Chapter 2

"How could that be?"

Brent said it almost without a moment's hesitation.

The next second my hand was empty; Brent had already taken the clothes from me.

"Julius must have left this behind. I'll give it to him tomorrow." Then Brent seemed to remember something. "By the way, didn't you go in for a checkup today? What did they say?"

"Nothing serious." I quietly put the checkup report away.

Brent patted my head. "Good. Our Tabby's going to live to a hundred."

Live to a hundred?

That probably isn't going to happen.

And besides, when he says things like that now, how much of it is really sincere?

"I'm going back to my room."

I was about to get up when Brent stopped me.

"Tabby, you just got back from the hospital. Why don't you go wash and disinfect your hands in the bathroom first?"

I understood.

So the person was hidden in the room.

It wasn't exactly something to be proud of, and I had no desire to make a scene with Brent in front of another woman.

That would only make me a laughingstock!

So in the end I said nothing more, and turned and went into the bathroom.

The next day.

When I woke up, Brent was long gone from my side.

After washing up, I suddenly felt like going out for a walk.

I came to a coffee shop nearby.

The moment I stepped in, a string of wind chimes rang out overhead, very lovely to hear.

Seeing that I had trouble getting around, someone came over right away to greet me and led me to a seat.

"Hello, my name is Louisa, and I'm the owner of this shop. Today is our first day open, so everything's twenty percent off."

As she spoke, she placed a menu in my hands.

I ran my fingers over it and was surprised. "Your menu actually has Braille on it?"

From her voice Louisa was a young girl, and there was something oddly familiar about it too.

She smiled. "Yes. My boyfriend gave me this shop. He even set up a foundation to help the blind—he said he hoped to do something for people who can't see."

"Your boyfriend is so kind." My heart warmed, and I felt a little envious. "He must love you very much."

My dream used to be to have a coffee shop of my own, with a string of wind chimes at the entrance, a bookshelf between the private booths lined with books, and two sunflowers on every table.

And Brent had once promised he'd give me a coffee shop just like that.

"Of course!" Louisa smiled. "By the way, ma'am, what would you like to drink?"

"A cappuccino, thank you."

As the footsteps faded away, a thought suddenly struck me, and I reached out tentatively to touch beside me.

Sure enough, there was a bookshelf. I picked up a book and felt it, and sure enough, there was Braille on it.

What a coincidence.

Suddenly the wind chimes rang.

The next second, a familiar voice spoke.

"Louisa, congratulations on the opening. This is for you."

It was Brent.

So that was why he'd gone out so early in the morning—to buy her a gift.

"Sunflowers again?" Louisa's tone turned a little petulant. "I've told you, I like red roses, not sunflowers. Take all these in the shop and swap them out for me!"

"All right, all right."

The two of them kept talking, but all I could hear was a buzzing in my ears, and I couldn't make out the words anymore.

After a good long while.

"Your cappuccino."

Louisa set the coffee down in front of me.

My voice trembled a little. "May I ask—is your boyfriend named Brent Perez?"

"Yes," Louisa said. "You know him?"

"I do," my voice trembled. "But I thought he was already married."

"Married? Hmph. That so-called wife of his is just leeching off him because she once saved his life, and she won't leave."

Louisa's voice was full of contempt. "She's nothing but a blind woman. Sooner or later she'll have to step aside for me!"

I was about to say something more when footsteps drew closer.

Brent's voice was full of tenderness. "I've already had someone go buy roses—nine hundred ninety-nine of them—"

Before he could finish, he suddenly caught sight of me.

I stood up, my voice cold. "Sorry to intrude."