CHAPTER 6

"Oh, Eliana, what happened? It must be Damon who has been bullying you. I'm going to have a word with them tomorrow. How dare they bully my daughter…" My mom freaked out and quickly sat down on the bed to hold me. "Mom, Damon didn't bully me, I'm just moved by how good you are to me…" I hugged my mom's waist, choking back tears. "Damon really didn't bully me; it was all caused by my own wishful thinking. He was indeed a total jerk, and I was just a foolish follower." My mom gently patted my back, letting out a deep sigh. As my only mom, she knew me best. How could she not know about the injustices I'd suffered from Damon? I'm not one to cry easily. If I wasn't truly wronged, I wouldn't shed a tear. "Do you still want to eat that roast chicken?" She asked me. "Yes, I can't wait…" I wiped away my tears, got up from the bed, and wobbly held my mom's hand as we went downstairs to eat the roast chicken. My dad must have gone to bed. It was just my mom and me sitting in the dining room chatting. The aroma of the roast chicken was mouthwatering. I gobbled up more than half of it. I'd been eating very little these past few years, so after suddenly eating so much, my stomach ballooned, and I almost threw up. My mom patted my back, "Why are you eating so much? You won't be able to sleep if your stomach is too full." "I was too hungry," I muttered a laugh. The last time I ate so heartily was at my graduation party with Luna. After graduation, I married Damon and began a life filled with resentment. "Even if you are hungry, you should eat slowly and only eat until you're 90% full." My mom said gently. I clung to her arm, whining, "Mom, sleep with me tonight, tell me your secret salad recipe!"

Without hesitation, she agreed. When I woke up the next day, I felt more relaxed than ever. After having a full breakfast at home, I set off for the hospital. Joshua was playing with his phone. His leg wasn't broken, but the flesh wound was quite serious. He had stitches and was bandaged up, unable to move freely. "Ma'am, why are you here?" Joshua looked surprised and slightly embarrassed when he saw me. "You don't need to worry about me, nor do you need to visit me so often." No way." I smiled warmly and kindly, then turned to James,

"James, bring those in." James, carrying a bunch of nutritional supplements, placed them beside the hospital bed. Seeing the big fuss I was making, Joshua was obviously taken aback. He looked a bit embarrassed, "Miss, it's just a minor flesh wound, not that serious." "Health is precious. Even a flesh wound is still a wound." I sat down by the bed, grinning. "By the way, lady, I don't know your name." Joshua suddenly asked. "Just call me Eliana." I answered very frankly. Joshua nodded. "Alright, Eliana." I sat in the ward with Joshua, chatting about various topics. College students always had simple and naive thoughts. Joshua was a junior, majoring in civil engineering. He was a good student who paid for his own tuition by working part-time. He talked about his future and his lovely and beautiful girlfriend. His dream is to have a stable job after graduation and marry the girl he loved. I couldn't help but laugh, which was a bit rude, so I immediately stopped. Joshua looked at me puzzled, "Eliana, why are you laughing?" I gently rubbed my nose and smiled, "Nothing, just… seeing you reminds me of some sweet dreams I had in college." "Eliana, which college did you graduate from?" Joshua asked curiously. I looked at him deeply, "Perrsion College." Turned out, both Damon and I were alumni of Perrsion and Joshua, graduating a few years earlier.

Joshua exclaimed excitedly, "Eliana, we went to the same college. You're my alumna!" I pretended to be very happy. "Yes, what a coincidence, right?" There were many universities in the city, and Perrsion College was one of the top three in the country. The students there, regardless of their family background, were all very smart. After graduation, they had promising futures. Even if they weren't super rich, they could still live a middle- class life. If Ariel hadn't met Damon, Joshua's dream might have come true. So Joshua and I started talking about Perrsion College. He was quite talkative, and I enjoyed chatting. We were having a great time, when someone walked in, her voice crisp and pleasant, "Joshua, I'm here to see you!" Hearing that, the sound of Damon's special ringtone echoed in my ears. The exact same voice, the exact same tone. I turned my head and saw Ariel in a white chiffon skirt. Her beautiful soft hair was spread out, the ends slightly curled. She looked pure yet mature, stunningly beautiful. I wasn't jealous of her beauty, but the youthful vitality radiating from her young body made me feel a bit bitter. When I was thirteen bu, I had been secretly in love with Damon for three years. I spent the best years of my life on a love that was never reciprocated. Why did Damon passionately love Ariel, who was the same age as I was then, while I could only persist on every page of my diary? "Ariel!" Joshua looked delighted but slightly guilty to see Ariel, "Ah, if I knew you were coming, I wouldn't have told you, I didn't want you to worry." Ariel, carrying flowers and fruit, walked over as gracefully as a swan, "Are you silly? How could you not tell me when you're injured?" I stood up and gave the only chair to Ariel. I was calm because next, I also had to give Damon to her. Compared to that, what was a chair? "Ma'am, it's you" Ariel suddenly recognized me, she looked surprised, "What are you doing here?" Because I accidentally hit your boyfriend."

I smiled awkwardly, "Sorry, I accidentally hit Joshua. I came to see how he's recovering" Ariel glanced at me, then at Joshua. She didn't blame me or Joshua, instead, she cracked a smile. "What a coincidence, Joshua. This lady here frequents our coffee shop. She's a real gem. Maybe she just bumped into you accidentally" Her understanding and kindness left me speechless. If it were someone else, it might've been an accidental bump. But for me, it was intentional." I know, Eliana certainly didn't mean to do it. She even gave me extra compensation. I'm kind of embarrassed," Joshua said, scratching his head in a sheepish manner. "That won't do Compensation should only cover what needs to be covered," Ariel immediately whipped out her phone. "Eliana, could you provide a payment account?! I need to refund you the surplus." Perhaps it was this attitude, and her indifference towards money, that attracted Damon? There wasn't a trace of money worship in this girl. Her eyes were filled with clarity. I really admired her. She always managed to make my designer clothes seem worthless in comparison.