CHAPTER 348: CHAPTER 348: THE ENVELOPE REAPPEARS

Stephen Sutton glanced at Phoebe King, chuckling as he explained, "It’s not Audrey, but my student."

"Oh, I see..." The old grandmother gave Phoebe King a few glances, as though she had more to say, but instead exchanged a couple of pleasantries with Stephen Sutton before leaving with her little grandson.

Phoebe King actually caught onto the implication in the old grandmother’s gaze, likely thinking that Stephen Sutton bringing a female student back home might evoke some unsavory thoughts.

Stephen Sutton seemed to realize this too. After the grandmother left, he retracted his smile and with a stern face said to Phoebe King, "Stop following me."

Phoebe King chuckled, "I’m not following you; I’m just going home."

With that, she sped up and shouted to Stephen Sutton, "Well then, Teacher Sutton, I’ll leave you here."

"Vroom—" With that, Phoebe King revved the engine and sped forward.

Stephen Sutton’s stern expression did not improve, because she really hadn’t left; he was sure to bump into her again in the building.

Because the reason she came here was for him.

And sure enough, when he reached the building, he saw her car parked in the street’s parking zone. She stood at the entrance of the elevator lobby on the first floor, leaning against a column with a lollipop in her mouth, looking at him with an ambiguous smile.

Stephen Sutton merely cast a sidelong glance at her, then shifted his gaze forward, acting as if she was invisible, striding straight toward the elevator.

Phoebe King followed closely behind him, remarking, "I’ve been waiting for you forever; let’s save some electricity by taking the elevator together."

Without a word, Stephen Sutton entered the elevator, pressed the close button first, and then selected his floor.

But Phoebe King was hot on his heels. Just as the elevator doors were about to close, she slipped inside.

She glanced around the lit elevator car and remarked, "What a coincidence, Teacher Sutton! You live on this floor too?"

Of course, Stephen Sutton knew she was merely making small talk; this wasn’t her first visit here.

Yet, what did she mean by "too"?

Before Stephen Sutton could contemplate further, the elevator reached the floor.

As soon as the doors were open, he walked out swiftly, as if to shake off Phoebe King and to prevent her from barging into his home.

Seeing his actions, Phoebe King chuckled, nonchalantly trailing behind him, teasing his back, "Teacher Sutton, why so hurried? Forgot to turn off the gas at home?"

Stephen Sutton didn’t respond and took out his keys to unlock his door.

Once he opened the door and entered, he saw Phoebe King leisurely approaching.

Without thinking, he shut the door immediately.

Upon successfully closing the door, something felt off. Given her past antics, she would definitely have been trying to squeeze into the house behind him, even if there was just a crack left open. Why was she not rushing today?

Puzzled, Stephen Sutton didn’t immediately move away from the door after entering; instead, he peered outside through the peephole...

Watching Phoebe King stand at the door across from his, lowering her head to rummage through her bag for keys, and entering.

Before closing the door, she even smiled and waved in his direction.

Shocked, Stephen Sutton stood straight, his view deflecting from the peephole.

Stunned by the door, he recalled her previous mention about renting a place. Could it be this one she rented?!

Given the evidence, it seemed so. He really underestimated her knack for causing a stir.

...

Starfield had been preparing for their anniversary celebration, coinciding with May 20th - also tying in with "520" to hold activities.

These days, Shane Warner was busy with both Warner Group and Starfield, while Audrey Sutton accompanied him whenever she had no classes; he focused on his work, while she worked on her paintings.

The days felt full and carefree, and even stable.

On May 20th, Audrey Sutton was to attend the "Draw & See Signing Event", while Shane Warner had to be at Starfield for a product launch.

They had breakfast together in the morning and left together. Shane Warner dropped Audrey off at the venue before heading to the company.

Just upon arrival at the venue, Audrey Sutton bumped into Vanessa Sterling.

It had been some days since she last saw her; it seemed as though Vanessa only appeared for signing events, and was scarce otherwise.

"Vanessa." Audrey Sutton waved to Vanessa Sterling, who smiled as she approached, "Audrey, long time no see."

"Is Luna forcing you to stay home and rush your drafts? I noticed your updates are always plentiful."

Vanessa Sterling shook her head with a smile, "No, there’s really not much to do usually, so I stay home and work on manuscripts."

While speaking, Vanessa Sterling lowered her head, rummaging through her bag to produce a small gift box, "Your birthday is next week. Since I’m unsure if I can see you then, I brought your gift today."

Audrey Sutton was a bit surprised, reaching out to take the box, "You remembered. Thank you! I’m planning a birthday party at home next week; why don’t you come?"

Vanessa Sterling nodded, "If I have the time, I’ll definitely be there."

The matter wasn’t much about availability but rather fearing that Miles Sterling wouldn’t allow it.

Nonetheless, she hadn’t upset him recently, so if he was in a good mood, he just might agree.

The signing started at nine, and given the previous signing experience, Shane Warner wasn’t too worried about a lack of turnout; he even sent some "online opinion guides" over again.

Additionally, with Starfield launching new products today, Faye Xavier and her team were busy as well.

During the signing, suddenly a staff member approached her desk, "Audrey, someone asked me to give this to you."

Audrey Sutton paused her signing, glancing at the item in the staff’s hand, and was stumped.

It was an envelope.

Seeing an envelope like this now made her uneasy. She politely thanked the staff and took it from them.

Receiving an envelope wasn’t unusual; everyone assumed it was a letter from a fan.

Since the signing began, she’d received about a dozen letters, but all were in cute envelopes, unlike this traditional-looking one, and were given by fans in line on the spot.

Audrey Sutton placed the envelope thoughtfully into a small box beneath the table; she had no time to examine it now.

The morning signing ended at eleven, and she had to resume at two in the afternoon.

Afterward, Audrey Sutton took the envelope to the restroom, peeking inside while using the facilities.

It was photos again, but this time they were of Sean Warner and Stephen Sutton, seemingly clipped from a graduation photo, appearing rather blurry.

Her brother had mentioned being high school classmates with Sean Warner. By the youthful appearances in the photo, it was likely from that era’s graduation.

This was all known to Audrey, leaving her unclear about what the sender intended to reveal.

She truly wanted to confront the sender, questioning their cryptic antics, which left her thoroughly confused.

Audrey Sutton slipped the photo back into the envelope, placed it into her bag, and left the restroom.