The Sound of Falling Blossoms

Laura was stunned by James's question. "What do you mean?"

"My parents looked into the matter and found out that someone had tampered with the photo string wall." James's eyes were sharper than ever. "Who else, except you, would set Jessica up like that?"

James's words sent chills down Laura's back. "I'll say this one more time. It wasn't me! Not this time, not the time before, not the time before that! Do you believe me?"

"You ask me to believe you every time, but what do you go and do?" James's eyes were colder than ever. "You've set Jessica up countless times and tried to hurt her child. How many times did I tell you? I'm only treating her well because of the children. Why did you have to keep making a scene? What good would it do us if she had a miscarriage?"

Laura's chest heaved up and down. She felt both angry and aggrieved.

She wanted to question James and wanted to retort. She also wanted to shout at the top of her voice to tell him that she never wanted to hurt anyone.

She wanted to ask James if he had forgotten that he said that he would believe no one else but her. Had he forgotten that he promised to never doubt her?

But in the end, she just looked at him wearily and said slowly in a trembling voice, "Alright, since you don't believe me, then let's break up. I'll let you be with Jessica. You can be a happy family of four!"

James was stunned. His eyes widened in shock. "What did you just say?"

"Did I not make myself clear enough?" Laura looked at James stubbornly with red eyes. "I'm making room for you and Jessica!"

Bang!

James kicked the coffee table over, and the glass shattered.

He grabbed Laura's wrist. The anger was evident in his eyes. "Laura! What nonsense are you talking about? You've always been the one that I love! And you're now telling me to be with another woman?"

Laura kept looking at James with red eyes and didn't say anything else.

The standoff lasted for quite a while.

James took a deep breath to force himself to calm down.

He pulled Laura into his arms. "I'll pretend I never heard that. Jessica has already forgiven you, so I won't hold it against you anymore."

He tightened his hold on Laura. "But remember, don't ever say things like you're going to leave me again. Everything that I'm doing right now is so that we can leave this place together."

What Laura didn't tell James was that she had already made up her mind about leaving.

"She just forgives me like that?" asked Laura. "Were there no conditions?"

James's body stiffened. He lit a cigarette and said slowly, "She... wants to hold a wedding. She said that she wants her children to know that her parents had loved each other at some point and were married."

After a short pause, he turned around to look at Laura and continued, "But the wedding's all just an act. We're only doing it for the children. Don't overthink things."

Laura trembled as they parted, but she didn't know what to say.

She felt as if an invisible hand was wrapped around her heart. Every beat caused excruciating pain.

'James Lawson, you and Jessica already have kids, and now you're going to hold a wedding with her? And you expect me to believe that everything between the two of you is fake? Who is she to you then?' Laura said inwardly.

James was still saying something, but Laura felt that his voice had become distant.

Laura watched as James kept hurting her with his words.

She didn't say another word.

James took care of Laura at the hospital for three whole days. During those three days, he did everything he could to take care of her.

He would always make sure that she took her medicine on time every day.

Whenever Laura moved the slightest during the night, he would wake up and hold her hand. He would only fall asleep again when he was sure that she was fine.

Whenever a nurse was giving Laura an injection, James would hold her in his arms and use his hand to cover her eyes. Then he would say in a gentle voice, "It's alright. It'll be over soon."

But after Laura was discharged, he went back to preparing the wedding.

To prevent her from making a scene, James even confiscated her phone and sent bodyguards to keep an eye on her 24/7.

Laura didn't resist and was just packing her luggage indifferently.

After Laura had finished packing her luggage, she began donating everything that James had ever given her over the years.

Those things never belonged to her in the first place, just like she and James were from two different worlds.

On the day of the wedding, James gave Laura her phone back. It was filled with photos that Jessica had sent.

There were photos of James wearing a suit and gently putting the wedding ring on Jessica's ring finger.

There were photos of the two of them kissing passionately in front of the crowd.

There were photos of the family of four cutting the cake happily.

Every photo made Laura's heart ache as if it were being cut into pieces.

Just when Laura was about to switch off her phone, the door to her room was pushed open.

John and Sophia were standing at the door and looking at her with cold eyes. "All the paperwork's done. You'll now head to the airport and leave on the next flight."

Sophia passed Laura a plane ticket. "You have my word that once you leave, he'll never be able to find you."

Laura took the plane ticket without saying a word, then picked up the luggage that she had already packed.

When she walked out of the villa, the sun was shining.

She didn't look back. She walked slowly towards the car parked on the side of the road.

She didn't say goodbye to James because they would never see each other again for the rest of their lives.