Redmption 3


    I pondered this question all day long. I still didn''t have an answer when he came to get me in the


    afternoon. Despite that, I followed him anyway.


    Habit sure was a scary thing. Ten years was what it took to make me ustomed to both him and


    going back to Gildon Estate after work.


    "Why aren''t you saying anything?" Chris probably sensed my low spirits on the way back and took


    the initiative to ask.


    I was silent for a few seconds before I mentioned, "Chris, maybe we should—"


    Text ? by N0ve/lDrama.Org.


    Before I could finish my sentence, his phone rang. The car disy showed an unlisted number, but I


    clearly saw Chris'' grip on the steering wheel tighten.


    He was nervous, which was rare.


    Instinctively, I looked at his face, but he quickly turned off the car''s speaker and switched to


    Bluetooth. "Hello… Okay, I''m on my way now."


    The call was short.


    After the call ended, he looked at me and said, "Maddie, I have an urgent matter to deal with. I can''t


    take you home."


    Even before he spoke, I knew he was going to leave me behind. It wasn''t the first time. But before


    he said anything, I still hoped he would take me home first.


    A sudden pain hit my heart, but I suppressed my sadness. "Is something wrong?"


    Chris'' jaw tightened. He didn''t answer and instead looked out the window. "Get off in front, and take


    a taxi home."


    He didn''t even want to give an exnation. What more could I say when he had already made


    arrangements?


    I would only embarrass myself if I asked questions or made a fuss.


    "Text me when you get home," Chris instructed as he pulled over to a temporary parking spot by the


    road.


    My grip on my backpack was firm when I got out of the car.


    It wasn''t just my imagination. Judging from his reaction to the iing call and how he didn''t dare


    to answer it on speakerphone where I could hear the conversation, I already had a hunch.


    But I had chosen not to ask or say anything.


    Some things were just like a thinyer of paper over a hole. It was left there for me to keep


    deceiving myself.


    "Be careful on the way!" he hurriedly reminded me before he left. Then, he stepped on the


    elerator and left.


    I stood there, watching the direction he left until my eyes grew sore, and then I lowered my gaze to


    my toes.


    My phone buzzed in my pocket. It was a call from my best friend, Lisa Carline.


    "Maddie, where are you? Want to grab dinner?" she asked.


    Lisa, a gynecologist, was a skilled doctor despite her young age. She didn''t have a boyfriend.


    "Sure," I agreed readily.


    Lisa immediately eximed, "Wow, did the sun rise in the west today? When I ask you to dinner,


    you always say, ''Let me check with Chris first.'' What''s with the quick agreement today?"


    My chest felt stuffy. Over the past ten years, I had lived as if I were an essory to Chris. Fearing


    he couldn''t find me, I even reported to him before having dinner or going shopping with Lisa.


    However, I found out today after hearing Chris'' words that I had be a burden to him. He was


    exhausted because of me.


    "Are you at the hospital or home?" I answered her with a question instead.


    Lisa gave me an address, telling me toe over.


    "What''s wrong? Did you have a fight with Mr. Gildon?" Lisa sensed that something was off the


    moment she saw me.


    She was one of my few close friends, so I didn''t hide anything from her.


    After listening, Lisa immediately started cursing, "Men are jerks. Insipid to eat, he said? As if he''s


    slept with you a hundred times or something."


    Her words didn''tfort me; instead, they made me feel even more humiliated. Despite being with


    Chris for so long, we had never been intimate. There had been those moments, like the time I got


    drunk and made a move on him, but he had just wrapped me up and sent me back to my room.


    At that time, I thought Chris respected me and didn''t want to take advantage of me while I was not


    in a clear state of mind.


    But today, I realized it was because he wasn''t interested in me.


    Wasn''t there a saying that if a man truly loved a woman, he would definitely want to sleep with her?


    However, Chris had never shown any such desire toward me.


    "Liz, I think I want to give up."


    I suddenly had an answer to the dilemma that had troubled me all day.


    "Good. I support you." Lisa clinked her ss with mine. "There may not be three-legged toads, but


    there are plenty of two-legged men. With your looks, you can get any man you want."


    Lisa was right. When I was 18, I won a beauty pageant. If Chris hadn''t stopped me, I might have


    walked the path of stardom by now. With my beauty, I''ve received countless admirers and suitors


    over the years, but I never felt anything for them.


    The only person I wanted was Chris.


    This realization made my nose sting. Not wanting Lisa to see my inner turmoil, I quickly ran to the


    restroom.


    In my haste, I bumped into someone exiting the restroom, knocking them down andnding on top


    of them. I was about to apologize when I heard a scream. The person then shouted, "Help!


    Someone is molesting me!"