Gently, Adro helped Grace back into the wheelchair. Then he let go of his hand after making sure the girl was seated properly.
"Th-thank you," Grace said, hanging her face down.
Adro nodded slightly. "You're welcome!" Then he placed the cup on the counter. "You should ask for help if you need it. That was very dangerous. Just imagine if you were alone here, and no one could help you."
"That's because I'm used to it," Grace muttered.
"Pardon?" Adro looked at Grace and squinted his eyes. "Did you say something?"
Grace shook her head and gave an awkward smile. "Nothing. It's not important."
"What were you trying to do? Let me help you with it," Adro asked.
"I wanted to prepare a drink for us. I was thirsty, and you might be too," Grace replied as she moved her wheelchair back when Adro stepped to the side of the counter.
"I see. Can I use the cups over here?" Adro pointed to the dish rack.
Grace nodded and pointed upward. "I usually use cups in the hanging cabinet, but since I can't reach them, I took the ones from the dish drying rack. I don't have a dishwasher here, so I do the dishes manually."
"Then I'll get the ones from where they should be." Adro put the cups that had nearly fallen back on the dish rack.
The tall man opened the white hanging kitchen cabinet door. Inside were a variety of pretty plates, bowls, cups, and mugs, mostly made of ceramics, which appeared to be handcrafted. He took two mugs and closed the cabinet door.
"The juice is in the bottle." Grace pointed to a large plastic juice bottle on the counter.
"All right," Adro replied. However, when his hand touched the bottle, his eyes bulged. "Oh!"
Grace almost jumped. "My God! What's wrong?"
"This bottle is cold," Adro said, examining the frosted bottle.
"Oh, of course it's because it was just taken out of the fridge. Don't you like cold drinks—" Grace halted her words as she realized something. "Oh, could it be that back in your home, there's no refrigerator?"
"We have a cooler room in the palace. It's a tightly closed chamber placed underground. We receive ice blocks from ice miners, who deliver them once a week, but I don't know if you have one in this rather small house." Adro explained.
"Well… I have a smaller version of it here. We call it a Refrigerator or Fridge." Grace said before moving her wheelchair towards the refrigerator.
When Grace managed to open it, Adro approached her just to gape his mouth open once he felt the cold air coming out of the cabinet, which had various types of food and drinks inside.
"This one doesn't require ice blocks to keep it cold. Thanks to the inventor and scientist who invented this, we only need electricity to make it work. It can even produce ice cubes instead of using ice blocks." Grace explained.
"And what is electricity?" Adro asked.
"Electricity is a power source used to operate various things in this world, such as lights, refrigerators, air conditioning, TVs, and more. They are called electronics. In this world, people would find it very difficult to live without electricity." Grace explained.
"There are some words that were unfamiliar to me, but thank you for explaining," Adro said with a slight smile and his forehead still slightly furrowed.
Grace chuckled. "I know. It's okay. I'll explain them to you over time if you stay here."
"Pardon, so is it true that you live alone here?" Adro asked.
"Of course. I'm an adult, and unfortunately, I don't have a family, so I have to live alone since my grandmother passed away." Grace explained as she put the juice back in the refrigerator.
Adro took his mug and took a sip of the refreshingly cold orange juice. He rarely got to enjoy drinks like this in his original world because the refrigeration room was only used for storing perishable food and shouldn't be frequently opened to keep the ice from melting.
"I hope I won't trouble you too much with my limited knowledge, but you don't need to worry, as I'm a quick learner," Adro said.
Grace quickly shook her head. "It's not a problem, Adro. You've been very helpful to me with my current condition. Sarah was right—I can't do everything on my own. However, I think I should explain to you as early as possible that I can't provide food and facilities up to the standards of your kingdom."
"Where did you learn about my kingdom's standards?" Adro asked, giving an amused smile.
"Well... it's evident from your royal attire. It's luxurious, you know."
"You have a keen judgment. But I'll say that you're too quick to judge things,"
Grace blinked multiple times. "I-I'm... I'm sorry if I offended you."
"Not at all. Sometimes, quick judgment can be a good thing. It means you can make instant decisions in tight situations," Adro said.
"I hope that's true, but, unfortunately, I don't have that quality," Grace chuckled, lowering her face.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Grace turned to her front door. "Oh! That must be my crutches delivery."
Smiling broadly, Grace wheeled herself towards the door. However, her wheelchair was outpaced by a pair of long legs chasing after her.
"Do you want me to open the door?" Adro asked.
"Oh! Yes, please. Thank you," Grace replied, breaking her wheelchair movements.
Adro unlocked the door and pulled it open. As Grace had mentioned, it was the express delivery that had brought her the crutches because the hospital had run out of them when she was discharged, so she bought them online because Sarah had other errands to attend to.
"Thank you," Grace said to the delivery man after signing the form, and Adro received her crunches.
After Adro closed the door, Grace wheeled herself back to the sofa while cheering. Then she asked him to help her move to the sofa before unwarping her new crutches with bare hands, only in a minute.
"From now on, I won't have to trouble you too much!" Grace grinned at Adro.
"Are you going to try it?" Adro couldn't pull back his wide smile because of her contagious cheerfulness. Grace's smile was beautiful but rarely seen.
"Of course! I can't wait!" Grace replied.
Then she tried to stand with the support of the two crutches. However, she didn't expect that getting up from a sitting position with only one leg would be so challenging.
"Let me help you," Adro said, reaching for Grace's upper arm when he saw her struggling.
"Th-thank you," Grace said after clearing her throat.
With one pull-up from Adro, Grace managed to stand upright. Then, she began learning to take steps under Adro's tight supervision.
"In my kingdom, it's rare for women to get injured to the point where they can't walk. Women shouldn't be hurt like this." Adro said while following Grace's every step.
Grace furrowed her brow. "Why?"
"Women are seen as symbols of beauty and gentleness. Girls with scars or disabilities will have a hard time finding a spouse. That's why they have to be more careful, and parents also keep a closer eye on them compared to boys."
Grace forced a thin smile to hear that somewhat outdated fact. In another context, she felt sorry for the women in Adro's kingdom. They must feel constrained, afraid of having a flaw, and unable to marry.
"The surgery stitches on my foot might leave scars. Luckily, I don't live in your kingdom," Grace chuckled.
"You have a free spirit, just like your friend Sarah. You two probably wouldn't fit in my kingdom." Adro nodded.
"I think so. Most women in my world probably wouldn't fit there. But I can see that you are very gentle and polite to women. Are all the men in your kingdom like that?" Grace asked.
Adro pondered for a moment. "Since you mentioned it, I think most of them are like that. We are taught to protect women, children, and the elderly because they are weaker. I didn't even think of it as something special."
"What a lovely thing to hear! I hope the men here are the same, especially towards women."
"Aren't they like that here?" Adro asked.
"From my experience, I've only found a few who were genuinely kind like you. I mean... who were genuinely kind without being selective about which women deserve to be treated well," Grace replied.
Adro could hear a tinge of disappointment in Grace's voice. He didn't know what kind of life she had led, and he didn't want to pry too deeply. In the end, they would soon part ways, and both of them would consider each other nothing more than a dream.