When His Perfect Mask Shattered I Awoke (Anneliese and Zacharias) novel Chapter 697

He had been there in that event hall, meant to present her with the award.

That day, she missed the chance to meet him.

And him...

Had he come just for her?

Jonathan saw the storm of emotions flickering in Anneliese's eyes—regret, shock, guilt, heartache...

Her gaze shimmered with all that complicated feeling, but he only offered a gentle, reassuring smile and squeezed her hand in comfort.

Justin, of course, didn't notice the shift between them and kept talking.

He kept on talking, "Did you two end up meeting later on? Is that how you first got to know each other? If so, the College of Aerospace should really get the credit for playing matchmaker between Mr. Fullbuster and Anne!"

Jonathan looked over at Dean Baltimore and smiled, denying it. "Anne and I actually met even earlier than that."

Justin grew even more curious, but Jonathan clearly didn't want to keep talking about it.

He wrapped things up. "You'll be involved in the competition yourself, right, Dean Baltimore? So we won't walk over with you, just to avoid any misunderstanding."

Justin finally remembered his own duties and sensed the couple still had things to say to each other. He nodded, shook Jonathan's hand, offered a few words of encouragement to Anneliese, and left.

Anneliese immediately hugged Jonathan and looked up at him.

"You never told me we missed each other that day..."

A flash of sadness crossed Jonathan's eyes, but it vanished in an instant. He smiled.

"There's no point bringing it up."

He never would have said anything at all if Justin hadn't let it slip...

He hadn't wanted Anneliese to feel any guilt or feel like she owed him something.

But Anneliese had caught that fleeting sadness. Her heart clenched, and she gripped his hand.

"Did you... Were you really there just to see me? Did you know I wasn't really sick that day, that I was—?"

Jonathan had indeed come for her. He'd even been the one who suggested the Fullbuster Group set up the Soaring Scholarship at Oceaton University, all because she'd gotten into the College of Aerospace.

He wanted to check on her himself, to see if she remembered him.

Jonathan held her close and kissed the top of her head. "It's fine, you were so young back then. Even if we'd met, you might have just thought of me as your "brother". Now, everything's perfect. It all worked out as it should."

Back then, he'd come to see her with the mindset of a brother.

If they had met, maybe their relationship really would have ended up as nothing more than a purely platonic relationship.

First impressions really did matter.

So Jonathan truly had no regrets.

He never cared about her past—only her present and future.

Anneliese understood, but she still felt a pang of sadness and regret.

She lifted her head. "Who says so? I know that no matter the time or place, I will always fall for you."

He was so handsome and wonderful. She fell in love with him all over again every day, and nothing could ever change that.

At her words, something darkened in Jonathan's eyes. His arm tightened around her, as if he could never get close enough.