Slip Through Her Fingers
The sun had gone down and the moon had come out. Hou Jingshu sat on her bed with her knees drawn to her chest, pondering her outburst earlier that day. She wondered why she had been so upset at Wu Jian for his actions and words. He was a nice person, and she considered him a friend, but it wasn’t like she loved him. This entire marriage was something her dad had arranged because he didn’t want her staying in the capital.
“Why should I care if he loves Wu Meiying more than me?” she muttered to herself. “It’s not like it matters to me.”
That’s right. Who cares who he loves? I’m only marrying him because Father is forcing me to. If not for that, there’s no way I would marry someone like him. I don’t want to marry him. I don’t want to marry anyone.
Yet even as she tried to convince herself, tears began stinging her eyes as pain pricked at her chest. It hurt. She tried to wipe them away. When that didn’t work, she buried her face between her legs and silently sniffled to herself.