Chapter 3

At a loss, Julia watched as the staff member politely handed the bracelet to Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn smiled and reached out to take the box, but she dropped it upon contact. The bracelet fell out of the box and onto the marble floor, snapping in half from the impact. At that moment, Julia nearly stopped breathing. The sharp sound of the bracelet snapping echoed in her ears, and her mind promptly went blank. She dashed over and shoved Kaitlyn aside. With trembling fingers, she picked up the broken pieces from the floor. Dylan's expression darkened. He held Kaitlyn to prevent her from stumbling. Then, he addressed Julia with a stern growl, "Julia, what are you doing?" Julia looked up with tears in her eyes. Her voice trembled. "How could you ask that? The bracelet belonged to my late grandma. Didn't you promise to buy it if you ever came across it? "But you forgot, right?" Dylan was taken aback, and a look of realization flashed across his face. However, he quickly reverted to his cold demeanor. "I can't possibly remember something from ages ago! Besides, Kaitlyn didn't break the bracelet on purpose. How could you push her?" He sounded aloof and slightly furious. Kaitlyn's eyes shimmered with tears, and she pitifully tugged at his sleeve. "I'm sorry. It was all my fault…" With his eyebrows furrowed, he reached out to wipe away her tears. He comforted her in a deep and lazy voice, "It's not your fault." He gave Julia a cold look and firmly said, "I will get the bracelet repaired. As for you, stop making a scene." With that, he put a shoulder around Julia's shoulder. They left with that broken bracelet. Julia froze on the spot, feeling her heart break as she watched them leave. She almost suffocated from the pain. Meanwhile, rain started to fall when the auction came to a close. She stood at the entrance, watching Dylan's black Maybach ferrying him and Kaitlyn away. The auction venue was out of the way, and Julia still couldn't hail a cab after 30 minutes. She had no choice but to walk home in the rain. When she got home, her feet were numb from all the walking. She took off her heels. Her blister broke, bled, and got stuck to her stocking. The pain made her inhale sharply. She lay on the couch and stared at the ceiling. Memories of that rainy night from years ago flooded back. Dylan had carried her on his back and walked miles to the hospital. He was too poor to pay for a cab, but he stubbornly refused to let her walk. "Jules, hang on. We'll be there soon." The warmth from his back was a sweet memory, even when she was drenched in the rain. But when Dylan could finally enjoy a luxury car, he refused to wait five more minutes for her. Julia put some medication on her feet and curled up under the blanket. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she went to sleep. She tried not to think about what had happened lately. Every time she thought about them, she'd feel extremely sad and bitter. She did not care for the version of Dylan who was a scion from Cabana City. She just wanted the old Dylan back—the version of him who'd live in a tiny, run-down apartment with her, smiling and calling her nicknames. But that version of him was gone. Eyes closed, she let her tears flow. … The next morning, Julia was woken up by the sound of the door opening to find Dylan standing stiffly by her bed. He announced, "There's a family dinner tonight. You'll attend with me."