Chapter 4

Aaron barely took a step before losing his balance.

Yvonne instantly reached out to support him. "Please stop pushing yourself, Aaron."

She looked up at Mom, and her voice turned sharp. "Aaron has already apologized for his actions, Diana. How far must you push someone who is ill before you're satisfied?"

Mom looked thoroughly disappointed. "How are we forcing him? We had the medicine, the ride, and someone to go to the hospital with him, yet he turned all of it down. He just wants to be with you, Yvonne."

Yvonne responded instinctively. "What's wrong with Aaron trusting me?"

"It's your call, Charlie," Mom said as she dropped the argument and turned to look at me. She looked rather emotional with her bloodshot eyes, but she ultimately made no attempt to influence my choice.

I looked down at my phone screen, where the "Wait for me" text remained in the chat box.

It was already 11:15 am, and the PA system rang out. "Attention, A027. Please complete your registration within five minutes; otherwise we'll move on to the next number."

It was then that one of the staff members stepped out from behind the counter and said, "Your documents have already been reviewed, so the rest of the process is pretty quick once you sign the papers. You'll still make it if you go over right now."

In that instant, everyone turned their attention to Yvonne.

I gave her one last chance and asked, "Do you intend to go to the counter with me, Yvonne?"

Yvonne looked at me, then down at Aaron by her side.

"You should just go ahead, Yvonne. I'll be fine," Aaron whispered as he released his grip on Yvonne. He looked as if he were on the verge of tears the moment he finished speaking.

Yvonne remained silent for a moment before handing him a tissue. "I'll accompany Aaron to the hospital first. You'd better stop making a scene, Charlie. We can sign the papers anytime.

"We've been together for eight years—that kind of history doesn't just disappear just because we missed the registration today."

She sounded completely confident, as though she had already decided on my behalf that I would give her another chance.

I remained completely silent. I merely opened the folder, took out her ID along with the signed form, and held them out to her.

Yvonne was caught off guard. "What is the meaning of this, Charlie?"

I handed the documents to her, keeping my own documents in the folder. "I'm returning your stuff."

I then turned and made my way toward Counter 3.

Yvonne suddenly raised her voice at me. "What are you going to get done heading there all by yourself, Charlie?"

I didn't bother turning around. "I told you before that I'm going to leave this place with a marriage certificate today, no matter what."

I was just about to reach Counter 3 when I heard quick footsteps rushing up behind me.

"Haven't you made enough of a scene, Charlie?" Yvonne rushed over and grabbed the folder I was holding. She kept her voice low, though she looked livid, as she asked, "Who are you supposed to register the marriage with if you don't have my documents?"

I pulled my hand away. "You don't need to worry about that."

Yvonne looked as though she had heard something totally preposterous. "How could you pull such a stunt when both our families know we came to get our marriage certificate? How do you think my parents will look at you once they find out that you made such a scene in front of everyone today?"

I looked at her and felt a sudden urge to laugh. "You're the one who's kept everyone waiting for nothing this whole time. You're actually worried about embarrassing yourself now, huh?"

Yvonne was rendered speechless.

It was already 11:26 am, and the number of people in the hall was steadily dropping, and the staff had already begun sorting through the documents on their desks.

Mom walked to my side and whispered, "Have you truly made up your mind, Charlie?"

I nodded and replied, "Yes, I have."

Dad didn't try to persuade me otherwise. He just gathered up the loose papers, organized them, and handed them back to me, saying, "You should never mistreat yourself for someone else's sake, Charlie."