Chapter 107: Begging in the Downpour
The extreme coldness in Evelyn's eyes as she walked away felt like a knife twisting in Damian’s heart. Sienna’s cheap act was now merely irritating. “Don’t speak ill of her to me. You don’t even deserve to say her name.”
Damian didn’t spare Sienna another glance, turning and striding toward the elevator, leaving a lobby full of stunned employees and a deathly pale Sienna. Sienna trembled from his rebuke, her expression frozen. She couldn’t believe it. In six years, this was the first time he had lost his temper with her over Evelyn. The warning and rage in his eyes chilled her to the core.
Shock gave way to overwhelming hatred. Sienna hissed under her breath, “Evelyn, I will make you pay for this.”
It was completely dark when Evelyn returned to the mansion. She didn't turn on the lights, walking straight to the closet. She stripped off the coffee-stained trench coat and tossed it into the trash. The woman in the mirror was pale, but her eyes were remarkably bright. She changed into loose loungewear to conceal her abdomen and walked into the second-floor bedroom.
Evelyn turned on the lamp, spread out her sketchpad, and picked up her charcoal pencil. Despite the disgusting spectacle earlier, her hand was steady. The pencil scratched softly on the paper. She was revising the menswear collection designs. Every stroke felt like a deliberate cut against her weak, past self.
Time slipped by. Suddenly, a blinding flash of lightning split the darkness outside, followed by a crack of thunder.
Rumble.
A torrential downpour instantly engulfed New York. Rain hammered the windows. Evelyn paused, rubbing her aching wrist. Just as she was about to close the window, she heard frantic, heavy pounding on the front door.
“Evelyn! Open the door! Evelyn!”
The voice was muffled by the rain, but Evelyn instantly recognized it. Damian.
She walked to the window and pushed it open slightly. The storm raged, cold rain and wind hitting her face. Down in the yard, the arrogant CEO of Omni Group stood like a drowned dog. He was completely soaked, his expensive tailored suit plastered to his body, his hair slicked against his forehead. Rain ran down his sharp nose, making him look utterly miserable.
He stared up at the faintly lit window on the second floor.
“Evelyn! I know you’re watching!” Damian wiped the rain from his face. “I was wrong! I shouldn’t have yelled at you, I shouldn't have done it for Sienna! Give me one more chance, Evelyn, please!” His voice was a pathetic wail in the wind.
Evelyn stood behind the curtain, watching. A long-ago memory flashed in her mind. The last summer of high school, a similar rainstorm. Afraid of the dark, she had shivered under her blanket because the power was out. Damian had ridden his bike halfway across the city in the heavy rain and stood below her window, soaked, yelling, “Don’t be afraid, Evelyn, I’m here for you.” Back then, his eyes were only for her; he was willing to take on the world for her.
Her heart twisted violently, clenched by an invisible hand. The image of the loving boy in the rain briefly overlapped with the desperate man begging for forgiveness. For a split second, she nearly softened.
But then, Sienna’s smug face and all of Damian’s betrayals washed over her like cold water, extinguishing the tiny spark of pity.
“It’s too late, Damian,” Evelyn told herself. That boy was dead, killed by countless lies and betrayals. Her resolve returned, her eyes turning cold again.
CLACK.
Without a word, Evelyn closed the window and pulled the heavy curtains shut, cutting off the miserable sight.
Downstairs, Damian watched the window slam shut in his face. The light in his eyes slowly died. He couldn't believe Evelyn, the woman who used to worry if he so much as coughed, truly had the heart to leave him in the storm.
“Evelyn… do you hate me that much?” he muttered in the rain, his body beginning to tremble, whether from the cold or the crushing fear of losing everything.
He stood there for thirty minutes. Until a wave of dizziness hit him.
THUD!
The sound of a heavy body hitting the ground was muffled by the rain, but Evelyn heard it. Her pencil stopped sharply, the tip snapping on the paper. After a few seconds of hesitation, she couldn’t resist. She lifted a corner of the curtain.
Under the faint streetlamp, Damian lay motionless in a puddle.
Just then, a red sports car screeched to a halt at the gate. Sienna rushed in. She carried an umbrella but didn't open it, running straight to Damian.
“Damian! Oh my God! What happened to you!” Sienna cried out, struggling to pull him up.
Damian seemed to regain consciousness briefly before passing out. His head tilted toward the mansion’s second floor, his gaze piercing the rain, fixated on her window. Then, his head slumped down.
In Sienna’s luxury apartment, the heating was on high. Damian lay in her bed, changed into dry pajamas, a cooling patch on his forehead. Sienna sat beside him, carefully wiping his face with a wet cloth. Looking at his handsome, drawn face, her expression was a mix of infatuation and resentment.
“What’s so great about Evelyn?” Sienna ran a finger over Damian’s lips. “She drove you to this and didn't even spare a glance. Only I, only I truly care about you.”
Just then, Damian stirred. His brow furrowed as if caught in a nightmare. His cold hand suddenly gripped Sienna’s wrist with surprising force.