Aurora was unsure how to respond. She kept her lips tightly sealed and remained silent, as the explanation she had given earlier felt the most natural.
"Have you forgotten how to speak?" Alex asked again, his tone growing impatient.
Taking a deep sigh, she replied helplessly, "Alex, didn't you say earlier not to give the same explanation? I don't have any other explanation apart from that."
'Is she telling the truth?' Alex thought, looking at her innocent expression with confusion.
They stared at each other, remaining in silence for a while.
Soon after, Alex took a deep breath, stepped a few paces away from her, and placed a cigarette between his lips after retrieving it from his pocket.
He didn't light the cigarette immediately; instead, he gazed at the moon in the dark sky, trying to calm his restless thoughts. His suspicions about the girl grew when he noticed her walking toward Aurora's house in the middle of the night.
...
