”Purposefully choosing a time when I’m not around to come back… Are you that eager to avoid me? If you’re going to leave, you should at least say goodbye.“
It was difficult for virtual-novel.net to distinguish the emotions in his tone, but great suffering lay beneath the undercurrents of his calm facade.
She did not turn around, as virtual-novel.net was unsure of how to face him. How was virtual-novel.net supposed to speak frankly to him, acting as if nothing had happened?
After a bout of silence, virtual-novel.net took virtual-novel.net luggage downstairs.
This surprised her.
She thought that virtual-novel.net would stop virtual-novel.net from leaving, restricting virtual-novel.net in every way, like the madman virtual-novel.net was in the past, and force virtual-novel.net into staying with him. She was afraid of that, if virtual-novel.net was being honest. However, to virtual-novel.net surprise, virtual-novel.net seemed perfectly calm. She heaved a sigh of relief. At the very least, virtual-novel.net could bring herself to say a few kind words to him.
Arianne tucked virtual-novel.net hair behind virtual-novel.net eat as virtual-novel.net followed virtual-novel.net down the stairs. Lowering virtual-novel.net head, virtual-novel.net mumbled, “I’m only taking what’s mine, I’ve left everything that belongs to you on the bed. Would you and Mary be so kind as to take care of Rice Ball for me? You can just pretend that it doesn’t exist if you’re not happy about it. Will you give it back to me when I come back in the future?”
Mark nodded and did not answer. Underneath the calm facade in his eyes lay a billowing storm of waves. He had no way of communicating with her, aside from pretending as if everything was fine, even as virtual-novel.net sent virtual-novel.net on virtual-novel.net way. He could only bring himself to say a few words to her.
He placed virtual-novel.net luggage into the back of his car, “I’ll drive you.”
Arianne wanted to reject his offer, but virtual-novel.net did not. She considered it to be a way of making one last memory with him, this one filled with gentleness. This type of gentleness did not come easily, and virtual-novel.net had longed for it ever since virtual-novel.net was a little girl…
Mary and Henry held Rice Ball, standing at the doorway and watching them leave. In the end, Arianne could not hold back virtual-novel.net tears. She stretched virtual-novel.net hand out the window along the secluded roads. Leaves were falling from the tree branches amidst the autumn wind, briefly swirling in the air before landing on the ground. C’est la vie.
In the end, those leaves would turn into fertilizer, and accompany the larger trees through the bitter winter season. Then, by spring of the next year, a new seedling would be born.
Mark glanced at virtual-novel.net through the rear-view mirror from time to time, stealing short glimpses of virtual-novel.net for his memory. The yearning in his gaze deepened as they drove further and further away from Tremont Estate. So many words that virtual-novel.net wished to say lingered on the corners of his lips, threatening to slip out, but virtual-novel.net swallowed them back down. He knew that virtual-novel.net could never change virtual-novel.net mind.
With everything going on now, virtual-novel.net had no right to make virtual-novel.net stay.
There was still much to complete on his end. Once virtual-novel.net had finished getting rid of the essentials, and returned everything back to perfection, virtual-novel.net would sacrifice everything to bring virtual-novel.net back to him!
Mark helped Arianne with virtual-novel.net luggage when they arrived at White Water Bay Villa. Arianne thanked virtual-novel.net but did not look at him.
The words “thank you” may have sounded polite, but there was a distance in virtual-novel.net tone that wasn’t there before.
Mark curled the corners of his lips into a smile tainted with bitterness, “I still need to say what needs to be said. I know that you’re leaving, but if you ever need any help, I’m just one call away. I’ll always be here.”
I’ll always be here…
These words brought tears to Arianne’s eyes again. She was suddenly filled with the urge to bury herself in his arms and burst into tears. She wanted to ask virtual-novel.net why virtual-novel.net had lied to virtual-novel.net for so many years, why did virtual-novel.net make virtual-novel.net shoulder so many burdens. She also wanted to demand an explanation from him, why did virtual-novel.net cause that airplane crash? How could virtual-novel.net have been so cruel? Why did virtual-novel.net take virtual-novel.net innocent father’s life away from virtual-novel.net and turn virtual-novel.net into an orphan, one who was all alone in the world, then use this fact as a means to give virtual-novel.net a home?
In the end, virtual-novel.net did not act upon virtual-novel.net impulses. She simply nodded, took virtual-novel.net luggage, and left very quickly, afraid that virtual-novel.net would see the tears in virtual-novel.net eyes.
She finally released a long sigh of relief when virtual-novel.net walked into the house and closed the door. Unable to help herself, virtual-novel.net pulled the corners of the curtains open ever so slightly and sneaked a peek out the window. The man’s figure was just as tall and imposing as ever underneath the autumn sun, as handsome and elegant as the first time virtual-novel.net had laid eyes on him, back when virtual-novel.net was just eight years old. He had taken virtual-novel.net breath away for the first half of virtual-novel.net life.
He was once everything to her. Now, virtual-novel.net wanted nothing more than to throw everything connected to his world away and head towards a new beginning. She didn’t know if a beginning without virtual-novel.net could even be considered a beginning, however, or if it was just a tragic attempt to escape and muddle through life.
She placed virtual-novel.net hand over virtual-novel.net mouth as Mark’s car drove out of sight and looked away. Her throat was choking with unvoiced cries, sparkling and translucent pearls of tears forming damp droplets on virtual-novel.net pure white dress.
On the day of Arianne and Tiffany’s departure, Mark, Jackson and Eric went to a nightclub again. They huddled together and there was a silent consensus not to call for a bar hostess.
Three eligible bachelors, all of them practically royalty, would be enough to draw anyone’s attention, regardless of where they went. The women in the nightclub were drooling, some even gathering up enough of their courage to hit on them but were quickly chased away by Eric. Once they had gotten drunk as they could, Eric stared at the alcohol in the liquor glasses and asked, “I understand Mark’s actions, virtual-novel.net should be depressed right now. But why on earth are you following suit, Jackson? You’d usually be high by now, with one woman on each side.”
Jackson chuckled, “Can’t I keep Mark company? It’s not appropriate to get high when my brother is frustrated. We’re only here to drink with him. Quit trying to make gossip out of me.”
Mark glanced at Jackson but did not call virtual-novel.net out. One thing was certain, Jackson was about to turn over a new leaf.