C170 Romantic Evening

As the Wood family's car slowly disappeared down the road, the atmosphere at the Chambers residence became much lighter. The tension that had lingered throughout lunch had finally faded, replaced by cheerful laughter and relaxed conversations between the Smith and Chambers families. I glanced at Sarah before looking at Alicia.

Unlike myself and Alicia, who were naturally holding hands, Sarah and Chris stood side by side with a small gap between them. Although they occasionally stole glances at each other, neither seemed brave enough to reach for the other's hand while their families were watching. A mischievous smile appeared on my face. I stood up and clapped my hands lightly. "Mom, Dad, Uncle David, Aunt Valeria," I said with a grin, "we younger people are going to spend the rest of the afternoon at the mall. We'll leave the four of you here to enjoy yourselves."

Mary laughed. "Go ahead. Young people should spend time together." David nodded approvingly. "Just don't come home too late." "We won't!" Alicia replied with a smile. I naturally reached for her hand. "Wife, let's go." Without hesitation, Alicia intertwined her fingers with mine. Chris looked at the two of us before turning toward Sarah. He wanted to do the same... but with everyone watching, he simply smiled awkwardly and followed behind.

Soon the four of us climbed into Alicia's Maserati. I took the passenger seat while Chris and Sarah sat together in the back. The moment the doors closed, Chris immediately reached for Sarah's hand. "My love," he asked softly, "are you alright?" Silence filled the car. I slowly turned around. Alicia nearly missed the brake pedal as she stared at her brother in disbelief. "My... love?" she repeated. She blinked twice before looking at me. "Did my brother really just say that?" I burst into laughter.

Chris immediately realized he had become the target of everyone's teasing. "What?" he defended himself. "You two call each other 'husband' and 'wife' every five minutes. Why can't I call the woman I love 'my love'?" Alicia laughed even harder. "Oh? The woman you love?" She deliberately emphasized the last words. "When did my brother become this romantic?" Sarah's face instantly turned bright red. She lowered her head, but the smile she was trying so hard to hide gave her away.

Chris folded his arms dramatically. "You three are unbelievable." He tightened his grip around Sarah's hand before intertwining their fingers. "Honey," he complained dramatically, "look how they're bullying me." Sarah couldn't hold back anymore. She laughed so hard that even Alicia and I joined in. After calming down slightly, she looked at Chris with gentle eyes. "You... really meant what you said?"

Chris nodded without hesitation. "Of course." "I love you..." He paused before smiling warmly. "...and I love our daughter too." Sarah's eyes softened. For a brief moment, she forgot Alicia and I were even sitting in front of them. I smiled quietly. Chris suddenly looked at me with a mischievous grin. "You know, Brother..." "There's a difference between boys and men."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" "And what difference would that be?" Chris leaned back confidently. "A man actually gets the job done." "While a boy does not even know the job." I stared at him for several seconds before suddenly understanding what he meant. A slow smile spread across his face. "Oh..." "So that's what you mean." Alicia immediately sensed danger. "Husband..." She narrowed her eyes. "Don't encourage him."

I laughed. "We spent our entire wedding night together." Alicia rolled her eyes helplessly. "Mike..." Chris laughed loudly. "Even then..." Sarah covered her face in embarrassment. "Chris..." "Can we please stop talking about this?" Instead of stopping, Chris proudly puffed out his chest. "My daughter is already on the way." He looked toward me victoriously. "See?" "I did the job and you did not." "That's the difference between us."

Alicia covered her face. "Brother!" "Why would you even compare such things?" I couldn't stop laughing. After thinking for a moment, I smiled mischievously. "Brother..." "You've explained the difference between boys and men." "Now let me ask you something." Chris folded his arms confidently. "Go ahead." "What," I asked calmly, "is the difference between a married couple and an unmarried couple?"

Chris opened his mouth ...then closed it again. Sarah looked at him curiously. Even Alicia waited for his answer. Finally Chris replied proudly, "They're exactly the same." He paused dramatically. "The only difference is..." "You are the prisoner." "I'm still free." Alicia laughed so hard that she leaned against the seat. I nodded thoughtfully. "I see."

I slowly lifted Alicia's hand, intertwining their fingers once more. "If I'm really a prisoner..." "Then how come I can freely hold my wife's hand wherever I go?" I looked toward the back seat. "But you..." "The man who claims to be free..." "Couldn't even hold Sarah's hand in front of your own family." The entire car fell silent. Chris blinked. Sarah blinked. Alicia suddenly burst into uncontrollable laughter. "Husband!" "I never knew you could argue like this!"

Chris looked completely defeated. He pointed accusingly at me. "You're becoming more and more dangerous." Sarah giggled before asking quietly, "Mike..." "How did you know?" I laughed. "We all noticed." "The moment we were leaving the house, the two of you wanted to hold hands." "But both of you kept hesitating." I pointed toward their intertwined fingers. "Then the second you got inside the car..." "The first thing Chris did was grab your hand."

Sarah buried her face in embarrassment. Chris scratched his head awkwardly. "...Was it really that obvious?" "It was," Alicia answered immediately. Everyone laughed again. The cheerful conversations continued until Alicia slowly drove into the underground parking area of the shopping mall. Since everyone had already enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Chambers residence, none of us were hungry.

We decided to spend the afternoon having fun together. We wandered through the entertainment centre, laughing like carefree university students. We challenged each other to arcade games. I narrowly defeated Chris in basketball shooting. Chris demanded a rematch. Only to lose again. "This machine is biased," he complained. "It definitely likes married people." Alicia laughed. "No..." "It simply rewards talent." Sarah quietly whispered, "I think it rewards luck." Chris immediately nodded. "Exactly!" "Finally someone understands me."

The afternoon continued with horse-riding simulations, racing games and friendly competitions. Everywhere we went, laughter followed us. By the time we finished, they noticed the cinema nearby. I pointed toward the movie posters. "How about a movie before we head home?" "I agree," Alicia replied. Chris looked at Sarah. "What do you think?" Sarah smiled softly. "I'd love to."

A few minutes later, the four of us walked into the cinema carrying large buckets of popcorn and cold drinks. Ironically... The movie they had chosen turned out to be a romantic film. As the lights dimmed and the story unfolded on the giant screen, one romantic scene followed another.

Without realizing it, I gently held Alicia's hand. She smiled shyly but didn't let go. Behind us, Chris quietly reached for Sarah's hand. This time... She allowed him to hold it. Neither of them said a word. Sometimes silence spoke louder than words.