"Queenie, get lost!"…At 8:00 am, Queenie and I left the apartment and parted ways. I mulled about what Andrew told me yesterday and I found myself agreeing to what he said.If Winston wanted to stalk me, he'd follow me wherever I went. Stopping visiting Crystal House would not solve that. Besides, I was part of the team for the competition they had been preparing for. I couldn't quit halfway.Therefore, I decided to continue working at Crystal House. If I had to leave that place one day, I'd find another apartment. If I had done nothing wrong, I had nothing to be afraid of.Ah! Crystal House was closed!I sat under a tree in the courtyard and waited as I looked at the research materials on my phone. It occurred to me that I had to get spare keys from Winston so that I didn't have to wait for someone to unlock it next time.In a heavily edited photo, a lithe forearm was carrying a platinum diamond bracelet. The design and materials of which were very familiar to me. Its infuria
I stared at my phone screen for ten minutes under the tree. When my screen darkened, I'd touch it again until it lit up. Finally, when the photo turned dim once again, I ran.I needed the answer. A lot of unanswered questions were plaguing my love life. I wanted to find the truth. I hailed a cab and went to the luxury boutique. A middle-aged man was walking in, and two rows of beautiful women in uniform greeted him courteously.I made a beeline for the accessories area. The shop attendant glanced at me and recognized me right away. Then, she let out a sigh. "You must be the girl from yesterday. What a shame. A guy bought the bracelet for his girlfriend. I know you must regret it a lot, but I can't do anything about it now."Perhaps to demonstrate how stellar her promotional skill was, the staff member rambled on and gave away the details of the whole transaction, save the personal information of the buyer. I didn't even need to ask her.According to her, a very handsome man came to
And larceny was a crime, punishable by law. If it was the first option, she must have purchased the bracelet before I even saw it. Why did she make a post about it right when Colin bought the bracelet but couldn't give it? And she captioned it that way to sow discord between him and me.Knowing what Jasmine had done previously, I was more inclined to believe that she did it on purpose. I couldn't figure out the answer, so I stopped speculating alone. I decided to call Colin.After that fateful night, we made a deal that no matter what happened, we had to be open to each other. We should avoid misunderstandings that arose from the lack of communication. We were not letting any trivial misunderstanding destroy our bond like I had read so much in novels.The call went through. The robotic beep echoed for 39 seconds. Before I hung up in disappointment, someone picked it up.It wasn't Colin, however, but his colleague who had been working on the same project. His colleague knew about me
"Besides, I didn't know you bought the bracelet. How could I steal it from you? Bracelets are common accessories. There must be more than one bracelet around. What makes you think that this bracelet is yours? Do you have any proof?"I know you like Lulu a lot, so you take her side. I get it, and I've never resented you for it. I met you too late, that's all. Just let me love you unrequitedly. There's no need to make fun of or question my integrity. I like you, and that's not my fault." Jasmine sobbed pitifully.What a glorious spectacle of playing the victim. And integrity? If she had integrity, she wouldn't have pulled so many nefarious tricks. The integrity she mentioned was nothing but a joke.Another woman spoke up. I wasn't sure if it was the Lorraine Jasmine mentioned earlier. "Mr. White, you got the wrong idea. I was there when Ms. Taylor bought the bracelet. I swear."Colin chuckled disdainfully and added, "I don't need your testimony here. This is between Ms. Taylor and me
Tears were Jasmine's go-to weapon. When she found herself in a situation she couldn't wiggle out of, she cried to divert the focus and escape. Just like this time, she cried loudly to make herself the brokenhearted woman who was throwing a fit.That was a decent strategy. But over-relying on tears was very annoying. Colin clenched his right fist. Frustration and annoyance were written all over his face.He rubbed his temples and took a deep breath. When he had calmed down sufficiently, he said, "Jasmine, I believe I've made myself very clear, in the past and in present. I've also never led you on, so why won't you give up on me?"You said you're in love with me. Is this how you treat the one you love? Because this is scaring me.""But you never respond to my love. Why else would I do those things? Do you think I love my current self now? I've studied enough to know I'm better than this. But I want your attention. I can't help it. You never notice me. Your cold shoulder is the reaso
I was a compassionate person. If I wasn't involved, perhaps I would have felt bad for Jasmine's unrequited love. However, I was part of the whole situation, and I knew the full picture. I knew the vicious plans and thoughts she had, so I hated her.There was no right or wrong when it came to love. But it could be harmful when a twisted sense of love was imposed on someone who didn't want it, causing the person pain and suffering.Her love came from the wrong place, and it was destined to meet a sad ending. If she had seen through this and stopped whatever she was doing in time, she could have a happy life for herself.But if she enabled her obsession and allowed it to fester, bad things could happen and she might end up in a bad place.Urgh. What a headache. Felix's obsession had given me enough headaches. Now, it was Jasmine's turn. She was even harder to deal with than Felix. Why? Because Felix's target was me and I knew I'd never fall for her. But Jasmine's target was Colin.As
Deep down, I was quite pissed. It wasn't about the money because it wasn't my money anyway. If Jasmine loved the bracelet that much, she could have told us frankly. Colin and I would've bought it for her as a present. She could pick something more expensive too as long as we could afford it.After all, she did save Colin's life. And that was a favor no money could repay. 30-something thousand dollars could hardly convey the gratitude we had for her.However, she shouldn't have stolen the bracelet from Colin. This was unethical. It could never be condoned or tolerated. Presently, Jasmine was like the odd puzzle piece that could never fit into our picture. Her favor constrained our options, forcing us to act passively despite being the victims.If it were someone else, we could've brought this to the police and let the law decide who was right and wrong. But Jasmine was special to us. We couldn't possibly send our savior to jail.I supposed this was why Colin was so mad. He would hav
In the afternoon, he texted me and told me to put my mind at ease as Jasmine had sent the bracelet to him.I felt better, but I would never wear what Jasmine had worn. I asked Colin what he was going to do with it, and he told me he might give it to his mother. That was a good idea.I wasn't someone petty, and Colin thought he had done everything to punish Jasmine. We decided to turn over a new page. I could only hope that Jasmine had learned her lesson and would stop devising another vicious plan.…Time flew, and it was the end of September. Plane tickets were in high demand during the holiday season, so Queenie and I bought return tickets to Harveyton in advance.Dad and Mom weren't thrilled when they heard that I wasn't coming back. They complained that I had grown up and abandoned them. Especially Mom, who found a handkerchief and began using it to wipe her teary eyes. She protested that I had forgotten about my roots and only cared about having fun.I could only console and