At that time, she was already about to start her senior year. Her roommates all said they had discovered a particularly handsome junior, so a few of them ran to the sports field like paparazzi to check him out.

Well, he was just okay—not as amazing as they made him out to be.

Susan Clark thought so, and quickly put the guy out of her mind.

But Samuel Grant fell in love with Susan Clark at first sight.

A twenty-year-old boy’s pursuit is always passionate and straightforward: giving flowers, confessing, boldly singing love songs to her at parties—utterly dramatic.

But Susan Clark wasn’t buying it. She didn’t want the flowers, refused the gifts, and would turn and leave when he sang.

At the time, many people thought Samuel Grant wouldn’t last long, including Susan Clark herself. She thought he was no different from those guys who lost interest after three minutes.

But Susan Clark didn’t expect that even after she graduated, joined a newspaper, and became an intern reporter, Samuel Grant still hadn’t given up on her.

After leaving campus, Susan Clark had to get up early every day to pitch stories, chase leads, run around Financial Street for interviews, and stay up late at night writing news articles. She earned a meager intern’s salary, yet was always worrying about projects worth billions.

Her inability to adapt to society left Susan Clark feeling down for a long time. During that period, Samuel Grant became the only bright spot in her life.

Susan Clark still remembers that she agreed to be Samuel Grant’s girlfriend over the phone, and that silly boy immediately took a cab from school to see her, just for a proper, justified hug.

Most of her friends didn’t understand Susan Clark either. They said, besides his pretty face, what was so special about Samuel Grant? His family background was average, his job had no prospects—she could definitely find someone better.

Susan Clark still remembers her answer at the time: I think he’s just so sincere! That’s such a rare quality!

But why do people change so quickly?

Her gaze focused again on the steps of the outpatient building. A few nurses hurried out, saw the two people passionately embracing and kissing, and smiled with envy.

What a perfect couple.

Being overly understanding was real.

Being indifferent was real.

The habit of ruffling her hair was real.

Only “Xu Feng” was fake. Maybe even that faint perfume belonged to the other woman.

Susan Clark felt like she was a joke, rushing to the hospital in the rain late at night.

Reason told her that she shouldn’t be an outsider at this moment—she should go up and defend her claim.

But she couldn’t move her legs, nor did she want to stage a melodramatic scene in this busy hospital.

Her self-respect wouldn’t allow her to make herself look so pathetic.

After watching quietly for a while, Susan Clark touched her face, her hand full of rainwater—she didn’t know if there were tears mixed in.

She walked toward Samuel Grant’s car, took off the bracelet he had given her, firmly hung it on the car door handle, then turned and walked into the curtain of rain.

The night rain poured down, the silver chain was battered by the water, swaying as if about to fall, yet still glinting with a cold light.

It looked just like Susan Clark’s expressive eyes, coldly saying: I saw everything you did.

Chapter Three

The cold wind blew in gusts, reminding the person standing at the door that it was time to leave.

Samuel Grant looked at the rain falling like a curtain, hesitating whether to dash into it, when Lucy Quinn took an umbrella from her bag, opened it, and held it over his head.

After a brief exchange of glances, Lucy Quinn smiled, took his arm, and the two of them walked together toward the parking lot.

It took them several minutes to cover the ten or so meters. When they reached the car, Samuel Grant said softly, “Well… I’m heading home now.”

Lucy Quinn kept holding onto his arm, lowered her head against his chest, and said coyly, “Stay with me a little longer, okay? I’m afraid when morning comes, I’ll find out this was all just a dream.”

Samuel Grant licked his lips, not knowing where to look.

After a moment, he still raised his hand and hugged Lucy Quinn’s back.

Under the small women’s umbrella, the two of them looked cramped. The night rain drifted onto Lucy Quinn’s neck, making her shiver from the cold, but she still didn’t let go.

“Are you cold?”

Samuel Grant asked.

Lucy Quinn hugged Samuel Grant even tighter. “With you here, I’m not cold.”

“Mm.” Samuel Grant said, “I really have to go. I have work in the morning.”

Hearing this, Lucy Quinn let go of Samuel Grant. When she looked up at him, her eyes were misty, and she looked so fragile it seemed the rain could wash her away.

She hooked her pinky around Samuel Grant’s pinky and gently swayed it. “Xingzhou, I hope you’ll really think about what I said today. Whatever she can give you, I can give you too. Whatever she can’t give you, I can still give you.”

After she finished, she let go and said softly, “My uncle is still waiting for me. I’ll go now.”

Samuel Grant watched as Lucy Quinn got into a Rolls-Royce, his gaze flickering under the streetlight, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

He turned and slowly walked toward his own car.

In the darkness, his vision blurred. He took out his car keys, pressed the unlock button, reached out to open the door, but touched something hard.