Chapter 79
The photos and rumors on the forum spread like wildfire throughout the school. In less than half a day, almost everyone knew about it.
I only found out after leaving the library.
"Sidney," I called out to him, "check the campus forum. Everyone's saying we're dating."
Sidney opened his phone and glanced at it. "It's just gossip. Don't worry about it. This kind of rumor will die down after a while."
I hesitated, wanting to say something.
"Does this really bother you?"
"I think we should clear things up. Otherwise, it's not good if people misunderstand like this."
"If you want to clear it up, go ahead. But I don't think they'll believe us anyway."
I thought about it. "You have a point."
Right now, these people would only believe what they saw. They didn't care about the truth. Why waste our breath explaining to them?
Neither Sidney nor I bothered with it.
The next day in class, some people gave Sidney and me suggestive looks as they glanced between us - him sitting in front, me behind.
I sat in my seat, eyes straight ahead, boredly flipping through the book in front of me.
I stared at Sidney's back, wondering if he was that person.
Sidney and I had gone to the library, and that person had launched an attack right then, with the location being the library.
How could there be such a coincidence?
I needed to find a way to test him.
I was so lost in thought that I didn't react until someone next to me tapped me.
It was a girl with a round face and big, round eyes - very cute. She smiled and asked, "Why don't you go sit in the same row as him?"
I was confused. "Why would I sit in the same row as him?"
"I saw you staring at him the whole time. I thought you wanted to sit with him but were too shy to..."
Looking at her innocent eyes, I knew she meant no harm. I said with amusement, "We're not like that. I was only staring at him because I happened to be looking in that direction while thinking about something, so I didn't look away."
The round-faced girl nodded. "Oh, I see."
"Hi, I'm Yasmin Moore. Nice to meet you." Yasmin extended her hand for a friendly handshake.
I shook her hand. "You probably already know my name."
With all the fuss that had been made, probably everyone in the school knew my name and what I looked like.
"Sophia."
I nodded.
Yasmin seemed like someone had flipped a switch - she kept talking non-stop. I was worried she'd get thirsty and interrupted her. "Um, do you want to drink some water?"
Yasmin smiled with her eyes. "Actually, my throat is getting a bit dry."
She opened her thermos and took a sip.
She wanted to keep talking, but I stopped her before she could start. "This class is pretty hard. If we don't pay attention, we might not be able to do the homework."
Yasmin's eyes went even rounder. She covered her mouth, turned around, and listened to the lecture seriously.
After class, she insisted on going to eat with me.
We bought food at the cafeteria and were looking for a place to sit and eat.
A commotion broke out not far away.
Yasmin instantly got excited. "Sophia, look! A hot guy!"
I looked up and couldn't help rolling my eyes.
What was James doing here?
Why did this busy CEO keep coming to Celestial University?
My extremely disgusted look met his indifferent gaze.
He paused for a moment, then started walking toward me.
I instantly gripped my fork tighter.
"James, where are you going?"
Amelia appeared behind him, hooking her arm through his and stopping him from walking toward me.
Amelia looked in my direction. "Sophia, why are you eating here?"
I put down my fork and wiped my lips with a napkin. "I'm a student here. What's wrong with eating here?"
Amelia looked a bit hurt. "We have a chef at home. Why do you have to come to school to eat? Is it because you don't want to see me?"
I was just eating, and she had to go on and on.
I said irritably, "Yes, I just don't want to see you. Is that enough?"
"So now you know. Can you stay away from me?"
"Otherwise, I'm afraid you'll disgust me so much I won't be able to eat."
Amelia's eyes turned red. "Sophia, I'm just showing concern for you. Do you have to target me like this?"
She tugged on James's sleeve again, asking pitifully, "James, did I say anything wrong just now?"
James pulled away her hand. Without even looking at her, he stared straight at me. "Sophia, I need to talk to you."
I sighed.
I definitely couldn't finish this meal now.
I picked up my tray, cleared it, and went with James to a small pavilion on campus.
"What do you need from me?"
He didn't waste words either, getting straight to the point. "I heard you're dating someone at school."
I crossed my arms and scoffed. "You came to school just for this?"
"No, I came to check on the progress of an experiment. I just happened to hear you were dating someone."
I snorted to myself, figuring he wouldn't make a special trip to school just for me.
"I've said it before - whatever I do has nothing to do with you. Please don't come looking for me over such trivial matters in the future."
"Sophia, this isn't trivial. Have you thought about what would happen if news of you dating got out when we're not even divorced yet?"
I raised an eyebrow at him. "Would you let that news get out?"
"If you don't want it to, no one would dare publicize it."
"You cheat on me and still want me to help you cover it up?" Rage surged in James's eyes, veins bulging at his temples, his voice so icy it could freeze someone to death.
"Sophia, are you out of your mind?"
"The one who's out of their mind isn't me - it's you, making trouble out of nothing," I said flatly.
He scoffed, the sound full of mockery and anger. "Sophia, don't forget why you came to Celestial University."
"If you don't want to continue studying, I can ask the principal to process your withdrawal."
"If you're at Celestial University, study properly. Don't go around flirting with other men. If there's a next time, don't blame me for not being nice about it."
Listening to all this, I finally figured something out.
James seemed to be jealous.
"Are you jealous?" I asked him with a smile.
James denied it. "Of course not."
I dropped the smile. "Then you're just being crazy."
"If you're sick, go to the hospital. Don't come here acting crazy."
James sighed deeply, as if giving up. "I'm angry."
Meeting my confused look, James continued, "Sophia, when I find out my wife is getting involved with another man, shouldn't I be angry?"
I said, "Oh. If you're angry because I betrayed you, then just divorce me. That way you won't have to be angry anymore."
"So after all this, you just want a divorce, right?"
I was certain. "Yes. The thing I want most right now is to separate from you, to get away from your family, from you, from all your messy problems - as far away as possible."
He stared at me. After a very long time, he finally spoke slowly. "Sophia, give up on that idea. I will never divorce you, even if it kills me. We'll be tangled up like this for the rest of our lives."