Chapter 423 That Old Watch
"Who says you're old? I'll be the first to fight them!" Henry immediately spoke up, not wanting to be misunderstood.
Anouk fell silent.
Henry thought about comforting her but then saw Daphne there, too, making him feel awkward.
He could only give Benjamin a look. "Aren't you going to help me persuade your mom?"
Benjamin asked, "What does this have to do with me?"
Henry retorted, "What do you mean?"
Benjamin shrugged. "It has nothing to do with me."
Henry was fuming.
Seeing the situation was tense, Daphne tried to mediate. "Anouk took off the bracelet you gave her not just because she likes the new one, but also because she wants to keep the one you gave her safe."
Thirty years was a long time to form emotional bonds with an object, especially a bracelet. Damaging it would be devastating.
"Really?" Henry asked Anouk.
"Not really." Anouk deliberately said the opposite, still angry. "Suddenly, I feel like marriage is pointless. Daphne, maybe you shouldn't get married either."
All three were shocked.
Daphne even wondered if she had done something wrong since she arrived.
"Look at Henry, we've been married for over thirty years, and he still doesn't understand me as well as you do," Anouk said, giving both Benjamin and Henry a challenging problem. "In my opinion, finding a soulmate is better than getting married."
"Anouk!" Henry got emotional.
"Daphne, don't you agree?" Anouk asked Daphne.
Daphne pursed her lips and nodded seriously. "Yes."
Benjamin sneered.
Anouk usually had a gentle, scholarly air when she was calm, and even when she was angry, she kept her composure. "Am I wrong?"
"I'll go check the kitchen," Benjamin said, wisely avoiding the topic.
As he got up, he glanced at Daphne.
Daphne touched her nose, thinking Benjamin seemed angry.
Just then, her phone's special notification sound went off.
She took a quick look while Henry and Anouk were talking. A message appeared: [Is finding a soulmate better than getting married?]
Daphne: [Don't you think so?]
[I know what you're planning.] Benjamin replied from outside, a bigger smile forming on his lips. [You just want me to say no so you can show my mom and get me scolded, right?]
Daphne: [Benjamin, don't judge me with your malicious mind.]
Benjamin sent her an emoji.
The emoji had words on it: [Daphne, I've seen through you.]
Daphne put her phone away.
Henry and Anouk had just finished talking, as Henry admitted his mistake. "I got too emotional earlier. Tomorrow, we'll go shopping and buy whatever else you like."
"I only like the one Daphne gave me," Anouk replied. "Go check on Benjamin. Why is he taking so long in the kitchen?"
"Okay," Henry quickly agreed.
As soon as Henry stepped out, he saw Benjamin leaning against a pillar, playing with his phone.
Noticing Henry, Benjamin looked up at him.
For a moment, the atmosphere between them was a bit awkward.
Henry, afraid Anouk might hear them, dragged Benjamin to the yard.
Inside, only Daphne and Anouk were left, engaged in a pleasant conversation. Daphne answered all of Anouk's questions.
After all, this time, she was Benjamin's real girlfriend, not a fake one.
"Anouk, I want to ask you something," Daphne said, steering the conversation to the main topic.
Anouk had a knowing look and asked, "Is it about Benjamin?"
Daphne nodded in agreement.
"Ask away. I'll tell you everything I know," Anouk said.
Daphne hesitated before asking, "Does Benjamin have a nickname?"
"A nickname?" Anouk was puzzled.
Daphne said, "Yes."
She was genuinely curious. "One he was called when he was a baby or a child."
Anouk thought for a moment, then had a look of realization. "Yes!"
"What is it?" Daphne hurriedly asked.
"Well..." Anouk stopped mid-sentence.
Daphne looked at her, patiently waiting for her to continue.
"Benjamin never liked that nickname. Once he turned five, he banned us from using it," Anouk said, sharing some old stories. "Chris would call him that as a joke, and every time, Benjamin would beat him up."
Daphne blinked in surprise.
Benjamin was so fierce as a child!
"If you really want to know, why not ask him?" Anouk suggested.
"He won't tell me," Daphne said honestly.
Anouk pursed her lips.
Daphne didn't press further.
"He probably doesn't want you to know because he's afraid you'll laugh at him," Anouk explained. "I always wanted a son and a daughter, so I picked out names for both. But we never got to use the girl's name."
Henry, having experienced childbirth once, didn't want her to go through it again, considering it too painful.
"What was the girl's name?" Daphne asked, trying a different angle.
Knowing the girl's name might help her guess.
Anouk coughed to hide her embarrassment and said, "I can't say. If I tell you, you'll immediately guess Benjamin's. I can only tell you it has something to do with numbers."
Daphne paused. Numbers?
"If you pester Benjamin, he'll definitely tell you," Anouk said with a hint of gossip in her eyes. "In all these years, you're the only one he cares so much about."
Daphne imagined asking Benjamin.
With his personality, he'd probably say, "What's in it for me if I tell you?"
But she had nothing to offer.
"Do you know what Benjamin once told me?" Anouk asked again.
"What?" Daphne inquired.
"He said if he hadn't been so cautious back then, you might not have gone through that unhappy relationship," Anouk revealed. "He's liked you for many years."
Daphne paused, thinking about the villa incident. If she counted from then, Benjamin had liked her for at least four years.
"The watch he's wearing, you gave it to him, right?" Anouk was very observant.
Daphne nodded, a bit surprised. "How did you know?"
"Because no one else could make him replace his old watch," Anouk revealed. "Two years ago, I saw his watch was broken and bought him a new one, but he refused it and got the old one repaired."
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