Chapter 22 New Beginnings Old Doubts
“Okay,” Chandler murmured, giving a slight nod before walking out of the ward. When he looked back and saw that Meryl was still standing there, frozen, he walked back to her and grabbed her wrist. “What are you waiting for?” Chandler asked with a smile tugging at his lips, his deep voice carrying a hint of cheerfulness. “Come on. Let’s go to City Hall.” “Wait, what?” Meryl was caught off guard. She then found herself going along with him, though her brain was struggling to process it all. “We’re going now?” she asked, clearly taken aback. She felt like everything was moving a little too fast. “Uh-huh. Is something wrong?” Chandler asked, looking back and locking eyes with Meryl. She hesitated, “I…don’t have my documents with me! I need to go back and get them.”
As Meryl thought of that home in question, her gaze dropped to the floor. She reflected, “I’ve been gone for two days, and no one at home bothered to call to check on me. I guess I’m really just a nobody.” But Meryl had already made peace with it because she was going to have a new home soon. She suggested, “How about we get the marriage license tomorrow instead?” Chandler considered it for a couple of seconds and nodded. “That works.” As they spoke, Meryl’s stomach rumbled loudly. She froze and quickly covered it with her hand, a blush of embarrassment crossing her face. She peeked at Chandler from the corner of her eye, worrying that he found her behavior embarrassing. Meryl was mortified, but then she heard him say, “I’m hungry too.” Chandler’s voice was gentle as he opened the passenger door, gesturing for her to get in. “Would you like to eat out or at home?” Meryl then instinctively turned to look at him and saw that he seemed perfectly normal, not the slightest bit bothered. She was somewhat reassured but didn’t dare to decide on her own, worried he might get annoyed. “I’ll go with whatever you decide.”
Chandler saw that Meryl was a bit wound up. Instead of saying anything, he simply nodded and slid into the driver’s seat. He then drove through the busiest streets of Kingsdom and finally stopped outside an unassuming alley.
Down at the end of the alley was a small restaurant, but what it lacked in size, it made up for in cleanliness. After placing their order, Chandler stepped out to take a phone call. When he returned, the food had just been served. They hadn’t ordered much, but each dish was light and delicate, perfect for someone like Meryl, who was recovering. “I come here all the time. The food here is pretty good. Try it,” Chandler urged as he moved the plates in front of her. Meryl blinked and thought, “There’s so much food. I can’t finish it all by myself.” She pushed one of the dishes back toward Chandler and said, “You should have some too.” Just then, the owner came out from the back and was surprised to see Chandler. “Well, look who’s back! Didn’t you already stop by this morning?” she asked. Upon hearing that, Meryl turned to look at him skeptically.
Chandler cleared his throat, a rare touch of embarrassment crossing his usually calm and aloof face, “You must have me mixed up with someone else, ma’am. Business must be booming, huh?” The owner scratched her head in confusion and wondered, “Did I really? Wasn’t he the first customer who came in at six this morning, before the sun was even up? We even chatted for a bit.” At that time, she had asked, “Going to work this early?” Chandler had replied, “Uh-huh. I’m off to see someone important later.” The owner then wondered again if she really had mistaken him for someone else. Though she found it odd, she didn’t say anything else. Beside him, Meryl pressed her lips together and stopped moving the dishes toward Chandler, feeling something she couldn’t quite put into words. Chandler had said he was hungry just to avoid making her feel awkward, and it made her think, “Could someone actually care about my feelings?” Meryl twisted the fabric of her dress in her fingers, suddenly thinking that he might not make such a lousy husband after all. Right then, Chandler turned to look at her intently and asked, “How about I go with you to grab your documents after we finish eating?” His voice was as smooth and pleasant as ever.