10
A few days later, news alerts started popping up on my phone. Vance Industries‘ stock had plummeted by 90%. Blackwood Corp was aggressively targeting their core projects, and their funding had dried up. Idris Vance was under investigation for corporate fraud and embezzlement.
Vivian Sterling was also ruined. A flood of compromising photos and recordings had been leaked, implicati- ng her in blackmail and extortion. Her family went bankrupt, and she had a complete mental breakdown.
The comments were a victory lap:
【The old man doesn’t mess around! That was swift!]
[And Evelyn delivered the killing blow! Queen!]
【Idris’s about to jump off a building! Vivian is toast!]
[Full–on revenge thriller mode activated!]
【Where’s Damien? He should be watching this!]
There was a knock on my apartment door.
It was Evelyn. Her face was still pale, but her eyes were different. The emptiness was gone, replaced by a weary calm and something I couldn’t quite place.
“Can we talk?” she asked. “Not about getting back together.”
I stepped aside and let her in.
The comments:
[She’s here!]
[If not about getting back together, then what?]
[He let her in? Is there hope?!]
【The vibe feels… different.]
She stood in the middle of my living room. “Idris is finished. So is Vivian. My father… I mean, Mr. Blackwood, made the first move. I provided the evidence.”
“I saw,” I said, pouring myself a glass of water.
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“It’s all out in the open now,” she continued. “The miscarriage… Vivian bribed the doctor and a maid to fake the records. Idris provided the money and created situations that made it look like we were having an affair.”
“I know.”
“We were…” She paused, her eyes locking on mine. “We were both such fools.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Kept in the dark, hurting each other for three years,” she said, a bitter smile on her lips. “Like two puppets on a string. We hated the wrong people. And we loved in the wrong way.”
The comments:
[Evelyn has reached enlightenment!]
[My heart hurts for these two idiots!]
[Hug her, you fool!]
【Now that the truth is out, it’s time to heal!)
I just looked at her. “And?”
“And?” She seemed taken aback. “And so… we…”
“Evelyn,” I cut her off. “You’re the one calling us fools, not me.”
She stared at me, confused.
“You think because we were deceived, we should now cry on each other’s shoulders and start over? Let’s not be sentimental. The pain of the last three years was real. The miscarriage was real. The divorce was real. Your hatred for me was real. And me leaving was real.”
“Now that the truth is out, does that erase what happened? Does it delete the scars? No. They’re still there, reminding us of how stupid, how broken, we were.”
The comments:
[Damn! So cold!]
[But… he’s not wrong?]
[Damien is the king of brutal honesty!]
【Evelyn’s eyes are getting teary!]
I didn’t give her a chance to speak.
“You say we ‘loved each other‘? Are you sure about that? The old Damien loved you, yes. In a twisted, posse- ssive, idiotic way. But you? Did you still ‘love‘ him after everything he put you through? No. You hated his guts.”
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Chapter 2
“Now, that Damien is dead. And I am not him. I don’t hate you, but I don’t love you either. My only connection. to you was a sense of obligation to clean up that idiot’s mess. My obligation is fulfilled. We are even.”
“As for you,” I said, looking at her pale face, “stop talking about love like it’s the only thing that matters. It’s not. Stop dwelling on the past. It’s meaningless. Look forward. Live your life. You have the resources to live well. Don’t make romance your everything. Sometimes, a warm meal is more reliable.”
The comments:
[???? Is Damien a philosopher now?]
【Love isn’t as good as a hot meal???]
[Evelyn: Who am I, where am I, what am I even doing here?]
【This is beyond Zen. This is full–on nihilism.]
[Groveling arc? More like MONK ARC!)
i
Evelyn just stood there, the confusion in her eyes slowly being replaced by a blank slate. She looked at me like I was a complete stranger.
After a long moment, she asked softly, “What do you want now?”
I smiled, a faint, fleeting thing.
“I want… to be left alone. Three meals a day. Peace and quiet. Freedom. And… to be as far away from all of you complicated people and your drama as possible.”
The comments:
【The ultimate goal: to chill.]
[Damien: Don’t love me, I’m retired.]
[Evelyn is officially out of the running!)
【The groveling script has been cremated and its ashes scattered to the wind!]
Evelyn didn’t say anything else. She just looked at me for a long time. Finally, with a small nod that seemed to hold a world of acceptance, she turned and left.
The comments:
【She’s given up!]
[It’s for the best… let them both be happy on their own.]
【Damien: Thank God, she’s finally gone!]
【This is the strangest happily–ever–after I’ve ever seen.]
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Chapter 2
【The story of how a trashy romance hero achieved enlightenment.]
