Seven Ear Piercings(2)

4

As soon as I stepped out of the door, a bone-chilling wind blew from all directions.

I stood in the snowy field. Before I could recover from the shame, I saw Jeremy chasing after me.

He wore a black down jacket, and most of his face was hidden in his thick and fluffy collar, revealing only a pair of calm eyes. He was holding a Patrick Star hand warmer, which didn't match his image at all.

Walking up to me, he handed me the hand warmer and said lightly, "Let's go home. It's cold outside."

I quickly shook my head and said, "Brother, no, Jeremy, come with me somewhere. I'm afraid to go alone."

It took us a few hours to drive there.

The sun was setting in the west, and the evening mist was heavy. Jeremy and I were sitting in front of a tomb in the cemetery. It was hushed, and no one else was there. Looking around, I found there were only neatly arranged tombstones of different heights.

"I told my mother everything." I chuckled. "Including our relationship."

The tip of Jeremy's nose was very red from the cold, and he rarely had such a silly look. He turned to look at me, his eyelashes trembling slightly. "So, why did you break up with me?"

Why did we break up?

Self-esteem and love were torturing each other. Reality and dreams were complete opposites.

I was caught in it day and night, unable to live in peace. In the end, I surrendered.

What was even more ridiculous was that I couldn't say this reason out loud: I love you, but I'm scared to be with you; I love you, which also means that I'm afraid of hurting you.

"I couldn't envision a future with you, so I might as well stop wasting time. I wanted to live a more relaxed life," I said calmly.

He didn't reply and just turned to look at my mother's tombstone silently.

"Did you know? My mother fell out with her whole family just to marry my father. Her painstaking love turned into disgust in less than three years. In the end, it was your mother who easily received the tenderness and consideration that my mother had never dreamed of in her life from my father."

I looked into the distance and let out a long sigh.

I had never mentioned this to anyone before.

When I was a child, I hated my mother for being selfish. She chose to die and left me behind.

Later on, as I grew up, I better understood the good and bad things in this world. Only then did I gradually understand an ounce of her suffering.

On the way home, I leaned my head against the car window and stared blankly at the passing scenery.

While we waited for the traffic lights to turn green, a hand suddenly grabbed mine tightly.

"Let's get married."

It wasn't an inquiry but a statement.

For a moment, I felt as if a sharp needle had pierced my most sensitive nerves. I shook off his hand and curled up my body in a defensive posture.

"Are you crazy?"

All of a sudden, I thought of something and quickly added, "I have a boyfriend."

Jeremy's expression turned frigid, and he stared indifferently into the distance. The muscles from his temple to his chin were stretched taut.

The mood in the car was silent and awkward. I leaned to one side with my back to Jeremy; my heart was beating a mile a minute.

If a person chose me regardless of anything and insisted on it, I think I probably wouldn't be able to resist it.

But not everyone possessed such good luck.

If I were confident that I was a calm person, I would be willing to take the risk.

But I knew very well I wasn't.

In the evening, I smoked on the balcony. Outside the window, there were thousands of lights. I could see many families sitting around and chatting happily through the glass.

I didn't know when my stepmother came to me. Her face, which has always been gentle, was full of seriousness. "Madison, can we talk?"

I had a bad feeling about this.

She knew.

5

"I've arranged a blind date for Jeremy. The girl got her Ph.D. degree abroad. Just like Jeremy, she's been a high achiever since childhood. She learns everything quickly and is beautiful, well-educated, and considerate. What I'm most satisfied with is her family. They're a proper sort. She grew up in such an atmosphere and has a very grounded personality."

My stepmother was an intelligent woman. Her words accurately hit my weak spot.

I had never been good at studying since I was a child, and I was also ordinary-looking, let alone well-educated and considerate.

The words "she has a sound personality" were extremely hurtful.

My stepmother didn't need to say anything else. I was very sure she had found out.

Did Jeremy tell her?

I stepped back in silence and hid in the shadows, hoping that the shame and embarrassment on my face wouldn't be discovered so quickly.

My stepmother went on in a distressed tone. "She's such a good girl, but Jeremy won't meet her. Madison, can you find some way to convince him?"

"How can I help you?" Taking a long drag on my cigarette, I controlled my emotions and asked indifferently.

"Help me persuade him. It's a pity to miss such a good girl." She patted my hand intimately.

Such a dutiful girl...

I silently repeated her words in my heart and suddenly wanted to laugh.

"I have a girlfriend."

A familiar voice came from behind me. I looked back and happened to meet Jeremy's cold eyes.

He walked up to me and casually threw me the Patrick Star hand warmer. Then, he stared at his mother and stressed each word. "When I make her happy, I'll marry her."

The air seemed to freeze. After a long while, my stepmother put on a fake smile and looked at me. "Madison, do you know your brother's girlfriend?"

"I don't."

Without any hesitation, I quickly made my decision.

My stepmother breathed a sigh of relief and showed the first sincere smile tonight. "You guys continue. I'll grab some snacks."

When I was left alone with Jeremy, neither of us spoke. We stared in different directions in a daze.

In the end, my ringtone broke the silence.

"Madison, do you miss me?"

It was so quiet that after I picked up the call, Jeremy easily heard the voice on the other end.

I could clearly see his back stiffen for a moment.

"Yes," I replied.

After that, Jeremy left in a hurry, as if something was chasing after him.

The tears I had been holding back all night burst out in an instant as I watched him leave.

If he looked back now, he would see I was a hypocrite. I had already been utterly defeated in my heart, but I still put on an act for the sake of my so-called dignity.

In the past, I wouldn't have had the patience to talk to the person on the other end of the line for so long.

But tonight was different. Too many indescribable emotions rose wildly in my heart like weeds. I needed someone to talk to me.

Even if I wasn't interested in the topic at all.

"Madison, I hate celebrating New Year's Eve." Before hanging up, the person suddenly said seriously.

...

"What a coincidence. Me too."

When I exited the balcony, my stepmother approached me with a fruit plate. She probed, "Madison, I didn't know you had a boyfriend. When will you bring him home?"

I brushed her off. "He can wait."

I casually found an excuse and went out to a barbecue shop alone.

In the smoke and fire, I drank and ate a lot, trying to fill the hole in my heart in this way.

Unfortunately, the effects were minimal.

Halfway, I went to the bathroom and accidentally tripped over something. Just as I was about to fall to the ground, a hand suddenly grabbed me tightly and pulled me into a hug filled with a refreshing fragrance.

Under the dim light, I saw Jeremy's concerned expression. In an instant, my defense was broken, and I burst into tears under the influence of alcohol.

It was like a dam that became overwhelmed by the pressure of water.

He hugged me tightly, enduring all my emotions.

After crying, I leaned against the sink and washed my face with cold water. When I looked up, I saw a numb and dull face in the mirror.

How did I end up like this?

I heard a voice in my heart asking.

The person beside me said softly, "Let's go home."

I pretended not to hear him and continued to stare into the mirror in a daze.

He stubbornly repeated, "Let's go back to our home!"

I didn't know if it was because of the alcohol, but I slept very soundly that night.

In my dream, I became SpongeBob SquarePants, the same one from the TV show. I asked my companion, "Patrick Star, why are you called that name?"

The Patrick Star next to me looked at me seriously. "Because God sent me, Patrick Star, to protect you."

What a childish plot, but this was something that had happened in my childhood.

That was why I was so touched.

When I woke up again, it was 10 o'clock the next morning.

I rubbed my throbbing head as I surveyed the unfamiliar surroundings. My heart was filled with questions.

"Where am I?"

I clearly remembered I went home with Jeremy last night. Did he sell me to someone?