Chapter 14
Night fell, and the lights of Paris began to shine on the streets.
Alice stood under the street lamp on Pont des Arts, the dim halo of light casting a hazy glow over her.
She held the coffee cup, surrounded by steam, her delicate profile. appearing and disappearing.
Her appearance was still bright and charming, but there was a hint of detachment and indifference in her expression that Vincent couldn’t understand..
He suddenly pushed open the car door and his leather shoes landed heavily on the cobblestone road.
He took three quick steps and lunged towards her, grabbing her delicate
wrist.
The coffee cup fell to the ground with a sound, splashing dark brown water around the feet of the two people.
“It was me.”
His voice was low and hoarse, as if emotions that had been suppressed for too long had finally found an outlet.
Alice was first taken aback, but when she saw who it was, a hint of a smile appeared at the corner of her lips.
“Did Mr. Seibert come to Paris for his honeymoon?”
She gracefully withdrew her hand and took out a handkerchief from her bag to gently wipe her wrist.
“Oh, I forgot, it seems like there was a little mishap at your wedding.”
Vincent’s eyes darkened as he ignored her sarcasm and asked, “Why did you leave without saying goodbye?”
“Left without saying goodbye?”
Alice chuckled lightly, the laughter tinged with a chilling coldness.
“Mr. Seibert’s memory is really bad. Do we have any relationship that needs to say goodbye between us?”
“You clearly knew…”
Vincent took a step closer, trapping her between himself and the streetlight.
“I ultimately chose you! Even though the wedding was called off, your name is still written on the marriage certificate.”
Alice suddenly laughed even deeper, but the smile did not reach her eyes.
“Has Mr. Seibert still not seen that marriage certificate?”
She took out a photo from the windbreaker pocket and gently tapped it on his suit lapel.
“On your marriage certificate that you have been thinking about day and night, the three words written in black and white are Juliana.”
The photo slowly drifted down, illuminated by the street lamp, and the names on the marriage certificate were clearly visible.
Vincent’s pupils suddenly contracted, memories flooding back like a tide.
“It was impossible…”
His voice was fragmented, “I clearly…”
Chapter 14
“What do you
mean?”
Alice bent down to pick up the photo, her fingertips gently tracing the
name.
“Just like you knew the hospital blood bank was well–stocked, but still insisted on drawing my blood?”
“Just like you clearly saw my original design draft, yet still made me carry the accusation of plagiarism on my back?”
She took a step back, and the last hint of warmth in her eyes also dissipated completely.
“Vincent, in your life choices, I have never been an option.”
“I don’t know what’s going on with that marriage certificate either. It should clearly have both of our names on it. If you mind, we can go to… after we return to our country.”
“Enough!”
Alice suddenly raised her voice, interrupting Vincent.
“I personally processed the marriage certificate for the two of you. How about it, Mr. Seibert? Are you satisfied with marrying your loved one as you wished?”
“Was it you!?”
A hint of shock flashed in Vincent’s eyes.
He thought all of this was Juliana’s doing, but he never expected it was actually orchestrated by Alice.
“Why?” he heard his voice trembling.
“Why?”
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Alice repeated these three words softly, a hint of pain flashing in her eyes.
“Didn’t Mr. Seibert say it himself?”
“Only Juliana is worthy of being your true wife!”
“I was just a dispensable decoration. Now I am voluntarily stepping down. Shouldn’t Mr. Seibert be happy?”
“Are you still angry?”
“Angry?”
Alice was amused and then sneered, “What right do I have to be angry?”
Vincent didn’t understand why Alice suddenly withdrew, even though everything was going according to his plan.
He couldn’t believe that Alice would stop loving him. How could all the things she had done for him in those years, all the unconditional understanding and tolerance, suddenly change?
“What did you mean by sending me those things?”
He persistently kept asking.
