Chapter 6

It was only after Della tugged Nester onto the dance floor that he seemed to realize what was happening. As the music started, he held her waist and couldn't help but repeatedly glance toward Sabrina in the corner. She stood by the buffet table, taking small bites of cake. Her expression was calm, and her gaze was indifferent as if she were attending a stranger's party. Della noticed his distraction and immediately bristled. "If you're that concerned about her, go find her. I'll just dance with another man." With that, she released Nester and turned toward a man in a white suit, a former college classmate who had always liked her. Seeing her approach, he eagerly extended his hand. Della placed her hand in his, and the two glided onto the dance floor. Nester stayed where he was, watching them laugh and chat. His expression darkened little by little. As if trying to set him off on purpose, Della leaned closer to the man. In the end, she even bent toward his ear and whispered something. The man laughed, then lowered his head to kiss her cheek. The wine glass in Nester's grip shattered with a crack. Blood mixed with spilled wine ran down his fingers, but he felt no pain. Striding forward, he grabbed Della by the wrist and yanked her off the dance floor. "Nester! What are you doing? Let me go!" She struggled. Nester's expression was livid as he remained silent and almost dragged her out of the ballroom and onto an empty balcony. He pinned her against the cold railing and hissed in a voice with barely contained fury, "Della, do you have no shame at all?" Della was briefly startled by his shout before she exploded and wrenched her arm free. "I have no shame? I'm not married, and he isn't either. We both consented to it, so what's the problem with that? "Who do you think you are, Nester? What right do you have to control me, as my ex-boyfriend, or the husband of another woman?" "How dare you!" Her words struck a nerve. Nester's eyes turned bloodshot as his last thread of reason snapped. Staring at the face of the woman he had loved for years, a surge of intense possessiveness, resentment, and complex emotions he couldn't even name crashed over him and tore down all his defenses. He abruptly lowered his head and kissed her hard on the lips. It wasn't a gentle kiss. If anything, it was fierce and punishing, filled with dominance and seizure. Della stiffened for a split second, then a gleam of triumph flashed in her eyes. Instead of resisting, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with equal fervor. The balcony glass was frosted. Nothing could be seen clearly from the outside, but standing in the corner, Sabrina saw everything through a gap in the glass. She saw Della wrap her arms around his neck and kiss Nester, inseparably. She felt no pain, only a numb sense of absurdity. The kiss dragged on until both of them were breathless. Suddenly, Nester pushed Della away as if jolting awake from a dream. When his gaze fell on her glistening red lips and dazed eyes, his heart gave a violent lurch before overwhelming panic and self-disgust overwhelmed him. "I'm sorry," he murmured in a terribly hoarse voice, which carried a flustered evasion, and turned his face away. "I-I drank too much and mistook you for Sabrina." Della clearly didn't believe him. She stepped closer, hugged him around the waist, and looked up at him. Her voice was tearful and pleading as she murmured, "You've never loved Sabrina, so how could you mistake me for her? Stop lying to yourself. You still love me, and you've never been able to let me go. "Let's stop torturing each other, Nester. Divorce Sabrina so that we can get back together. I swear I won't be that impulsive Della again. I'll love you and be the wife you deserve, okay?" The words "divorce" and "get back together" exploded in Nester's ears. Like he was scalded, he shoved her away and sternly snapped, "What nonsense are you talking about? I won't divorce Sabrina!" "Why?" Just because she followed you around like a dog for five years?" Della shrieked. "How long are you going to run from your feelings? If you don't feel anything for me and don't care about me anymore, I might as well just die!" With that, she turned and rushed toward the edge of the balcony, as if she intended to jump for real. "Della! Have you lost your mind?" Nester's expression changed drastically as he lunged to grab her. That was when the massive decorative crystal chandelier hanging overhead let out a strained creak, then came plummeting down. It was falling straight toward Della. "Watch out!" Nester's pupils constricted sharply. Without a second thought, he pulled her into his arms and rolled to the side. With a deafening crash, the heavy crystal chandelier smashed onto the floor and exploded into shards that flew everywhere. Several larger shards scraped across Nester's back. Blood poured out and soaked into his expensive suit. "Nester! Are you okay? You're bleeding!" Della screamed, pale with terror. The crash drew the alerted crowd rushing out of the ballroom before chaos erupted. Some called for an ambulance, while others hurried over to help. Sabrina stood at the edge of the crowd and could barely feel the slightest ripple of emotion. She only found the farce before her glaringly absurd. She didn't step forward, ask a single question, or linger for even a second. Amid the ambulance's piercing siren, she quietly turned and walked away.