Chapter 39 The Rumor Comes True

Jason was at work, so he couldn't drink much. I didn't insist either. We just chatted intermittently.

He said, "Mrs. Harrison, last time I borrowed $20,000 from you, and I still have $8,000 left. Let me repay you first. I'll do part-time jobs to earn the remaining $12,000. I will start my internship next semester, and it shouldn't take long for me to save enough."

"Internship already?" I was taken aback.

"Yes, I will graduate in June next year. Lauren will also be a senior next year." Jason sighed at how quickly time flies. "Time really flies."

I fell silent, as if it was just yesterday that I pretended to bump into Charlie on campus, but now I was almost thirty years old.

Just then, three other figures walked toward us. I immediately saw Dylan. He was accompanied by Clint and Michael. Why did they come to this bar?

Damn it.

"Jason, you go and do your thing," I quickly told Jason.

"Okay, Mrs. Harrison, call me if you need anything." Jason got up and left.

Dylan's gaze followed Jason's movements for a while before returning to me.

Clint saw me but didn't know how to address me, so he and Michael exchanged looks like two monkeys.

They didn't know Jason and probably thought I was calling the bartender over.

Dylan sat down next to me, casually crossing his long legs, his sharp eyes examining me.

"Dylan, this spot isn't good. Let's go sit over there," Clint said nervously, not daring to sit next to me. After all, he was the one who advised Charlie to chase after other women.

"You guys go ahead, I'll come over later," Dylan replied calmly.

"Okay." Clint and Michael immediately found a spot farthest away from me and sat down.

I found it really amusing. Did they think I would do something out of line with them?

"Another coincidence?" Dylan spoke up, referring to me sitting with Jason just now.

"Yes, just a coincidence." I didn't lie, meeting his gaze calmly.

"Where's Charlie?" His gaze swept across beside me. "Didn't you leave in his car?"

I shrugged, "I happened to see him and his true love at the hotel. I wasn't in a good mood, so I got off his car halfway and came to drink. And then I happened to run into his true love's boyfriend. It's quite a coincidence, isn't it?"

Dylan's eyes flickered, and he said, "That girl named Lauren was at the Cloud Hotel?"

I flashed a dazzling smile. "Yes, what about it? Are you interested in her?"

Dylan smirked with a hint of mockery. "Not interested. You're overthinking it."

When will he ever be interested then? I'm getting a bit bored waiting.

But I really have something I need to talk to Dylan about. After pouring a glass of wine for him and considering for a moment, I spoke up, "Dylan, I know about Lauren and Jason. Don't tell anyone, especially not Charlie, okay?"

I forgot to remind him properly last time, and Charlie's phone call last night really made me anxious.

Before I reveal my cards, I don't want things to go out of control.

"And if he asks me why I've gotten close to you, how should I explain?" Dylan anticipated this question. He knew Charlie very well.

"Aren't you a doctor? What field?" I asked.

"Cardiology," Dylan replied.

"Ah! Dylan, my stomach hurts. I might have gastritis. I'll trouble you to treat me in the future!" I exaggeratedly held my stomach for a few seconds.

Then I saw a layer of darkness appear on Dylan's cold face, as if he were possessed by some demon.

With a stern face, he said, "Your illness is not within my scope of treatment."

"When Jason was hospitalized, it wasn't a cardiovascular problem either, but you still took over his case," I argued confidently, "Doctors are supposed to save lives, so why would you differentiate between patients? Don't you have medical ethics?"

"Rosalie, are you an idiot?" Dylan was speechless.

"If not, how else can we have a reason to interact? How will you explain it to Charlie? Fine, you can't treat my stomachache, but you could say I have arrhythmia. You've examined me before, right? Can't you come up with a good lie?" I was a bit angry. Dylan was clearly refusing to help me.

Clint and Michael kept looking over at us frequently. I was drunk now. I stood up, sat back down next to Dylan, and hugged his arm. "If you don't help me, I'll sit on your lap right now. Since you can't explain it anyway, let's just confirm the rumors between us."

"Rosalie, get up!" Dylan angrily shook off my hand and stood up.

"If we're rumored to be having an affair, it can explain why we've gotten close, right?" My face was burning, the alcohol was going to my head, and my speech became incoherent. "No medical ethics, no intelligence..."

Embarrassed and annoyed, Dylan's cheeks seemed to turn slightly red. He gritted his teeth and stared at me for a moment. When he realized that I seemed drunk, he turned around and walked toward Clint and Michael.

I lay down on the seat and decided to take a short nap as my head was spinning. I thought Dylan had left me alone, but to my surprise, he returned a minute later. He grabbed my arm and helped me up, leading me toward the exit of the bar.

Unfortunately, my blurred vision prevented me from clearly seeing the expressions of the other two men. I guessed their reactions would be similar to Jane's when she saw me getting out of Charlie's car.

"Dylan, let me tell you..." I sat in the car, and fragmented images from my previous life flashed through my mind. I rambled on, saying nonsensical things, "Actually, Lauren is just like that. Do you really have to love her with all your heart? Look at me, I've let go..."

I wanted to say this to him before I died in my previous life. It wasn't worth it to do what he did for Lauren. He wasn't Charlie, he was always a decent man. He shouldn't have ended up like that for an ordinary woman, and most importantly, he lost to Charlie.

Dylan turned to look at me, his eyes filled with complexity, and as I continued speaking, I fell asleep.

To my surprise, Dylan didn't take me back to Maple Villa but instead brought me to a hotel and arranged a room for me. I only realized this when I woke up the next day.

In my phone, there was a WhatsApp message from Dylan. We had always been in contact through phone numbers before.

With a throbbing headache, I clicked on the message to open it. "When you wake up, go to the hospital, and book an appointment with the cardiovascular department. Choose me."

I was filled with question marks but quickly realized that he had agreed to help me keep it a secret from Charlie. And he was prepared to go through the whole act.

I quickly replied, "Okay, I'll come right away!"