All Chapters of Life Goes On, Goodbye: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

The room fell so quiet that you could hear everyone breathing.“Oh, I remembered wrong. It was 2012.”Grayson Cross corrected himself coldly, as if nothing had happened.Iris Shea quickly stepped in with a smile to smooth things over.“Charlotte Yates, Gray’s been under a lot of pressure these past few days. It’s normal for him to get something like that wrong. Don’t make a face over it. There are so many family members and friends watching.”In an instant, everyone started trying to talk me down.“It’s your wedding day. Why the long face? Smile a little.”“So he got a question wrong. You can give him a hard time about it tonight. Don’t let this delay the wedding!”Everyone thought I was making a big deal out of nothing, but only I knew that Grayson had really changed.There was a time when the slightest change in my expression would make him immediately ask what was wrong. He would crack jokes and buy me gifts just to cheer me up.Now, though, he couldn’t take his eyes off m

Chapter 2

I didn’t have much of a sweet tooth, so I quietly stood by the door and waited for them.The bakery owner was friendly and offered Iris a sample of one of their new cakes.“I haven’t seen you and your boyfriend in here for a while.“You’re both dressed up today. Going to some kind of gala?”Iris gave a shy smile and pointed toward the door.“It’s my best friend’s wedding. I’m the maid of honor.”The owner’s smile froze as his gaze darted back and forth between the three of us.Finally, he said apologetically, “I’m sorry. I see the two of you here for afternoon teas all the time, so I thought you were a couple.“I didn’t realize there was someone else involved.”Needless to say, I was the “someone else” he was referring to.How I wished Grayson would say something—anything at all to explain.But he didn’t.He simply didn’t care.He bought every flavor of honey cake the bakery had, enough to fill more than a dozen bags.I only casually said, “Don’t waste them if you can’t f

Chapter 3

When Grayson and Iris came back, there was a bright red mark on his neck.Noticing my gaze, panic flashed in his eyes. He quickly covered it, trying to hide the truth.“There were mosquitoes at the bubble tea place...”Iris nodded, her face turning red.“Charlotte, it really was a mosquito. You don’t suspect me, do you?”I shook my head.“Must’ve been a female mosquito. So fond of biting people. Like an animal.”My words instantly drained what little color remained from their faces.“Sorry. I’m getting out for a smoke.”A few yards away from the wedding car, Grayson looked anxious as he cautiously asked Iris, “She... didn’t notice anything, did she?”Iris took the cigarette from between his lips, placed it between her own red lips, and took a deep drag.“How could she? She loves you so much. Even if she found out, she’d forgive you.“I know her well. She acts tough, but she’s soft-hearted.“Back then, all I had to do was say I was heartbroken, and she skipped her final exa

Chapter 4

I gathered up the voluminous gown and made my way toward the bridal suite, one slow step at a time. By the time I got there, a long while had passed.I could have left without another word.But if I was going to run away from the wedding, how could I not take the makeup artist with me?When I finally pushed open the door, out of breath, I froze at the scene before me.The renowned makeup artist, whom I'd booked two years in advance, was being lectured by Grayson like a schoolkid. She looked close to tears.“Good, you're here.”Grayson dumped a pile of cosmetics in front of me.“Iris said you were trying to pull something on her. You used luxury products on yourself and cheap, unbranded stuff on her.”I frowned. What was this about now? Iris wiped at the corner of her eye and, for some reason, apologized to me.“I'm sorry, Charlotte. I shouldn't have come and stolen your spotlight. I didn't think it through.“I'll let you have your makeup done first. I can even go bare-faced

