Chapter 9
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She used to isolate herself and reject everyone and everything because of low self–esteem. But unlocking that photo album had let light pierce through her gloomy sky.
She suddenly yearned for light to shine in her world.
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she nodded. “Sure.”
Meredith led her to a coffee shop.
“Prof. Gomez, how’s everyone doing?” She left all the class group chats. She had been disconnected from her world for so long.
Meredith cast her a discerning look. “Do you really want to know?”
Lucille secured a postgraduate spot but gave it up, which inevitably raised some doubts. Meredith even came to Seaston to visit her at once.
She nodded again.
Meredith proceeded to talk with her.
Five years were enough to change a person’s life.
Some of her classmates joined dance troupes and became leading dancers. Some pursued advanced studies and earned their doctorates. Some remained at the universities as educators, mentoring the next generation.
Everyone had taken a significant step forward in their lives.
Except for her.
But starting today, she would change.
She would work tirelessly to catch up. Even if she could no longer dance, she would shine in other fields.
“Prof. Gomez, I won’t let you down again.” Her eyes brimmed with tears. She was worried that she would fall short of her teacher’s expectations.
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“I trust you.” Meredith flashed a big smile.
H
Lucille leaned in and shared with Meredith that she would study abroad
“That’s wonderful! I know all students are brave!” Meredith said, holding her hand proudly “Right. We have a European tour coming up. You should come along and get used to life in Europe.”
“But my feet…” She couldn’t dance again. She walked more slowly than anyone else. She even chose a theoretical subject for her postgraduate studies.
“Nothing’s impossible! If it weren’t for the accident, you would’ve been a member of our dance troupe. Just come with us. Help us run some errands, manage the stage, and do makeup.”
Meredith spoke firmly, never once defining her as a cripple.
Lucille smiled. She liked being treated as an able person. She wasn’t useless just because she couldn’t dance. She could still accomplish other things.
Just then, Meredith’s phone buzzed.
“It’s my husband. Do you mind if he joins us?” Meredith inquired.
“Of course not,” she giggled.
In fact, there was a moment when she got cold feet.
Five years of solitude had made her forget how to talk to strangers, but she knew she had to take that first step.
“I’ll ask him to come,” Meredith replied to the message.
However, to Lucille’s surprise, Meredith’s husband was Cedrick’s new client, the man she had just seen.
“He came to Seaston to do business, and I tagged along. I didn’t expect to meet you here. It must be fate.”
As Meredith introduced her husband, Lucille noticed that Cedrick, Maricela, and Meredith’s husband approached the coffee shop.
Then, they stopped at their table.
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Chapter 9
Lucille sat quietly, observing as Cedrick and Maricela’s faces went from athen to red
“Come here. Take a seat. This is my wife. She’s a dance teacher,” Meredith’s hodhand, besten Wyatt, said politely. “And this is Cedrick Maynard, my business partner. Next to hem is kep wife.”
When the word “wife” reached Cedrick’s car, his hand trembled. Maricela sirmed, ble to sit still. Both of them started nervously at Lucille.
Lucille only looked at them, her lips curling into a soft smile.
“This is my husband, Jaiden Wyatt.” Then Meredith pointed at Lucille and said. “This is my student, once the greatest contender for the Novice Dance Cup.”
Cedrick’s eyes dimmed. He lowered his head, sneaking a glance at Lucille’s leg
Lucille saw the pain in his eyes in that moment.
How could it not be painful?
If she weren’t crippled, he wouldn’t have married her, and the woman sitting next to him would be his wife.
Lucille cracked a smile and said, “Prof. Gomez and Mr. Wyatt, in fact, I’m…”
“Ah!” Maricela let out a scream and cut Lucille short.
Lucille stopped talking.
Maricela spilled the coffee all over her.
“So sorry. That was rude of me,” she muttered, quickly grabbing a tissue to clean up the
mess.
“It’s alright.” Not knowing what was going on, Meredith still passed her tissues.
A cup of tea prevented her from telling the truth.
But if Lucille was determined, could Maricela still stop her?
From across the table, Cedrick threw Lucille a look of desperation, shook his head, and mouthed silently, “Don’t tell them, please.”
In fact, she didn’t intend to drop the truth bomb. She teased them with half a sentence just to
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Chapter 9
see them freak out.
While they were sitting on pins and needles, Lucille was perfectly at ease.
When Lucille raised her coffee, Meredith noticed the ring on her finger. “Lucille, are you married? Who’s your husband?”
Cedrick and Maricela were both dumbfounded,
Lucille observed Cedrick’s hand on the cup, a sardonic smile tugging at her lips. He never wore his ring. After the wedding, he took it off, and its whereabouts remained a mystery. “Yes. I’ve been married for five years,” Lucille said. “Maynard is my husband’s last name.”
“What a coincidence! He’s a Maynard as well?” Cedrick asked promptly.
He implied that she should stop talking.