Chapter 115 Can't Hide the Liking
Regina's back stiffened, and she fell silent in an instant.
His sudden return caught her off guard. Her thoughts were completely unorganized, and her tear-filled eyes were caught red-handed. She hesitated momentarilyt, trying to force a smile, but Regina knew that her smile at this moment would probably look worse than crying.
Douglas picked Regina up from the carpet, placing her on the couch.
He gently and indulgently raised his hand and patted her head. "It's just finding a number. Why are you so upset?"
"I saw the text message you had sent me four years ago."
Douglas didn't seem too surprised. After all, the number was registered four years ago, on the day she attended her graduation ceremony and took her graduation photos. He had sent her a message that day.
It was just that one message. He was afraid that sending more would be too much of a disturbance.
He didn't even dare to say more in that one message.
"Can you tell me what happened that day at the graduation ceremony?"
Regina tried to suppress the turbulent emotions in her heart, attempting to ask calmly, but her slightly hoarse voice still revealed her unease.
Douglas indeed wasn't keen on bringing up that past, but he knew she was searching and investigating, and he hadn't interfered.
He even thought that if she had to know about that past, it seemed more appropriate for her to find out on her own.
He didn't respond immediately but took out his phone and started searching through his photo album.
Regina stared at his every move.
It was then that she noticed that most of the photos in his album were of her!
They were moments he had meticulously recorded since their marriage, capturing bits and pieces of their life together.
Regina could even recall what had happened at the time just by looking at a photo.
The feeling of loving someone was probably something that couldn't be hidden.
Regina saw that Douglas's hand seemed to have a built-in GPS, quickly finding an old photo from four years ago among a pile of pictures.
It was late June, midsummer.
At the graduation ceremony of Normon University, Regina, as one of the student representatives, went on stage to participate in the degree conferral ceremony.
The girl in the bachelor's gown stood on stage, smiling gracefully and confidently.
That day, nearly ten thousand people were wearing bachelor's gowns, a sea of black caps and gowns, but in Douglas's eyes, there was only her. He could only see her.
In his lens, Regina was always beautiful and stunning.
But this Regina had once been insecure and depressed.
"That day, you were really eye-catching," said Douglas.
What she thought was dimness was like a beam of light in his eyes.
How could that not be considered outstanding to be able to stand on stage as one of the top graduates from a prestigious university?
Hearing his compliment, Regina suddenly felt a lump in her throat. "You were there that day too?"
Douglas nodded nonchalantly. "Yes."
She seemed incredulous, suppressing her wildly beating heart. "Because of me?"
He smiled, lightly asking in return, contrasting sharply with the heavy burden that had once almost crushed him, "Sure."
Regina was momentarily speechless.
He continued flipping through the photos.
They were all from that day.
One of the photos even had Philip in it.
Douglas saw it too.
"When I took this photo, it was just to remind myself that you had someone you liked, and it wasn't me."
To prevent himself from losing control and doing something that would hurt her, Douglas completely deleted the photo with Philip in it.
It seemed like he was also saying a final goodbye to that past.
Watching all this, Regina felt like there was a thorn stuck in her throat.
In everyone's eyes, someone like Douglas was born to stand at the top of the social ladder, he had the capital to be proud.
But in front of her, he was humble to the point of being insignificant.
No wonder he was reluctant to talk about that past. It indeed wasn't a pleasant or worth-mentioning memory.
Regina felt unhappy for him. It seemed like mentioning it was trampling on his pride and dignity.
Douglas watched Regina deep in thought, then raised his hand and gently pinched her cheek. "No overthinking."
But Regina really had a lot of questions in her mind.
"Why do you like me? I'm not that great..."
His eyes locked onto hers, their beauty akin to a bright and dazzling star. "What's not great about you?"
He listed them one by one. "You are a top student at Normon University, and you were among the top three in the Oriant City exams back then."
Regina didn't expect him to know all this.
"How many people in this world are proficient in multiple languages? Do you know how amazed I was the first time I saw you at the Dubbing Club event?"
She was born with a stunningly beautiful face.
Douglas still remembered that she wore a gentle white dress that day.
Yes, she was indeed his dream girl.
"I also like your voice." He suddenly leaned close to her ear, his hot breath like an electric current, spreading through every corner of her body.
"Every part of you, inside and out, is what I like."
Such sweet words made Regina's ears burn.
She lowered her eyes slightly, her voice barely audible. "But the current me isn't that outstanding."
With top three exam scores in Oriant City, she entered Normon University. During her time there, Regina received enough honors to fill an entire wall, but her life afterward wasn't smooth sailing, nor was it filled with glory.
She actually had the opportunity to work in the State Department, but because of her family, she lost that precious chance.
In the past four years, she had changed jobs twice.
The process wasn't pleasant, and she hadn't achieved anything significant.
Douglas saw her low spirits and kissed the corner of her mouth. "Life is so long. We will definitely have more opportunities."
His warm words of comfort made Regina unable to say anything self-deprecating.
She thought, 'His silent affection for so many years was already hard enough.'
She didn't want him to realize now how unworthy his affection was.
"Yes," She looked into his eyes and said word by word. "I will have more opportunities to slowly get better."
Douglas's thumb brushed her still slightly wet eye corner. "Then no more crying when you think of these things in the future, okay?"
Regina mumbled, "I can't guarantee that."
Douglas was puzzled for a moment, then heard her cautiously ask, "So what you mean now is. Only when I find a 'clue' will you tell me the story behind that 'clue', right?"
Just like, she found an old phone and discovered the text message inside, then he told her the 'story behind the message'.
Douglas found her words quite interesting. "If you want to think of it that way, you can."
