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Even after being slapped, Helena didn’t seem to give up on Daniel. She still posted
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I just nodded, feeling a strange sense of calm.
I no longer cared; Daniel was my past now.
I handed the teacher some flowers with a
faint smile.
“It’s good you’ve let it go,” she said. For so long, I had been wrapped up in Daniel’s life, but now that I didn’t love him anymore, I couldn’t imagine why I’d ever care again.
But that same night, Daniel found his way to my hotel room. As I opened the door, he looked desperate, dragging a suitcase behind him and trying to push his way in.
“Get out! Don’t come here and make a scene!” I shouted, beginning to close the door.
But just then, he sank to his knees, trembling,
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his voice raw. “Gianna, I know I was wrong. I went and found out the truth. Helena lied to me. She was… she was with someone else and refused to admit it, so she spun her story to keep me close. She only came back because things didn’t work out for her abroad. I‘ ve been such a fool, Gianna. You suffered for years because of my blindness, and I know I don’t deserve forgiveness—but please, give me another chance.”
I looked down at Daniel, who was nearly begging, tears streaking his face as he apologized over and over. But couldn’t he have asked these questions sooner? The truth was always within reach; he just never cared enough to look for it until now. Deep down, he still believed I was the one who tore apart their so–called perfect love.
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People passing by glanced our way, and the spectacle of him kneeling at my door left me no choice but to invite him in. He jumped up eagerly, but when he saw the cold look in my eyes, his expression fell.
“Daniel,” I began, my tone calm but firm, “I know I’ve made mistakes, holding on to you longer than I should have. You filled your life with Helena, even plastered your room with her photos, as if to keep me out. I understand now. We‘ ve broken up, and you have your path to follow, just as I have mine. Marry Helena if that’s what you want. Don’t worry—I won’t even show up at your wedding.”
I thought my words made everything clear, but he only shook his head, clutching his
suitcase. Trembling, he opened it, revealing
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Chapter 7 suitcase. Tremping, ne opened it, revealing something that left me speechless. Wedding
photos, ones we’d never taken. He‘ d edited himself into the images with me, as if he‘ d been holding onto something he couldn’t even admit to himself.
“We can start over! You chased me for six years; now, I can do the same!” Daniel‘ s voice trembled with desperation.
I just gave him a faint smile. “Why didn’t you ask the truth from the start?”
It was too late–days too late, in fact. Had he come to me even a little sooner, I might have felt overjoyed. Now, I only felt disgusted. Suddenly, Helena‘ s pame flashed on my phone.
“What exactly is Gianna doing? You steal my boyfriend, then say you‘ re giving up, only to
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cling to him again. Do you have no shame?” Her voice dripped with contempt.
Her words made me laugh. But before I could reply, Daniel snatched the phone from my hand, his face darkening as he unleashed a torrent of anger at Helena. It was the first time I’d seen him stand up for me like this- but it meant nothing now. I watched silently, my decision solidified. I reached for his suitcase, and with deliberate calm, tore up the wedding dress and the doctored photos he’d brought. I tossed the pieces out the door.
Daniel stared at me, stunned, then scrambled outside, frantically picking up the scattered remnants of his fantasy.
Watching him, a sense of satisfaction washed
over me. So this is what it feels like to be the
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one desired, yet forever out of reach.
I closed the door firmly behind me, ignoring Daniel’s desperate knocking. He knew as well as I did that there was nothing left to say. Just as I began to feel like things were finally settled, I received an ornate wedding invitation from Daniel and Helena. I laughed at the absurdity of it and casually tossed it in the trash. People these days really know no limits. Packing up my remaining savings, I prepared to resume my travels, intending to leave all this behind for good.
But on the day of their wedding, my phone rang. It was Helena, her voice drenched in
tears.
“Sis! Please, I need you to come!”
I stared at the incoming call message in
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disbelief, questioning the sincerity behind Helena’s desperate plea. It had been ages since she called me “sis” with such urgency. The last time was when she wanted me to smooth things over with the head teacher on her behalf.
Seeing her in tears stirred something in me, and against my better judgment, I agreed to help her. But that choice had cost me three years of silent torment on campus.
This time, I was resolute in my refusal. After hanging up, I grabbed my suitcase and turned to leave. But to my surprise, my stepmother was kneeling at the door, pleading silently. Chapter 8
“Gianna, I know that Helena did a lot of
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