Chapter 226 Chapter 226
When Sara got out of the car in front of the school gates, the soft roar of another engine caught the attention of the students around her.
It was a gleaming black Bentley, stopping a few feet away.
Sara froze. Her shoulders instantly tensed and her hands clenched into fists at her sides.
She felt the weight of a familiar gaze burning into her back, but she vehemently refused to turn around.
Instead, she lowered her head, quickened her pace, and practically ran onto the campus, as if fleeing from a plague.
A few meters behind her...
Victor had just stepped out of the back seat of the Bentley. Immediately, his private driver opened a huge black parasol, holding it over the young man's head to protect him from the strong morning sun.
Victor was an extremely vain boy.
In the summer, he wasn't content with just slathering on high-factor sunscreen. He demanded the physical protection of a parasol whenever he was outdoors. For him, getting any tan or sunburn was absolutely out of the question.
However, today, his mind was not on UV rays.
The driver noticed that the young master's expression was gloomy and empty. “Sir, are you all right?” asked the employee, concerned.
Victor didn't say a word.
His body was as rigid as an ice statue, his eyes fixed on Sara's silhouette as she hurried away.
He only blinked and looked away when Sara turned the corner of the building and disappeared completely from his field of vision.
He stood there for another long minute. He took a deep breath, swallowing the lump forming in his throat and suppressing the moisture threatening his eyes.
Then, in a sudden movement, he took a step forward, stepping out from under the shade of the parasol.
The glare of the summer sun hit him mercilessly. The warm rays enveloped him completely.
The driver's eyes widened and he quickly ran after him, trying to put the parasol over his boss's head again.
But Victor raised his hand, blocking him. “It's okay.” His voice came out hoarse. “You can go back to the car.”
The driver was stunned. “Sir, at least hold it yourself! Don't stand in the sun like that!”
The driver knew Victor's eccentricities. He knew how much the young man panicked about the sun. The driver's own teenage daughter was obsessed with skin care, but Victor managed to be worse than her. He used a parasol all year round. Let alone in a scorching summer.
Victor looked at the extended parasol and shook his head with a bitter smile. “No need.”
The driver's mouth fell open in shock. What happened to him? Is the sky going to fall today? Should I warn my boss and his wife about this suicidal behavior?
Victor ignored the employee's panic. He turned to look at the stone path where Sara had disappeared. His face paled even more in the light, and he walked slowly and uneasily into the campus.
Sara... she definitely saw me coming.
He knew she had sensed his presence.
But she didn't look back. Not once. She just quickened her pace and ran away.
The realization finally sank in, cold and merciless.
She really hates me.
In the past, when she rejected him with lame excuses and polite smiles, she was just being kind. She was trying to dismiss him tactfully so as not to hurt his dignity.
But he... he was a blind and conceited idiot.
He actually interpreted her kindness and politeness as hesitation.
He thought it meant she was playing hard to get and that, deep down, she had some hidden interest in him.
And with that selfish delusion, he continued to surround and harass her relentlessly for three long years.
He thought that with his unwavering determination and status, he would eventually overcome her resistance and convince her to accept him.
But the terrible truth burst like a bubble: she had long been exhausted and irritated by him. His persistence was not a romantic gesture; it was a burden.
And this time, after recent events, she had clearly reached her absolute limit.
Victor gritted his teeth. He was a young master from a wealthy family, blessed with enviable looks. He had his own pride. And at that moment, he realized that his pride was shattered on the schoolyard floor. He also pestered her so much because, deep down, he had created the illusion that Sara liked him. He thought she was just too aware of the huge difference between their families' backgrounds and social statuses to accept him openly.
He thought he needed to fight for both of them.
But now he understood.
Even though he had overwhelming feelings for her, he had his dignity. He would never bother her again.
He decided to give up.
It turned out that this would not be an easy decision for him to carry out.
It hurt too much. It hurt physically.
He loved her with all his heart. For the past three years, it was as if his world revolved exclusively around Sara. It was going to be hell to give up all that so suddenly.
As he walked through the campus corridors, ignoring the curious glances, Victor felt that he would never be able to love anyone that way again. With such purity and such intensity.
Going through this excruciating pain of rejection once was enough. He never wanted to go through it again in his entire life.
However, deep down in his broken heart, he never regretted trying.
...
In front of Caroline's college campus.
Nicholas gently pulled the Bugatti over to the side of the road, ending the journey after dropping Sara off at school.
As soon as the car stopped, Caroline unbuckled her seatbelt with a playful smile. She opened the door, but before getting out, she turned to Nicholas, maintaining her posture as an untouchable maiden.
“Well, Mr. Wolf,” she said in a sweet, overly polite voice. "This is my college.
I apologize for the morning's inconvenience and thank you very much for the ride. You are very kind.“
Nicholas was speechless.
His eyebrows knitted together. Suddenly, he had become ”Mr. Wolf" again, a mere driver and suitor in the friend zone. She treated him with such politeness and distance that he felt physically uncomfortable with the sudden change in dynamics.
Until yesterday, he was the “husband.” The “love.”
But it was obvious that this ungrateful, devilish girl was handling the game perfectly well. She was loving it.
She said “Mr. Wolf” so naturally that it seemed as if they had never shared a bed or exchanged kisses.
Thinking about it, Nicholas felt genuinely irritated. He seemed to be the only person deeply unhappy with the current “relationship.”
He swallowed his pride.
Since he, in a moment of romantic stupidity, had agreed to woo her from scratch, he would keep his promise. He was not a man who went back on his word, despite his obvious unhappiness.
“You're welcome, Miss Ford,” he replied, his tone slightly cold, emphasizing her maiden name.