Chapter 304 He Really Isn't Qualified
Katniss took the coat draped over her arm and held it in her hand, standing by the driver's side door for a while before taking two steps towards him.
The strong smell of alcohol filled the air. Tristan's eyes were glazed, and the corners of his eyes were red, indicating he had drunk quite a bit.
She pressed her lips together without speaking. He moved slightly, no longer leaning against her car, and took a few steps to a less obstructive spot.
Tristan said, "If it's inconvenient, it's okay. I can call a cab."
He looked away, his clean white shirt clinging to his body in the wind, outlining his strong waistline.
After a moment, Katniss took a deep breath and said, "Get in the car."
They found themselves at an impasse, unable to advance or retreat.
But at this moment, he was considerate enough not to be clingy, which moved Katniss deeply.
She opened the car door and got in. By the time she fastened her seatbelt, he was already inside, and his presence filled the cramped car.
His overwhelming presence enveloped Katniss, and her thoughts became chaotic.
She forced herself to stay calm and started the engine. The car drove onto the smooth road, moving in the same direction as other vehicles.
After a while, she realized she had forgotten to ask Tristan where he lived. When she was about to speak, she noticed he had already fallen asleep.
Neon lights reflected on him, his eyes slightly closed, and his features were perfectly sculpted.
The white shirt was tinted with red light, and as the car moved, the neon light repeatedly swept over him.
His well-defined hand supported his head, and the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up a few times.
She noticed that this shirt was one she had picked for him years ago. Given his clothing rotation, it should have been discarded long ago.
Yet, here it was, still perfectly intact on him.
After a long while, she took a deep breath, stopped the car, and messaged Saskia to ask Nicholas where Tristan lived now.
But Nicholas didn't know either.
On the other end, Saskia realized she was with Tristan: [Why don't you bring him to my place?]
[Okay.] Katniss was in a hurry to get back and couldn't leave Tristan on the road.
She drove straight to Nicholas's house, where Nicholas and Saskia were already waiting at the door.
Tristan was too drunk for Nicholas to carry alone, so Katniss helped him carry Tristan into the room.
As they dropped him onto the bed, Katniss was exhausted and accidentally fell onto the bed as well.
Tristan's arm tightly wrapped around her waist, preventing her from getting up. She frowned and tried to push him away, but he held on tighter.
"Don't go," he murmured, his lips barely moving.
"We can't help with this, Katniss. You'll have to handle it yourself. We'll wait outside," Nicholas said, decisively pulling the pregnant Saskia out of the room.
Tristan's voice echoed in her ear, his breath hot against her shirt, burning her skin.
She turned to him. His brows were furrowed, eyes closed, still asleep, talking in his sleep.
"Let go," she said, gripping his wrist tightly, using all her strength, but he only held on tighter.
She was pulled into his arms, their bodies pressed together, making her both embarrassed and angry. She said coldly, "You let me go!"
After a moment, his eyes moved slightly, opening a sliver, reflecting her angry face.
Katniss suddenly felt the pressure on her body ease. She quickly pulled away from him and got up to leave.
In the living room, Nicholas was cutting fruit for Saskia. He was surprised to see her come out so quickly. "It's been a while. His speed is a bit fast. Should he see a doctor?"
"Get lost," Saskia scolded him angrily, then stood up to look at Katniss. "I've been on bed rest and couldn't visit you when you came back. I wanted you to come see me, but not like this."
"I'll come to see you when I have time," Katniss said, noticing her large belly. She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Twins?"
Nicholas interjected, "No, I'm not that capable."
He was as humorous as ever, but Katniss still felt a bit heavy-hearted.
"Forget it, it's late. We'll talk another day. I need to get back, or Evie will start fussing."
She waved to Saskia, declined her offer to see her out, and drove home.
The long night matched her mood, somewhat heavy and dark.
In the morning, Nicholas opened the door to the guest room and saw Tristan sitting on the edge of the bed, elbows on his knees, hands clasped, seemingly recalling the events of the previous night.
Hearing the door open, he didn't turn around.
"I thought you got drunk on purpose so Katniss would take you home," Nicholas joked, but when he checked on Tristan after Katniss left, he was already asleep.
Tristan took a deep breath. "When I was drinking, I did get drunk on purpose."
She knew him well, knew what he was like when he was truly drunk.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gotten into her car so smoothly last night.
"Aren't you still thinking about Katniss? Where's that determination you had when you chased her to Nightfall City?" Nicholas was a bit disappointed.
He felt a bit sorry for his friend of over ten years and was deeply displeased with Katniss.
"Does he still have the confidence to pursue her?" Saskia walked over and said calmly, "Do you not know how the Forbes family treated Katniss? From what you're saying, you must know about the agreement between Katniss and your grandmother?"
