The CEO's Seductive Doll-Chapter 42: The Doll and Dishes

After Evan tried to regain Eternity’s affection, the doll decided to ignore him and just do the dishes.

Eternity removed her knitted cardigan and placed it on a nearby hanger before taking the plates from the table. She headed to the sink and threw away the food scraps in the trashcan, just under the sink.

Once the plates were free from the remaining food, she was about to start washing them when, much to her surprise, Cynthia appeared beside her.

"Let me help in washing the plates!" Cynthia offered.

"Oh!" Eternity exclaimed. "I could never ask a guest to wash their plate!"

Cynthia shook her head.

"I don’t mind doing them," she said, rolling up her sleeves. "Besides, it’s the least I can do since you prepared brunch for us."

Seeing that Cynthia had no plans of accepting a ’No’ for an answer, Eternity decided to let her help.

They started scrubbing the plate, and there was a weird silence between them. Cynthia, whom Eternity had the first impression of being a rather talkative and bubbly person, was silent as she scrubbed the plate with intense focus.

Eternity thought that the silence was the perfect opportunity for her to get to know Cynthia.

"So," Eternity drawled, trying to start the conversation. "I heard you were a lonely kid growing up."

Cynthia paused, looking up from her plate to look at Eternity.

"Of all things that Evan could mention about me to you," Cynthia said in disbelief. "He mentioned my inability to hold a serious bond with other people."

Eternity realized that this was not the best conversation to start, and she might have accidentally offended her sister-in-law. She was about to apologize for her crudeness when Cynthia suddenly laughed, shaking her head.

"That Evan," she managed to say mid-giggles. "He’s intentionally shining a bad light on me."

Eternity shook her head immediately, not wanting Cynthia to think that her brother was badmouthing her.

"Oh, nothing of that sort!" Eternity clarified. "He told me you’re an earnest person."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow.

"Did he really?"

Eternity nodded aggressively.

This made Cynthia laugh again.

"Evan was right, though." She said this as she finally continued washing the dishes. "I grew up quite lonely. Oh, not because Papa did not show me enough love, mind you." She added defensively. "But it was more like, I had a hard time connecting with my peers."

Eternity nodded, showing understanding.

"I can imagine that must have been tough," she said gently. "Sometimes, it takes time to find people who truly understand us."

"Exactly." Cynthia smiled gratefully. "I always felt like an outsider, like I couldn’t quite fit in."

"Is there any particular reason for that?" Eternity asked.

Cynthia hummed before proceeding to answer her question.

"I was shy and had trouble opening up to others." She chuckled as she remembered a memory, but judging from her tone, it wasn’t a fond memory. "It made me feel like something was wrong with me."

Eternity continued washing the dishes, giving Cynthia space to share her story.

"I don’t know what Evan told you about my friendship troubles, but there was a time that my group of friends in middle school watched a chick flick in the cinema. They all wore matching clothes to fit the theme of the movie."

"That seems fun," Eternity noted.

Cynthia shook her head.

"The sad thing was, they didn’t even bother to invite me!"

"Oh," Eternity looked down, feeling guilty about what she had previously said.

Cynthia chortled at her reaction.

"No worries, Eternity! It was a memory from long ago; it doesn’t matter now that my middle school ’friends’ didn’t think it was a good idea to invite me to their hangouts."

"But you must’ve been devastated!" Eternity frowned. "You were only a teenager and to have experienced being left out..."

Eternity didn’t even finish her sentence. She could only try to hide her trembling lips.

Cynthia smiled at her, giving her hope that this story had a happy ending.

"But as I grew older," Cynthia continued, "I realized that it wasn’t that there was something wrong with me!" Her icy-blue eyes were bright with hope. "I just had a different way of approaching friendships and relationships."

"Perhaps you wanted deeper connections?" Eternity suggested.

Cynthia nodded.

"I wanted a relationship that wasn’t superficial, where I would eat lunch with this set of people but would end up ignoring each other when the bell rang. I want authenticity."

Eternity nodded, understanding where she was coming from even though she herself had no social life outside of Evan.

"That’s completely valid. It’s important to find people who appreciate you for who you truly are."

"Exactly." Cynthia smiled warmly. "And that’s what I found during my time abroad. It was liberating to meet people from different backgrounds who didn’t judge me based on my past or preconceived notions. I felt free to be myself."

"That sounds wonderful." Eternity sounded genuinely happy for Cynthia. "I’m glad you managed to find people who you can finally call a ’friend’."

Cynthia’s eyes twinkled with gratitude.

"Thank you," she smiled. "It taught me to be myself and to embrace my quirks and uniqueness."

"You’re an amazing person, Cynthia." And Eternity didn’t say it just to flatter her.

She actually meant it.

Cynthia blushed, looking a bit shy at the compliment.

"Oh, stop it! You’re making me blush," she said, playfully waving her hand.

As they finished the dishes, Cynthia dried her hands and turned to Eternity with a warm expression.

"Thank you for letting me help with the dishes."

Eternity looked at her blankly for a few seconds before urgently shaking her head.

"Oh no!" She exclaimed. "I should thank you for helping me do the dishes!"

Cynthia merely chuckled at Eternity’s fervent reaction.

"It was my pleasure, Eternity. Besides, as I’ve told you, it’s the least I could do!"

Eternity nodded, having a basic understanding of Cynthia’s background.

As they finished up in the kitchen, Eternity offered to make some tea for Cynthia and Evan to enjoy in the living room. The Holz siblings settled on the couch, sipping their tea.

"So, how did you and Evan meet?" Cynthia asked, her curiosity evident.