"You know him too, huh. Yeah, he's the one all over the gossip news lately, the main character in that Patel and Howard Family alliance. And..." she paused, hesitating for a second before going on, "He was my ex-boyfriend."
Jeffrey stopped walking and stood beside Rachel quietly, just watching her.
Maybe it was because she had kept this stuff buried for so long, but now she just couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Isn't it crazy? Someone like me used to be his girlfriend."
She gave a small, self-mocking smile.
"Back then, I was just a rookie lawyer, fresh out of school. I thought we were gonna get married. But then there was that car accident... I got convicted of drunk driving and someone died. And the second that happened, he couldn't wait to break up with me. He even..."
She stopped, unable to keep talking about the nightmare that was her time in prison.
Her fingers ached again, like they were remembering the pain, even though her nails had grown back and the broken bones had healed. But they never felt the same again.
"Forget it. It's all in the past now," she said, her voice carrying a cold bitterness.
Jeffrey pressed his lips together. Even though she didn't finish the whole story, he already knew what she meant.
Finn had told him everything. The files detailed every little thing.
When he first saw those files, he didn't feel anything. But hearing her actually say it out loud now, it hit different.
He felt something stir in his chest. Was this... sympathy?
Since when did he, Jeffrey, feel bad for a woman?
She took a deep breath and went on,
"Since then, I told myself not to trust that whole love-between-a-man-and-a-woman crap. Like, yeah, maybe someone says they love you today. But tomorrow, if it gets in the way of their own interests, they'll dump you without hesitation. You're nothing but a pawn."
"I won't discard you," he said all of a sudden.
She looked up and smiled.
The hurt from earlier seemed to fade away with his words, like they were replaced with this strange warmth in her chest.
"I know, Jeffrey. You'd never throw me away."
She paused, then added,
"That's why I don't think about love anymore. Or marriage. Or having kids. That stuff just... doesn't seem like it's for me."
His eyebrows knitted together a bit, clearly not happy about what she said.
"It's like that ad over there," she said, pointing to a huge projection ad on the side of a building not far away.
"That one was from Ralph for Celeste. The slogan's all 'A wait of ninety-nine lifetimes for a lifetime together.' Super romantic, right? It's like... if you can't love one person, it's fine. Just go find someone else to love instead."
The Patel Family had put that ad up in almost every big mall in Shen City, hyping up the engagement between the Patel and Howard families.
Lately, media outlets were all over it, calling it the most romantic gesture ever. Everyone was saying Celeste was the luckiest woman alive.
It definitely got a lot of attention.
Jeffrey looked at the slim girl standing in front of him. Her face didn't show any emotion.
Like she'd seen everything, been through it all, and there was nothing left that could shake her anymore.
For some reason, his heart suddenly tightened.
Did that mean... he couldn't shake her either?
He reached out and gently covered her eyes that were still staring at the giant ad.
"If you don't like this ad, then how about we take it down tomorrow?"
She heard his words and thought he was joking.
This was something the Patel Family and the Howard Family had arranged for their union, who would dare cancel it?
Everything was pitch black in front of her, and his hand, warm with Odette's temperature, was touching her skin.
After a moment, she gently pulled his hand down and looked up at him.
"Jeffrey, thank you," she said, thinking he was just trying to comfort her.
"Alright, let's go home for dinner." She took his hand and started walking back.
His gaze flicked for a second toward the large projection ad before quietly following behind her.
---
Back at the apartment, Rachel went to the security office to pick up a package. It was the sweater she had ordered.
She opened the package and pulled out the sweater, feeling the fabric. It was pretty decent for the price, a real bargain for how nice it felt.
"Jeffrey, try this on and see if it fits," she said.
The sweater was a teal color with a checkered pattern. When Jeffrey put it on, Rachel's eyes lit up. Dang, it looked seriously good on him.
Then, she seemed to remember something.
"Jeffrey, bend down a bit."
Jeffrey leaned down like she asked, and Rachel picked up a comb to brush his bangs back.
Right away, a sharp and ridiculously good-looking face came into view.
She always knew he was handsome, but since his bangs usually covered his eyes, seeing his full face again still caught her off guard.
"Our Jeffrey is really handsome," she couldn't help saying. "If you brushed your bangs back like this, I swear when you're handing out flyers on the street, girls would be lining up just to get one from you."
He gave a small smile.
Her calling him "our Jeffrey" clearly made him happy.
"How about we go to the barbershop later and get you a haircut? It's such a waste to hide those pretty eyes of yours," she mumbled.
"What's the big deal? As long as you can see them, that's all that matters," Jeffrey replied.
Rachel laughed. "Tomorrow, you should wear this sweater. I'll wash the one you're wearing now."
"Okay," he agreed.
Then she took out her camera and snapped a photo of him in the sweater.
With a quick tap, she posted it on her social media.
Honestly, her friends list was super small, just two people: Josephine and Jeffrey.
"I'm gonna show this to Josephine. She's gonna be so jealous I have a brother," Rachel said.
It was only in moments like this that she showed a bit of girly excitement, instead of her usual cold, serious vibe.
Sure enough, not long after, Josephine liked the post and commented: "Nice sweater. How much was it?"
"199. It's good quality, really warm," Rachel replied.
"I should get one for my dad," Josephine said.
"By the way, your new brother looks like a natural model. He should totally try modeling for online shops. It pays better and it's easier than handing out flyers."
Rachel thought about it, then looked over at Jeffrey. "What do you think about modeling for online stores?"
"Not interested," he said without hesitation.
"But it pays more than handing out flyers, and it's more stable," she pressed.
He looked at her directly. "Do you think I'm not making enough money?"
"No, that's not it!" she said quickly. "I just want you to have a better life."
Her own life might already be settled, but she still wanted him to have something more.
"I will have a better life in the future. When that time comes, I'll give you the life you want, sister," he said, seriously, looking into her eyes.
To him, maybe it was just a game right now. But in that moment, he genuinely wanted to change her life.
And for someone like him, it was something that could be done easily.