Chapter 117 Chapter 117
Chapter 117 Chapter 117
Vince was silent for a few seconds before speaking. "If you truly feel this miserable, we can break up right now."
Serenity froze, giving a bitter laugh. "Is that what you really want. Is it that simple? Fine then, let’s break up." She threw her handbag at him and ran off.
Adele and Tony arrived just in time, wanting to intervene but failing to stop her.
Tony approached, irritable. "Hey, Vince. Serenity’s fear—do you really not know, or are you just pretending? Do you have to hurt her this much before you’re satisfied?"
Vince watched Serenity’s retreating figure, his eyes showing a clear inner struggle. "If I treat her gently, she’ll never speak the truth. I have to go after her. You two go home."
Vince ran off again and found Serenity sitting on a swing in the park near the house, a sense of solitude enveloping her. Vince stepped forward and held out her handbag. "Take it. Throwing this bag at me means you want us to keep loving each other, right? Because I said we should break up, you got angry, didn't you?"
"What are you trying to say now. Are you testing me?"
"No, I’m making a bet. A bet on whether you’ll forgive the person who just abandoned you, and to see if you still remember me."
Serenity spoke bitterly. "You’re cruel. Do you always have to say things like that?"
"I know, but I have my answer. Consider it my win, right?"
"You already knew my answer, so why ask me. And what about me? The answer I want... why don't you say anything?"
"I don't know."
Serenity stood up. "How can you not know. You’ve never even thought about it, have you? What if you go to Japan and never return, and I fall in love with someone else? Didn't you say you’d never make me wait for you? So what about me? If someone else pursues me, if someone else likes me, what am I supposed to do? Are you even listening to me?"
Vince looked aimlessly into the distance, evasive. "It’s going to rain hard tonight."
Serenity turned to walk away. "Whatever then. If you want to stare at the sky and clouds, stay here and stare. I’m going home."
At that moment, Vince reached out and took her hand, falling silent. "If you meet someone else and stay with him, even if I love you in vain, it’s fine. Because I have a feeling that for the rest of my life, I will only ever love you."
Serenity stopped and turned her head to look at him. That was the answer she craved most. "You’ve never said that to me before. That is the answer I wanted to hear most. That way, even if we have to live in two different places, I’ll still have the courage to love you to the end."
Vince took a step forward and wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on the slender but resilient shoulder of the girl he loved. In the warmth spreading between them amidst the night, they needed no more oaths or promises of eternity.
Serenity closed her eyes, letting tears of happiness roll down her cheeks. Ahead might be a dividing ocean and mismatched time zones, but with this affirmation from him, she would have enough strength to walk through the darkness. All her fears of separation were now just specks of dust before the fiercely burning flame of their love.
Serenity got onto Vince’s motorcycle for him to drive her home. The only light remaining was the belief in a future together. There were no more worries of the present, only two souls longing to become one.
That night, in a room lit only by the dim glow of a nightlight, they gave each other everything. Love, bodies, and promises were crystallized in passionate kisses. That happiness was as fragile as crystal, yet it was the most brilliant thing in their lives.
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The next morning, the alarm clock rang. Serenity woke up and hurriedly tried to get dressed, but Vince caught her hand. He stared at her amorously, making her blush.
"Don't look at me like that. Look somewhere else."
"Why?"
"No reason."
Vince leaned in close to her face, teasing. "Then I’ll close my eyes. But I saw everything last night, so why are you still shy? How should I put it... There isn't a single flaw on your body. Let me tell you a secret: my father fell madly in love with Aunt Briona because of her glamorous figure, too. Do you remember how many times we did it last night?"
Serenity was embarrassed. "I don't know. No one counts that sort of thing."
Vince laughed. "Yesterday you kept saying, 'Vince, I love you'."
After a moment of playfulness, Vince tossed her clothes aside, and they lost themselves in another burning kiss. Serenity thought to herself, This was the first time for Vince and me. We will remember today forever. Right after the wedding of Mom and Uncle Caleb, Vince will fly to Japan, and we will be in two different places. But perhaps love and happiness are already carved deep into both our minds. When the moment of parting comes, we will face it with hearts full of blessings.
I still believe Vince and I will meet one day again to continue this unfinished love story. Because I believe I am strong. I can say goodbye to Vince with a smile instead of meaningless tears.