Rising from the Ashes (Andrew) novel Chapter 2512

Andrew studied him carefully for a moment before asking, "Augustin, are you dealing with some kind of romantic trouble? Or are you currently operating as a total simp?"

Augustin's face flushed red, clearly embarrassed. "A simp? Andrew, I'm not as pathetic as you're making me sound. I don't think I'm a simp… I haven't fallen that far. I just happen to like Mr. Kaplan's daughter, but she has really high standards for me, and I haven't met them yet."

Andrew picked up the thread. "Does she tell you that once you meet her conditions, she'll consider being with you? And in the meantime, she occasionally shows you a little interest, but not much. Most of the time, she's pretty indifferent toward you, hot and cold, keeping you at arm's length?"

Augustin's eyes lit up. "Yeah! Andrew, how did you know? That's exactly what it's like, down to the last detail."

Andrew shook his head and sighed. "You're not just a simp… This is way more serious. You're basically the ultimate simp. Can't you see it? She's stringing you along. To some extent, she's even keeping you as a backup plan, a toy to play with. When she's in a good mood, she messes with you for entertainment. When she's not, she ignores you completely."

Augustin's expression dimmed. "Okay, I'll admit there's some truth to what you're saying. But I really like her. She's also Mr. Kaplan's daughter, and winning her over would also benefit me tremendously. Either way, I have to try."

Augustin nodded firmly. "I've got it. But now that you mention it, Andrew, how do you have so much experience with this stuff?"

Andrew stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and said, "Because I've got one, two, three, four… Wait… five, six… Yeah, six girlfriends. All of this wisdom comes from experience, the purest kind of fieldwork."

Augustin froze, staring at him in awe. "Andrew, you're seriously… incredible!"