Chapter 13

Emily's POV
　　"Damn it! Emily you bitch I'll kill you!"
　　Emma had gone crazy, a face filled with anger and resentment could not see the original beautiful appearance. She screamed and rushed up to choke me again, but was kicked by Andre and fell to the floor, rolling several times on the floor before stopping because she hit someone.
　　Everyone was looking at her, and my ears were filled with the sounds of people whispering.
　　"Oh my God, what happened?"
　　"I don't know, I was dancing and I saw her get kicked off."
　　"I know! I heard it! This woman tried to seduce that girl's boyfriend and she got kicked down by her boyfriend."
　　"God, she deserved it. If someone tried to seduce my boyfriend I wouldn't let that person get away with it!"
　　Emma stood up from the ground with difficulty, covering her stomach. Being kicked by an adult male in front of so many people is something she feels more painful mentally than physically.
　　I had experienced this feeling the day I first went to Toby when Emma's uncle kicked me out of the house! Toby was standing in the front row, but he neither came to pick me up nor did he stop the people from hurling insults at me and Hellen.
　　Now his beloved daughter, Emma, had finally suffered what I had experienced that day. As I watched Emma's face grow worse and worse from being accused of being a bitch, I felt nothing but special relief in my heart.
　　"Emily, I will get back at you."
　　Emma glared at me with hate-filled eyes, as if blaming all the mistakes on me, and then ran out of the club.
　　"What are you thinking?"
　　Andre asked suspiciously as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his embrace as he watched me keep staring in the direction of Emma's escape.
　　"I'm feeling happy. It's the first time I've defied Emma in years," I said, not regretting it, even though I knew Toby would surely blame me for it.
　　I don't owe Emma anything. Everything is her comeuppance!
　　"You should fight back against a bully. Being patient will only make him think you're weak and then go even further. You did a great job today."
　　I didn't expect to get a compliment from Andre about this today. I thought he would think that a girl hitting someone was too rude and not gentle. But his eyes looked at me with such sincerity that I couldn't see any signs of lying, which encouraged me a lot.
　　"Emily, how can you hit Emma? And in front of so many people, do you know how sad Emma is?!"
　　I woke up the next morning to a phone call from Toby, and before I even asked what it was about, Toby started questioning me. He decided what I did was wrong without even asking why, and his words were full of accusations that I had attacked Emma.
　　"Why did I hit her?" Mr. Brown, didn't your daughter tell you what she did?
　　I had expected this scene from the moment I hit Emma yesterday, but I still felt angry and even aggrieved after it happened.
　　"Emma seduced my boyfriend in front of me, what's wrong with me just hitting her? Did Mr. Brown ever scold her when she seduced my ex-boyfriend before? This time it was Emma who was in the wrong, so who are you to question me?
　　"Just a man, you think you are worthy of Dylan and Mr. Vincent with your status? How dare you to hit her over these things, you let me down!"
　　I was so angry at Toby's words that I didn't want to argue with Toby anymore and just hung up the phone. Suddenly I saw the date on the calendar without realizing it, December 5th, am I turning twenty so soon?
　　But Toby, as a father, had been lecturing me about Emma and even calling me a bitch for the entire 10 minutes of the call! He didn't even say happy birthday to me, or maybe he didn't even know it was my birthday. In his heart Emma was his only daughter, Hellen and I were just a stain that he couldn't erase from his excellent life!
　　I looked down at the apartment building, and there should never be anyone in the world like me who doesn't even have someone to say happy birthday to!
　　I got up and went to the kitchen and searched the house to make a birthday cake, Hellen was sick and couldn't be with me, Susan was at work, and no one was coming to spend my birthday with me.
　　But no matter what, even if I am alone this birthday must be spent. I've gotten used to the fact that I've been alone on my birthday every year since Hellen got sick.
　　I suddenly realized that I'd been living here for 20 years and only have one friend Susan to talk to, before that I'd been walking alone without even a shopping companion.
　　Just when I was thinking about how I had spent my birthday these past few years, the phone rang again. I thought it was Toby and didn't answer.
　　The ringing continued a second time after I hung up, so I had to put down what I was holding and pick up the phone.
　　Kate?
　　"My little angel, what can I do for you?"
　　"Emily, I missed you. Did you miss me?"
　　The voice of a child always dispels all my unhappiness, and I can forget all my worries as soon as I think of Kate's cute little face.
　　"Of course, I think about my little angel Kate every single day."
　　"Kate wants to invite Emily to have lunch with her, can Emily say yes to Kate?"
　　I agreed to Kate's invitation with little thought, although I thought it might be Andre's idea again. I was even more certain when Kate told me that lunch was scheduled at the Gaze Hotel where Andre and I first met.
　　It was so strange, why was there no one in the lobby?
　　Considering the reason why Andre might come, I put on delicate makeup and changed into a dress that Andre bought for me for the date. But when I arrived at the hotel restaurant, it was dark inside.
　　This was strange. When I worked here, the hotel restaurant was full of guests every day. Although the rooms in the Gaze Hotel are not always at full capacity every day, there are always many distinguished guests or popular movie stars staying here. Therefore, even if there are no guests from outside the hotel, there will be guests who live in the hotel to come to the restaurant every day. There is no situation like the current situation where there is no one.
　　Not to mention not only guests, but I also can't even see a waiter waitress. I carefully walked towards the center of the hotel lobby, the chandelier switch was over there and I wanted to go over and turn the light on.
　　"Manager?"
　　The light that suddenly came on was a little blinding, I squinted my eyes and saw a familiar figure appear, the manager of the hotel restaurant!
　　I looked around and he was the only one.
　　"Manager, what's going on?"
　　The manager smiled a little and didn't answer my question but shoved a gown at me. Pointing in the direction of the changing room, he gestured for me to change. Then without waiting for me to ask why he quickly left the hall.
　　I looked at the exquisitely crafted gown in my hand and froze for a moment before looking up again when the manager's figure was gone from the hall.
　　What the hell is going on?
　　I went to the dressing room to change with my head full of questions, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't figure out what they were up to.
　　When I returned to the hotel restaurant again, the light outside the window had turned warm yellow. The table in the center of the restaurant had a large box covered by a red cloth. The walls are hung with balloons, what color are there. The restaurant was still quiet and no one was there.
　　I walked towards the center table in my personalized dress to see what was underneath, and then I heard someone pushing on the door.
　　"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to Emily, happy birthday to you."
　　Andre and Kate were slowly walking towards me, pushing a food cart with a birthday cake and flowers, and the Happy Birthday song was playing on the stereo in the food cart. I covered my mouth in surprise, and suddenly I wanted to cry.
　　I don't know how they knew my birthday, but I can't deny that I'm touched right now.
　　Andre pushed the cake in front of me, then came over and hugged me.
　　He looked at me with affection, kissed me gently on the forehead, and said, "Happy birthday, Emily."