As Marcus looked at me, I could see his expression darkening. “Do you know how it feels to struggle alone in the darkness?”
I pursed my lips. I wanted to apologize but the words were stuck in my throat.
“Scarlett, I used to love you. But now, I hate you as much as I loved you in the past.”
I couldn’t believe these words would come out of Marcus’ mouth. Stunned, I was lost in my thoughts for a long while.
When I was back in high school, I learned about the law of conservation of energy in physics. Later, I learned that in political materialism, it was also believed that conservation was everything.
Back when we were young and naive, we thought that everything we learned in school was purely about astronomical geography. Thinking it over then, I finally came to the realization that we had actually learned life lessons throughout those years without even noticing it.
There was no such thing as unconditional love in this world. It was impossible for love to exist without attached conditions. In fact, love was all about to give and take. The relationship between two people was designed to be an exchange process. If you enjoyed receiving all the love and affection from your partners without making any effort to return back, the uneasy feeling in your heart would never fade away.
I would probably never be able to face Marcus in my lifetime.
He’s right. He was the one who got me out of hell. So why didn’t I reach out my hand when he was in hell?
After he left, I stayed up all night sitting in the living room. I was in no position to judge Marcus. Every step he took was him trying to find peace in his heart.
September in K City was neither too cold nor too hot, but the cool breeze in the middle of the night was enough to keep people awake.
It was a sleepless night for me.
After I had left Ashton’s side, it didn’t take him long to show up. It wasn’t something beyond my expectation. Hence, I wasn’t surprised at all.
I didn’t have to worry about Summer as the housekeeper and driver were responsible for taking care of her.
Ashton came at seven o’clock in the morning while I was still sitting on the sofa. I had no idea how long I had been sitting there, but it was probably a few hours since my body felt stiff and numb.
I opened the door when I heard the doorbell rang. It had only been a night since Ashton and I last saw each other. As our eyes met, I noticed that there was stubble on his chin. He looked haggard as if he had gone through the vicissitudes of life.
“Can I come in?” He sounded distressed.
I nodded and made way for him.
He looked at me with a gentle gaze. “I’m sorry.”
I smiled faintly. “I’m not mad.” After all, Sally was the elder in the Fuller family. There was nothing much he could do.
He pulled me into his arms, enveloping me in the tobacco smell on his body. “It won’t happen again.”
It sounded like a promise, as well as an assurance.
I hummed faintly in response. At that moment, I felt a sense of peace and relief to be able to lean on him.
I began to feel sleepy. I closed my eyes and asked, “If you’re not busy today, can you stay with me for a while?”
He answered with a slightly indulgent smile, “I’m not busy. We have all the time in the world.”
I knew that there was no way he wouldn’t be busy. After all, Marcus had the intention of targeting Fuller Corporation. He was dying to see the downfall of Fuller Corporation. Hence, he would not miss out on any opportunity to pick on Ashton.
Even though I knew that he was lying, I simply pursed my lips and smiled faintly. It didn’t matter. Life was a long journey. At some point in our life, we just had to live for ourselves, even if it was just for a few days.
It was actually quite a good option if we could just live our lives in peace and serenity like that.
By the time I woke up, night had already fallen. Unknowingly, I had slept for the whole day.
Ashton was leaning on me. He chuckled softly when he noticed I was awake. “What were you dreaming of?”
“I dreamt of a beautiful sea of flowers.” I dreamed quite often recently. In my dream, Macy, Grandma, and Grandpa were there, as well as my child who had grown up.
Noticing how absent-minded I looked, he reached out and pulled me into his arms. “Initially, I kept the villa just for you. If it triggers some bad memories, how about we move to a new one?”
I was amused. “How bold of you. Aren’t you afraid of being captured by the paparazzi and being branded as a spendthrift?”
He rested his chin on my cheek, his stubble prickling me. “I don’t mind being the subject of some gossip for you.”
I stopped teasing him and simply smiled in response. Then, I got up from bed. There was nothing much in the house since I had just moved in.
Hence, I decided to order a takeout.
In the living room, he was working on his laptop, while I was studying some documents. The atmosphere was peaceful and harmonious.
Not long after, Joseph sent Summer over and he brought some daily necessities as well.
While the two of them were talking about work in the study, Summer was leaning in my arms. She raised her head and looked at me. “Mommy, I think I got myself into trouble today!”
I was shocked for a moment before I put down the book in my hand and looked at her. I asked in a gentle tone, “What happened?”
Looking like she was on the verge of tears, she pursed her lips and said. “I accidentally pushed a kid down the slide. I didn’t mean it! It’s just that he had been sitting there for a long time, and many other kids were waiting to play on the slide. So, I nudged him gently. I never thought he would lose his balance and fell down.”
“How is he now? Did someone send him to the hospital?”
She nodded. “Mr. Campbell sent him to the hospital. He gave them a lot of money as well. Mommy, I know I was wrong.”
“It’s not right to hurt someone and we should always apologize for our mistake. But Summer, I knew you meant well, it’s just that the way you handled the situation was wrong. Have you thought about how you are going to deal with the situation if the same situation were to happen again in the future?” Since it had already happened, there was no point in me to keep blaming her. What I could do was to let her know that we must take responsibility for our actions.
