Everything happened so suddenly, so terrifyingly.By the time Matthew returned, he saw Lucy on the bed with red, swollen eyes, her eyeballs streaked with bloodshot veins.Matthew thought something terrible had happened and rushed over to check on his wife. He knelt on the ground, anxiously asking Lucy what was wrong."Selena... Selena cheated," Lucy sobbed quietly, her tears falling in large drops. "And she blocked my number."After saying that, Lucy collapsed into Matthew's arms. She could not accept her friend's betrayal and cried uncontrollably, breaking Matthew's heart."It's okay, Lucy. Don't worry. You go to sleep first. I'll go check on Koven. Maybe it's just a prank!" Matthew had no mind to think about anything else at the moment. He just wanted to check on his best friend and see how he was holding up.He rushed out and called Hudson and Charlie on the way. They arrived at Koven’s house almost at the same time, all looking anxious. Charlie was both worried and confused.
Koven grabbed the bottle of alcohol beside him and chugged it all in one go, then drunkenly collapsed onto the couch behind him, with the last tear sliding down from the corner of his eye.Matthew took a sip and said, “Let’s go!”He called out to the others who were still drinking.“Where to?” Charlie asked, puzzled.“Of course, we’re going back! Can’t you see Koven is already drunk? Do you still want to drink? We’re here to keep Koven company, not for you to have fun,” Hudson said, as if speaking to a fool.Matthew and Hudson helped the drunk Koven back home, leaving Charlie, who was caught by the bar owner to settle the bill.“Hey, wait for me!” Charlie ran out of the bar, chasing after the two ahead of him.After settling Koven down, Matthew looked around his room and silently walked out.“Charlie, are you staying here to take care of Koven?” Hudson asked. If Charlie was not staying, he would, as was their usual practice.Matthew had a lot of work at his company and needed
The moon hung in the purple-red sky, surrounded by the stars.They seemed so close, as if you could reach out and pluck them. The clouds cautiously approached, just ahead of anyone's grasp.The crescent moon was still quietly waiting for the sun to rise.Meanwhile, Selena was watering the flowers in her room. Her face was pale and bloodless, and her hands trembled slightly, causing the water to spill onto the floor.She sighed. The flower before her was a chrysanthemum, a delicate beauty with petals of white tinged with soft yellow.The slender, long petals stretched out firmly from the center, their tips slightly curling inward, showing a humble elegance.At this moment, the leaves had already turned yellow, and upon closer inspection, it became clear that this was merely a branch of the chrysanthemum. The main stem had long since died.The remaining branch had drawn every bit of water and nutrients it could to present its most beautiful self to the world.Selena gazed at the
Selena looked around in amazement. She had never seen such beautiful scenery. Although it was not as breathtaking as Alaska, as captivating as the valleys of Hawala, or as bustling as Torko, she had never realized that nature could be so healing to the soul.Unconsciously, the blood in Selena's body started flowing again. Her muscles began to grow, her arms no longer looked sickly thin, and her legs became fuller. The hollows in her face also started to fill out.A few hours later, Mark was asleep in the car as the surroundings were so peaceful.Selena fell asleep beside the wildflowers, as she had done before.Mark did not wake her and continued to adjust his sleeping position, drifting off again.At about four in the afternoon, Mark woke from his nap. He looked around. The sun was already setting. The sky was clear without a cloud in sight, only a blue hue adorning it.The surroundings were very quiet, with just a few birds chirping in the distance. A butterfly slowly flew away
"She left. She's probably doing better now than when she was with me. Even if I find her, she won't come back to me, will she?" Koven packed his things, intending to leave, but Matthew punched him to the ground.The nearby staff were all startled. They had never seen Matthew so violent before. After all, Matthew had always been regarded as a gentle and refined man. "Do you even know what you're saying? Do you know the reason why Selena left? And now, you're just giving up? So many of us haven't given up, and you, as her boyfriend—her fiancé—are saying you're giving up? What kind of talk is that!" Matthew was furious. He could not understand Koven's mindset.In Matthew's opinion, if you loved someone, you should not separate. Just like him and Lucy. When Lucy went missing, he never thought about giving up. Now, Koven wanted to give up on searching for Selena without even knowing the reason.Koven, bleeding from the corner of his mouth, did not get up. He looked at Matthew, who was
Theodore learned that Lucy was feeling down because Selena had left without saying goodbye, so he went to the living room to comfort her.Although Lucy was in low spirits, her days were so packed with caring for the children that she had little time to dwell on it.Theodore held little Lila in his arms, playing with her cheerfully as if she were his own daughter.Seeing how much Theodore enjoyed being with the child, Lucy joked, "Theodore, you love kids so much, why don't you have one of your own? Then, you could hold them every day."Theodore did not respond, his mind drifting to Venus. She had just finished feeding Johnny, and he wondered where she was now.From the moment he first saw Venus, he could not stop thinking about her—her elegance, grace, and that unique charm she carried.As he was lost in thought, the baby in his arms suddenly started crying, prompting Lucy to quickly come over and take her.Babies were prone to upset stomachs, and little Lila had been having diar
“What's wrong?” Lucy approached Theodore and glanced at Annabella. “I heard you two arguing from inside the house. Did something happen?”Theodore took Lucy's arm and sighed helplessly, remaining silent. If he said anything, Annabella would counter tenfold.“Your brother and I are engaged. Everyone knows about it, so you’d best stay out of our business,” Annabella said, sitting on a stone bench in the garden and crossing her legs arrogantly.Lucy looked at the domineering woman, unsure of how to retort. Theodore tried to pull her back inside.As Lucy turned to head back into the house, Annabella shot another remark, “Oh, look at that, how sweet! Doting on your little sister like that. Aren’t you afraid Mr. Leon will get jealous?”Hearing Annabella insult his sister like this infuriated Theodore. It was one thing to target him, but now, she had crossed the line with Lucy. He was about to speak when Lucy beat him to it.“Exactly! Sounds like you’re full of jealousy, aren’t you? You
Lucy looked sympathetically at Theodore. She had not expected Annabella to be so difficult, pushing Theodore to the point of escaping to her home.Their father and mother were truly too much. Did they not understand how painful it was for Theodore to marry someone he did not love? Sometimes, people would use the excuse of 'It’s for your own good' to trap you in chains, forcing you to betray your own heart to fulfill some false sense of morality and filial piety.However, Theodore did not buy into that. His happiness was something he had to fight for, and he did not need anyone else’s judgment. He had his own plans and was not going to marry someone randomly just to meet expectations.During the time he had spent with Venus, he began to understand what love truly was, and this only strengthened his resolve. He would never marry Annabella—he would follow his heart.Theodore knew that Lucy was not like the others, standing on some moral high ground to judge him. She always thought t