Our Love Story: Hard to Guard Against the Sudden Love Strike-Chapter 214 - 212: Scandal

The next afternoon, Sienna Thornton and Simon Forrester set off for Z City.

Wrayhaven is a district-level city under the jurisdiction of Z City, and driving from Wrayhaven to Z City on the national highway takes over an hour. They arrived in Z City in the evening and checked into the "Z City Hotel" where the class reunion was held.

"Z City Hotel" is the best five-star hotel in Z City. Upon entering the room and seeing the fairly nice environment, Simon Forrester laughed, "Your classmates are doing well, holding a reunion in a five-star hotel."

Sienna Thornton also chuckled, while organizing clothes in her suitcase, "I guess so. We were a science class, many won awards in math and science fields, and half the class got into Braden University and Q University; some went straight abroad, they should all be doing better than me now."

She wasn’t being self-deprecating; many high school classmates went abroad during undergrad and later settled there, some becoming doctors and researchers, generally doing better than her as an unemployed individual.

Simon Forrester feigned fear: "—Then I’m intruding into a world of prodigies, scary."

Sienna Thornton rolled her eyes at him with a smile, "If you’re scared, then don’t go tonight." After saying this, she took her pajamas and went into the bathroom to take a shower.

Girls attending important occasions always dress up carefully, and Sienna Thornton was no exception; she thoroughly bathed and was now sitting, refining her brows and eyes in front of the mirror.

She applied very light nude makeup, drawing eyeliner subtly, eyeshadow in earth tones, with lipstick in a pinkish girlish shade that brightened her complexion. She put on a black off-shoulder dress, her long straight hair naturally tucked behind her ear, making her look fresh and remarkable, completely non-aggressive, just like the pretty and sweet neighboring classmate everyone remembered.

To match her, Simon Forrester took off his daytime sweater and changed into a formal three-piece double-breasted suit, white French shirt, navy blue base purple polka dot tie, dignified yet not dull.

Before leaving, Simon Forrester bent his arm, hinting for Sienna Thornton to hold it.

Sienna Thornton smiled, complying, they entered the elevator, joking, "What if no one brings partners, will you be embarrassed?"

Simon Forrester looked at the changing elevator floor numbers, smiled nonchalantly: "Once I arrive, I’ll pay the bill first. I’m hosting, what’s there to be embarrassed about?"

"Haha, don’t do that, or the other classmates might feel awkward."

"I thought you prodigies are only engrossed in research and learning, never bothered by mundane matters."

"..."

-

The reunion was held in the hotel’s Chinese restaurant, a room that could accommodate hundreds but had only about fifty people present, with some classmates bringing partners, some couldn’t attend as they were abroad.

As Sienna Thornton and Simon Forrester exited the elevator, they bumped into Zion Quincy and Maeve coming out from another elevator.

Seeing them both, Sienna Thornton delightedly went forward to embrace them.

Simon Forrester also approached, politely offering cigarettes from a pack to Zion Quincy and Maeve; Maeve accepted, Zion Quincy declined.

The group headed to the room, with Sienna Thornton between Simon Forrester and Zion Quincy, Maeve beside Zion Quincy.

Upon entering, several conversing female classmates at the front warmly greeted Sienna Thornton, shaking hands, saying: "Sienna, haven’t seen you in years."

A quick-witted female classmate looked at her and Zion Quincy, exclaiming: "You two are really together, huh? How many years has it been?"

Sienna Thornton was startled, quickly wrapping around Simon Forrester’s arm intimately, introducing to everyone with a smile: "This is my boyfriend, Simon Forrester, an architectural designer."

The quick-witted classmate realized she had mismatched the couple, mistakenly pairing Sienna Thornton and Zion Quincy, the high school rumor couple, before Simon Forrester.

The atmosphere suddenly turned silent, with the sound of pins dropping.

But the handsome, deep-eyed official partner seemed unperturbed, his demeanor unaffected, continuously smiling, gentlemanly holding Sienna Thornton, guiding her to a chair, taking her coat.

Only after everyone sat down and continued chatting again did the official partner lean his head, whispering in Sienna Thornton’s ear: "So? You almost dated him before?"

As he spoke, he pinched her thigh under the table.

Sienna Thornton’s expression changed slightly, forcing a smile, turning her head and whispering: "Students always like to pair first and second place together, proving that early romance doesn’t impair studies, but instead improves them."

Simon Forrester curled his lips into a smile: "Whether it’s a rumor or not, let’s have a courtroom trial back in the room tonight."

Sienna Thornton: "..."

-

The prodigious classmates were punctual; within twenty minutes, everyone was present, with the absent reporting to the class monitor on WeChat, so the reunion officially began promptly at seven.

Generally, reunions involve eating, karaoke, mahjong, poker, partying till dawn, then back home to family. But the prodigies’ reunion involves cultured dining and discussions mainly on career development, international economic trends, stock market conditions, urban planning, and similar topics.

Simon Forrester was adept at these topics, thus chatting well with Sienna Thornton’s classmates without any cold moments, whereas Sienna Thornton, absent from reunions for years, felt somewhat reserved.

At the table, a classmate asked Sienna Thornton: "Sienna, why did you later study law? Your math and science were so strong, we thought you’d pursue a related major."

Sienna Thornton smiled helplessly: "Back then, I was determined to make money, so I asked the HKU admissions office which major could make money quickest. They told me economics or law, so I gritted my teeth and pursued both degrees. But after graduation, I found out they meant it’s easy to earn big money in Azure Harbor, not necessarily on the mainland."

After speaking, she laughed self-deprecatingly.

While reminiscing about their academic journeys, the classmates’ discussions naturally shifted to Simon Forrester.

Someone recognized him, suddenly asking, "Mr. Forrester, didn’t you appear in ’People Weekly’ before?"

Simon Forrester didn’t recall whether he had been in that magazine; as he tried to remember, Sienna Thornton answered for him: "Yes, when I first met him, I searched online which magazines he appeared in, then borrowed them from the library to read his interviews."

Simon Forrester didn’t know she had done this; while looking down quietly, another female classmate teased: "Judging by this, Sienna liked Mr. Forrester first?"

Sienna Thornton smiled without speaking.

Simon Forrester’s hand around her slim waist tightened, his lips smiling contentedly.

The reunion concluded before eleven, everyone hugged and bid farewell, agreeing to meet again next New Year.

Sienna Thornton, slightly tipsy from drinking a bit, wrapping her arms around Simon Forrester’s waist, said goodbye to everyone, then happily returned upstairs to her room.

Once they closed the door, she threw herself into Simon Forrester’s arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, puckered her lips, demanding: "You kiss me first."