Chapter 28 She is Somewhat Different
The car window rolled down, revealing Sebastian's face. "Isabella? Why haven't you gone home yet?"
Isabella didn't know why, but she felt that Sebastian was particularly gentle every time he called her name,.
She suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and said, "Mr. Landon, do you know about the photo in the company group chat?"
"Are you talking about the photo that someone secretly took of us while we were eating in the restaurant at noon?"
"Yes."
"I saw it. What's wrong?" Sebastian looked at her small face that was about the size of his hand. “Did that photo give you trouble?"
Isabella felt embarrassed. After all, he was the CEO of the company, and he wasn’t worried, so how could she, a junior employee, be worried?
"No..." Isabella shook her head. "I was just afraid it would trouble you."
"You don't need to worry about it. We know we’re innocent, so it's enough," he said.
Thoe words instantly made Isabella understand. Yes, if we know we’re innocent, it's enough. Sometimes, the more you rushed to prove yourself, the more likely you would fail. The rumors would naturally go away over time, so why bother making yourself feel uncomfortable?
The wind blew, mixed with a few raindrops. Sebastian looked up at the black sky and said, "This isn’t a good time to get a taxi. Come on, I'll give you a ride home."
"No." Isabella shook her hands repeatedly, "I'll head home, Mr. Landon, goodbye."
After saying that, she quickly ran away, as if she was afraid that Sebastian would pull her into the car.
Jack chuckled and said, "Anyone else would be eager to establish a relationship with you, but Isabella is an exception."
Sebastian only turned his gaze away when Isabella's figure completely disappeared. "Yes, she's different."
Before Jack could savor the meaning of that sentence, Sebastian said, "Let's go."
Isabella boarded the subway and thought to herself, 'If Sebastian doesn't clarify things, should I do it?' But she was just an employee. Even if she did make a statement, it probably wouldn't have much effect...
She entered the company group chat hesitantly, but as soon as Isabella entered, a new message came in.
Mr. Landon: [I hope everyone will stop forwarding the photos that were circulating in the group today.]
There were also similar messages in the other company group chats, indicating that he had sent them to all the groups.
He had really clarified the situation. Was it because of what she said?
Isabella looked at the message, feeling a warmth inside.
The next morning, Isabella was still in the bathroom getting ready when she heard some noises outside.
When she finished washing up and came out, she saw Samantha preparing breakfast. When Samantha saw her, she immediately smiled and said, "I brought breakfast for you, Bella. It's your favorite bread, come and try it."
Isabella walked straight past her, opened the closet to get her clothes, and said, "I don't like it anymore."
Samantha was taken aback but continued to smile and said, "What do you like now? Tell me, I'll go buy it."
Isabella stopped searching for her clothes, turned to look at Samantha, and asked, "What are you up to?"
She had been tricked once before, she would never fall into the same trap twice. She was now wary of Samantha.
"Why are you looking at me like that, Bella?" Samantha's smile was a bit strained. "I don't want anything. I just want to sincerely apologize to you and make things right between us..."
Isabella interrupted her. "If I took something from you, would you still be friends with me?"
Samantha was momentarily stunned, then smiled and said, "Of course. We’re good friends. What's mine is yours. If you want something, you don't have to steal it, just let me know and I’ll gladly offer it to you."
"Good." Isabella smiled faintly. "I want you to break up with Matthew."
"Bella, even if I break up with Matthew now, you two can't be together..."
"What? Are you saying you can’t do it?" Isabella didn't give her a chance to speak nonsense. "If you can't do it, then don't put on a show in front of me. You're behaving badly, and I don't want to see it."
Isabella changed her clothes, picked up her bag, ignored Samantha's stiff expression, and walked out the door.
Samantha stomped her feet and threw the breakfast into the trash can. "Why are you so proud, Isabella? Once I'm in the CEO's office at the Landon Group, you won't be able to act like this."
On the subway, Isabella gathered the balances of several cards together, but it came up to only ten dollars. She hesitated, thinking about whether she should borrow a hundred dollars from Nina. After all, she didn't want to owe Sebastian for too long. She needed to repay him as soon as possible to ease her burden.
Isabella silently encouraged herself for a long time before mustering the courage to dial Nina's phone number.
After two rings, Nina answered the call. “Hey, Bella. What’s up? Why are you calling me so early?”
"It's nothing, I just... I miss you," Isabella bit her lip, feeling a tinge of sadness.
"Did something happen?" Nina asked.
Before she could reply, Charlie's voice came from beside Nina. "Who is it?"
"It's Bella."
"Did she come to her senses? Is she going to help me collaborate with the Landon Group?"
"No..."
"Then why is she calling?" Charlie's tone was full of contempt.
Nina felt hurt by his words, covered the phone, and walked aside, saying, "Bella, is something going on with you? You can tell me."
"It’s nothing," Isabella couldn't bring herself to say it at that moment.
If she did, Nina would definitely send her money. But once Charlie found out, they would argue again. Isabella had moved out of Nina's house in because she wanted to be independent and not burden Nina anymore. So she put on a smile and spoke lightly. "Really, it's nothing. I just had a dream about you last night, so I wanted to give you a call."
"Are you really okay?" Nina still wasn't reassured. "Bella, if you need anything, you have to tell me. You can't bear everything on your own, you know?"
"Okay. I know," Isabella intentionally changed the subject to ease her worries. "Where are you? It sounds a bit noisy over there."
"Oh... I'm at the hospital."
Isabella became nervous. "The hospital? Are you sick?"
"No, I'm just getting a check-up, it’s a normal physical examination. I'm perfectly fine." Nina's tone remained cheerful.
They chatted a bit more until Charlie grew impatient and urged them to end the call.
"It's our turn," Charlie said, grabbing Nina's hand and leading her toward the outpatient department. He reminded her, "Remember, answer the doctor's questions honestly. I suspect there's something wrong with your body, otherwise, why haven't you gotten pregnant after such a long time?"
"Okay," Nina nodded, following behind him. As she thought of Isabella, she felt uneasy and secretly transferred $200 to her using her phone.
Ding ding.
When Isabella picked up her phone and saw the $200 that Nina had transferred her, tears welled up in her eyes.
Isabella didn't accept the $200 because she didn't want to embarrass Nina. After returning the money, she sent a few voice messages to Nina, telling her that she was really okay and that she would treat her to a nice meal once she got her paycheck.
Nina replied with a smile, saying, "Okay."
