The Unveiled Rose

Steven briskly walked over to me when he saw me.

"Why didn't you take the bouquet I sent you? Can you tell me why?" he asked.

I believed I was being frank and clear enough when I talked to him several times before this. I never thought that he'd be shameless enough to come to me again.

Annoyed, I spat, "I never turn back once my mind is made. I chose divorce, so it means that I'll never get back together with you. Things are over between us. What's the purpose of giving me flowers?"

I calmly looked him in the eyes and spoke slowly and clearly to make sure that he heard every word, "Your wish has come true. You and Jessica are a couple now. Shouldn't you cherish her? Don't wait until you lose her and start regretting it again!" Sensing my displeasure, Steven explained, "I know you're telling me this for my own good, but trust me. I won't regret it this time."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. After a moment of silence, I stated, "But I find it annoying when you keep pestering me. If you feel sorry for what you've done to me, I hope you can pretend not to know me when we meet in the future. That's the best way to make it up to me."

My words stunned him, and he froze, unsure how to respond. "Do you not have any feelings for me at all?"

Before he came, he still had a sliver of hope that I would pity him upon seeing how desolate and dejected he looked.

Now, though... Steven knew that he was overthinking it.

Worried that he couldn't see my resolve and might misunderstand me, I adopted a grave tone when I clarified, "I have no feelings for you."

In case that wasn't enough, I told him, "I told you before when we met the last few times, but you just wouldn't believe me."

Steven forced a wry smile. "I thought you were joking."

"I've always been serious when it comes to relationships," I stated plainly. And with that, I followed Zane out of the building.

...

Steven's legs turned to lead. He watched sorrowfully as Annalise and Zane left the office building.

Suddenly, a frisson of fear gripped Steven's heart. It was as if Annalise would disappear from his world once and for all after this.

He wanted to run to her and force her to stay with him, no matter the means. However, it was as if his legs were glued to the ground, and he couldn't even take a single step.

Deep inside, he felt as if his heart was being forcefully torn apart by an invisible pair of hands. It brought him immense pain.

He had thought he was so indifferent that he wouldn't mind Annalise being in such close proximity with another man. But as he watched her leave with Zane, he felt suffocated somehow.

Steven abruptly remembered the time when he and Annalise were still married. He remembered her watching in silence when he hung out with Jessica.

Only after Annalise left him behind did he realize that she must've suffered as much as he did right now.

The pain in his heart was agonizing, and the disbelief was devastating.

...

I turned to look at Zane in the car and said, "We can just have our meals at the cafeteria in the company in the future." I explained, "Otherwise, he'd wait for me downstairs every day, and I'd have to face him. It'd ruin my mood. "We have two choices," Zane noted coolly. "The first being the cafeteria, and second, asking someone to help us buy and take the food upstairs to us."

With his hand on the steering wheel, he added, "We can have a change of palate if we don't feel like eating cafeteria food."

His idea was much more feasible, and I agreed to it readily, "Okay. If we're tired from working and need some rest, we can head to the ground floor to stretch our legs."

On second thought, I added, "But I'm not stepping out the door!"

"Alright." Zane looked at me through the rearview mirror and asked, "Why do you think Steven came for you?"