Matthew’s eyes flickered once he heard it.
He slightly moved his fingers by his sides and stared at Clarissa squarely.
Clarissa was startled. She lowered her head and avoided his gaze. Deep in her heart, she told herself not to feel nervous and to face him calmly.
“Are you tired?” he said icily.
Clarissa deliberately let out a laugh before she replied, “Yes, I’m tired. What’s wrong? Am I not allowed to be tired? Besides, what’s the point of pestering me? Why don’t we break up on good terms? Don’t tell me that the famous Mr. Tyson couldn’t let go of a woman.”
Once she said it, Matthew slightly raised his eyebrow. Then, he took a deep breath and stared at her again.
“Clare, I’m giving you a chance to take your words back.”
“Ha!” Clarissa snickered, “What if I don’t take my words back? Mr. Tyson, or should I call you Uncle Matthew, how old are you? Since you’re not young anymore, why can’t you do things quickly and decisively? Let me say it one more time– We broke up. That’s all.”
Unperturbed, Matthew pursed his lips and kept staring at her squarely, as though he wanted to devour her.
Clarissa remained hard-nosed and didn’t want to give in. Besides, her lips curled into a smile that exuded coldness and provocation.
“Clarissa, I’ve solved a lot of problems this month.”
“That has nothing to do with me.”
She looked at Matthew calmly but wasn’t interested to know what Matthew did in this month.
On the other hand, he was shocked by her nonchalant and emotionless gaze.
After a while, Clarissa said calmly, “What you did is none of my business. Alright, let me get this straight–I don’t love you anymore. Why don’t you believe me? In the past, I would probably break up with you out of anger because of someone else. However, this time around, there are no other reasons behind it. I just don’t love you anymore. Also, since we dated for such a short time, it’s impossible that we deeply love each other. Even I can’t convince myself that I love you. In short, my feelings for you are gone. Anyway, there’s no need to be upset because we are going back to the way we were before. Thank you so much for taking care of me for all this while, Uncle Matthew. Nevertheless, our relationship ends here.”
Matthew didn’t utter a word even after Clarissa finished.
Instead, he kept staring at her with his dark and piercing eyes.
With a smile of relief on her face, she turned around and walked toward the security checkpoint.
Tears trickled down her cheeks uncontrollably when she was leaving.
She hid her feelings very well, so much so that she almost believed she didn’t love Matthew anymore.
Nevertheless, she was confident that she could eventually wipe him from her mind.
“Clarissa, you can do it. It’s normal to feel heartbroken because he’s your first love, but you can endure it,” Clarissa talked to herself to cheer on and comfort herself.
Meanwhile, a man, who sat beside her, put down his book and handed over a piece of tissue to her.
Clarissa was in a daze. The next moment, she took it from him and murmured her thanks.
“Thank you.”
The man flashed her a smile but didn’t utter a word. Then, he continued to read his book.
After Clarissa wiped her tears and kept the tissue, the man glanced at her and asked, “My lady, did you just break up with your boyfriend?”
Clarissa pursed her lips awkwardly.
“It’s not unusual to break up with someone. Well, I always broke up with my girlfriends, and I was the one who usually got dumped. It’s not a big deal. I’ve gained more and more experience over the years about how to be a better boyfriend. Well, you’re so beautiful. Could it be that you were dumped by your boyfriend? My goodness! I’m sure the man… or the woman was blind. Hehe… I’m an open-minded man and understand that true love shouldn’t be constrained by age or gender. You don’t have to be shocked. By the way, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Joshua Ferguson, an illustrator. May I know what do you work as? Wait, let me guess it myself. Are you a model? An actress?…”
Initially, Clarissa thought that this man was aloof and wouldn’t talk much.
It turned out that she was completely wrong about him.
Ever since the conversation started until they got off the plane, Clarissa was bombarded non-stop by the chatterbox.
He was extremely talkative and didn’t stop after they got off the plane. Even when they exited the airport and were about to get a cab, he asked where she was headed and if they were going to places in the same direction.
As such, Clarissa couldn’t help but take a deep breath once she said goodbye to Joshua.
How could such a chatty man exist in this world?
What kind of a species is he from?
After arriving at the hotel, she put her things in the room and called Justin. Justin told her that his crew just completed the arduous filming in the desert and returned. Hence, she went to meet up with them after getting some rest in the hotel.
Justin and the rest were delighted to see Clarissa. As everyone hugged her, Justin secretly observed her. He was relieved to see that she looked rather well.
Actually, Clarissa was still a little despondent about breaking up with Matthew.
Nevertheless, she was aware that it wasn’t the time to talk about private matters. Also, Justin suffered losses because of Shermaine’s delay.
