Zachary gently exhaled and said, "Well, buddy, your idea is great, but Aunt Sienna is quite busy these days. She might not be able to visit right now."

It was the safest response he could think of at the moment. It sounded careful, neutral, and reasonable.

He honestly hoped it would be enough to stop Skylar from asking further questions tonight.

Unfortunately for him, he had severely underestimated his own son.

Instead of looking disappointed, Skylar’s entire face brightened immediately.

"Then call her now, Dad," he said without missing a beat. "I’ll talk to her myself. She won’t refuse me. I’m a very convincing boy."

Zachary was genuinely caught off guard by his son’s confidence.

"...Why are you so sure about that?"

Skylar looked equally confused by the question. "Because pretty people never lie," he answered simply, as if stating a universal truth everyone should already know.

For a second, Zachary nearly laughed out loud. He barely managed to stop himself.

"Where exactly did you hear something like that?" he asked, amusement slipping into his voice. "I think that’s not entirely true."

"It’s totally true, Dad." Skylar shook his head firmly, clearly offended.

"Oh, you think so?" Zachary crossed his arms slightly, already sensing trouble. "May I know who taught you that?"

"Aunt Sienna," Skylar replied instantly.

Zachary choked. Not dramatically, but enough that he had to turn his head slightly and clear his throat before speaking again.

"...She said that?" he repeated carefully, his calm expression finally cracking for a split second.

Skylar nodded with absolute seriousness. "Yes." Then he added confidently, "So she definitely won’t lie to me, right, Dad!?"

Zachary stared at his son in silence.

Somewhere between disbelief and reluctant amusement, he found himself losing the ability to argue properly. He could already imagine Sienna saying something ridiculous like that with a perfectly straight face while Skylar listened to her as if she were delivering ancient wisdom.

’This child really doesn’t make things easy...’

He dragged a hand slowly through his hair before finally sighing in defeat.

"Alright," he said at last. "I’ll call her."

However, seeing Skylar’s sparkling eyes, Zachary regretted his words.

"But," he added before the boy could celebrate too much, "you need to go to sleep first."

The excitement on Skylar’s face faded immediately.

"I’ll tell you tomorrow whether she agrees or not," Zachary continued calmly, his tone carrying that unmistakable finality that usually ended all negotiations.

Skylar stared at him quietly for several long seconds, clearly debating whether or not he should continue fighting for his cause.

Then, narrowing his eyes slightly, he asked suspiciously, "Dad... are you using your business voice on me right now?"

Zachary was stunned. "...What do you mean?"

"The voice," Skylar repeated seriously while pointing at him. "The one that means ’discussion finished.’"

Zachary can’t help but genuinely laugh. A quiet, helpless laugh escaped him before he could stop it.

"Sky, you notice too much."

"That means I’m smart," Skylar said, looking extremely pleased with himself.

"It means you should already be in bed, young man."

"See...?" Skylar sighed dramatically. "Daddy, business voice again."

...

At Orchid Garden Apartment.

Sienna stepped into her apartment.

The familiar quietness greeted her instantly, enveloping her tired body after a long, exhausting day.

In that moment, standing in her personal space, she finally felt herself breathe freely again.

She slipped off her heels lazily near the entrance before letting her bag slide down her shoulder.

"Finally... home," she murmured under her breath.

But just as she took another step toward the living room, the sudden sound of her phone ringing shattered the silence completely.

Sienna frowned slightly and reached into her bag while awkwardly balancing on one foot.

"Who’s calling at this hour...?" she muttered.

Her fingers brushed against the phone at last.

The moment she pulled it out and looked at the screen, her entire body nearly froze.

"Z-Zach..."

She stared at the name blinking brightly across the display.

"He...He called..."

Immediately, the heavy feeling in her chest transformed into something entirely different.

Her heart started pounding so fast ... it genuinely annoyed her.

"Why am I nervous?" she whispered accusingly to herself while pressing her lips together.

The phone continued ringing.

Sienna inhaled sharply and hurried to the sofa, nearly tripping over the carpet. She quickly sat down and cleared her throat once.

’Calm down. Just answer normally. He’s just calling. People call each other every day. This is a basic human activity, Sienna.’

She straightened up immediately, as if she were preparing for an interview rather than answering a phone call.

Finally, she lifted the phone to her ear.

"Hi, Zach, you finally called me..." The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted everything.

"Sienna," his familiar voice came from the other end, low and calm enough to make her chest tighten again. "Sorry for calling so late. I hope I didn’t wake you—"

"No," she replied too quickly. The idea of him hanging up immediately because he thought she was sleeping sounded absolutely terrible for some reason. "I just got home."

There was a brief pause.

Then, his voice could be heard again, "Okay..."

That single word carried the faintest trace of relief.

And somehow, hearing it made Sienna relax a little, too.

She leaned back slowly against the sofa, holding the phone closer to her ear while waiting for him to continue speaking.

But several seconds passed, and Zachary said absolutely nothing.

Sienna blinked. Her brows slowly knitted together as she pulled the phone away from her ear to check suspiciously at the screen.

’Huh!? The line is still connected.’

She frowned harder.

’What on earth is he doing? Did he forget he called me, or is this some new hobby of his? Making a dramatic call, then just pretending he’s lost in thought... How classic!’

Confused, she placed the phone back against her ear.

Her lips parted, prepared to break the strange silence herself, but before she could say anything—

"Sienna," Zachary finally spoke again, his voice perfectly calm, "someone wants to talk to you."

She was taken aback. ’Someone?’

Before she could even ask who he meant, a familiar voice rang softly through the speaker—

"Aunty Sienna..."