Chapter 1233 Forbidden Love
Walking out of the theater, Randy felt disoriented, as if he were moving through a fog. Stella, completely oblivious to his state, chattered away excitedly.
"Hannah, you have no idea! When that shadow suddenly appeared, I nearly jumped out of my skin! And later, when the supporting actress's corpse was hanging upside down and half her head fell from the rafters—I was absolutely terrified! Feel my heart—it's still pounding like crazy! I thought I might have a heart attack!"
Hannah nodded enthusiastically in agreement. "I know! I didn't expect it to be that scary either. Toward the end, I couldn't even watch—I was afraid it might affect the baby! I kept my eyes shut and buried my face in Charles's arm the whole time."
"Closing your eyes is like putting your head in the sand! You might not see it, but you can still hear everything—the atmosphere, the score, the cinematography... God, I haven't seen a film this good in ages!"
"It's definitely a quality film, otherwise it wouldn't have been released at this time. For a low-budget movie to gross three hundred million dollars, with final box office projections reaching a billion—that's incredible! For a film that cost only tens of millions to make, earning a billion in returns is pure gold!"
Stella linked arms with Hannah, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Now that I know what to expect, we should come see it again! I missed so many great parts because I had my eyes closed."
Hannah readily agreed. "Absolutely! I'm home doing nothing all day anyway. Let's come back in a couple of days, or maybe after the wedding!"
Stella's eyes crinkled with delight. "At first I thought it was all smoke and mirrors, just cheap tricks! I had no idea it would be a real ghost story—vengeful spirits and all! It's been forever since I've seen a proper horror film!"
"Exactly! That ending really elevated the entire movie."
The two women continued their animated discussion about the film they'd just seen, while Charles and Randy walked shoulder to shoulder behind them.
Since leaving the theater, Randy had seemed distant and preoccupied. As his twin, Charles immediately sensed something was troubling his brother and couldn't help but ask with concern, "Randy, are you dealing with some kind of problem? You look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders."
Randy snapped back to attention and shook his head with a bitter smile. The more he deflected, the more convinced Charles became that something was wrong. He placed a reassuring hand on Randy's shoulder.
"We're brothers—when one of us is in trouble, we help each other out. You were fine when we went into the theater, but you've been like this since we came out. Did something happen in there?"
That didn't make sense though. During the movie, aside from the two women screaming their heads off, Randy had seemed perfectly normal. So why did he look like he was carrying the weight of the world?
Randy had always been even-tempered and good-natured, able to laugh off whatever life threw at him. Combined with his successful career and harmonious family life, it was rare to see him troubled by anything. So what could possibly be bothering him now?
Randy didn't want Charles to worry, and he was terrified of anyone discovering his shameful thoughts. He sighed inwardly and insisted, "Really, it's nothing."
Besides, this was something no one could help him with. He would have to figure it out on his own.
Seeing that Randy wasn't ready to talk, Charles didn't press further, but said, "Remember, two heads are better than one. If you really do run into something you can't handle alone, you must tell me. Even if I can't solve it for you, at least I can help share the burden."
His words warmed Randy's heart. "I know. If I really do face something I can't handle, I'll definitely come to you."
Charles laughed heartily. "That's right! We're brothers—we should always help each other out."
The four of them chatted and laughed as they made their way to the rock climbing facility on the ground floor of the theater complex.
Since Hannah was pregnant, she couldn't participate in rock climbing and sat on the sidelines to watch Stella. Charles, worried about his wife, also chose not to climb and sat beside Hannah to keep her company. This left only Stella and Randy to tackle the climbing wall.
Both secured safety harnesses around their waists, and Randy meticulously checked the equipment several times before allowing Stella to begin climbing. He positioned himself on the right while she took the left side, maintaining a steady pace alongside her.
Watching from her chair as Randy consistently stayed within protective distance of Stella, Hannah couldn't help but remark, "Randy really is the most gentlemanly man I've ever met."
Charles shot her a look, his voice tinged with mock jealousy. "What's that supposed to mean? He's a gentleman but I'm not?"
Hannah burst into laughter, covering her mouth with her hand. "Look at you, getting jealous of your own brother!"
Charles lifted his chin proudly. "All the men in our family are true gentlemen. And as for the women—well, they're the picture of elegance. All except Fannie, of course—she's a bit of a wild one."
Hannah laughed in agreement. "Yes, yes, all the men in the Langley family are perfect gentlemen!"
Charles was stating a simple truth. Despite Lucas's stern, inscrutable demeanor—much like their father's—and his decisive, no-nonsense approach to business, he was also incredibly courteous and well-mannered. Every Langley child had been raised with impeccable values by their parents. Even Fannie, whom Charles called their "crazy wild card," was genuinely kind-hearted and never used her privileged position to look down on others.
The couple was deep in conversation when a piercing scream shattered the air. Hannah's breath caught as she immediately looked toward the climbing wall. Stella was plummeting from a considerable height, her safety harness somehow having come loose.
She fell backward, arms flailing, from what must have been sixty feet up—equivalent to a five-story building. A fall from that height would be fatal, or at best leave her permanently disabled.
"Stella!" Hannah's breath nearly stopped as she shot up from her chair.
"Stella!" Charles shouted, immediately sprinting toward the falling woman with his arms outstretched, hoping to break her fall.
"Charles!" Hannah's mind went blank with terror. Trying to catch someone falling from that height with bare hands—the impact would surely shatter his arms.
Watching Stella's body hurtling downward, Hannah felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen. She pressed both hands to her belly and sank back into her chair, knowing she couldn't afford any more emotional stress.
Unfortunately, they were positioned too far from the climbing wall. No matter how fast Charles ran, he couldn't outpace Stella's descent. Just as her body was about to meet the unforgiving ground—when she was mere feet from impact—a pair of strong arms swept across her path, securely encircling her waist and pulling her against a solid chest.
Randy gripped his safety rope with one hand while his other arm wrapped protectively around Stella's waist, controlling their descent as they slowly lowered to the ground.
Stella gazed up at Randy with wide eyes. Randy looked down at her with intense concern. They stared at each other, completely absorbed, as if the rest of the world had simply vanished, leaving only the two of them suspended in that moment.
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