All Chapters of Ashes of Our Affection: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

When I woke up, I found myself alone on a snowy mountain.Cole Hartness had abandoned me there, leaving only a note with a sharp message he'd scrawled. "Isabel, stay where you are and reflect on the things you've done. I'll come get you in a week."At first, I kept imagining him suddenly showing up to take me away. After all, no one worried about my safety more than he did.But it was as if fate were determined to go against me. Instead of Cole coming to get me, an avalanche arrived first.I ran. The icy wind knifed down my throat in greedy bursts. My lungs burned with every gasp. As time passed, all I could hear was the pounding of my own heartbeat.My numb legs moved on autopilot. Then, I stumbled and crashed to the ground. The roar behind me grew louder and louder. I watched helplessly as the wall of snow swallowed me whole.Right before I blacked out, I told myself that if I somehow survived this, I would be done with Cole. I wouldn't want him anymore.Somehow, against all o

Chapter 2

"Fine!" Cole snapped. "Since this is how you're behaving, there's no need for us to get engaged, even after Rach is better. We can revisit that only when you realize how terribly wrong you are!"Rachel quickly spoke up. "Cole, don't be mad. Izzy's just immature. You know how badly she wants to marry you.""Well, it's time she grew up," he said sharply. "This time, she even forced you to take off your clothes when we were high up a snowy mountain! If I hadn't found you in time, you would've frozen to death." He glared at me. "If you continue throwing these unreasonable tantrums, then… we'll just keep postponing the engagement."Cole carefully helped Rachel out of the hospital room. Before leaving, he gave me one last long, deep look. In that brief moment, I caught the flicker of disappointment in his eyes.What was he disappointed about? That I hadn't changed at all? That I was still an unreasonable, spoiled brat?But he was the one who had once held my hand and repeatedly told m

Chapter 3

Rachel's eyes instantly turned red, and she swayed on her feet as if she might collapse. "Izzy, I… I just wanted to check on you and talk for a bit. If you don't like it, I'll leave right now."With that, she brushed past me and ran toward the door.I let out a cold laugh and turned around. Sure enough, Cole was there.He stood in the doorway, face twisted with anger. His gaze locked on me as he roared, "How long are you going to keep this up, Isabel?"Rachel patted his shoulder, her tone tinged with disappointment. "It's okay. Izzy's still shaken and hasn't fully recovered yet. I'll come see her again tomorrow. I'll head back to the hospital now."Cole didn't budge. His tone softened as he said to her, "Rach, you're staying here tonight. I'll have a room prepared for you right away. I'll take you to the hospital tomorrow."After comforting her, he turned back to interrogate me, his tone turning cold once again. "When did you become like this? Rach only came to check on you out o

Chapter 4

Being taken in by the Hartness family was probably the luckiest thing that had ever happened to me. Even though I was originally brought home to keep Cole safe from his destined calamity, Melissa and her husband, Stan Hartness, had truly raised me as their own daughter.Once I left the Hartness residence, they would be the only people I would truly miss.After a moment's hesitation, I decided to come clean to Melissa and tell her I wanted to break off the engagement. Her eyes widened as she stared at me, as if trying to find some hint that I was just joking.But my attitude was sincere and firm. I also told her I'd decided to go abroad in a week to further my studies in design.Once she realized I was serious, her expression softened with heartache. She reached out and gently patted my head. "Both you and Cole are my children; I love you both the same. I'll talk to Stan about calling off the engagement. Izzy, let me apologize to you on Cole's behalf. He really went too far this

Chapter 5

As Cole walked past the box of things I was throwing away, a plain women's ring slipped out and hit the floor. He kept walking.I bent down to pick it up, gently running my fingers over it. He and I had made this ring together on our first anniversary. We'd gone to a DIY jewelry studio and crafted rings for each other, having "C&I" engraved on the inside.I tried to remember what exactly Cole had promised me back then, but it was all a bit blurry now.I shoved the ring back into the corner of the box. Whether he still wanted to get engaged or not, I was done.Laura sighed softly, secretly taking the ring back out again when I wasn't looking.…Time passed quickly. Soon, it was the day before I was due to leave.As always, I had dinner with Stan and Melissa. Melissa kept reminding me about all the things to pay attention to when I was abroad, and Stan chimed in from time to time.I treasured warm moments like this. It was a pity that we were ultimately interrupted.The screech

