"I just can't be sure." I frowned. My tone was a bit heavy.
Deep down, I knew the answer. Russel's actions had indeed put me in a difficult situation. If anyone thought he broke off the engagement with Chloe for my sake, I might be caught in a media storm.
Alicia sighed and said, "Rena, you were so in love with Neil for so many years, and he was indifferent to you. After your divorce, he turned around. Even his best friend fell in love with you. How did things come to this?"
I kept silent because I didn't know how to explain. From the moment Neil started having feelings for me, my life was destined to be different from before.
So, there were many things I couldn't predict.
The gathering ended in my silence. My mood was complicated. When I got home, I immediately started searching for information about Russel and Chloe.
They hadn't made it public yet, so I found no news.
As I was deep in thought, Chloe called me.
"Ms. Finch, can you help me again?" Chloe sobbed.
"What can I do for you?" I asked calmly.
"Russel really wants to break off our engagement; I don't want that. So, he threatened me, but I'd rather die than not be with him!" When Chloe said this, I could tell she was losing control.
This kind of behavior seemed all too familiar.
In my past life, when I wanted to win Neil back, I said the same things to my parents. That was why they did everything they could to help me, but it all ended in tragedy.
Neil was right. Russel was a lot like him. They were good friends. Even their ways of threatening were similar.
"This is between you and Russel. I'm sorry, I can't help you." Of course, I wished they wouldn't break off the engagement so my relationship with Russel would be clear.
But that was just what I wished for; I couldn't influence Russel's decision.
Even if I wanted to help Chloe, I was helpless.
"Can you talk to him for me, or can you get back together with Neil?" Chloe's words shocked me.
I was at a loss for words.
"If you get back with Neil, Russel will know he doesn't stand a chance, and maybe he'll take a second look at me and realize I'm the one who truly loves him!" Chloe was sobbing uncontrollably. I could tell she was really upset.
"Ms. Reynolds, you shouldn't force someone who doesn't love you to stay, and you shouldn't be angry over a man like that. You can't forget your parents." As I said these words, I wasn't sure if I was talking to Chloe or to myself in my past life.
If I had the chance to choose again, I wish I had this realization in my past life, not to repeat the same mistakes, accept my divorce with Neil, so I wouldn't get terminally ill, my life wouldn't be a tragedy, and I could start over.
After all, my current situation was pretty complicated. Dealing with it was exhausting.
"Can anyone contact her husband?" A rescuer came down and asked us.
"Her husband isn't answering his phone. Let's go up and try." Chloe's parents suggested.
"She's extremely emotional right now, and she only wants to see her husband. If I let you guys go up, I can't guarantee she won't do something impulsive out of excitement." The firefighter replied worriedly.
I looked up at Chloe standing on the edge of the rooftop. She was even more impulsive than me, causing such a big scene. Even in my past life, when I was desperate and contemplating giving up on life, I would just silently hide in my room.
"Let me give it a try." I said.
Chloe's folks clocked me at that point, knowing full well about my past ties with Russel. They were buzzing instantly, "Alright, alright, Ms. Finch, could you do us a solid and reach out to Russel? Tell him to get his butt over here pronto. Calling off an engagement isn't a big deal. If my daughter kicks up a fuss, I'll find a way to persuade her. I just hope he can talk some sense into her and keep her from doing something daft."
Parents were always fretting over their kids.
I didn't want Chloe to face any kind of bad luck, and this was also my way of making up for the mistakes I made in my past life.
I whipped out my phone, found Russel's number in the blacklist, took a deep breath, and dialed.
On the other end, there was the beep-beep-beep of the call being connected, and after a moment, Russel's voice came through, "Rena?"
"Russel, where the hell are you?" I cut straight to the chase, "Can you swing by?"
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