Otherwise, Tristan would truly hate Katniss by now!
Nicholas was frustrated. From the moment things went wrong, he hadn't stopped wanting to know the truth for a second!
He quickly walked over to Tristan and bowed, "I'm begging you. Just tell me what happened. Since you know it wasn't Katniss's fault and that she was wronged by your grandmother, why don't you go explain everything to her and ask for forgiveness?"
Although Katniss was wrong to hide her marriage for seven years, she had no other choice.
The fact that they loved each other deeply seemed insignificant in comparison.
Nicholas couldn't understand what could have caused this situation.
"It was all orchestrated by my grandmother. After wronging Katniss, she revealed the truth to both of us."
Originally, Adelaide wanted Katniss to marry into the Forbes family without any issues. Once she had a child, Tristan's position would be secure.
But later, she realized that with Travis's tactics, Katniss could easily be in danger.
She worried that once Katniss married into the family, she wouldn't be able to protect her. What if something happened during pregnancy? What if something happened after the child was born? How would Katniss cope with that? How much pain would she endure?
So, after much thought, Adelaide decided to separate them.
She wanted Tristan to bear the brunt of Travis's oppression alone. Whether Katniss and Tristan could be together in the future would depend on fate.
But Adelaide didn't anticipate that Tristan would almost be unable to bear Katniss's departure.
So, in the hospital, she first messaged Katniss to explain the situation, hoping Katniss would understand her intentions.
She wanted Katniss to act and keep her distance from Tristan, and they could discuss their relationship later.
Katniss only replied: [From now on, the Forbes family has nothing to do with me.]
Adelaide showed Tristan her conversation with Katniss.
Whether Katniss was acting or genuinely wanted to cut ties, Adelaide's treatment of Katniss at such a critical moment had already disappointed her.
He didn't want to force her, nor did he have the right to force her to come back.
"That's Katniss's problem. Since she knows it was Mrs. Forbes's plan, she should cooperate with you and come back when needed," Nicholas said without hesitation.
Saskia raised her hand and slapped the back of his head. "Don't you dare talk about Katniss like that! If Tristan couldn't handle it, would Adelaide have told him the truth? Katniss was just a pawn! How much did Katniss trust her? She claimed to be afraid of Katniss getting hurt, but what was the reality? Katniss hadn't even been harmed by Travis yet, but she was already hurt beyond repair by her! How do you expect her to understand?"
Nicholas crouched in the corner, holding his head, helplessly looking at Tristan. "Saskia is right."
"Tristan, don't tell me you don't blame Mrs. Forbes!" Saskia continued. "In your heart, Katniss is the only one, but you have to believe that in Mrs. Forbes's heart, any woman willing to marry you and have children would do! And if she were with you in the future, no matter what danger you faced, Mrs. Forbes would definitely protect you and push Katniss aside without hesitation. That's a fact! In such a situation, anyone would want to stay away from your family's danger!"
"I can protect her," Tristan said firmly.
"Can you truly protect her?" Saskia smirked, "Then who lost their mind when they saw that agreement? Can you say you believed her at that time? Can you understand her grievances?"
The frustration of wanting to believe her, knowing that one explanation from her would ease his mind, but she couldn't bring herself to say it—who could understand that?
Hearing that Adelaide had given her a mute drug, Tristan found it laughable. He felt Adelaide was a stranger and that he deserved to die.
So he said he had no right to force her to come back. He really had no right.
After a long while, he stood up. "I'm leaving."
His tall figure exuded a sense of loneliness. These things had weighed on his heart for so long, and talking about them didn't alleviate his heaviness at all.
Seeing him like this, Saskia felt a bit sorry for him and finally said, "Wait, I'll find some time to talk to Katniss and see how she feels."
In the wealthy neighborhood, it was already late, but the villa was still brightly lit.
Eudora stood in the living room, enduring Travis's anger. "Katniss quietly became the general manager of White Corporation and took away so many projects from Synergy Global Corporation. Didn't you notice anything?"
"I didn't think she would have such a good relationship with Benjamin," she remembered clearly that at the club, although Benjamin and Katniss knew each other, Saskia was closer to Benjamin.
And at that time, Tristan was jealous, so she thought Katniss would keep her distance from Benjamin!
All these assumptions, when repeated in her mind, made her feel annoyed.
"What were you thinking?" Ivy said coldly. "Did you think about how disastrous it would be if you lost today?"
Instantly, Eudora felt as if a pair of hands were choking her throat, making it hard to breathe.
Ivy walked over to her. "When we chose you, it wasn't just because of your appearance. Mainly, it was because you were a good student. You didn't disappoint us, and you did well studying abroad."
She and Travis didn't have many reliable people to use, and they were afraid of raising too many insiders.
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