Chapter 468: Getting Older, Afraid of Noise
The living room was already prepared with various teas and snacks by the servants.
Everyone took off their coats after entering the house.
Nina was feeling uncomfortable from the heat, with beads of sweat forming on her forehead. As soon as she took off her coat, Margaret came over with a tissue to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
Nina reached out for the tissue and said, "Mom, I can do it myself."
At her age, Nina felt quite embarrassed to be taken care of like a child by her mother.
Margaret emphasized, "You need to wipe off the sweat immediately. You're a bit vulnerable right now, so be careful not to get sick."
"Okay." Nina nodded and obediently wiped off the sweat.
A servant brought over two cups of warm tea, one for Nina and one for Isabella.
Isabella rejected, "I don't need it."
Margaret said, "You just came in from outside. Drinking some warm tea will be good for you."
"Bella, just listen to Mom. She knows best." Kelsey voiced cheerfully from the side.
Margaret looked at Kelsey lovingly and said, "There's one for you too."
As soon as she finished speaking, the servant brought over a few more cups.
Everyone, including the men, had a cup.
Nina was on a special diet for her health, so her dinner was different from everyone else's.
Isabella glanced at Nina's meal, which seemed too bland. Nina barely ate anything. By the end of the meal, Nina had only eaten a couple of leaves of green vegetables and hadn't touched the soups at all.
After dinner, Isabella accompanied Nina upstairs.
Everyone else knew they wanted to talk privately, so they didn't follow.
Nina lay down on the bed, looking healthy but with a certain emptiness in her eyes.
Isabella knew it was a lack of vitality.
Whether it was with Charlie before or Richard later, children had always been Nina's pain.
Nina had finally gotten pregnant, which should have been a joyous occasion, but...
"Nina, this is from Richard. He said he'll come back to you once he's done with his work." Isabella took out Richard's letter while speaking.
As soon as the letter was handed over, Nina took it.
Without a moment's hesitation, Nina threw it into the trash can.
Isabella was stunned, "Nina?"
"Don't mention Richard again. I don't want to hear about him."
"But Richard..."
"Isabella!" Nina's smile finally disappeared, "Are you my sister or his? If you still consider me your sister, listen to me. Don't mention Richard again. If you do, I'll be upset with you."
Isabella knew Nina wouldn't really be upset with her. Nina was just using such decisive words to show her stance.
A month later, Isabella and Seb got married.
The night was very lively, and Nina was very happy, drinking quite a bit.
She kept holding onto Isabella, saying a lot of drunken words.
After a while, Isabella noticed that Nina had opened her eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling with a dazed expression.
"Nina?" Isabella gently pushed Nina's shoulder.
Nina's tears suddenly rolled down.
Isabella was startled, "Nina? What's wrong?"
Nina wiped her tears, "I just feel like my life is too hard."
Isabella wanted to tell Nina that she had called Richard for her wedding.
Richard should be on his way now.
An hour ago, Seb had contacted Richard, and Richard should be arriving soon.
Isabella anxiously glanced outside, worried that Richard might not show up.
Nina had already stood up from the sofa, "It's getting late, Bella. I should go. You and Seb should rest early."
"Nina." Isabella stood up, holding her hand.
Nina patted her hand, "I'm fine."
As she walked out of the villa, Nina took out her car keys from her bag.
Just as she was about to get in the car, someone walked over.
"You drank so much, and you still dare to drive yourself?" A slightly teasing voice sounded in her ear.
Nina slightly stunned when she saw who it was.
She knew this was Ophelia's son. Maybe it was because she had been drinking, but she couldn't quite remember his name.
"Alvin." Alvin walked up to her and gentlemanly took the car keys from her hand, his gaze never leaving her face, "Why do you look so surprised to see me?"
Nina laughed, "No, it's just that I thought Ms. Murphy said you had gone back to Mosterwania. I'm a bit surprised to see you here. Maybe I remembered wrong."
Nina helplessly rubbed her forehead, "I've been so forgetful lately."
Alvin looked at her, his teasing gaze turning gentle, "Then you definitely shouldn't drive yourself home."
He tilted his head slightly, "My car is over there. You can ride with me, and I'll take you home."
Putting everything else aside, Alvin made a good point.
"I was actually thinking of calling a driver." Nina explained.
"Then just think of me as your driver." Alvin looked at Nina sincerely, "I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving you in the hands of a stranger in your condition."
Nina felt his words were somewhat ambiguous. She was friends with Ophelia but not familiar with Alvin.
Alvin seemed to understand her thoughts and smiled openly, "You helped my mom so much before. This is the least I can do for you. If you refuse, I can wait here with you for the driver."
As he spoke, he extended his hand, holding Nina's car keys in his palm.
"I didn't mean it that way." Nina felt a bit embarrassed.
Alvin's straightforwardness made her feel petty in comparison.
Refusing him repeatedly would make her seem pretentious. It was no big deal, but she was making it awkward.
Nina put away her car keys and stopped hesitating, "Then I'll trouble you."
Nina got into Alvin's car. Finding it stuffy inside, she rolled down the window a bit.
At the same time, she saw a black car pass by.
Nina thought the car looked familiar, like Michael's.
She was about to look when Alvin asked, "Want to listen to some music?"
Nina withdrew her gaze, "Better not. I'm getting old and can't handle the noise."