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He instructed the waiter to arrange a private room.

As soon as the door to the private room closed, I hurriedly embraced him. "Trevis," I called out.

His body tensed slightly, and he gently pushed me away. "Kathryn, you need to calm down first," he advised.

With teary eyes, I inquired, "Don't you miss me at all?"

He remained silent.

I pressed on, "Have you read the book? I wrote it for you."

He nodded with stiffness, his voice hoarse. "It's very well-written."

I felt elated and attempted to hug him again, but he remarked, "So, someone as talented as you, Kathryn, shouldn't be associated with someone like me."

I grew furious. "Someone like you? Tell me, what do you mean by that?"

He chuckled self-deprecatingly, starting to list out the labels he pinned on himself: "Almost became a murderer, never went to college..."

I couldn't bear to hear it anymore, standing there with tears welling up. "Trevis, that's not true, how can you think that way..."

If it weren't for me, Trevis w