At the Tyrone Mansion, The "cold war" between Jacob Gu and Emily Bai lasted for a week. This time, the problem between them could not be easily solved unless one of them was willing to give in and compromise to the other.
At late night as usual, Jacob came back to the mansion drunk.
He drank too much wine today. He hoped to numb himself with alcohol, but the results were obviously not what he expected.
Jacob was quite sober now, more sober than ever.
In fact, he was sober every night when he entered the mansion. This kind of sobriety gave him pain. Why? Because it drove him to remember of Emily's betrayal again and again like a broken record.
Because of his deep love for Emily, he couldn't tolerate anything that would desecrate it.
How could this happen?
It shouldn't be like this!
It was like a thorn in Jacob's heart. No matter how hard he tried to ignore, the thorn still couldn't be pulled out. It kept stinging him all the time. It hurt so bad and he couldn't sleep at night.
He felt trapped in a deserted island and there was no way to ask for help nor find a way out.
The small lamp in the room emitted a dim orange light. Despite the lamp's warmth, his heart felt cold.
Was she afraid of the darkness again? Or the lamp was just open for him?
Jacob couldn't help looking over the bed.
Emily seemed to have fallen asleep. Her face was enveloped by the dim light. Jacob found a long-lost sense of tenderness from her face, but he knew how rotten she was behind that tender face.
Over these days, Emily treated him coldly. Her eyes, which had been full of happiness before, were filled with disappointment now.
This made Jacob annoyed and irritated.
Why should Emily be disappointed with him? She was the one who betrayed him after all! Did she really think she could undo what had been done if they just broke up? How dare she?
Emily had just fallen asleep when she felt something heavy pressing on her and was running out breath. She opened her eyes and found some drunken man kissing her.
Things like this happened every night. No matter how indifferent they were to each other during the day, but at night, the man was like a fierce beast, pestering her with strong passion.
Emily lied on the bed numbly, letting him do whatever he wanted to do with her. "Do you think this means anything?"
When he heard what she had said, Jacob stopped for a moment. He could hardly recognize her expression in the dim light but certainly could feel the iciness in her voice. He replied flatly, "Yes."
"Well, do what you wish."
With that said, Jacob didn't want to continue anymore. He arched his body, which was supported by his arms, and looked down at the woman lying under him. He spoke up, "Jack has been transferred to another place. No one knows if something would happen to him. What do you think?"
Speaking of this, it was surprising that Mr. Gu was so generous in this matter. But Mr. Gu had no other choice since his weakness was in Jacob's hands. Jacob clearly understood what Mr. Gu most cared about.
"You didn't have to test me." Emily closed her eyes slowly. She felt very tired but her thoughts and heart were uneasy, "I hate him more than you do."
Her voice muffled weakly.
Jacob inevitably thought of the words Jack said before leaving.
After the matter was brought to light, what Jack said was intended to make Emily feel better or he just told Jacob the truth? Or maybe it was both?
She was the woman most precious to him! Yet she confessed that she had betrayed him. He would rather have her lie to him than hearing the truth.
"So, it's best we break up. I am no longer good enough for you. Has it been hard for you to sleep together with me these days? Why would you force yourself to do this? Isn't it much better if you just let me go?" Emily almost finished her words in one breath. She lowered her eyes, trying to hide her pain, and waited silently for Jacob's reply.
Even if Jacob was willing to accept her, she couldn't forgive herself. She had been passive and humble in this relationship. She couldn't imagine that after such thing happened, she would continue to stay together with Jacob as if nothing had happened.
She was undeserving of his love.
At this moment, he realized that she was determined to break up with him. No other questions asked.
"I won't break up with you."
"So, are you going to keep punishing me?"
Her words deeply stung Jacob's heart. He replied, "No."
Emily couldn't believe what he said. The corners of her lips rose up, but she didn't say anything. She just turned her head and buried her face in the pillow.
The atmosphere was so thick that one can cut it with a spoon.
There was silence between them until Jacob slowly lied down beside Emily. He stretched out his arm and hugged Emily gently from behind, with his chin against her neck, whispering, "Emily, it's my fault. I am so sorry. I love you so much, you know."
Emily's body stiffened at his touch. It was clear that she wasn't asleep yet.
Neither of them had a good sleep these days after all.
Even thought there was no response from her, Jacob took a deep breath. He sniffed her fragrance as he cuddled her. He continued, "Let's forget about this and start all over again, alright? We'll start over as if nothing happened."
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