Ned was silent for a moment, then asked, "Where are you?"
Sophie glanced back at the bustling alley she had just passed through. She wasn't familiar with this area, but she had an idea. "Wait a second, I'll send you my location. Come find me, okay?"
"Got it." He hung up.
Sophie stood at the street corner waiting for him. When he arrived, she would tell him the decision she had made last night.
Ten minutes later, Ned pulled up nearby. He spotted Sophie at the corner.
"I'm really busy today. Why did you insist on meeting here?" He drove up beside her. "Get in the car; it's hard to park here."
"There's a parking lot just ahead." Sophie had no intention of getting in. Ned glanced at her, turned the steering wheel, and drove into the parking lot.
When he got out, Sophie walked over, took his hand without a word, and led him toward an alley.
"Where are we going?" Ned stared at the hand she was holding for a long moment before asking.
"Last night you told me not to casually say things like 'let's not see each other anymore.' I went home and thought about it for a long time, and I finally figured something out. Today I mustered the courage to come find you. Give me a little time—just two hours." She turned her head, her expression deadly serious.
"Two hours for what?" he asked expressionlessly, letting himself be pulled along.
"What did you figure out? What do you want to tell me?" When Sophie didn't answer, Ned, unusually for him, pressed again.
"Don't ask. Just follow me for now." She kept walking ahead. They reached the mouth of the alley, where she suddenly turned and walked into an old, established five-star hotel.
Ned froze at the entrance.
Sophie pulled out her ID card and handed it directly to the front desk. "I'd like a room by the hour."
The receptionist looked up, saw it was a woman, and showed no reaction. "How many hours will you be staying?" she asked in a routine tone.
"Two hours."
"Ma'am, our short-stay rooms are rented for a minimum of four hours. Will that be card or cash?"
"Fine, four hours then. Cash." Sophie lowered her head and took out the money.
The receptionist took the cash and ID, efficiently tapped at the computer, then handed her the completed key card. "Enjoy your stay!"
Only after taking the key card did Sophie realize Ned hadn't followed her inside. She stood in the lobby looking out at him, not moving, not speaking—just stubbornly waiting for him to come in.
At first, Ned glared at her, his expression dark and unreadable… until he was certain Sophie had no intention of coming back out. Finally, he stepped inside.
"What the hell are you doing? Bringing me to a place like this?" he demanded in a low, menacing voice. "A short-stay room? Give me that key card."
Ned turned back to the front desk and booked an executive suite directly—he'd never been able to stand those cramped, cookie-cutter standard rooms. Once he had the new key card, he walked over to Sophie.
"When we get to the room, you'd better give me a reason that actually makes sense."
With that, he turned and strode into the elevator lobby on his own.
Inside the elevator, both of them were completely silent.
When Sophie entered the suite, she realized Ned hadn't followed her in; he was still standing in the hallway.
"Come in, please," she said to the figure outside the door.
He stepped inside. "You dragged me to a hotel. What exactly do you think is going to happen here?"
"What can happen in a hotel?" she answered softly, almost like a sigh. "I told you earlier—I thought about it all last night, and I've made up my mind."
Ned stared at her, his gaze so calm it was impossible to read any emotion in it. "Made up your mind about what?"
She held her breath, then drew in a long one, gathering every bit of courage she had.
"Today… I want to be with you."
"Be with me?" His voice was ice-cold as he looked straight into her eyes. "Do you even know what you're saying?"
"I'm not some casual, experienced woman. I've never done this before. It takes enormous courage for me to sleep with a man. But once I decide, I don't regret it." Sophie's face was burning crimson.
Ned just looked at her in silence, his eyes deep and unreadable.
Sophie lifted her hands, slowly began unbuttoning her coat, then slipped it off. Step by step, she walked toward him…
"I have three words I need to tell you: I love you."
She gently pressed herself against his chest. "Before, I was too scared, so I never dared to confess how I really felt. But last night I finally understood—if you love someone, you shouldn't overthink it. You don't need to worry whether he truly loves you back, and you don't need to fear that the feeling will fade with time."
Her arms slid up around his neck. "I won't ask you to love me one hundred percent anymore. I won't even ask for our parents' blessing. All I know is that right now, I love you. Even if we end up parting ways someday, that's okay. This way neither of us will feel burdened."
She looked up at him, her clear eyes shimmering with quiet sorrow. "Only after loving someone this seriously will I have no regrets. Because I finally realized: when you truly love someone, there is no reason needed."
She had said everything.
Ned's voice was terrifyingly calm. "You're too naïve. Do you really think this will change anything?"
"What…?" Sophie staggered as he suddenly shoved her away, staring at him in disbelief.
"You think you can trade your body for a man's feelings?"
Sophie was speechless.
"When a man no longer loves a woman, even if he gets her body, he won't change his mind." Ned's face was blank, almost indifferent. "So stop doing stupid things."
Sophie stared at him, the color slowly draining from her face. "What did you say…? What do you mean 'when a man no longer loves a woman'…?"
"Can't you tell?" His eyes were cold as winter. "I've been avoiding you this whole time. You're not that oblivious, are you?"
The room suddenly fell into a suffocating silence…
Ned paused, then said, "I don't love you anymore."
There was no expression on Sophie's face, as if she hadn't heard him at all.
But of course she had. Every cruel word stabbed straight into her heart.
"A few days ago I wanted to talk to you," Sophie said, her body beginning to tremble. Her voice cracked and choked, yet she fought with everything she had to stay upright and keep her balance. "My mom… she wants to see you one last time. If you're willing… please grant her this one wish."
Ned answered without hesitation, "Of course. I'll go to the hospital this afternoon to see her."
He looked at Sophie standing frozen in place, then did something even more heartbreaking.
He pulled five thick stacks of pound notes from his wallet (fifty thousand pounds in total) and stuffed them into her backpack.
That was the final straw. Sophie snapped.
She screamed at him hysterically, "Is this because I turned you down that night? Is that why you're doing this to me?!"
"Exactly," he replied coldly, mercilessly. "That night made me realize I don't have the patience to keep playing your little games. You're not right for me. You're too innocent. At first I thought it was refreshing, but now I'm just bored. I prefer women with sexy bodies and open minds, women who are on the same page, so nobody gets disappointed."
As he spoke those brutal words, Sophie felt ice flood through her veins. Her whole body shook uncontrollably.
"But… I understand now," she whispered. "I'm trying to make it up to you, aren't I?"
While she spoke, she struggled out of her clothes with trembling hands, clinging desperately to the belief that if she gave him her body, he would take her back. She kept going until she stood in only her underwear…
Ned looked her up and down once.
"What, stopped already? Trying to prove something? It's pointless." His voice was flat. "There's nothing to 'make up' for. I don't stay with women who can't let go. That night was more than enough proof."
Sophie stared at him, eyes vacant, completely numb…
"I'll say it one more time: you're not the one for me. Don't force yourself into decisions you'll regret just to win something back. You'll only end up hurting worse later."
He bent down, picked up the clothes scattered on the floor, and gently draped them over her shoulders… a gentleness that cut deeper than any cruelty.
Then he turned, opened the door, and walked out.