Chapter 273: Chapter 273: A Misunderstanding
Louis Grant was still fuming, but then he saw the person in front of him suddenly start to laugh.
The words he was about to say caught in his throat.
He stared blankly at Stella Sterling.
Back then, even though he hadn’t known Stella Sterling for very long, they had spent a lot of time together on the ship.
The impression Stella Sterling gave him at the time was that she was heavily guarded and rather cold. He rarely saw a smile on her face.
Stella Sterling herself probably didn’t realize it, but when she wasn’t smiling, she looked utterly unapproachable, possessing a kind of icy, stunning beauty.
She seldom smiled back then, but you could still tell she was a beauty—incredibly captivating.
He hadn’t expected her to have changed so much after more than a year; there was even a smile on her face now.
Her smile was like a thawing iceberg, and for a moment, he forgot how to speak.
It took him a long while to find his voice, and when he did, he stuttered, "Wh-what are you laughing at—"
After saying that, his expression suddenly changed again. As if a thought had struck him, he stared at Stella Sterling, his eyes filled with scrutiny and suspicion. "You can’t be Stella Sterling, can you? Who are you?"
This person in front of him seemed different from the Stella Sterling he knew. Although they looked very similar, there were still differences.
He hadn’t thought much of it at first, but her smile had taken him by surprise.
’Stella Sterling isn’t the type to smile so easily.’
’Could it be they just look alike and aren’t the same person?!’
Hearing Louis Grant’s last question, Stella Sterling raised an eyebrow.
Before she could speak, she heard Louis Grant suddenly exclaim, "Yep, that’s the feeling! So familiar! I’m sure of it now, you’re her."
Stella Sterling was silent for a moment before looking at him, speechless. "You’re crazy."
Louis Grant had already strode over, wanting to give Stella Sterling a big hug.
However, Stella Sterling put out a hand, stopping him in his tracks and preventing him from moving another inch closer.
Only then did Louis Grant remember that Stella Sterling didn’t like people getting too close to her.
So he obediently stopped, scratching his head with a grin so wide his eyes nearly became slits.
He said, "You saw me just now, why didn’t you call out to me?"
"Well, I wanted to see what other curses you could come up with."
She looked at him teasingly.
Louis Grant recalled that he had been muttering about Stella Sterling, so he scratched his head awkwardly and tried to defend himself. "I wasn’t cursing you! I was just stating the facts."
"I mean, we’re friends, right? It was one thing for you to leave without a word, but to come back and not even visit me... that’s just heartbreaking."
Stella Sterling replied, "I had some matters to attend to. As soon as I finished, I ran into you."
"Matters to attend to? What kind of business could a small fry like you have?"
"Besides, other than your boss, no one else was allowed to stay in that conference hall!"
Louis Grant didn’t believe Stella Sterling’s words at all.
’Small fry?’
Muttering the term to herself, Stella Sterling chuckled. ’When did I become a small fry? Has this guy misunderstood something?’
Just then, Louis Grant continued, "Since you were going to join another base, why didn’t you just stay at Meridia Base? I know with your medical skills, every base would want to recruit you, but with the situation so complicated now, you would have been better off staying at Meridia Base."
"Ethan Young even gave you a special invitation back then. The benefits for those specially invited by Meridia Base are excellent. Plus, you’re my friend, so I could’ve looked out for you. And that guy you saved, Basil Xavier—he’s no simple character either."
"With all those connections, as long as you didn’t cause some world-ending disaster, I guarantee you could have lived freely and without a care. I just don’t get why you had to leave."
"And if you had to leave, fine, but you chose to join another base. You might as well have just stayed at Meridia Base in the first place."
Louis Grant rambled on, not giving her any chance to speak.
As he talked, he and Stella Sterling found a place to sit down.
Finally, he looked at Stella Sterling. "So, which base did you end up joining? How strong are they?"
Then, before Stella Sterling could answer, he started muttering to himself again. "No other base is as good as Meridia Base. I think you should just quit your current base and come back here."
This idea had been in Louis Grant’s mind for over a year now; he just wanted Stella Sterling to stay at Meridia Base.
That way, they could hang out often. Even if Stella Sterling wasn’t interested in him, it didn’t matter. Just being around her as a friend was interesting enough.
But back then, Stella Sterling had shown no intention of staying.
Now, seeing her again, the thought resurfaced, and he wanted to persuade Stella Sterling to stay here at Meridia Base.
In this apocalyptic world, once you parted ways with someone, it was incredibly difficult to see them again.
Louis Grant had learned this firsthand over the past year.
It wasn’t like before, when meeting up after being apart was a simple matter.
In these times, once you were separated, it was hard to even know if the other person was alive or dead. You might never see them again in your lifetime.
So this time, Louis Grant spoke with more earnestness than ever before.
Whether as a friend or as someone with a secret crush, he hoped Stella Sterling would stay here.
Besides, in his view, even just for her own future, staying at Meridia Base was her best option.
Seeing that Louis Grant was about to start talking again, Stella Sterling cut him off directly. "Stop, stop, stop. Why do you talk so much? Can you let me get a word in?"
Louis Grant did indeed shut his mouth.
He scratched his head in embarrassment; he really had been talking a bit too much. "I was just genuinely thinking about what’s best for you."
Stella Sterling looked up. Of course, she knew he meant no harm. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have stood here listening to him for so long.
She looked at him suspiciously. "Have you just been cooped up inside your Meridia Base this whole time? Haven’t you gone outside? Haven’t you heard any news from the outside world?"
Louis Grant shook his head, looking at her in confusion. "No, I go out on missions with people from our base all the time."
"Hey, don’t look down on me. I may be a second-gen kid with connections at Meridia Base, but I’m no spoiled brat."
"For the past year, I’ve been working really hard to earn my own points and contribute to the base. Don’t get the wrong idea; I’m not some freeloader living off my family."
At this, Louis Grant raised his eyebrows smugly. "And I bet you didn’t know this, but through my own efforts, I’ve become a team captain at the base. I have quite a few people under me now!"
It was true he had a good background at the base, but he had also been constantly working hard to improve and strengthen himself.