Chapter 5

His body reacted before his mind could, and without a second thought, he sprinted toward the doors.It was empty. There was no one there. He could only grab passing staff members like a man possessed.“Where’s Charlotte? Have you seen my wife?”The staff shook their heads. Then one of them casually pointed down the hall.“She was in the bridal suite a little while ago.”He took the stairs two at a time and rushed back.“Charlotte, stop messing around. Everyone’s waiting—”The moment he pushed open the door, he froze. The bridal suite was empty too. The counters had been cleared completely, as if no one had ever been there.In a panic, he pulled out his phone and started calling me over and over. Every call went straight to a busy signal.“Charlotte!”He roared and slammed his fist against the wall.“Gray, are you okay?”Iris stepped out of the room next door, with only half her makeup done.“Charlotte hogged the makeup artist, and now there’s no one left to do my makeup,”

Chapter 6

Iris’s face fell, but she quickly composed herself, putting on a gentle, caring expression.“Gray, you must be exhausted after looking for her all day. Have some soup. I’ll help you look for her.”Once upon a time, hearing those words would have moved Grayson to tears. Now, though, all they made him feel was exhausted, and they sounded hollow and insincere.“No need. I’ll look for her myself.”He hadn’t had a thing to eat or drink. He went into the bedroom and started packing.Half of the closet that belonged to Charlotte was empty. The shoe rack by the entryway was empty on Charlotte’s side too.Somehow, his heart felt just as empty.“Gray, where are you even going to look? The world is so big. Are you really going to search every country, every place, one by one?”Grayson nodded.His voice was low. “If I can’t find her, I’ll spend the rest of my life looking. She’s the woman I chose as my wife. That won’t change.”“What about me?”Iris pressed her lips tightly together, he

Chapter 7

Grayson had no idea how he made it home. The moment he opened the door and the entryway lights flicked on, he finally felt like he had come back to his senses.There was no smell of home-cooked food. Only the cold, overpowering scent of perfume.He stumbled into the living room and saw shopping bags of all sizes scattered across the floor.“How do I look in this?”Iris came out of the bedroom wearing the latest designer dress.“Everything from this season’s collection was so pretty, I couldn’t decide, so I bought them all. It was only a hundred and sixty grand. You don’t mind, do you?”Grayson gave a bitter, self-mocking laugh. In the seven years he had been with Charlotte, she had never been willing to spend that much of his money.He clenched his fists, his chest heaving several times.“Explain this,” he said as he tossed a tablet showing the footage from the bridal suite in front of Iris.On the video, Iris looked around furtively before quietly pulling several cheap, low-q

Chapter 8

On my first day taking over at Yates Corporation, things were anything but peaceful.My assistant came rushing into my office. “Ms. Yates, we just got an urgent order. They want you to sign the contract in person!”I looked at the simple note attached to it: [$1 million to see you once.]I understood immediately. “Turn it down. From now on, don’t accept any business from their company.”Of course, I never expected Grayson to give up so easily. New orders kept appearing in the system under different accounts.The offers climbed from $1 million to $10 million, and always, there was only one condition: He wanted to see me.Grayson probably thought that, because I came from a business family, if he offered enough money, I would eventually be tempted.However, I rejected every single one without hesitation. Eventually, the notes went from a single sentence to pages of densely written confessions.[Charlotte, I really was wrong. Please give me one more chance.[From college days t

Chapter 9

Six months later, under my leadership, the stock value of Yates Corporation had doubled.My parents threw me a celebration dinner. Amid the clinking of glasses and lively conversation, I suddenly remembered whose birthday it was today.After sipping a few mouthfuls of tea, I drove eighteen miles to the detention center.Separated by a pane of glass, Iris looked much thinner, almost gaunt. Her once-bright eyes were hollow and lifeless, as though they had swallowed an abyss.When she saw me, she showed neither excitement nor anger. She simply said, “You’re here to laugh at me, aren’t you?”I shook my head. I opened a box in front of me. Inside was a round birthday cake.“I just suddenly remembered that today is your birthday. Some things get etched into your bones. You just can’t forget them.”She lowered her head and gave a bitter, self-mocking laugh. The laughter soon turned into tears. Her voice trembled with emotion, but she remained stubborn.“Don’t pretend to be kind. We’re

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