hapter 243,
Ellie hailed a cab back to the Thompson residence, arriving around nine. Her family was still awake, chatting in the living room. When she walked in, they all stood up.
Noticing everyone’s reactions, Ellie glanced down at herself. Despite her calm demeanor, after rolling out of Alex’s car and getting mud all over herself, she looked quite messy indeed.
“Ran into that nutcase, had a little spat, but everything’s fine now,” Ellie assured them, leaving out half the story. If she told them she had almost fallen off a cliff with Alex, her family wouldn’t sleep tonight–or ever again.
“As long as you’re okay,” Joanna replied, not probing further. She gently nudged Ellie upstairs to take a shower and rest.
Strangely, Ellie thought she’d be too upset to sleep, but she drifted off and slept soundly.
The next morning, Ellie went to work as usual. Life is like riding a bike; you have to keep pedaling to stay balanced. Diana. invited her to dinner, and she happily accepted. She found shoulder–to–shoulder friendship more appealing than hand–in- hand romance.
After work, Ellie arrived at the Earl Hotel as planned. Inside the private room, it was just Lacey and Diana, and Ellie finally felt at ease.
“Quinlee said that Alex was after you again?” Diana pulled Ellie down to sit beside her.
Ellie nodded, accepting the juice Lacey handed her.
“I don’t even know what to say about this “madman. You could call him trash, but he’s trashier than the trashiest. And if you say he’s evil, he’s so intimidating that even bad guys shiver at the sight of him.
“But if you think about it, he’s kind of pitiful too,” Lacey recalled Layton’s stories about Alex, how Alex got beaten up by Jason and almost buried alive, and couldn’t help but grumble.
“Pitiful people always have something despicable about them!” Diana gave Lacey a knowing look.
Lacey quickly added with a smile, “Right, he totally deserves it!”
“Don’t worry about me, say whatever you want, even curse if you need to, Ellie sat between the two, looking indifferent. Whether it was praise or insults, anything about Alex didn’t matter to her anymore.
In her heart, Alex was already dead. After her memory loss, Alex was nothing but ashes in her mind, completely vanished.
“Let me tell you, Layton is in an even worse situation than Alex, Lacey laughed, shifting the subject. “Recently, he has been chasing after Nalani all over the place, begging her to come back and marry him, but she just won’t. He’s tearing his hair out
over it!
The three girls hadn’t chatted together in a while, and once they started, they couldn’t help but talk about relationships.
“I’m heading to the restroom,” Ellie said as she rose after more than an hour, while Lacey and Diana were still sipping their
drinks.
Ellie emerged from the restroom and immediately spotted Alex in the hallway. He was wearing black pants and a black shirt, leaning against the wall with one hand, clearly intoxicated.
Beside him stood a curvy woman, carrying a man’s suit jacket over her arm, which Ellie instantly recognized as Alex’s. The woman was carefully attending to Alex by supporting his arm.
Ellie discreetly averted her gaze and gracefully walked past them. If this woman could have something going on with Alex, it would be absolutely fantastic,
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Alex was slightly hunched, his peripheral vision lo I on Ellie as she made her way down the hallway. He kept his eyes on her until she turned a corner and vanished from sight, finally straightening up once she was out of view,
He stumbled backward, shoving the woman beside him aside, and growled, “Get lost!”
The woman, undeterred, stepped forward. “Mr. Warren, your jacket. But in the next instant, Alex tossed the jacket she offered into the trash can, sending her fleeing in panic.
“Alex, you saw it. Ellie’s attitude towards you now makes it impossible for you two to be together, Layton said calmly as he approached and handed Alex a cigarette.
Alex’s bloodshot eyes stared in the direction Ellie had just left, leaving him standing there numb for an extended period.
Late at night, Alex stumbled back to the Warren Manor, clearly intoxicated. As he glanced down at the shoe rack and spotted Ellie’s cartoon slippers, a sharp pain pierced his chest.
The kitten noticed his return and started weaving around his legs, meowing. Alex crouched down to pick up the cat and then carried it upstairs,
“Have you
been a good boy at home? Did you miss Mom?” Alex asked instinctively, and then froze at the staircase entrance, surprised by his own words.
Holding Luck, he turned on the staircase and cast his gaze across the room. His eyes fell on a vase filled with fresh red roses, and a heavy ache spread through his chest.
He realized that some things, once missed, are gone forever. No matter how many red roses he gave her, they couldn’t make up for the hurt caused by his dismissive remark, calling her love just “weeds.”
Dragging his stiff body up the stairs, he saw Ellie’s shadow everywhere he looked.
Standing before the photo wall in the bedroom, staring at Ellie’s happy smile as she nestled in his arms, Alex completely broke down. His stifled roar of anguish echoed through every corner of the room, and the familiar pain swiftly spread from his heart to every part of his body.
With both hands pressed against the photo wall, his body slightly bent, Alex rested his forehead against Ellie’s picture, tears welling up in his eyes. He silently asked the photo, over and over, “Ellie, do you really not want me anymore?”
He lost track of time before his body weakened, sliding down to crouch at the base of the photo wall. After a sleepless night, as the first rays of sunlight hit the photo wall, Alex rose to wash up.
Over ten minutes later, he went downstairs, fully dressed and ready for work. Evan, the seasoned butler, noticed the red veins in Alex’s eyes and realized he hadn’t slept all night.
Unable to resist speaking, Evan said, “Mr. Warren, Carlos has passed away, Ms. Thompson has left, and your parents are aging. Both the company and the family are depending on you. You need to stay strong and avoid any mishaps. Mrs. Warren is so worried about you that she’s fallen ill
A few minutes later, Alex entered his parents‘ room. He saw Nancy lying weakly on the bed, clutching Orion’s photo tightly with tears streaming down her face. Todd sat beside her, sighing deeply. Alex lowered his gaze, hiding his emotions.
“Mom, how are you feeling?” Alex reached out, trying to take the photo of Orion from Nancy, but Nancy held it even tighter. Alex subtly withdrew his hand.
Nancy sighed, “Alex, I heard from Quinlee that you’re looking for Ellie again. Why can’t you let go now, after all this time?!” Listening to Nancy’s raspy voice, Alex felt a dull ache in his heart. Ellie had been part of his family for over a decade. She
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Chapter 243
used to adore him. for seven whole years.
If he had just given her the slightest bit of attention during those seven years, he wouldn’t have lost her.
“Mom!” Alex exclaimed, as a tear silently fell onto the blanket. He said, “I regret it!”
18:41 Fri, 21 Feb 00 ·
