Chapter 222 Reunion

Chapter 222 Reunion

The next morning.

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains into the guest room.

Diana pushed away the arm draped across her waist and sat up.

Ethan groaned, pulling at his wound, then pulled her back into his arms and nuzzled his head against her back. "Sleep a bit more."

"Get off." Diana swatted his hand away, threw off the covers and got out of bed. "Change your bandages yourself. I'm going downstairs to check on Liv."

Ethan didn't linger in bed. He slowly got up to wash up.

The two of them went downstairs one after the other.

In the living room, an old man and a little girl were sitting on the sofa.

Olivia was wearing pink loungewear, curled up on the old man's lap, holding a thick old photo album in her hands.

"Great-grandpa, why are there no photos on these pages?" Olivia pointed at the blank spaces in the middle of the album, her voice clear.

The old man patted Olivia's head and sighed.

"During those years, your dad was in a car accident and went missing for almost a year. When we found him, he couldn't remember anything. A family had taken him in."

Diana stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Ethan.

"You went through that?"

Ethan, one hand in his pocket, walked over and sat down in the armchair, his tone casual.

"I forgot about it long ago. After they found me, I remembered everything from before, but that whole year I was gone—completely blank. The doctor said it was post-traumatic aftereffects. It didn't affect my normal life, so we didn't worry about it."

The old man turned a page in the album and shook his head.

"That family was kind-hearted. They felt sorry for him and even gave him a new name. What was it again..." The old man frowned, thinking, then suddenly slapped his thigh. "Right! Gabriel Price."

The moment those two words came out, the air in the living room froze.

Diana's whole body stiffened, and the water glass in her hand nearly spilled.

Ethan's body, which had been leaning against the sofa back, instantly tensed up, his face changing dramatically.

Gabriel.

That name had been his nightmare for years.

Diana stared at the old man, her voice trembling.

"Grandpa, what did you just say his name was?"

"Gabriel." The old man looked confused. "What's wrong?"

Diana rushed forward two steps and grabbed the old man's arm.

"The family that took him in—did they live at 309 Maple Street in River City's old district?"

The old man paused, thinking carefully.

"Yes, Maple Street, number 309. I even had the butler send them gifts today. How did you know?"

Diana's head was spinning, completely confused.

309 Maple Street.

When she was fourteen, she lived with her parents at 310.

In the yard next door lived a big brother covered in injuries.

The neighbors all said he'd damaged his brain in the fall and couldn't remember anything. He was withdrawn, cold, wouldn't talk to anyone—except her. He was only nice to her.

She would go next door every day after school, bringing him pictures she'd drawn, telling him stories about school.

He was the only bright spot in her dark teenage years.

Until one day, she came home from school and the yard next door was empty.

A neighbor said Gabriel had left, and wouldn't say anything more.

She cried for a whole month, thinking he had died.

Diana turned her head to look at Ethan sitting nearby.

Her lips trembled violently, unable to speak for a long time.

Ethan's shock at this moment was no less than hers.

Gabriel.

The white moonlight in Diana's heart, the name she'd called out when drunk, the man she thought about even in her dreams.

He'd been jealous of that name to the point of madness.

He thought Diana married him only because he looked somewhat like that Gabriel.

Four years ago, he'd even wanted to divorce her to make her happy.

And now he was being told that the rival he'd been jealous of for four years, the one who drove him crazy with jealousy, was actually himself?!

Ethan shot to his feet.

The movement was too sudden, pulling at his abdominal wound. His face went pale, but he didn't care.

He strode over and grabbed Diana's wrist with shocking force.

"You just said you lived at 310?" Ethan's voice was filled with disbelief. "When you were fourteen, you lived at 310 Maple Street?"

Diana's eyes turned red, tears falling without warning.

"Yes." She bit her lip, looking at him in disbelief. "Gabriel was you all along."

Ethan's head buzzed.

A huge sense of absurdity mixed with wild joy crashed over him.

What stupid things had he done these past four years!

He'd pushed her away, neglected her, tormented her, almost lost her forever—all because of a rival who didn't even exist.

He'd been jealous of himself for four years!

Olivia sat nearby, looking at one, then the other, her little eyebrows knitted tight.

"Mommy, why are you crying?" The little girl jumped off the sofa and ran over to hug Diana's leg, then turned to glare at Ethan. "Did you bully my mommy again!"

The old man also sensed something was wrong and quickly closed the album.

"What are you two talking in riddles about? What's this about 310?"

Ethan couldn't hear anything around him.

"Diana." Ethan's Adam's apple bobbed, his voice terribly hoarse. "The person you could never forget... was me?"

Diana yanked her hand away forcefully.

The grievances from four years ago, the heartache of these four years, all became an absurd joke in this moment.

She'd given up painting for him, toned down her personality for him, thinking she could warm his heart.

But he'd hurt her badly because of a misunderstanding.

"Ethan, you're such a bastard." Diana stood up and headed upstairs without looking back.

Ethan panicked.

Ignoring the wound on his stomach, he rushed after her into the room and pulled her into his arms.

"Don't go." Ethan held her tightly.

"Let go!" Diana struggled, her fists pounding on his shoulder.

Ethan groaned but held her tighter.

"I won't let go." He buried his face in her neck, his voice clearly trembling. "Diana, I'm sorry. I didn't know that Gabriel was me."

He paused, his tone revealing undisguised regret and self-mockery.

"I was jealous of myself for four whole years."

Diana stopped moving.

She pressed against his chest, listening to his wildly beating heart.

"When you wanted a divorce before, was it because of Gabriel?" Diana asked through gritted teeth.

Ethan nodded, his arms tightening.

"I thought the person you loved was him. I thought you married me only because I looked like him, so I wanted to make you happy."

Diana laughed bitterly.

Tears welled up again. She pushed him away hard and slapped his shoulder.

"Ethan, are you sick! Don't you have a mouth? Why didn't you ask me!"

"I didn't dare ask." Ethan lowered his head. "I was afraid if I asked, you wouldn't even bother lying to me anymore."

Diana pushed him away again. "You idiot."

He grabbed Diana's hand again, his thumb gently rubbing the back of her hand.

"Yes, I'm a big idiot." Ethan looked at her. "Diana, Gabriel didn't die. He came back."

Diana looked at the face in front of her.

The big brother from when she was fourteen and the current Ethan finally completely overlapped in this moment.