“Oh…”
Alice laughed, her smile breathtakingly beautiful. “I sent those things to make Mr. Seibert’s wedding the talk of the town.”
“How does it feel to lose face in front of the whole nation? Is it bearable?”
“Did you ruin my wedding?”
Vincent seemed to have grasped something crucial, “You don’t want me to marry Juliana, do you? You still love me, right…”
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Alice was completely speechless. She looked at the man in front of her, who was so stubborn and foolish, and felt both ridiculous and pitiful.
“Vincent, what makes you think that I still love you?”
“Isn’t it?”
Vincent’s voice suddenly became excited, “That year I had a high fever that wouldn’t go away, and you stayed up for three days and nights taking care of me, even missing the final exams…”
He himself didn’t know why he said these things, but when he heard Alice say she didn’t love him, those memories uncontrollably flooded his mind.
She used to love him so much, loved him enough to give up everything, how could she change so easily?
“So you still remember.”
Alice’s voice suddenly turned cold, “Do you still remember what you did back then?”
Vincent was stunned.
What did he do?
That early winter, Vincent was maliciously fouled in a basketball game, and his ankle swelled up brightly.
Alice cut the apple and quietly made her way to the school infirmary, only to see Juliana’s figure at the corner of the ward.
Her fingers, holding the fruit tray, trembled slightly, and in the end, she did not push the door open.
Outside the door, she heard Vincent gently reprimand Juliana.
“You were not feeling well, so don’t keep running to the hospital.”
Juliana had already noticed Alice outside the door. She made an excuse to go to the bathroom and deliberately bumped into Alice on her way out.
“Ah!”
A cry of alarm.
Vincent ignored his foot injury and rushed out, only to see Juliana sitting on the ground after falling, while Alice stood frozen to the side.
“Don’t blame her,” Juliana pleaded pitifully as she grabbed Vincent’s sleeve, “It was my own carelessness…”
“The doorway is so wide, why did you have to block her?”
Vincent’s roar echoed down the hallway, “You knew Juliana had a clotting disorder, didn’t you?”
Juliana was held in Vincent’s arms, as he flashed a victorious smile at Alice. Alice wanted to explain, but Vincent’s verdict had already been delivered.
“Since you like this spot so much, then kneel down here and reflect on it!”
“Don’t be like this,” Juliana pretended to dissuade, “kneeling for an entire afternoon is enough…”
Alice knew
Watching Vincent’s ever–changing expression, that he too was recalling this past event..
To her, it was a wound that could never be healed.
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“I…”
Vincent stuttered, “That was just a joke, I didn’t expect you to actually kneel…”
“What if I didn’t kneel?”
Alice sneered, “You just keep finding new ways to humiliate me!”
“By your side, I never had the right to choose.”
Vincent was speechless.
“So ruining your wedding was just my revenge. Don’t flatter yourself.”
Alice turned around to leave.
Vincent suddenly grabbed her and said, “My mom was hospitalized…”
“I am very sorry.”
Alice shook off his hand, “But can you blame me? It’s you and Juliana who brought this upon yourselves!”
Just as Vincent was about to continue pestering, a slender figure suddenly intervened, shielding Alice behind them.
“Get lost.”
Cassius‘ voice was as cold as ice.
Vincent saw the newcomer clearly and suddenly grinned, “So, have your climbed up the high branch?”
Alice took Cassius’s arm and said, “Yes, we are going on a date, so please behave yourself.”
Turning the corner, Alice immediately let go of his hand: “I’m sorry, I
Chapter 14
took advantage of you.”
Cassius didn’t mind: “My pleasure.”
He opened the car door, “Can I give you a ride?”
After the car started, Cassius casually mentioned, “There’s a designer salon next week, do you want to go check it out?”
“Really?” Alice’s eyes lit up. “Of course I want to go!”
In the rearview mirror, the corners of Cassius’s lips turned up slightly.
He knew that some wounds needed time to heal, and he would wait patiently.
