Chapter 25

"Stella, I know I couldn't let go of my pride, so I didn't want you to know about my confused and immature thoughts back then," Aaron hesitated for a moment, lowering his voice. "I truly regret it, and I won't do it again. Whatever you need, I'll do everything to help you. Give me another chance, let's start over, okay?" His eyes welled up, and he tightly grasped Stella's arm. His gaze pleaded with her, cautiously awaiting her judgment. Stella met his gaze, shaking her head with a bitter smile, and retorted, "Regret? Aaron, your regret stems from my departure, hoping I'd quietly stay by your side, rather than genuinely acknowledging your mistakes. Do you have no idea about my dislike towards the Fletcher family? No, you do. You just think everything can be a win-win situation. "You think that by giving me shares of New Era Culture and marrying me, you don't need to meddle in the Carlson family's affairs anymore. You believe you can fulfill both your emotions and promises at the same time. "I've given you chances, but you've long exhausted them. You think you love me, but it's far less genuine than your self-indulgent sentimentality. In plain words, your actions only reveal your inherent selfishness and despicability. "Perhaps you believe your help is a favor. But my life and future are mine alone, not an accessory to yours. You have no right to interfere with any of my decisions, let alone dictate what I should give up. "I can't start over with you; we have no chance left. Aaron, put away your so-called affection and desolation; I don't need or want to see them." In fact, from Claire repeated hints that she didn't need to strive too hard and should just be a good wife to Aaron, she should have understood that even without the Fletcher family, she and Aaron wouldn't have lasted. Her problem with Aaron was never about Avery, but rather his indecisiveness and selfishness, always wanting to fulfill his own agenda. Though Aaron claimed she was too rational in this relationship, that wasn't entirely wrong either. She could have given up the engagement knowing he was dating Avery. In their subsequent relationship, her efforts weren't fueled by love for him to the point of obsession, but because she was someone who was willing to exert effort in anything to achieve the desired outcome. Essentially, she had her own selfishness too because she wasn't willing to give herself fully to anyone, always maintaining that composure. She had made efforts and given Aaron chances. She had no regrets about ending the relationship; she had no obligation to fulfill Aaron's one-sided regret. "Put away your so-called affection and desolation; I don't need or want to see them."--That statement hit Aaron like a massive boulder, shattering the last shreds of hope in his heart. She truly wanted to let him go. Bitter emotions surged within him, screaming wildly. He wanted to refute Stella's words, to tell her it wasn't like that, that he truly loved her. But all his arguments felt feeble when met with her cold gaze. His eyes turned crimson, his teeth clenched, trying to find a hint of emotion on her face, but to no avail. A profound sense of despair engulfed him, as if he had plunged into a dark abyss, suffocating under the relentless waves that made him lose sense of everything around him. Before Aaron could react, a fierce blow struck him. He staggered and fell to the ground, blood trickling from his lips. Ethan casually adjusted his sleeve cuff, then reached out to pull Stella close, his expression icy and stern. He looked down at the figure half-slumped on the ground, his tone tinged with sarcasm. "If you want to be a homewrecker, you should consider it carefully. If I catch you again, I wouldn't mind giving William Malone some advice." "Homewrecker?" Aaron slowly got to his feet, wiping the blood from his lips, frowning as he looked back. "Ethan, you're the one who's late to the party." The atmosphere fell into a tense silence. Seeing Ethan approach, Stella actually felt relieved inwardly. But seeing Aaron still persistently trying to provoke Ethan, she quickly grabbed the man's arm and whispered, "Let's leave here." The outdoor banquet was still ongoing, and if this situation escalated, it wouldn't end well. As for Ethan's earlier words, Stella didn't want to bring unnecessary trouble to him because of her, nor did she want Aaron's problems to bring him more criticism. As she spoke, she noticed that Ethan only gave her a faint glance, his footsteps unmoving. She sighed and added, "I know you're good at fighting, but if you get injured, I'll have to take you to the hospital. There's no need for that." If Ethan felt that his dignity was hurt by his encounter with Aaron, her words should be enough to save his dignity. Ethan's emotions seemed to be stirred by her words. He raised an eyebrow, his deep and enigmatic gaze meeting hers, and finally, he chuckled lightly, nodding as he reached out to pull her close. Then the two of them turned and left. Only Aaron's figure stood desolate in place, the silent corridor devoid of any sound. At the end of the corridor, by the restroom door, someone cautiously poked their head out—it was Tom, who had been hiding in the men's room for a while. He had just finished using the restroom, but now he felt the urge to go back and relieve himself again, but he decided to share everything he had just heard with someone else on his phone first. Considering how difficult Ethan could be to deal with, he gave a light cough and slowly walked out. As he passed Aaron, he sighed heavily and patted the man's shoulder with a meaningful look. "Let me give you a piece of advice. Breaking up isn't such a big deal, but if you go and become the third party, that's a character problem. Besides, Stella doesn't