Chapter 9

Hank was taken to the hospital.

Jeanette stayed by his bedside with Yvette throughout the night. At eight o'clock, the alarm she had set in advance finally went off.

Yvette glanced at the note on the screen that read [Time to Leave] and suddenly snapped out of her daze. Tears filled her eyes as she threw her arms around Jeanette and held her tightly.

"Jeanette, please don't go. Please! If you leave now, does that mean we won't see each other for another three years? By then, you'll be a huge star, shining brighter than ever, and it will be even harder for us to meet. I don't want you to go. I can't bear to say goodbye!"

Jeanette's eyes reddened as well. She gently patted Yvette's back, trying to comfort her.

It took a long time before Yvette finally let her go. Still crying, she reluctantly walked Jeanette out of the hospital.

Jeanette had just stepped through the main entrance and was about to hail a cab when she suddenly stopped.

She had said goodbye to everyone except one person.

Hank.

She stood there for a long time, lost in thought. After three years together, their relationship deserved a proper ending.

So she turned around and went back inside.

However, just as she reached his hospital room, she heard a familiar voice coming from within.

Cecilia was nestled in Hank's arms, crying so hard that tears streamed down her cheeks.

"I only wanted you to prove how much you care about me! If you couldn't find the necklace, you should have come back up. Why would you do something so stupid?

"I know you still love me. All you had to do was tell me you wanted to break up with Jeanette and be with me, and I would have said yes. Couldn't you swallow your pride just once and ask me?"

Hank had waited six long years to hear those words.

Yet now that they had finally been spoken, he was nowhere near as happy as he had once imagined he would be.

Instead, the word breakup brought Jeanette to mind for no apparent reason.

He remembered the way she had thrown herself in front of him without hesitation to shield him from an oncoming car. The way she had looked at him with red-rimmed eyes and promised to love him for the rest of her life. The way she had smiled while fussing over his birthday celebrations. The way she had responded to his touch, her eyes filled with love and longing, time and time again.

Suddenly, his head throbbed as if it were about to split apart.

His thoughts tangled into a hopeless mess, and he had no idea how to respond.

Just then, he happened to look up.

Through the glass window, he caught sight of Jeanette.

She stood outside, staring straight at him. Her dark eyes were as still and unreadable as the surface of a calm lake.

The instant their eyes met, Hank lost all composure.

He pushed Cecilia away and jumped to his feet, only to discover that Jeanette had already disappeared.

He rushed into the hallway, but it was completely empty.

Had he imagined her?

It had to have been a hallucination.

He had not told anyone to inform Jeanette that he had risked his life diving into the lake for Cecilia's necklace. Naturally, she would not know he was in the hospital, much less come to visit him.

Hank's heart pounded wildly.

He had a strange and growing sense that something was slipping beyond his control.

What that something was, however, he still could not figure out.

Meanwhile, Jeanette had given up on saying goodbye.

When she got home, she silently tore the calendar from the wall and placed her house key on the table. Then she picked up her luggage and headed downstairs.

On the way to the airport, she opened her chat with Hank.

After thinking it over for a long time, she finally typed three short messages.

[Let's break up. Thank you for taking care of me all these years.]

[I also wish you and Cecilia a happy life together.]

[Hank, I'm leaving. We will never see each other again.]

With one sentence, she let go of three years of love.

With one wish for his happiness, she set him free.

With one final goodbye, she made it clear that there could never be anything between them again.

From now on, he would be nothing more than her best friend's older brother.

After she hit send, she waited a long time.

There was no reply.

Jeanette knew Hank had Cecilia with him. He probably had no time to read messages as unimportant as hers.

Even if he happened to see them, she doubted he would feel anything at all. The woman he loved was right beside him. Why would he care about an ex-girlfriend who had been nothing more than a substitute?

Before boarding, Joshua handed her a brand-new phone.

"According to the terms of your contract, you'll have to cut off contact with the outside world starting today. This phone is for work."

Jeanette nodded, took out her own phone, and handed it over.

The plane was just taking off.

The cabin announcement crackled through the speakers while several girls in the row behind her chatted noisily.

Jeanette did not notice the screen light up one last time before her phone shut down.

She did not hear the frantic series of notification chimes that followed.

Instead, she turned toward the window and watched the clouds gradually part, revealing clear blue skies beyond.

A faint smile touched her lips.

From now on, Jeanette's life would be filled with nothing but sunny days.