Chapter 198: Chapter 199: When Was Your First Kiss
"I’m fine."
Thea Lynch steadied herself, holding onto Diana Dawson’s hand.
"Really, I’m fine, just lost my balance," she reassured everyone.
Foreman Chandler looked at her face, "Diana, quick, help Foreman Lynch back."
"Okay!" Diana nodded.
Back in the room, Diana helped Thea Lynch pour some hot water and turned up the heat.
"Alright, you go have fun now."
"I’ll stay here with you for a while."
Thea wanted to shake her head, but as soon as she moved it, it ached. Reluctantly, she lightly waved her hand, "I’ll just take a nap, I’ll call you if I need anything."
Diana wanted to say something, but when she saw the fatigue in Thea’s eyes, she responded and left the room.
Just as she stepped out, Diana bumped into Foreman Chandler.
Foreman Chandler was a bit worried about Thea Lynch and pointed to the room door, asking her, "How is she? Does she need to go to the hospital?"
"Foreman Lynch said she’s fine, just a nap will do."
"She seemed like she really needed rest, so I didn’t stay to disturb her."
She had been by Thea’s side for some time, and during every lunch break, there was no one in the office; Thea seemed to sleep very lightly. One time she went in quietly to deliver documents and ended up waking Thea up.
After that, Thea didn’t go back to sleep; she just got up and started working.
Foreman Chandler hesitated for a moment, "Alright, let’s go out first. I’ll make a phone call."
Depending on the situation, it could be serious, so it’s best to report to Director Silas.
——
Thea Lynch slept until the evening, looking refreshed when she came out to have dinner with everyone. Foreman Chandler and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
After dinner, someone suggested playing a game, the most cliché but thrilling one—Truth or Dare.
Thea didn’t drink and asked for a glass of juice, participating from the sidelines.
The group gathered in a circle, and the pointer on the table began to spin.
Halfway through the game, Silas Cheney arrived.
"Director Silas!" Everyone was visibly excited.
Silas greeted them and sat down next to Thea Lynch.
"Why did you come?"
"Are you feeling better?"
Both spoke at the same time, their voices overlapping.
Thea guessed that Foreman Chandler had called him, "I’m fine now, just needed some sleep."
Silas noticed the smile still on her face and felt somewhat relieved, "You should get checked out later. What’s going on with your health?"
"No need, I’m going to Westmere tomorrow. Let Grandma take a look at me."
"Right, right." Silas realized, "Then I’ll take you there first thing in the morning."
Thea took a sip of her juice, "Are you staying here tonight?"
"Yeah, you scared me quite a bit."
Thea laughed, her shoulders shaking, "What’s there to worry about?"
Silas accepted a drink from someone else, saying, "You probably got exhausted from overtime, and with us pulling you to play mahjong, if you had collapsed, I’d have to take responsibility with my life. How could I not worry?"
"From this month on, take it easy. If not for your health, at least consider me. Isn’t my life worth anything?"
"Alright, alright," Thea answered dismissively, "I get it."
"How can you be like this, working yourself to death for money?"
Seeing he came all the way here, Thea let him rant and didn’t refute anything.
Silas was about to say something when a wave of cheers erupted around them.
Thea and Silas both looked over, and the pointer on the table had stopped between the two of them.
Silas, having just arrived, didn’t know what game they were playing. But being a regular in nightclubs and bars, such games rarely ended well for the chosen ones.
It’s not like whoever gets picked wins a few million bucks.
Before anyone else could say anything, he voluntarily scooted away from Thea.
Thea: "..."
"Foreman Lynch," everyone was smiling at her.
Their expressions said it all.
Thea chose truth.
Immediately, a chorus of cheers arose around them.
Silas sat watching with his drink in hand.
"Then Foreman Lynch, draw a card?" Someone handed Thea a stack of cards with random questions; whatever you draw, you have to answer.
Purely a game of luck.
"Are they all questions in there?"
"There’s a pass card; you don’t have to answer. But there’s only one, hard to draw."
Thea nodded and casually picked a card from the stack.
"What’s the question, what’s the question!" Everyone was so curious about Thea; who wouldn’t be curious at a time like this?
Thea glanced at the card, smiled slightly, and placed it on the table, "Sorry, I drew it."
"..."
"Ah?!" Groans resounded around.
"Finally got Foreman Lynch, oh my God."
Silas clicked his tongue, feeling it was a pity.
"Take this card away. It’s no fun having this card."
The boss spoke, and everyone else had to comply.
He rolled up his sleeves, volunteering, "Come on, let me spin it."
Thea turned her head to look at him, raising an eyebrow.
Such a small game, too easy for Silas.
This guy is full of mischief; there must be a trick.
Before Thea could change her seat, the pointer on the table stopped again, indisputably pointing at Thea.
"Oh ho!!!"
Compared to the excitement of others, Thea tilted her head, her expression showing some helplessness. Silas exchanged a glance with her, smiling mischievously.
"You’re having a bit of bad luck, aren’t you?"
"I didn’t cheat; maybe you’re just too lucky."
Thea couldn’t be bothered to argue with him and picked another card from the table. This time there wasn’t a pass card; even the best luck wouldn’t help.
Foreman Chandler leaned in and asked, "What’s the question this time?!"
Silas took the card from her and read the question aloud, "When was your first kiss, and who initiated it?"
This question wasn’t hard for Thea to speak about.
But everyone else was excited, staring at her with expectant eyes.
Such games are more interesting when the boss plays, especially for someone like Thea, who never reveals personal details at work—a woman of mystery.
This was their only chance to peek into her privacy.
"What counts as a first kiss?" Thea asked.
Someone replied, "Just the first time kissing."
Thea thought for a moment and replied frankly, "Seventeen."
"!!!" Hearing this answer, another round of cheers erupted.
Beside her, Silas looked at her in shock.
Seventeen? That can’t be right.
Why hadn’t Ian Preston ever mentioned this to him?
"And, and, who initiated it?" Someone pressed further.
Thinking the previous answer was already surprising, no one expected an even more explosive one.
Thea: "It was me."
She wasn’t sure if this counted as her first kiss, but if it was just a matter of lips meeting, it was indeed when she was seventeen.
However, only she knew about this.
The real first kiss was in Westmere when Ian got drunk.
If counting the first kiss with emotional foundation, then it was recently at the airport abroad.
"I sneaked a kiss, does that count?"
