Chapter 16: Needs Treatment
Vivian Lowell arrived at Julian Faulkner’s bedroom door and knocked gently.
"President Faulkner? President Faulkner?" she called out.
Not a sound came from inside. It was impossible to tell if Julian Faulkner hadn’t heard her or if he had and was deliberately ignoring her.
’What a petty guy,’
Vivian Lowell muttered to herself. She knocked gently again, then said, "President Faulkner, if you don’t say anything, I’ll take that as you giving me permission to come in~"
The moment the words left her mouth, Vivian didn’t give Julian any time to react and pushed the door open, stepping inside.
To give Julian a buffer and avoid walking in on anything awkward, Vivian opened the door just a crack and paused for several seconds.
Once inside, Vivian saw Julian Faulkner sitting at his desk. His laptop was open in front of him; it looked like he was working.
He didn’t even look up when she entered.
"President Faulkner." Vivian slowly walked over, placed the ointment she’d brought up from the first floor next to Julian’s hand, and said in a low voice, "Grandma asked me to come up and change your dressing!"
At that moment, Ms. Shaw, who was standing at the door holding a bowl of beef noodles, paused. A smile touched the corners of her lips.
’It seems the Young Madam can handle the Young Master just fine, even without the Old Madam’s intervention.’
At the desk, Julian Faulkner heard her and glanced at Vivian. His eyes swept over the ointment—the same kind she had used that afternoon, which he had then specifically brought back—but his gaze remained as flat and cold as ever.
"Just leave it there."
After speaking, he went back to staring fixedly at his computer, browsing through files.
"Julian Faulkner."
Vivian could tell by now. It wasn’t that Julian was too busy to pay her any mind; he was simply in a mood and feeling unhappy.
It made sense when Vivian thought about it.
He was a successful president, a master strategist who liked having everything under his control. And right now, they were still technically husband and wife.
It was only natural for him to be upset that she was having dinner alone with another man!
However—
Vivian studied Julian Faulkner.
’He’s so sullen,’ she thought. ’He keeps his thoughts bottled up inside. How is anyone supposed to know what he’s thinking?’
’He needs to be taught a lesson!’
With that thought, Vivian pulled a small stool over from behind him and sat down at his side. She propped her chin in her hands on the desk and watched him curiously.
"President Faulkner, you don’t seem to be in a very good mood. Did something happen?"
Julian Faulkner’s mouth twitched.
’How can you even ask me that?!’
His mind practically screamed.
Vivian, feigning ignorance, pouted and mumbled, "Your beef noodles look so delicious. I came up here to cheer you up without even eating."
"Seeing as how I’m trying so hard, can’t you just let go of whatever’s bothering you? President Faulkner, being sullen is bad for your health... damages kidneys!"
!?
Julian had been silent.
But when he heard those last two words from Vivian, he couldn’t help but look over at her.
Seeing that Julian had finally reacted, Vivian pressed her lips together to hide a smile and called to Ms. Shaw at the door, "Ms. Shaw, you can come in now~"
’I heard her on my way up,’ she thought.
Grandma’s good intentions...
’Mhm, I really was craving these noodles, but I also didn’t want my investor, Julian Faulkner, to go hungry.’
Ms. Shaw quickly pushed the door open and came in. She placed a large bowl of beef noodles on the desk, along with two smaller bowls and two pairs of chopsticks, before excusing herself.
The room was instantly filled with the aroma of beef noodles.
Worried the noodles would get soggy and stick together if they waited too long, Vivian quickly picked up the chopsticks, divided the contents of the large bowl, and served it into two smaller ones.
Being thoughtful, she even made sure to pick out the two largest pieces of beef and tendon and place them in Julian Faulkner’s bowl.
"President Faulkner, you wouldn’t refuse Grandma’s kind gesture, would you?"
Vivian finished speaking and pushed the bowl of noodles toward Julian.
Julian’s expression softened for a moment, but he quickly insisted, "I’m not hungry right now. You go ahead and eat."
’Hmph, still not eating,’
Vivian pouted and continued asking, "Oh, by the way, President Faulkner, how did you know I was at a restaurant in West Aethelburg at seven? Did you see me?"
"Then you must have also seen who I was eating with, right?"
!!?
Julian looked over, his brow twitching slightly. He looked even more displeased than before.
’She knows, and she’s still asking?’
"Oh, so you did see."
After saying that, Vivian took the sunny day doll that Eleanor Rhodes had given her from her small purse. "Tanya gave me this sunny day doll."
"She has one too. She originally wanted to give it to Professor Sterling, but unfortunately, he didn’t accept it, so now she has two and I have one!"
"This doll is pretty cute. Your desk looks a little bare, President Faulkner. How about I put it here?"
With that, Vivian placed the sunny day doll on Julian’s desk.
Julian hesitated for a moment.
After some thought, he asked, "Eleanor Rhodes... is that the other girl who was with you rescuing the cat this afternoon?"
"Yep!"
Vivian nodded. "Tanya has a crush on Professor Sterling, but unfortunately, he’s still hung up on his ex-girlfriend. The two of them have been at a standstill."
"Oh, right. Around seven, Tanya had just gone to the shop next door to buy the sunny day dolls. President Faulkner, when you passed by, you didn’t just see Professor Sterling and me, did you?"
"Ah! President Faulkner, so that’s why you’ve been in a bad mood all evening! Was it because of that? Professor Sterling and I—haha, President Faulkner, you—"
Vivian’s words came to an abrupt halt.
She knew when to stop joking. Julian didn’t really have any feelings for her; they were just husband and wife in name. It was understandable that he would feel uncomfortable seeing her with another man.
If she were to dig any deeper, she knew there weren’t any more feelings to be found.
Just as she expected.
As soon as she stopped talking, a strange expression flickered across Julian’s face. He quickly put on a stern look again and said, "I didn’t get a clear look. When I passed by, I could only vaguely make out that it was you."
"Alright, stop talking. The noodles are getting cold."
After saying that, Julian reached for his bowl of noodles, acting as if he were only eating it to obey Grandma’s wishes and not at all because the misunderstanding had been cleared up and his mood had improved.
For the rest of the evening, Vivian Lowell and Julian Faulkner got along quite harmoniously.
After eating the noodles, she organized some information and sent it to Eleanor Rhodes.
Eleanor Rhodes immediately replied with a "wry smile" emoji. It seemed that after her "grand declaration" about getting closer to Professor Sterling, she was already starting to have second thoughts.
Vivian Lowell chuckled softly.
Just then, there was another knock on the door. Ms. Shaw sounded a bit troubled as she said, "Young Master, Miss Rachel is back."