Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Deborah then turned her gaze to Avery, who was calm and unruffled. Inwardly, she scoffed disdainfully. As expected of a mistress! How cold-blooded and callous of her that she doesn't even bother defending her own sister when the latter is derided!
Sheer regret swamped her. If I'd known that she'd remain unmoved, I would've mocked her instead!
The subway had just passed East Gate Station when she could no longer suppress her ire. Pinning her gaze on Avery, she rebuked, “You have no morals, young lady!”
Avery stared at her.
How do I have no morals?
At the same time, she was rather curious to know what other shameless statements that gossipmonger of a woman could make.
Glowering at her, Deborah continued, “When we were boarding the subway, you stole my seat, didn't you? Say, I'm already in my fifties. Why must you fight with me? You're young and don't make enough to afford a car, so you fight those who are weak and frail like me for a seat in packed subways and buses? Oh well. Fortunately, my son is capable and has long since bought a car!”
While she spoke of that, smugness was written all over her face.
When Milana heard that, she instantly straightened to her full height and turned to Avery with undisguised eagerness to see the latter so mortified that she couldn't hold her head up.
Meanwhile, other young people in the subway were also implicated. Some didn't make much and couldn't afford a car, but there were also some who found the subway convenient since driving meant getting stuck in traffic.
However, Deborah was obviously targeting Avery, so they merely watched the show.
“I've just returned to the country upon graduation. My family background is average, to begin with, but luckily, I worked a few jobs while studying and saved some money. I used that money to buy a car for my parents. It's okay for young people to take packed subways, but we can't have our elderly parents do the same. That'll be unfilial,” Avery enunciated mildly, meeting Deborah's gaze squarely.
Deborah promptly shot daggers at Avery, so livid that steam was coming out of her ears.
Upon hearing that, the passengers in the subway burst out laughing. But this time, they were scorning Deborah, who kept finding fault with Avery.
In fact, they wondered whether she would nag her son when she returned home and reprimand him for being unfilial.
Just then, the announcement of the next station rang out in the subway. Unable to stand the crowd's snickering, Deborah pushed and shoved the young people around her with a dark expression. When she finally made her way out, she beat a hasty retreat off the subway.
As for Milana, she continued following Avery.
After Avery exited the subway station, she didn't go anywhere specific. She merely strolled along the
bustling streets, tilting her head back from time to time in admiration of the impressive buildings in the city.
Truth be told, she had a dream of constructing a building that bore much significance to her.
Milana could no longer take it after tailing her for the length of a street. The sun was scorching hot, burning her skin.
Before she stopped following Avery, she stared at the woman as though the latter had lost her mind. She can't even guard her own man, but she's still in the mood to wander around here!
Glancing at the blistering sun again, she couldn't help feeling jealous. Argh! How could there be such a woman like her who doesn't get tanned no matter how long she stands under the sun?
As a taxi pulled over, she got into it in a fit of pique.
Then, she slammed the car door shut and left.
Avery gazed at the library at the center of the city, engrossed in the sight. In the end, she took out her phone and snapped a photo after finding a better angle. Saving it, she planned to study it meticulously when she went home.
Work was the only thing that could ease her mind.
When she returned to her rented place, she put down her bag and changed into a pair of slippers. Having done that, she went straight to the room, turned on her work laptop, and started studying the buildings she photographed.
Once she began, she continued until it was late at night. Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.
Zayne didn't phone her throughout the entire afternoon, nor did he send her any text messages.
When it was past midnight, Avery planned to go to sleep after taking a shower, but her phone vibrated.
Frowning, she picked up her phone and checked her messages.
As she did so, her phone vibrated again.
A total of three messages came in, and they were all voice messages from Zayne.
Avery lifted her head and glanced at the night view outside the window. Then, she played the messages.
“Ery, you were the one who betrayed me... But why am I the one drowning in my sorrows?”
“Where's my principled and incorruptible Ery? Where did you hide her? Return her to me! Give her back to me!”
“I have a question for you. I pursued you for more than four years, but you didn't agree to date me... Now that we've been together for almost a year... why do you... why do you still refuse to allow me to bed you?”
Avery listened to all three messages the man sent consecutively.
She was afraid that she would miss hearing him say, “let's break up,” but he never did say that.
From the look of things, I'm the one who needs to voice it.
As Avery's thoughts drifted, her phone vibrated once more.
Like before, she played the voice message.
Zayne was cursing her out hysterically in a rowdy environment. “What a pretentious sl*t! All you know is to feign innocence with me! You're simply a wh*re! I don't even know how much you sleep around with other men in secret! Are you lonely? Even if you were to have a regular boyfriend and have him f*ck you every day, I wouldn't look down on you! Think about your life back when you were in Ustrana! How are you any different from a hooker?”
Avery sensed her heart racing wildly, but she gritted her teeth and sat back down in front of her laptop.
Work was the only thing that could have her let go of everything and not think about anything.
Alas, when she stayed up late, and her brain had turned into mush, her self-control failed her. Her thoughts inevitably strayed.
She couldn't understand why Zayne didn't believe his own fiancée yet trusted Milana. Worse still, he believed the rumors from Deborah, a complete stranger to him.
Ultimately, his trust in her was so fragile that it shattered at the slightest provocation.
The next morning, Avery walked out of the subway station and crossed the street.
After walking for another two minutes, she would arrive at the towering building where her office was located.
At that precise moment, Xavier alighted from a brown Bentley with a document in hand. He was responsible for sending Zachary to his Ustranasion class that day, but he received a call from Cayden midway.
Cayden was in urgent need of that document which he forgot at home.
Zachary sat in the car, swinging his legs. All of a sudden, he caught sight of a familiar figure.
“Ms. Ery!” He had been wondering whether Avery had been doing well in the past two days, but he couldn't go and look for her by himself. At long last, his wish of seeing her had come true.
Turning, he swung open the car door and jumped out of the car, leaving his schoolbag behind.
Avery stayed up most of last night. Although she was the kind of person who wouldn't have dark circles beneath her eyes despite the lack of sleep, she still looked a touch haggard. No sooner had she ascended the stairs than she sensed a shadow looming over her.
Lifting her head, she was greeted by Zayne, who was mere inches away from her.
“Get out of my way.” Verily, she had nothing else to say to him.
Zayne's eyes were bloodshot. Having stayed up late last night and imbibed, he appeared exceedingly wretched that day.
“I originally wanted to apologize to you for the harsh words I said last night, but you're being volatile when I've calmed down.” His gaze flickered for a second, and his hands clenched into fists.
Avery gaped at him incredulously.
It's as though I've never understood him. Which wires in his brain crossed that he imagined his fiancée cheating on him? Worse still, it isn't just with a single man but multiple men.