Three years of loving him, three days to erase myself from his world novel Chapter 314

By the time she arrived at Rosalie's apartment, it was nearly noon.

Clara stopped by the downstairs grocer to buy some fresh fruit and nutritional supplements before heading upstairs and knocking on the door.

Miles opened it. Seeing his aunt standing there, his face broke into a massive, surprised grin. "Clara!"

He immediately spun around and shouted toward the kitchen, "Mom, Clara is here!"

Rosalie dropped her cooking knife and hurried out, wiping her hands on her apron, equally thrilled. "Clara, come in, sit down!"

The warm, familial atmosphere instantly lifted the heavy gloom suffocating Clara's chest.

She smiled, setting the groceries on the floor before crouching down to affectionately pinch Miles's cheek. She was about to tease him, but as her eyes swept over his unusually pale, slightly bluish lips, she froze.

"Miles, you don't look well. Are you feeling sick? Tell me the truth."

Her voice tightened with sudden anxiety.

Miles suffered from a severe congenital heart defect. He had undergone a massive surgery when he was younger, and they were simply biding time until he needed another. Any sign of illness was terrifying.

Miles blinked his large eyes and answered obediently, "I'm okay. I just caught a small cold when the temperature dropped a few days ago, but I'm mostly better now."

A cold?

Clara frowned, her anxiety refusing to settle.

If it was just a simple cold, he shouldn't look this bad. His complexion was genuinely concerning.

She stroked his hair gently. "Go rest for a bit. After lunch, I'm taking you to the hospital for a checkup."

A flicker of unease crossed Miles's face, but he eventually lowered his head. "Okay..."

Clara hummed in agreement and walked into the kitchen to help her sister. She was just about to bring up Miles's health when a slurred, frantic voice drifted out from the master bedroom.

It was Zane, sounding completely unhinged and terrified of something invisible. "Stop following me! I didn't do anything to you, so back off! Don't come any closer!"

"Booze... I need a drink... Rosalie, get me a damn bottle!"

"..."

Clara's frown deepened instantly, her eyes darting toward the bedroom door.

When she arrived, she had assumed Zane was at work. But clearly, he wasn't. From the sound of it, he had been rotting in the apartment for days.

What was going on?

Rosalie, who was chopping vegetables, cursed under her breath. Resigned, she called out to Miles to bring his father a bottle, knowing that if she didn't, Zane would throw a violent tantrum.

Catching Clara's deeply confused look, Rosalie paused, letting out a heavy sigh before explaining.

"I have no idea what's wrong with Zane lately. He refuses to go to work. He just locks himself in the bedroom, chugging liquor, and when he gets drunk, he starts hallucinating that people are hunting him... There's nothing I can do."

Clara stared at her, horrified.

Rosalie waved her hand dismissively. "Forget it. Don't waste your breath on him. I guarantee he racked up another massive gambling debt and the loan sharks are breathing down his neck."

Clara's expression turned glacial.

Thinking about it logically, that was the only explanation. Zane was a degenerate gambler. He had been hunted down by debt collectors multiple times in the past.

Unable to hold back, she pleaded, "Rosalie, you need to divorce him. A man like that doesn't deserve you. He is going to drag you down until there's nothing left."

A flash of devastating sorrow crossed Rosalie's face. After a long silence, she lowered her head and resumed violently chopping vegetables.

"I've survived twenty years with him. It is what it is. Enough about that—let's talk about you. How have you been? What are you doing now that the competition is over? How are things with Julian?"

Clara looked at her sister with intense frustration. Every time she brought up divorce, Rosalie deflected.

She was angry, but she knew breaking a twenty-year trauma bond would take time.

Clara exhaled slowly, stepping up to the counter to help prep the food. "I'm looking into taking on some private commissions to build my portfolio. As for Julian..."

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