The black sedan raced through the rainy night, the neon lights forming a continuous stream.
Mrs. Lopez's scolding voice overlapped with the pitter-patter of the rain outside the car.
Once in the car, Joan Lopez instructed the driver to turn up the temperature inside the vehicle, and then, using the towel prepared in the car, leaned over to wipe the water droplets from Katherine Lopez's face and hair.
Carefully brushed her hair, Joan Lopez then took out a thick blanket to wrap around her upper body, and then asked, "Are you cold?"
Katherine Lopez remained silent.
"No--"
As soon as she said a word, her nose itched and she sneezed uncontrollably.
In an instant, Joan Lopez's maternal love vanished, and she looked at Katherine Lopez, her heart burning with anger. "Not cold?"
"Don't you have to lie in the hospital to stop being so stubborn?" Joan Lopez scolded her. "How old are you now, still playing the runaway stunt? Do you think your mom and dad really don't want to do anything to you? This is just one time after another challenging our bottom line."
Listening to Joan Lopez's rebuke, Katherine Lopez wanted to fight back but couldn't say a word, feeling aggrieved. She looked out the window with teary eyes, and remained silent.
Joan Lopez looked furious, "Katherine Lopez, speak up!"
"What did I say?" Katherine Lopez turned her head with difficulty, holding back the tears welling up in her eyes, her voice choked, "You only know how to be harsh with me, Mom." Seeing her like this, Joan Lopez felt sympathy for her, and her tone softened a bit, "I was just talking to you..."
"Aunt Joan."
It was Frank Baker, sitting in the passenger seat, who turned sideways and handed his phone to Joan Lopez, "It's Uncle Ren's call."
Frank Baker's Uncle Tom is Katherine Lopez's father, Gary, and she took her mother's surname.
Joan Lopez was stunned, only just realizing that her phone had just run out of battery and turned off.
She stopped criticizing Katherine Lopez and took Frank Baker's phone to complain to her husband who was on a business trip.
Listening to her parents' conversation, Katherine Lopez turned her head defiantly, looking out at the night sky.
Thick rain and fog, the streetlights on both sides of the road were covered in water stains, making them dim, and the street was dark and gloomy, unable to see anything. Katherine Lopez was about to withdraw her gaze when she suddenly noticed the reflection on the car window.
There's hers, and there's Frank Baker's.
Realizing this, Katherine Lopez discreetly shifted her body to the side, glancing at the reflection in the car window.
The interior lighting was dim, but Frank Baker's profile was vividly reflected on the glass, appearing three-dimensional. His eyelashes were long and dense, as beautiful as raven feathers. His brow bone
Prominent nasal bone, clear and smooth side profile.
Katherine Lopez is an avid fan, and has met many peers who are both good-looking and handsome.
Only the faces of celebrities are often packaged and sculpted by makeup artists to present the most perfect appearance. But Frank Baker is not like that, his face is not "polluted" by any chemical products, and his overall demeanor is proudly clean, like the pristine snow that falls on the tree branches in winter.
This idea had just popped into her mind when Katherine Lopez felt it was not appropriate.
What is she thinking?
How can she have such a high opinion of a stranger who is going to compete with her for the doll house. She can't.
Katherine Lopez was about to look away, when the person in the passenger seat noticed and turned to look at her. Their gazes met in the dark glass.
That moment, Katherine Lopez's breath tightened, and her heart seemed to be filled with rainwater, dripping and swaying.
She fluttered her eyelashes, hastily avoiding Frank Baker's gaze.
However, she seems to have overthought it.
Frank Baker did not turn around because he noticed she was watching him, he just heard Joan Lopez's call and turned to get his phone.
". ."
The call ended, and the carriage fell back into a tranquil silence.
Joan Lopez's anger was soothed by her husband, and she no longer scolded Katherine Lopez, but instead started talking to Frank Baker, informing him about the current situation at Katherine Lopez's home.
Twenty minutes later, the black sedan stopped in the courtyard of a three-story villa.
