The Beginning Of All Sins

Claude mentioned the name of the movie to Olivia. It turned out to be her favorite. She took a moment before responding.

[I've seen it.]

[You have?] Claude replied, surprised. He suggested another movie. This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.

To Olivia's amazement, she found she liked that one too. She was at a loss for words.

[Don't tell me you've seen this one too?] Claude texted.

Although they were just exchanging texts without any emojis, Olivia could picture him laughing if they were talking in person. She imagined him looking at her with a soft and calm gaze. [I have.]

[It seems there's someone out there who shares my taste. Guess I'm not alone anymore.] Claude replied.

Olivia clutched her phone tightly as she read his message and sat down on the carpet under the couch.

Tyler was unusually eager to get home that evening. After dropping Naomi off at the hospital, he didn't linger and headed straight back.

The driver opened the door for him as he arrived. The house was unusually quiet due to the dreary weather, and it was only 7 pm.

No one was in the living room, so he went directly upstairs and entered the bedroom. There, he found Olivia sitting on the carpet, engrossed in her phone.

"What are you up to?" Tyler asked, wondering who she was messaging.

Startled, Olivia looked up quickly. Seeing Tyler, she instinctively covered her phone screen with her chest.

Tyler hadn't been suspicious at first, but her reaction made him focus on her phone.

Olivia set her phone down on the carpet and stood up, trying to appear relaxed. "You're home already, Tyler?" she asked, noticing him staring at her phone. She instinctively lowered her head, her heart pounding.

Tyler shifted his gaze from the phone to Olivia. "Who are you texting?"

"A classmate," she responded.

He approached her. "Didn't the doctor say to use your phone less?"

"I don't use it much. Just a bit bored from studying," Olivia explained.

Tyler continued walking toward her. Olivia instinctively stepped back, her eyes widening slightly.

He stopped, noticing her reaction. "What? Am I that scary?"

Olivia looked away and murmured, "No."

Tyler paused, looking at her. Her expression had gone blank because of his presence. His eyes darkened. "You're studying?"

"Yes."