even look at you. Ethan is her husband now. You, who hasn't even been her ex-husband, what business do you have meddling with her?" Aaron was silent. ... Ethan and Stella left the Reeves family's banquet and got into the Bentley waiting at the entrance. With Aaron's interruption, they naturally couldn't stay any longer. Stella sent a message to Natalie to bid farewell and left with Ethan. The spacious car was filled with silence. Ethan adjusted his seat, reclining in the back seat with a calm expression, his well-defined hands naturally resting on his chest. He hadn't spoken since getting into the car. Outside the car window, the neon lights of the night flickered over his handsome profile. Stella glanced at him, catching a faint sweet scent of alcohol from the man. She thought about how Ethan had effortlessly navigated through the crowd earlier, effortlessly engaging in conversation, completely different from the image she had of him in her mind. Natalie had also mentioned that the Ethan in her eyes didn't quite match the carefree young man described by Stella. Unable to gauge the man's current mood, Stella spoke up after some thought, "You said my past choices weren't good, and you weren't entirely wrong." The man blinked lazily, his gaze wandering over her, showing a hint of interest in her next words. As the car passed through the commercial district, Stella stared at the lively night scene outside the window, reminiscing about her first Christmas in the Radiant Arts Institute. During high school, Aaron had helped her a lot, and she did have some teenage infatuation for him. But when she found out about Aaron's relationship with Avery, she truly let go of him. Later, Aaron went to the Radiant Arts Institute too. During the year he pursued her, people around her often said her monotonous lifestyle needed some excitement, urging her to try dating. However, she never considered accepting Aaron until she received the jade Buddha from the director of the orphanage. The director was elderly and somewhat superstitious. She believed that wearing jade could ward off disasters, so even though she didn't have much savings, she gave each child in the orphanage a piece of jade to wear. The girls received jade Buddhas, and the boys received Guanyins. These accessories might not have been of the best quality, but they represented her good intentions. On Christmas Eve, she received a call from her grandfather. Her grandfather told her that the director had passed away. Although the director didn't refuse her insistence on continuing to support the orphanage, she solemnly advised her not to return to see her. Leaving the orphanage meant starting a new life. Older people would eventually leave one day, and people would always face separations. Stella comforted herself with these thoughts, but she still felt a sense of grief over the director's departure, even though she didn't show it. On Christmas Day, her mentor invited her to dinner at their home. On the way back to the dormitory, every household was lit up with lights celebrating Christmas, but she felt like the scene in front of her was gradually separating her from her past self. In a daze, she felt no sense of belonging whatsoever. Not long after, she received the jade Buddha sent by the director, and the package was sent out a month before director's passing. People at the orphanage told her that a young man had called asking about the jade Buddha, and later someone had taken the director to the hospital. The director passed away peacefully, with no regrets. Stella had only mentioned the jade Buddha incident to Aaron. He had once given her a very similar jade Buddha because of it. When Aaron went to see her again, it was New Year's Day. Stella thanked him for the jade Buddha, and at that moment, she also accepted Aaron's pursuit. As the car passed through the congested intersection, the loud honking brought Stella back to reality from her thoughts. She gently rested her delicate hand on her cheek and turned to him with a smile. "You know I lived in an orphanage when I was a child, right?" "Yeah," the man glanced over and replied. "Our director was very kind. Before she passed away, Aaron asked her to send me a gift. At that time, I felt that his gesture was very precious." So, ultimately, she was moved and accepted Aaron. Stella felt that she wanted to reciprocate to those who were willing to go to great lengths to be good to her. However, now it seemed — "Perhaps, it's really poor judgment." "What gift?" Ethan's voice showed no emotion. Stella lowered her eyes lightly. "A jade Buddha." The man seemed somewhat weary, his big palm slowly covering his eyes, and he didn't speak again for a while. After a moment, he asked, "If it hadn't been for that jade Buddha, you wouldn't have accepted Aaron, right?" Stella hesitated for a moment. "I don't know," she replied, lightly shaking her head with a smile. "But it was indeed this incident that made me make up my mind." Without the jade Buddha incident, perhaps there would have been other things. At that time, Aaron had gone to great lengths to pursue her, using the words of her roommate, it was those romantic gestures that fulfilled the fantasies of many girls. There aren't so many "ifs" in the world. Seeing the man starting to fall silent again, Stella furrowed her eyebrows slightly, concerned. "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? You must have drunk quite a bit just now." He had just had quite a few drinks. "A bit," Ethan said, lowering his hand from his forehead, his eyelids drooping slightly. "But I'm fine now." After a moment, Stella heard his casual chuckle. "I was wrong," Ethan turned to look at her with a smile and said. "Your taste is actually very good, so there's no need to undervalue yourself."