Several people got off the car together. Katherine Lopez only realized that Frank Baker had arrived at the north city and gone to look for her together with Joan Lopez, without even stepping into the Lopez family's home.
Katherine Lopez ran straight upstairs, ignoring the two people behind her.
She got caught in the rain, and although her clothes had been dried somewhat, she still felt uncomfortable wearing them.
Stepping into the bathroom, Katherine Lopez had intended to lie down in the bathtub and soak in a comfortable bath.
Give it some thought, it's best to give up.
Katherine Lopez walked out of the bathroom after taking a shower and heard some noise coming from outside the door.
It seems Mrs. Lopez is talking to Frank Baker.
Katherine Lopez tiptoed to the door, her damp hair brushing against her, in an attempt to hear more clearly.
As Katherine approached, before she could say a few words, her door was knocked on. "Katherine."
"Hmm."
Joan Lopez pushed open the door and came in, looked at the towel in her hand, and said calmly, "Dry your hair and come down for dinner."
Katherine Lopez was stunned for a moment, not having had the chance to agree, when Joan Lopez had already turned and gone downstairs.
"..."
Katherine Lopez dried her hair and slowly went downstairs, where Joan Lopez and Frank Baker were already seated at the dining table.
"Let's have dinner." Joan Lopez called to the aunt at home.
Katherine Lopez glanced at the two seats, quietly pulling a chair that was a bit distant from the two of them.
Joan Lopez wanted to say something about her action, but gave up. Katherine Lopez was in a rebellious period, the more she wanted her to do something, the less she was willing to do it.
The restaurant Situlanya is filled with the aroma of delicious food.
Katherine Lopez ate her meal intently, not bothering to express her displeasure, and focusing on her food.
The three people ate their meal quietly.
When they had almost finished eating, Joan Lopez spoke in a mild tone, "Frank, from now on, treat this place as your own home, and don't be too polite with Aunt Joan and your uncle."
"Frank Baker said, "Aunt Joan, I will."..."
Joan Lopez said they should feel free at home, as their family doesn't have many rules. Joan Lopez and Gary are quite busy with work, so Katherine Lopez is often home alone. Now that Frank Baker has arrived, she hopes the two can take care of each other.
Hearing this, Frank Baker lifted his eyelids and looked at the person whose chewing motion had slowed, and nodded lightly in response.
"Look at how mature Frank Baker is," Joan Lopez also glanced over at her daughter who was perking up her ears to eavesdrop, and added, "You and Katherine are the same age, if you have any needs at school, just go find Katherine."
Frank Baker was silent for a moment, but before he could speak, Katherine Lopez abruptly put down her chopsticks, stood up hastily, and the chair scraped against the floor as she said, "I'm full."
After saying that, she didn't even look at Joan Lopez's expression, and directly left the Situlanya Restaurant and went upstairs to her room.
The dining room became quiet, and Joan Lopez rubbed her brow wearily, full of apologies, "Frank, I'm sorry, we've spoiled Katherine and she's become a bit willful and immature."
Frank Baker's expression remained as calm as ever. "Aunt Joan, I understand."
Joan Lopez paused, suddenly realizing something. She looked at Frank Baker with a sympathetic gaze and explained gently, "Katherine is a very kind child, and her behavior today is not directed at you."
She paused and said to Frank Baker, "Don't take it to heart."
"No."
Katherine Lopez buried herself in the blankets upon returning to her room.
She rolled around on the bed several times, and it was still quiet outside.
Suddenly, the phone next to the pillow vibrated.
Katherine Lopez opened the message sent by Janice Adams, asking if the revolution had been successful.
Katherine Lopez replied glumly, "No."
"...Didn't your running away from home change Mrs. Lopez's mind?"
"Yes. They are even chatting and laughing downstairs now."
"And you?"
In the room.
What are you doing in your room?
"Where should I go if I don't go back to my room?"
Janice Adams said with reason and evidence: "You should be downstairs. If you can't beat them, join them, don't you understand?"
