To the Love of My Life

However, Ruby still saw through the bright, wide mirror in front of her that when Madeleine turned her back, tears welled up in her eyes again. Under the bathroom lights, those teardrops glistened, almost blindingly so.

It took Ruby a while to come back to her senses. She couldn’t say why, but in that moment, her mood had turned exceptionally heavy.

Madeleine said that she was different from Ruby; she had desperately wanted to marry Steve Burton for the sake of the Gregorys, whereas Ruby had done it for love.

So why had Steve married her?

And, had she really married Steve just for the sake of the Gregorys?

These had once been very clear questions for her, but now, she found herself somewhat uncertain.

Ruby stood still for a while longer before swallowing and slowly turning around to leave the restroom.

The hallway leading to the private room was very quiet, with soft yellow light gently illuminating the pristine white floor, casting a warm hue.

Ruby took one step at a time in her high heels towards the private room. As she got closer, she could faintly hear the noise coming from within.

As she reached the door, ready to push it open, Ruby heard a voice from the front: “Ruby.”

Ruby’s finger hesitated for a moment, then she turned her head to see Edric Reat standing outside the corridor door with a cigarette in hand, its ember flickering bright and dim.

Ruby’s first instinct was to turn around and enter the private room, but as her hand touched the door, she hesitated, then dropped her hand, facing away from Edric, and walked towards him after a silent five seconds.

The corridor door was directly opposite the private room door; fearing that her classmates might see her with Edric, Ruby deliberately walked to the side of the flower pool and stopped.

Although Ruby hadn’t spoken a word to Edric, he understood that she wanted to talk to him. So, he put out his cigarette, threw it into the trash can, and walked in front of Ruby.

Ruby stared at Edric’s expression, which was slightly serious. After a while, she asked, “Did you tell anyone about what happened between us three years ago?”

Edric’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, staring at the ink-black depths in Ruby’s eyes, “No.”

“If not, then why did everyone at today’s reunion party bring up my past with you for no reason?” Ruby was not a fool; those few who mentioned her and Edric’s past were their college classmates.

She didn’t know if it was because she was scared that Steve would find out about that incident, which made her so sensitive, but she felt that the topic of her and Edric tonight seemed to have been deliberately prepared.

Besides her and Edric, no one else knew about their secret.

Ruby, afraid that Steve would come looking for her if she didn’t return to the private room, immediately said, without waiting for Edric to speak, “Edric Reat, you swore to the heavens that year that the secret would rot inside of you even if it meant death.”