Chapter 6

My room was emptier than it had ever been. The framed photo by the bed was gone, and the vanity only had expensive pieces of jewelry left. The sheets and duvet were already wrapped in plastic.Cole yanked open the closet. What had once been stuffed full of clothes now held only a few formal gowns. In the bathroom, the used toothbrush, cup, towel, and everything else were gone.That was when panic really hit him. The anger he'd stoked up just vanished.His hands shook as he pulled out his phone and called me, but all he got was an automated system voice. He froze for half a second, then went crazy as he tried every way he could think of to reach me. Nothing worked.Cole tightened his grip on his phone. His heart pounded wildly, and his mind went blank. All he really understood was that I was gone.He let out a low, choked sound in the stillness of the room. As he sat there, he tried to trace back when I'd started planning to leave.It was after we'd gotten back from the mountain.

Chapter 7

"If anything had happened to Isabel, I would've been the murderer, and you would've been my accomplice!" Rachel shrieked.A tearing pain ripped through Cole's chest. Yes, it was him. He was the one who'd driven me away.Rachel felt a rush of satisfaction, seeing him in such a sorry state. "Did you really think Isabel turned out fine after being stuck on that mountain for a whole week? It's true that she only has six years to live. Why didn't she just die up there?"Cole slapped her hard across the face. Her cheek reddened and swelled almost instantly. "You're not worthy of saying her name," he snarled. "Since you're so mentally unstable, you can stay in a psych ward. Someone get in here and take her away! Watch her closely."This time, Rachel panicked. She wasn't afraid of going to prison, but being locked in a mental institution would be a fate worse than death. "Cole, I was wrong!" she cried. "I shouldn't have framed Isabel. I won't dare do it again!"A burly bodyguard dragg

Chapter 8

"Izzy, I'm sorry," Cole said hoarsely. "I was wrong. I… I couldn't find you."Isaac threw an arm out in front of me like a mother hen guarding her chick. He glared at Cole. "What do you think you're doing? Stay away from my sister!"I patted his arm, signaling him to relax. Then, I looked at Cole. "Cole, I forgive you, but I don't want to see you again. I owe your parents for raising me, so I'll still visit them in the future. Isaac, take me upstairs."With that, I turned around without the slightest hesitation. I didn't give Cole any chance to say anything else.Isaac stayed at my side, chattering away and asking if Cole was the jerk who'd made me end up like this. His every word dripped with anger and disdain.I couldn't help feeling amused as I ruffled Isaac's hair. Having a family like this really was a blessing.Maybe it was because I was close to death, but a lot of things became easier to let go of. Cole had apologized to me. What good would it do me not to forgive him?I

Chapter 9

I nodded and met Cole's gaze seriously. "Mr. Hartness, I've been with Tim for the past five years. He loves me very much, and I love him, too. Why shouldn't we get engaged?"Cole clenched his fists as he stared at me in disbelief. "You've fallen for him? How could you have fallen for him? Did you… Did you stop loving me a long time ago?"I sighed inwardly and answered firmly, "Yes. Mr. Hartness, please leave. Stop disturbing us."Whether it was the distant way I addressed him or my admission that I didn't love him anymore and had fallen for someone else, it was all a heavy blow to Cole. He staggered away, looking like his soul had been sucked out of him.I gave Timothy an awkward smile. After some hesitation, I explained, "Cole is… a bit hard to shake off. I only said all that to make him give up. I hope you don't mind, Mr. Greer."He waved it off as if it were nothing, his eyes full of amusement. "It's fine. It's a pleasure to meet you, Isabel. I think we could be friends."I sm

Chapter 10

I didn't answer. Before Isaac could say anything else, I kept my eyes fixed on the snow falling before me.Suddenly, a little girl ran over and handed me a rose made of snow. "I wish you a long, healthy life and happiness every single day, pretty lady!"I accepted the rose and patted her head. "You, too, kiddo."She stood on her tiptoes and whispered in my ear, "A handsome guy asked me to give you this flower. He told me not to tell you, but you're so pretty that I decided to betray him."I was taken aback. Then, I couldn't help a small laugh at her innocent words. "Help me thank him, then."The little girl ran off, her footsteps pattering away until she disappeared from my sight.I stuck the snow rose into a flowerpot nearby.Isaac glanced over suspiciously. "Izzy, what did she say?""Nothing much. Ooh, it's getting cold. Let's go back inside."He scratched his head, then wheeled me back to my hospital room.…Maybe my body really had reached its limit. That night, I burned

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