Katherine Lopez silently said, "I don't want to join them."
"But there's no way not to join, the person has already moved into your house, it's not possible to just kick them out. Besides, Mrs. Lopez wouldn't agree to you doing that."
"Unless that person takes the initiative to move out, Mrs. Lopez might not agree, right?" Seeing these words, Katherine Lopez's eyes lit up: "How did I not think of that!"
"What?"
"I can't force people to leave, but I can make them want to leave on their own."
Janice Adams couldn't keep up with her thoughts: "Huh? How did you get him to move out on his own?"
"Let me think."
"Let's go."
Put down the phone, Katherine Lopez thought, what way can she use to make Frank Baker and Mrs. Lopez voluntarily mention the situation at their home.
After much thought, Katherine Lopez could not come up with a good solution.
Finally, she could only take out her phone again and search for the answer on Baidu.
After inputting the question, many similar questions and answers pop up
The landlord doesn't want to rent the house and asks the tenant to move out; some friends move into their own home, but their living habits are not good, and they don't want to continue living together.
Katherine Lopez looked closely and saw the lawyer's solution, as well as the friendly advice from a bystander.
Katherine Lopez finds the most reliable option is to sign a rental surveillance contract, using the terms of the trap to scare people away.
Frank Baker lives in her home without having to pay rent, and she is not the landlord, so they cannot make a legally binding contract.
"What legal effect do you want? You can't possibly really sue Frank Baker. Moreover, the third floor is your territory, and it's reasonable for you to make some rules about gender separation with Frank Baker. Even if Mrs. Lopez finds out, she probably won't say anything to you."
"It seems to be the case."
Yes, I understand.
Summer: "Clever. Then I'll go and think about the contents of the treaty."
I'll wait for good news.
Katherine Lopez was about to put down her phone when Janice Adams remembered to ask, "Oh, by the way, is that guy handsome?"
Without control, the face of Frank Baker, more refined and handsome than the male lead in a girls' manga, appeared before Katherine Lopez's eyes.
"What? Why aren't you saying anything?"
Katherine Lopez pressed her lips together, forcibly deleting Frank Baker from her memory: "Is this the key point?"
"Hehe, if he's handsome, you wouldn't mind living under the same roof as him."
Katherine Lopez felt a slight lump in her throat, although she felt that Janice Adams' words made some sense. However, the moment she thought about having another person living in the house, she felt uncomfortable with the idea.
Furthermore, she must make it clear to Mrs. Lopez and the others that the consequences of disrespecting her are very serious.
Sitting at the desk, Katherine Lopez racked her brain for half an hour, but she couldn't write a single clause of the treaty.
She scratched her head and ears, and decided to discuss it with Janice Adams at school tomorrow before writing it.
Suddenly, there was a commotion outside.
Katherine Lopez listened carefully, it was the footsteps of Frank Baker. Immediately after, there were sounds of opening and closing the door. Thereafter, it became quiet outside the door. Katherine Lopez sat in the chair for a while, deciding to find something to distract herself.
Suddenly, she received a message from Mrs. Lopez asking her to come down to her room.
Probably thinking that her daughter would refuse, Joan Lopez added another sentence: "Mom wants to apologize to you properly and also talk about Frank."
Katherine Lopez lowered her eyes and stared at the message for a while before replying, "Oh."
Katherine Lopez went to the restroom and was preparing to go downstairs.
The third floor has only two rooms. One is Katherine Lopez's suite bedroom, which has a study and a dressing room, taking up most of the third floor. The other is her room for storing dolls, which is in the opposite guest room, and is currently occupied by Frank Baker.
Katherine Lopez went downstairs, whether by elevator or stairs, she would pass by that guest room.
Leaving the room, Katherine Lopez headed towards the staircase.
As she passed by the guest room, she turned her head for no apparent reason. The door to the guest room had opened for some reason, allowing one to clearly see the situation inside.
Caught off guard, Katherine Lopez collided with the indifferent and apathetic gaze of the youth.
