Chapter 36 Sofia's Fall and Everyone's Misunderstanding of Me

Elena Garcia POV:

Man, that scene was totally misleading. I tried to explain, feeling pretty helpless, "Sofia suddenly stepped back and then hit the handrail."

I was just telling it like I saw it, but it sounded like I was dodging blame.

William shot me a look full of dissatisfaction. "But your hands were up, Elena."

"Do you seriously think I pushed Sofia?" I was shocked and pissed.

When William said that, it hurt. How could he even think that?

"First aid kit! I'll grab it!" Marco said, all urgent.

"Oh my God, poor Sofia!" Albert sighed.

Marco and Albert had come over after hearing the commotion.

"What happened?" Albert asked a girl nearby.

The girl, who clearly had the wrong idea from William's words, confidently replied, "Elena pushed Sofia at the top of the stairs!"

Her voice was loud, and after she said that, everything went nuts.

I saw Marco and Albert frown, and William held Sofia tighter, looking at me like I was the bad guy.

I heard the girls Albert invited whispering about me. "Oh my God, did she argue with Sofia? This is at the top of the stairs, it's so dangerous. How could she do that to her family? She seemed to argue with Albert at the beach too. Oh God, is she always so rude and violent to her family? She has such a bad temper. I heard she's Albert's real sister. But Albert and Sofia seem more like family; they have such good tempers."

I felt super embarrassed, my head spinning. I had told the truth, but it didn't help.

"I didn't push Sofia!" I shouted.

"Then did Sofia hit the handrail herself?" Someone quietly questioned, sounding like they were mocking me. "Sofia is in so much pain she can't even speak."

Sofia still had her eyes closed, looking like she hadn't recovered and couldn't explain the situation.

I couldn't wait for her to clear things up.

All I could do was bite my lip and endure the distrustful looks from everyone.

I didn't know these people; they had no reason to trust a stranger. Even if they judged the situation coldly, it wouldn't make me sad, but William was different.

At that moment, Marco spoke up. "Albert."

His voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard him.

And when they heard him, they realized they should shut up because his voice was filled with suppressed anger, clearly showing he was upset.

But what was he upset about?

After being accused by others, I felt even sadder, 'Is Marco mad that I caused trouble now?'

When Marco called Albert's name, Albert's frown disappeared, and he looked at me and then at William and Sofia with interest.

"Honestly, we should check the stairway camera. Maybe Sofia's fall was due to something else," he said, still smiling at Sofia. "I really don't think my family has any ill intentions towards each other. Maybe there's a misunderstanding. And girls, who told you that Elena and I argued at the beach? We were just joking."

After Albert spoke, the girls stopped pressing their lips in dissatisfaction, but some still looked at me with suspicion.

But this was already a better situation for me, and I shot Albert a grateful look.

He came closer, muttering softly, "I told you, you should go for Marco. Look at William. How could he not trust you?"

Even now, Albert was pushing his idea, which should've annoyed me, but since he helped me out, I held back my rebuttal about choosing between Marco and William as my ideal boyfriend.

Then it hit me—there were no cameras in this villa.

"Is there a camera at the stairs?" I asked.

Albert quietly replied, "Dear, it doesn't really matter whether there's a camera or not."

'How could it not matter? I thought he had a way to prove my innocence. Was he just talking nonsense? This is terrible!' I muttered to myself.

Before I could show my disbelief, Sofia, who was in William's arms, had already recovered from the pain.

She let out a weak moan, drawing everyone's attention.

"Sofia, are you okay? You scared me. What happened?" I hurried to Sofia, holding her hand.

"Elena, I'm fine." Sofia looked at me with tears in her eyes. "I was too careless. I didn't notice the step and lost my balance. Because I was afraid of dragging you down the stairs with me, I had to let go of our hands. I'm sorry I scared you."

Sofia's explanation revealed the truth.

Hearing this, I breathed a sigh of relief.

The looks from the girls no longer felt like needles pricking me.

I nodded, telling Sofia I was okay. I couldn't blame her; it was all a misunderstanding.

If I had any resentment left, it was more towards William for doubting me first.

From an objective perspective, even though his suspicion was reasonable, I still felt bitter and sad when I looked at William.

No one could stay calm when doubted by someone they liked.

William noticed my gaze. He looked at Sofia, then at me. "I'm very sorry, Elena. I made that wrong assumption because I saw your raised hands."

I turned my head away.

Maybe I should graciously show my forgiveness, but right now, I thought I had the right to be angry.

William contorted his face in remorse.

The misunderstanding was finally resolved.

Because Sofia was injured, she couldn't go to the Beverly Center with us.

She needed someone to accompany her to the hospital first.

William volunteered to go with her, but Sofia refused. She didn't want to bother anyone.

"Maybe I can go to the hospital myself and then meet up with you all later?" Sofia suggested.

This idea wasn't good. Letting Sofia go to the hospital alone was clearly inappropriate. She looked seriously injured, and no one could feel at ease leaving her alone.

Marco had to stay at the villa, and Albert had to look after the girls to avoid any more accidents.

It seemed that besides me, there was no more suitable companion.

Having a bodyguard accompany her would be a bit cold. Sofia's family was here; she should have family with her.

When I suggested that I accompany Sofia to the hospital, she hesitated.

I could see she still wanted to refuse, so I showed a bit of firmness. "Please, Sofia, you need someone with you. Don't worry your family."

"Okay, Elena." Sofia finally agreed.