Chapter 76
I covered my face in pain, but I didn't want others to see my vulnerability.
"Why are you here? Didn't you leave early to handle things?" I thought to myself, if he had come earlier, maybe I wouldn't have had to be here.
That way, I could have avoided a lot of trouble - out of sight, out of mind.
Levi probably heard the dissatisfaction in my tone. Apart from Aiden and Rhea, the rest of the Morgan family had always been cold to me.
Although his mother's attitude toward me had changed dramatically today, Cleo had invited Jessa over. Knowing full well we didn't get along, she still let her stay here.
"I came as soon as I finished," Levi explained.
He rarely explained anything to me, which surprised me a bit.
"Let's go then. Uma asked me to pick out some flowers. I'll have the driver help move them." The flowers here were really beautiful, and I genuinely liked them.
The flowers in our garden at home were mostly pale, and with the cold weather, many had wilted. It wasn't yet the season for wintersweet to bloom, so I thought bringing a few pots home to enjoy would be nice.
"I'll carry them," Levi offered to help.
I waved him off. "I wouldn't dare trouble you."
"I have plenty of strength."
Levi actually started arguing with me. Whichever pot I chose, his hand followed. It made me feel awkward and annoyed.
I was used to doing things on my own.
"I can manage. Go see your mom - she's back, and you two haven't talked yet, right?" I tried to get rid of him.
We went back and forth, seemingly putting Jessa's hitting me behind us. It wasn't that I was letting her get away with it - I just didn't want to make a big deal out of it.
Jessa always liked to make a scene. If everyone heard us arguing, it would attract attention.
That would cause trouble for Levi's mother and ruin the atmosphere.
Most importantly, if people asked about our relationship, I was afraid Levi would be caught in the middle. Since we were planning to keep our relationship private anyway, I might as well take this loss.
I'd just chalk it up to bad luck today.
Just as I was giving myself this pep talk, Levi interrupted my thoughts.
"We already talked, we spoke on the phone last night."
"Huh?"
He suddenly raised his hand and gently touched my cheek. "I told her to look after you more, that you don't really like these occasions."
My whole body felt like it had been shocked. I quickly pushed his hand away.
"It's not that I don't like them, I just find them boring."
I continued selecting flowers, hoping he wouldn't say these random things anymore. His sudden talkativeness was hard to adjust to.
What was going on today? Why was he being nice to me, too?
Though his mother's change of heart was probably influenced by him - he just said they'd been in touch beforehand.
Seeing us talk, Jessa finally couldn't hold back.
"Levi, I was too hasty the other day. Sorry about that," Jessa apologized insincerely.
How could years of feelings just disappear like that? Jessa must still think Levi had feelings for her.
Including me - I never quite believed that Levi had really just broken up with her like that.
"It's fine."
Levi responded, and I knew he wasn't that cold after all.
Seeing him reply, Jessa thought her chance had come. She smiled and moved closer, positioning herself between us, separating us.
I turned away with a bitter smile. This woman was getting more and more direct, not feeling the least bit out of place.
"Levi, actually, he and I don't get along well. You saw it that day - he's not genuinely good to me. We're just putting on a show."
"Really, Levi, believe me. I was just trying to make you jealous. I thought you were just saying things in anger, saying our fate had run out. I was so heartbroken, so I just randomly found him."
"I'll break up with him. We're basically broken up now anyway."
Jessa kept explaining. The sunroom was already stuffy, and listening to her talk made me sweat.
Levi stared at her and said, "Not helping you pay your debts means it's just an act?"
"No, it's not..."
"You randomly found another man just to make me jealous?"
Jessa flailed, trying to explain, but Levi cut her off again.
"You say break up and just break up, casually playing with other people's feelings?"
Levi hit the nail on the head; every sentence hit the key point. I already thought Jessa was fickle, but I didn't expect her to think a few casual words could erase the fact that she'd found a boyfriend.
But nobody's deaf or blind. Maybe only someone blinded by love would believe her nonsense.
Maybe love is blind - just like me these past six years, knowing Levi didn't love me, yet I persisted for so long.
"Levi, you still won't forgive me. My feelings for you are genuine - I've never been wrong about loving you."
"I accidentally hurt Celestia before."
"Later, my mom did wrong things. She hurt Celestia and made a scene at your house. But Levi, that wasn't my fault. I couldn't stop her - she lost control."
Jessa acted like she'd suffered a great injustice, bringing up old matters.
But the points she desperately explained were my pain points. My Celestia was innocent too, and so was I. Why should they get to harm whoever they wanted to?
Abusers never truly repent - they're just scared, so they pretend to be remorseful. If the victim forgives, then the punishment looks like a joke.
I would never forgive the harm they caused me.
"Levi, it really wasn't my fault. What am I lacking compared to her that makes you hate me so much?"
"We were so good together. You said you'd give me a new home. Where's my home?"
Jessa questioned him hysterically. My heart jolted - so he had made such promises to her.
"My ears and eyes work fine. I can tell right from wrong," Levi said, walking past her to my side.
He took the flowerpot from me. "I'll take this out first. We'll go home shortly."
"Okay."
I agreed verbally, but I felt uncomfortable inside. He and Jessa were like a thorn in my heart - even if pulled out, it would still ache.
"Levi, listen to me..."
Jessa tried to follow him, but I stopped her.
"You'd better not go out there!"
She stopped. "What gives you the right to tell me what to do?"
"You already know his attitude. If you chase after him now, you're just humiliating yourself. Do you want the whole world to know things aren't good between you two?"
"Rather than being laughed at by others, you might as well keep dreaming."
I wasn't actually concerned about her dignity - I was concerned about the Morgan family's reputation. If their situation became unseemly, it would only cause endless gossip.
Jessa seemed to listen. She stayed put, then pointed at me and cursed, "Blair, don't act all high and mighty. You think I'll be grateful to you?"
I scoffed. "You seem to have misunderstood - I've never had any sympathy for you."