Fortunately, the shooting for Shermaine’s scenes was basically completed, and the rest would be added when she got better. On the other hand, the scenes in the desert mainly involved the male and female protagonists. They loved each other even more after a near-death experience in the desert. Besides, there would be some fight scenes here as well.
The biggest problem the crew faced was the environment of the desert because it was troublesome to send their equipment to the area.
Yaala reminded Clarissa in advance to prepare everything for wind and sun protection. As such, she wrapped herself with layers of clothes once she entered the desert. However, her body was still covered with sand and dust, especially because it was the windy season now. Shooting at night was challenging because the night was extremely cold. Hence, it was the first time that Clarissa encountered difficulties at such a level.
Given that the crew couldn’t go back and forth to the hotel every day, they often set up tents outside. As such, she almost became a sandwoman.
At night, Clarissa was shivering in the cold. She couldn’t chat with anyone over the phone as there was no signal at all. Nonetheless, she was deeply shocked once she looked up at the starry sky from the tent.
Under the vast starry sky, human beings seemed particularly small. It was as if any trouble or pain could be healed after witnessing the beautiful scenery.
At this moment, Clarissa settled her mind and stopped thinking about anything.
After a while, Yaala sat up and said in a slightly hoarse voice, “Can’t sleep?”
“Yup. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful.”
“It’s not bad to be buried here after I die.”
Clarissa replied affirmatively, “Indeed.”
After Yaala laughed softly, both of them stayed silent for quite some time.
Then, Yaala heaved a sigh and said, “Ms. Quigley, there are plenty more fish in the sea!”
Clarissa couldn’t help but chuckle. “Ms. Zaha, how do you know that I broke up with someone?”
“Well, I took a wild guess. Anyway, did you just admit it? You have broken up with your boyfriend, haven’t you?”
Clarissa was rendered speechless. “Yes, I broke up with my boyfriend, but it happened quite some time ago. So, I’m fine now. Also, you were right when you said that there are plenty more fish in the sea. I won’t be crushed just because of the break-up.”
“Very well. By the way, I have a friend who is considered an artist. Let me introduce him to you after we return.”
Clarissa said helplessly, “Ms. Zaha, I’m not interested in it for now.”
“It’s okay. You guys can be friends! That settles it!”
Yaala lay on the bed to sleep once she finished. On the other hand, Clarissa sighed gently and lay on the bad too.
She looked at Yaala, who hadn’t fallen asleep, and said gently, “Ms. Zaha, I’m really not in the mood to engage in a relationship with another man for now. Besides, my ex-boyfriend… He was too nice… I might…”
What is it?
I might not forget him?
I might still love him?
Clarissa wasn’t sure what she had to say. However, her heart still wrenched once she recalled the man.
Yaala opened her eyes and said, “I understand. But Clarissa, after a long time, you will realize that a relationship couldn’t survive the challenge of time no matter how deep it was.”
“Maybe.”
Ellie seldom went home nowadays unless her family ordered her to go back.
The main reason she was reluctant to go home was that they always mentioned Shermaine.
As such, she was disgusted by it and pitied her best friend.
Ellie was given the order to come home today because Margaret wanted to arrange a marriage for Matthew.
“I’ll not be engaged to Shermaine.”
The family members were initially delighted at the proposal but were shocked as Matthew rejected it coldly.
On the other hand, Ellie looked at them icily and continued to have her food without interrupting them.
She wasn’t triggered by it anymore, for Matthew to be engaged with Shermaine or not was none of her concerns now.
On the other hand, Margaret glanced at her son in disbelief.
“Matthew, what did you just say?”
“I will not be engaged to Shermaine.”
“You…”
As Margaret was fumed, Yuliana immediately comforted her, “Mom, please don’t be angry and listen to what Matthew has to say.”
“Matthew, explain it.”
George wasn’t as emotional as Margaret. In fact, he seldom gave his opinion about family affairs after he retired. Nonetheless, he wanted Matthew to explain his decision this time.
Matthew glanced around the living room icily and said, “Mom asked me to try getting along with Shermaine, and I did. Spending time with her for a month was my limit. When mom threatened me with her life, I submitted and did as she wished. However, I can give you my answer now. You don’t have to wait for half a year because I’m going to say no right now. Shemaine and I can’t possibly be together.”
“Not possible? Matthew, are you trying to infuriate me?”
Margaret was apparently pissed off and raised her volume as she spoke. Back then, she used her bad health condition as a pretext to threaten Matthew to be with Shermaine. When Shermaine was injured, she asked him to go to Moranta along with Shermaine. With all her effort, Margaret thought that they would have feelings for each other. She was excited about the prospect of their marriage and even discussed it with Hannah.
Much to her surprise, Matthew refused to marry Shermaine!
