Chapter
34
When I came up from the parking lot, I saw Selena sitting on a bench, her hands pressed to her face, looking like she was in pain. I walked over, crouched down, and pulled her into a tight long
“I know everything,” I murmured, holding her close.
Selena froze for a moment, then whispered, “But… what did he say?”
Her response left me frustrated.
Theld her tighter, resting my chin on her forehead. “Stop thinking about him. And don’t see him again, okay?”
I took her wrist in my hand and led her to find the doctor. Her brother had already been taken out of the emergency room, but his condition was still critical. The doctor said if he didn’t make it through the next few days, he might never wake up.
A police officer was taking notes nearby.
I put my arm around Selena’s shoulders and asked, “What about the guys who attacked him?”
The officer scribbled as he spoke, “The ones who beat him up will definitely be detained. But he initiated the fight, so we still have to figure out how to divide the responsibility. We’ll keep you posted when we know more.”
I drove Selena back to the apartment complex. The whole tide, she didn’t say a word, but could see the turmoil her eyes. On the way, I stopped at a mall and stepped out for a bit. I came back with a big bag of things; there was even a small bottle of red wine inside.
Selena glanced at the wine and asked, “Do you remember our second meeting? This was the wine we drank back
then.”
I looked at her, trying to focus, then suddenly, the memory hit me.
I remembered once sharing a drink with Selena during my first year of high school. She had been in her second year of middle school at the time.
Back then, it was just two weeks before my family moved to Ashenford. I didn’t want to leave, so after school one day, I went up to the rooftop alone to take one last look at the place I had called home for over ten years.
When I got up there, I vaguely heard the sound of someone trying. After searching around, I found Selena behind a stone pillar, her face streaked with tears. I asked her what had happened.
She looked up at me with those dark, wide eyes of hers, and spoke through her sobs, “Don’t comfort me. Only alcohol can drown my sorrows right now. You can’t take me to get a drink, so just leave me alone!”
I was caught off guard for a moment, then smiled and replied, “Actually, I can take you out for a drink.”
And that was how we ended up sneaking out of our free period in the evening to a bar, pretending to be tough teens. We spent a long time choosing, and in the end, we settled on a bottle of red wine.
But after I moved away, I met Jessica and completely forgot about Selena.
It turns out that our connection had been destined all along I had forgotten, but she hadn’t.
It was no wonder that when we bumped into each other at that bar, she had been so excited, practically jumping: towards me, her face flushed with excitement. Back then, her face was red, and she refused to let go of me.
“Sebastian, l’in dreaming of you again. It feels so real! I really want to sleep with you. Can we do that?” she had
said.
Thinking back to James‘ words earlier, my chest tightened
Not only had I forgotten about Selena, I even failed to recognize her when we met again.
Was this fate’s way of punishing me?
