Chapter 202 Gabriel's Anxiety
How did she promise back then?
She just nodded.
She said, "Okay, don't worry. I'll never ask you for money because of Carter."
Last time, he stumbled upon the situation and offered to help. But this time, if she asked, it would be different.
Should she borrow it from him?
Gabriel was her only lifeline now.
For her mom, she had to borrow it. She had no choice.
Gritting her teeth, Jessica pulled out her phone and called Gabriel.
Gabriel picked up quickly, and greeted, "Jessica."
Jessica asked, "Gabriel, it's late there, right? Sorry, did I wake you?"
Gabriel answered, "No, I'm still up."
Jessica said hesitantly, "Oh, good. Gabriel, I actually called to... borrow some money."
But before Jessica could finish, a soft, delicate voice came from the other end, "Gabriel."
At first, Jessica thought she misheard.
"Gabriel," Diana called out sleepily from the bed, her eyes closed.
When Jessica heard it again, she froze.
It felt like all the blood in her body rushed backward. She felt dizzy and lost track of everything.
She just stood there, holding the phone, like a statue.
That delicate, pitiful voice was clearly a woman's.
There was a woman in his room.
Late at night, a single guy's room with a woman's soft call. Any woman would overthink that.
And that voice sounded familiar.
Gabriel called out, "Jessica."
Gabriel's voice snapped her back to reality.
Forcing a smile, Jessica said, "I'm here."
Gabriel asked, "What were you saying? What did you want? I didn't catch the last part."
Jessica clenched her hand, thinking bitterly, thank God he didn't hear it.
It's good he didn't hear it.
Who was she for Gabriel to ask him for money?
They were just dating, and not for long.
Back when they got married, he didn't want to deal with Carter's issues. Now, he'd be even less willing!
Besides, what right did she have to ask him for two hundred grand?
Jessica replied, "Nothing, I just wanted to say goodnight and wish you a good sleep."
On the other end, Jessica held the phone, her lips pressed together bitterly.
"Is that all? Nothing else?" Gabriel asked, sounding a bit annoyed.
Jessica thought she handled the call well. Even though she heard those female voices, she chose to ignore them, pretending she didn't hear.
What else did he want?
"Nothing else," Jessica said.
Gabriel got even angrier.
He walked to the balcony in his casual pants and locked the door.
Gabriel questioned impatiently, "Didn't you hear any other sounds just now?"
Jessica simply replied, "Yes."
"Then don't you have anything to say or ask?" Gabriel pressed.
Jessica held the phone, her palm sweating.
Her heart felt like it was being pricked by needles, a dense, suffocating pain.
She had already decided to ignore it and told herself not to think about it. Why did he keep reminding her?
What did he want her to do?
"Gabriel, it's okay, I understand. After all, men have needs, it's normal."
Or maybe, "Gabriel, I don't mind."
No, she couldn't say either of those things.
She couldn't pretend she didn't care.
She didn't want to be insincere, so she stayed silent and acted like nothing happened.
Maybe not seeing it with her own eyes would make it hurt less.
"I have nothing to say. Everything is your choice," Jessica replied, clutching the phone.
Gabriel's forehead veins throbbed with anger. He pressed further, "Are you sure you have nothing to say?"
Jessica said stubbornly, "If I do, it's the same as before. Goodnight, sleep well."
At that, Gabriel smashed his phone.
The phone bounced and shattered into pieces. Diana struggled to get up from the hospital bed, sat in her wheelchair, and bent down to pick up the fragments.
She picked up each piece slowly and laboriously.
But she still picked them all up, finally holding them in her hands, spreading them out in front of Gabriel.
Diana asked, "What made you so angry? It's not worth it to hurt yourself."
Gabriel glanced at her indifferently, took the phone fragments, and left coldly.
Throughout the process, he barely looked at her.
Diana felt increasingly ignored, her heart filled with resentment.
Although she was lying in the hospital bed and couldn't hear what he was saying, she could guess from the gentle expression on his face that it must have been Jessica calling.
So, she deliberately called Gabriel's name softly.
The purpose was to see Jessica's reaction.
Unexpectedly, Jessica acted as if nothing had happened, while Gabriel was fuming.
In the hallway outside, Gabriel smoked one cigarette after another.
He held the phone in one hand, pressed to his ear, and a cigarette in the other hand, occasionally taking deep drags.
The smoke swirled around, almost obscuring his handsome face.
But if you looked closely, you would see that his face was now grim, cold, and devoid of any warmth.
On the other end, Quentin finally couldn't take it anymore. He said impatiently, "Come on, Gabriel. You've been calling me like crazy. I thought something big had happened, but you haven't said a word since you got through."
If it weren't for the occasional small noises from his smoking, Quentin would have thought Gabriel had hung up.
After a long time, Gabriel finally spoke, his voice low. He said, "Let me ask you a question."
Quentin urged, "Ask."
Gabriel questioned, "If a woman knows you're with another woman in the middle of the night, alone in a room, and she doesn't mind or get jealous, why is that?"
After saying this, Gabriel felt a weight lift off his chest.
But the answer that followed made him anxiously await.
Quentin replied, "If she doesn't get jealous at this point, I think there are only two reasons."
"What two reasons?" Gabriel asked eagerly.
Quentin explained, "Either she loves you too much, so she tolerates it, afraid you'll break up with her if she complains, not wanting to lose the relationship; or she doesn't love you at all, so it doesn't matter if you're with one woman or ten."
Quentin added, "Bro, you must be talking about Jessica."
Before Quentin could finish his sentence, Gabriel said, "Hanging up," and ended the call.
Two reasons?
Too much love or no love.
Gabriel thought anxiously, 'So Jessica, you don't care about me at all, why is that?'
He wondered, 'Which one are you?'
