Chapter 378
Chapter 378
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Celeste quickly nodded to Zachary , then turned to Caleb and said , “ Sorry , I can’t go to the cafeteria with you . ”
Caleb responded gently , “ It’s okay . ”
With that , Celeste left .
Caleb watched as she and Zachary walked away and then went to the cafeteria by himself .
He hadn’t taken a break in a while , and two days after meeting Celeste , his official leave began .
During those two days , he hadn’t seen her again .
When he returned home , no one in his family knew he was on leave – everyone was busy with their own things and not at home .
When Jorge heard he was back , he asked him out for a meal
While they were eating, Xavier couldn’t help but gossip to Caleb .
“ Didn’t expect that Ms. Locket , the woman Jorge likes , turns out to be Cayden Sweeney’s student . She’s really something . ”
Caleb wasn’t familiar with the AI development and didn’t know who Cayden was .
Xavier knew that Caleb wouldn’t know . He himself hadn’t known either , until recently – thanks to Jorge , he’d learned a little .
Caleb normally had little interest in these kinds of topics .
But after a moment , as if recalling something , he suddenly asked , “ Between Cayden Sweeney and our country’s Mr. Zachary Newman , who has more influence in the AI field ? ”
Xavier wasn’t sure .
But Jorge knew . “ Mr. Newman . ”
Zachary had once single – handedly achieved multiple innovative breakthroughs in AI , and led a team that broke through various foreign technological blockades imposed on Ceravelle in the AI industry .
He had paved the way for the country’s current advancements . He had become someone the international community deeply respected and even feared .
It could be said that Ceravelle’s success in AI today owed much to Zachary .
Cayden might be impressive , but he still fell short compared to Zachary .
Even though Jorge wasn’t fond of Matthias , he could separate that from his respect for Zachary-
Zachary was Zachary , Matthias was Matthias .
Caleb rarely asked about things that had nothing to do with him . So , it was a little unusual for him to ask something like this today .
Still , considering Zachary’s reputation and their familiarity with him , neither Jorge nor Xavier found the question odd .
After that topic ended , Jorge suddenly chuckled and said , “ A while ago , when I had dinner with my mom and your mom . Your mom mentioned she was picking out a blind date for you . Now that you’re back , I doubt you’ll be able
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to avoid it this time . ”
Caleb was of marriageable age . His family had started bringing it up at the beginning of last year .
Back then , he didn’t object and didn’t really care either . 1
But now …
He lowered his gaze and didn’t respond .
That evening , after barely spending any time with his family , Caleb received a call . His leave was abruptly cut short , and he rushed back to the base .
He didn’t know if Celeste had already left the base , or was just off on some other task .
Three days later , after completing a mission , he returned to the data center but Celeste was not there .
Two more days passed . He checked the data center again – still no sign of her .
It wasn’t until four or five days later , after coming back from another mission , that he finally saw Celeste again- this time , in the cafeteria .
He paused when he saw her sitting there , head down , quietly eating .
A moment later , he walked over and sat across from her .
Seeing him , Celeste smiled faintly . “ You’re back ? ”
“ Mm . Just got back . ” Looking at her , Caleb added , “ I didn’t see you last week – thought maybe you’d already left the base . ”
Celeste replied , “ No , I’ve been here . I just haven’t been spending all my time in the data center . ”
Caleb nodded and then asked a question that had been on his mind , “ When are you leaving the base ? ”
Celeste thought it was just small talk and didn’t think too much of it . “ Tomorrow . “ .
Caleb paused . “ That soon ? ”
“ It’s not . I’ve been here for over ten days already . ” As she said this , she finished eating .
She wiped the corners of her lips and said , “ I’m done eating . Take your time . I’ll just- ”
Before she could finish , Caleb suddenly asked , “ Ms. Rodriguez , do you have a boyfriend ? ”
Celeste was stunned – she hadn’t expected that at all .
2
Before she could react , Caleb continued , “ If you’re single , what do you think of me ? ” 2
He knew it was a bit abrupt of him to suddenly say that to her . But with how busy they both were , and how rarely she seemed to come to the base , opportunities to talk like this were few and far between .
Who knew when they’d even meet again ?
Besides , someone else might make a move before him .
That’s when Celeste finally realized – this was a confession
Seeing her surprised expression , as if the thought had never even crossed her mind , Caleb said , “ You don’t have to answer right away . I just wanted to let you know if you ever want a relationship , or to get married and have a family , I hope you’ll consider- ”
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“ I’m sorry . ” Celeste came back to her senses . With a hint of awkwardness , she gently interrupted him.
“ Thank you for your feelings , but I’ve already been married ”
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Chapter 379