Sebastian coldly pulled his hand away and looked at her intently. "Joanna, in my eyes, you were always gentle and kind. When you bad-mouthed Natalie, I believed you without question, which waspletely unfair to her. But why did you have to nder her again when you went homest night?"
"I..." Joanna was at a loss for words. She didn''t know how to answer him.
She had disparaged Natalie in front of him countless times before, but he had never contradicted her like this. Hadn''t he always taken her side?
"I was just angry, venting a little. How was I supposed to know my mother would take it seriously and go cause trouble for Natalie?" she finally stammered.
"Sebastian, we grew up together. Don''t you know what kind of person I am? It was Natalie who came back and stole the happiness that should have been ours."
Sebastian''s mind shed to the phone call he''d overheard between Natalie and her brother. When he had his car ident years ago, Joanna had run off with another man. He had never once doubted her story.
He had believed everything she''d told him.
"Joanna, even if you hadn''t left back then, the person I would have married still would have been Natalie. She is the true daughter of the Scott family. My
grandfather only recognizes the Scott family heiress."
Back then, he hadn''t understood love. If his life had gone on without any major incidents, he might very well have married Joanna.
But Natalie had be the biggest incident of his life.
Sebastian turned and walked away.
Joanna burst into angry tears. So, even if she hadn''t left, he wouldn''t have married her.
Sebastian, you have no idea you were only ever my backup n.
Tears streamed down her face as she stood in the wind. She took a deep breath, suppressing the pain in her heart, and hailed a cab. She knew she had to hold on to Sebastian to get everything she wanted.
Natalie, you will not beat me.
She would find a way to turn this around. She would find an opportunity to make Sebastian despise Nataliepletely.
Only then would he finally marry her.
On the way back, Natalie closed her eyes, but she couldn''t block out the sting of Sebastian''s words. They were like daggers plunging into her chest, and the pain was sharp.
Queena nced over at her friend''s tormented expression and could only shake her head slightly.
A toxic bond.
It was truly a toxic, cursed connection.
Natalie''s mind drifted back to the past, to all the times she had tried so hard.
She used to check in on him every day, asking if he was feeling okay. She''d send him countless caring
messages, reminding him to eat
lunch reminding him to eat dinner. She rarely got a response, but she never tired of it, believing that one day, her devotion would move him.
But she was wrong. The man had a heart of stone. He loved no one but himself.
In the end, all she had was the hollow satisfaction of her own one-sided efforts.
She thought she would spend the rest of her life trying. In her past life, she had.
But in this life, just after being reborn, she felt utterly exhausted. He used to be the only thing she could see.
Now, there was truly nothing left.
Only at this moment did she finally understand that even the most beautiful, profound love has a breaking point. It can be worn down until nothing remains.
She had no regrets about the divorce, only a profound sense of relief. She had made that decision because of everything she had suffered in her past life.
And since she had decided to leave, there was no reason to stay.
Now she was free, and she had imagined her wonderful future countless times. She knew all this messy business would try to hold her back, but she wasn''t afraid.
Losing someone you love means you might meet someone better, right?
And life wasn''t just about love. She was only twenty-four. Compared to
the twenty-eight year-old Sebastian.. she was vibrant, young, and
beautiful. Why should she waste her time with a piece of old jerky?