Chapter 3

However, it was from that day onward that Christian and I truly stopped feeling like siblings.

…

The sound of the private room door clicking open snapped me back to reality. A tall, elegant woman walked in, picked up the stomach medicine on the table, and naturally took a seat right next to Christian.

“Your gastritis is always acting up, and I knew you’d end up drinking tonight, so I made sure to get you your medicine ahead of time,” she said.

She was beautiful, with a stunning figure, and her voice was incredibly gentle and sweet.

A spark of warmth finally seemed to return to Christian’s eyes. However, when he turned his gaze back to me, that same old contempt and detachment returned.

“Have you made up your mind yet? Are you drinking it or not?”

Staring into his unfamiliar, almost merciless eyes, I clenched my fists tightly.

“I’m sorry, but I’m just a delivery rider. I have every right to refuse your unreasonable demands.”

It wasn’t like this would be the first time a landlord kicked me out. Compared to the four years of drifting aimlessly abroad, why would a little financial hardship matter now?

I had turned around once more to leave, but my hand had just touched the doorknob when a glass bottle shattered violently right at my feet. I screamed, spinning around to look at Christian. His arm was still half-extended from throwing the bottle, and his face was twisted in sheer fury. Even his neck was flushed red.

“How dare you refuse! Who the hell do you think you are to talk about rights in front of me? Can you bring my father back to life? Can you give me my family back?”

Sitting right next to him, Viv was so startled that she quickly stood up to hold him back. However, in the next second, Christian grabbed the back of Viv’s head and pulled her into a passionate kiss.

The cheers and wild applause echoing through the room stood in stark contrast to my broken spirit. It looked like he had finally found the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Yet, back then, he was the one who had fought so desperately to make my wishes come true.

When we returned to campus after that winter break, the dynamic between Christian and me shifted subtly. He was already a senior, so he was rarely on campus anymore. Whenever he did return, he looked utterly exhausted. A heavy burden clearly weighed down his mind.

Whenever I asked, he would never say a word, and we seemed to be drifting further and further apart. I blamed myself constantly, wondering if what happened over winter break made him feel like I had ruined our relationship.

That was until I received a phone call from my mother.

“Nova, must you tear this family apart? Will that make you happy? If you refuse to stop acting so foolishly, harboring these delusional fantasies, I will send you overseas immediately.”

I hadn’t done anything at all. I hadn’t even seen Christian in two whole weeks.

How had it become a delusional fantasy?

It wasn’t until later that I found out Christian had been trying everything he could to make my wish a reality. He wanted to remove himself from our family legally, and he was even planning to apply for grad school at my university just to stay by my side.

The most recent argument he had with our parents escalated because he blurted out that our father and mother should just get a divorce. As long as they divorced, we would no longer be stepsiblings, and if that happened, we could finally be together out in the open.

Even though my mother had screamed at me, I didn’t feel sad at all. At that moment, I finally knew how Christian truly felt about me. He loved me, and being together forever was no longer just an impossible, far-fetched dream.

Back in the present, chanting erupted inside the private room.

“Propose! Propose! Say yes to him!”

Perhaps the atmosphere was just too overwhelming, or perhaps I was simply invisible, but no one noticed when I slipped out of the room. No one knew just how long I sat by the curb outside, crying my eyes out, either.

The January wind was freezing. However, of course, there was news waiting for me that was far colder than any winter night.