pastry. Instead of that, he was focused on how Aria looked at the situation.

Every time when his father or Harold spoke, they mentioned having a woman by his side to share, talk, and spend time with him. But she mentioned it like a mother, a caretaker, a well-wisher.

He saw Arsh feeding his mother when she and he didn't speak. His thought of a caretaker was replaced with a friend.