- 8.
At 2 am, Ethan and Olivia returned. Olivia clung to Ethan’s neck, whining, “Ethan, stay with me tonight, please? I want to give myself to you…” She pressed her lips to his. He turned away. I sat on the couch, watching her pathetic display. Ethan’s eyes found mine. Olivia followed his
gaze, a smug smile spreading across her face.
<
6700
“Sophia, if I’d known you were here, I would’ve
made Ethan come back sooner. We didn’t see
any shooting stars, so he took me to see
fireworks instead. He didn’t want me to be
disappointed.” “Sorry, Sophia. Blame me, not Ethan.” I’d had a few drinks, my head
swimming. I stood, my voice unsteady. “Where is my jade pendant?” Olivia blinked, her smile faltering. “You mean the one from the safe? I accidentally broke it while I was tidying up. It didn’t look valuable, so I threw it away.” Tears streamed down my face, my body trembling. I saw my mother on her deathbed, clutching me, wiping away my tears. Don’t be afraid, she’d said. I’m not leaving. I made a deal with the Buddha. “As long as you have the pendant, I’ll be with you.” I hurled my glass at Olivia. It shattered against the marble floor, shards of glass slicing her leg. She recoiled, hiding behind Ethan. “It hurts!” she cried. I grabbed her collar, my voice raw. “Where did you throw it?! Tell me!” Ethan stepped between us, restraining me. I slapped him, screaming, “We’re not divorced!
<
How dare you bring her here! Let her touch my things! How dare you!” “Couldn’t wait to sleep with her, could you? Ethan, you disgust me!” He pulled me into a rough embrace, stroking my hair, his voice low. “Sophia, calm down. I’ll take
you to find your pendant, okay? Don’t cry.
Please don’t cry. It hurts me to see you like
this.”
