6
After arriving in Melbourne, my friend Zoe Chen, whom I met in prison, came to pick me up at the airport.
Zoe saw me and ran over to hug me from afar.
“Aria, I’ve missed you so much! It’s been two years since we last met, right?”
“I’ve missed you too! You’ve lost weight, have you been secretly dieting without telling me?”
Zoe showered me with kisses again.
“I told you to come abroad with me back then, but you wouldn’t listen. You had to go back to that scumbag. Look, that’s my brother. Handsome,
isn’t he?”
Following her gaze, I realized her brother Connor Chen had come with her.
I extended my hand to him a bit shyly.
“Hi, I’m Aria Collins, Zoe’s friend.”
He shook my hand gentlemanly.
“Connor Chen, Zoe’s brother. I’ve heard a lot about you from Zoe. Thank you for taking care of her.”
After some small talk, we headed to the Chen family home.
As soon as we arrived, a chubby little boy ran towards me.
“Mommy, are you my mommy?”
I was dumbfounded by his question and looked at Zoe awkwardly.
Zoe smiled and pulled the little boy over.
“Max, this is Auntie’s friend. You can call her Aunt Aria.”
“No, she’s my mommy. I like her. The mommy in my dreams looks just like her.”
I coughed awkwardly a couple times.
Connor patted Max’s head.
<
“Max, Daddy bought you a toy. Let’s go open it and take a look.”
The little boy finally left satisfied.
Zoe pulled me aside to explain.
“His name is Max Chen. He’s my brother’s adopted son. He’s never had a mother’s love, so he probably just likes you a lot.”
I smiled and nodded.
“it’s okay, I like him too.”
“Why don’t you just get together with my brother then?”
Zoe said with a mischievous grin.
“Max needs a mom anyway!”
I chased after her to smack her.
“Zoe Chen, don’t talk nonsense!”
The next second she turned serious again.
“Aria, tell me honestly, do you still have feelings for Gabriel Foster?”
t3
I didn’t answer her directly. After all, he was someone I loved for eight years. But all the hurt he caused me was real. I could never forgive him.
Knowing how I felt, Zoe never mentioned Gabriel Foster again after that.
Until one time, she accidentally let something slip in front of me.
“Did you know? After you left, Gabriel Foster fell seriously ill. He only regained consciousness a few days ago. The first thing he did when he woke up was search for your whereabouts.”
“He even held a press conference, saying you were the only one he ever wanted to marry. What a romantic image he’s built, as if all the harm he did to you was forced by others.”
I stood there stunned, listening to her words, my heart now calm as still water.
It was like hearing someone else’s story. I even gossiped along for a bit.
“You’re right. Back then, I was so nervous deleting those videos of his in the middle of the night. My heart was in my throat, afraid he’d catch me.”
After saying that, I realized I no longer felt anything for him.
All the pain he caused me, I could now speak of lightly.
In Melbourne, I started a new career. Never one to enjoy being an employee, I opened a small bar.
Business was steady, enough to support myself.
Compared to my old life revolving around Gabriel Foster, I much preferred who I was now.
