Numbers Over Heart

I didn't know how long I had been asleep. I woke up because I was thirsty.Just then, I heard the fingerprint lock click open, but I didn't turn around.Eason Caldwell changed into his slippers and walked in. He stopped a short distance behind me."How are you feeling? Why didn't you reply when you woke up?"I didn't answer.He came closer and reached out to touch my forehead.When I caught the faint scent of perfume on him, I turned my face away. It was the perfume his secretary, Queenie Easton, always wore.His hand froze in midair for a moment before he lowered it.He said coldly, "Right. Your numbers look fine, anyway."He looked at my face, then, as usual, his eyes went to the top of my head.My voice was painfully hoarse as I asked, "Can't you turn off those numbers and just look at me for once?"I remembered him saying that the feature could be turned off.Eason was silent for a few seconds. Then he simply put the bag in his hand on the table. "These should help bring your fever

As I straightened up and put my shoes in the cabinet, I noticed two paper bags sitting on top of it.The logo looked familiar. They were the two cheapest items from the shopping pages Queenie had shown me that afternoon.She had already bought them."Kindness? She was picking out gifts for you during work hours, wasn't she? Didn't you pay her for that?"Eason frowned.After walking into the living room, I asked, "Besides, those gifts are for my parents when you visit them. Why did you have someone else pick them out?"He was silent for a few seconds before answering, "I just think women pay more attention to details. They also know what older people like."He paused, then said in a low voice, "Besides, I asked you last month what you wanted to give your parents. You said anything was fine. Your number was only 34 when you said that. Wendy, Queenie's number was already 70 when she only wanted me to buy her a drink. You never really wanted me to buy gifts for your parents. Don't you thin

On the last day of his business trip, Eason attended a dinner party. By the time it ended, it was almost midnight. When he returned to his room and washed his face, he stared at himself in the mirror for a few seconds. He noticed stubble on his chin and dark circles under his eyes. After shaking the water from his hands, he picked up his phone, only to find that his notifications were empty. He opened his chat with Wendy and saw that their last message was one he had sent more than ten days ago. That day, Wendy had been sick. Queenie had been trying on a necklace for the dinner at the jewelry counter. Eason had been standing farther away, so he had checked his phone twice. At the time, he had typed, "Do you want me to buy you something on my way home?" But she never replied. Then they started arguing and giving each other the silent treatment. He hadn't sent her another message since. Eason and Wendy had never gone this long without talking. In the past, whenever they had a f

For the next three days, Eason went to the flower garden near Wendy's apartment first thing in the morning and stayed there until evening. He never went upstairs to knock on her door. He just sat there. He would look down at his phone, then look up at Wendy's door again. On the third day, he saw Wendy leave the building with her parents. A car was waiting outside, and Wendy's stepfather was loading their luggage into the trunk. Eason got to his feet and stumbled forward. Then he heard the system's voice. "Today is the last day the Need Index can remain disabled. If you don't activate the index for any target, the system will permanently disconnect." He stopped about 50 feet away from them. Just as Wendy was about to open the car door, she suddenly turned and glanced in Eason's direction. Her eyes were calm and empty, as if she were looking at a stranger on the street. "Activate Wendy's Need Index." "Once activated, this target's index cannot be disabled again. Do you confirm