Chapter 7

The final day of Dylan's and Violet's divorce cooling-off period was exactly one week later. Dylan could finally leave. He started packing up his things. Halfway through packing, however, Violet had her assistant, Barbara Lise, deliver a tailored suit to Dylan, inviting him to the Padden Manor for a dinner party. Dylan stared at the suit and suddenly found it ironic. Legally speaking, they no longer had anything to do with each other, but Violet still didn't know about it and even got him to attend the party as her husband. At first, he considered rejecting it. However, he thought about the many times Mandy had taken care of him over the years and decided to go. Besides, he still had to take some of his documents from her. So, he put on the suit and went to the party. The event hall was loud and bustling with people. It was decorated with beautiful lights as people mingled around and shared toasts with each other on the floor. Archer was in the center of the hall, surrounded by a group of his friends. "Archer, Ms. Padden really loves you so much." "Yes, exactly! This ring you're wearing just came from an auction in Sothby. It's a global limited edition design symbolizing the one and only true love. I'd heard a wealthy billionaire bought it, but I never thought it was Ms. Padden!" "It's been so many years, but Ms. Padden still hasn't forgotten about you. I remember how she came to school and went back with you every day without fail back when we were still studying. She would also keep filling your desk drawers with sweets, chocolate, and desserts of the sort. "I even remember that you guys fought once, and you didn't talk to her for a few days. Do you know how much effort she put into making it up to you? She asked nearly everyone in class about you, me included, and she was quite the sight! Her eyes were red and bloodshot! "All you did was ignore her for a few days, and it reduced her to a mess like that. I think you nearly killed her with how worried she was…" "Archer, I don't think anyone else will love you more than Ms. Padden. After learning that you had a shotgun wedding, she lost all hope to live. But when she learned that you weren't happy living abroad, she kept flying over every week to see you in secret. "She bought presents for you to cheer you up too. Now that you're divorced, and from what I can tell, she doesn't really like her current husband anyway—you should both just get together now!" "That's right! You should marry her!" … Dylan stood in the corner, watching as the group of men made a loud scene in the center of the floor, saying how much his own wife was in love with someone else. "Dylan." A voice suddenly called out from behind him, pulling him back to the present. Dylan turned around and saw Mandy there. Instinctively, he wanted to call out to her like he always did, but he stopped himself after seemingly realizing something. Instead, he greeted her politely and courteously. "Mrs. Padden." Mandy sighed when she heard how courteous he was being. However, she didn't say anything and just handed Dylan the documents he needed to further his studies abroad. "Dylan, I've already arranged everything for you to go abroad as smoothly as possible. Since the college will start their semester early, I've also bought you the flight ticket there. It's in three hours' time. Is there anything else I can help you with?" Dylan looked at the documents in his hand, his heart feeling as heavy as lead. He couldn't stop his hands from shaking when he thought about the impending freedom and new life waiting for him. Taking a deep breath, Dylan suppressed his excitement and put the documents away in his bag, shaking his head in response to Mandy's question. "Thank you, Mrs. Padden, for helping me with these. I'm already very grateful for everything." He paused for a while and suddenly thought of something. He said lightly, "I do have a small request, actually. If Violet finds out about this one day and asks me where I am, please tell her that you do not know." He didn't want to meet Violet again for the rest of his life. Hearing this, Mandy looked at him in shock. "Wait, you never told her that you were leaving?" Well, what was he supposed to tell her? That he had approached her on purpose last time? That he had treated her so well and behaved like her lapdog not because he loved her but because he was returning a favor to Mandy? How would he explain that he had only been taking orders from Mandy to get Violet to forget about Archer and help her out from her depression episode? Or should he have explained that he was divorcing her and never coming back? What was the point of telling her anything anyway? Violet's first love was back. Even if Dylan left now, it wouldn't impact her in any way at all. Dylan smiled and replied, "There's no need anymore. I just want to leave as soon as possible. I don't want to get involved in anything else anymore." "Who's leaving?" Violet's voice suddenly rang out from behind them. Dylan turned around and was immediately met with Violet's deep eyes. He felt a sudden shiver in his heart. He opened his mouth, wanting to explain things, but he hesitated, wondering how much of their conversation she had heard, if at all. Luckily, Mandy came to the rescue. "Nothing. What are you doing here?" Violet didn't question any further. She just glanced at the cake on the stage and said, "Mom, you should go up there to cut the cake." Mandy rubbed the back of her head and rejected her. "I'm not feeling well. You both can go up and cut the cake instead." Then, without looking at them again, Mandy had the maid escort her upstairs. After watching Mandy go up the stairs, Violet extended her hand toward Dylan. "Let's go. We'll cut the cake on the stage." Dylan shook his head and raised his injured arm. "No, thank you. My arm hasn't fully healed yet. You should get Archer instead." A hint of surprise appeared in Violet's eyes. She didn't seem to understand why Dylan would say such a thing. It felt as though she was starting to lose control over something, but she didn't know what. "Why should I get him?" This time, Dylan was the one who was puzzled. Why? Wasn't Violet always the one who abandoned him for Archer? For the past five years, she had flown overseas countless times to see Archer. Now, Dylan was giving her the chance to be with Archer. So, why did she look so surprised and disbelieving? Dylan just smiled and said, "Because you're both very close friends. It's just cutting a cake, anyway. It's not a huge deal." Violet saw that Dylan was all smiles and didn't look the least bit angry. Although she still found it suspicious, she didn't push the topic any further. She just walked over to Archer and whispered something in his ear. Archer blushed and nodded. Then, he took Violet's outstretched arm and went onstage to cut the cake. The piano started playing a melodious tune, and both Violet and Archer looked so close and intimate that it didn't look like they were cutting a birthday cake anymore. If anything, it seemed more like they were cutting their wedding cake. Since it was already the latter half of the night, many of the older guests had already left. The guests left were mostly Violet's friends, and they knew all about her and Archer. With Violet and Archer now intimately cutting the cake on the stage, the guests all started applauding. Some of them even initiated a chant, exclaiming, "Kiss her! Kiss her! Kiss her!" … They made such a row that Archer's face turned a bright red color. Violet's ears turned red too. They never kissed each other, but Violet didn't try to stop her friends from chanting either. Dylan couldn't care less. He just took out his phone and calculated the time he had left before his flight. If the plane was taking off in three hours, that meant he had to leave now. However, to certain other people, his quiet demeanor made him seem like he was upset about the whole cake-cutting incident.