Chapter 279 A Drunken Night
Josephine had no clue what Stuart was talking about. Before she could ask, he shoved something into her arms and walked away.
On instinct, she caught it. Watching Stuart's tall figure disappear, she felt a weird sense of loneliness.
Shaking off the odd feeling, she looked down at the box in her hands.
It was a gift box, not too big, but pretty heavy.
Josephine opened it and was stunned.
Inside was a small wooden figurine, with short hair and rough but charming features.
She stared at it in disbelief, gently running her fingers over it.
She didn't know how long she stood there, but her heart skipped a beat as she turned the figurine over. Finally, she found a small line of text on the bottom.
The figurine was tiny, and the writing was even tinier.
She carefully read it: [For Josephine.]
The handwriting was a bit crooked, clearly not easy to carve.
Josephine suddenly remembered Andrew mentioning that Stuart used to make gifts for her when he was young.
When he was ten, he even made a wooden carving.
When they were still married, Josephine had asked him about it.
But Stuart never gave her a straight answer.
Now, holding this wooden carving, she realized the answer.
Stuart could carve wood.
When he was ten, he really did make a gift for her.
Josephine thought, 'But why didn't he give it to me? Does he really like me?'
All she could remember now was Stuart's rejection and hostility towards her.
Especially in high school, every time Stuart saw her, it was like he was looking at an enemy.
She still remembered how fierce his gaze was.
If Stuart liked her back then, why was he so weird about it?
How could someone act like that if they liked someone?
Josephine couldn't figure it out, so she decided to stop thinking about it.
She put the wooden carving away in a drawer.
To her, whether Stuart liked her in the past didn't matter anymore.
During dinner, Jeffery glanced at Josephine and said, "Mommy?"
Josephine was startled and quickly looked up. "What's wrong?"
Jeffery looked at her plate.
Following his gaze, Josephine noticed she had mistakenly mixed a piece of cooked fish into her pasta, causing it to crumble.
"Mommy, what's wrong?" Jeffery asked, "Are you unhappy?"
"No," Josephine quickly ate the fish and swallowed it before saying, "I was thinking about work."
Jeffery said, "But you still need to eat properly."
"I know, Jeffery." Josephine served him some food. "You eat well too."
Before going to bed, Josephine lay on her bed and couldn't help but take out the wooden carving again.
She thought Stuart was simply inexplicable.
If Stuart liked her back then, what did their three years of marriage mean?
What did her endurance, humiliation, and pain mean?
It was laughable and ironic.
Josephine got up to check on Jeffery, who was already asleep, his delicate little face looking even more adorable in sleep.
She bent down and gently kissed Jeffery's forehead, then left the room.
She called Otis and asked him to join her at a quiet bar.
In the private room, she didn't speak, just quietly drank.
Otis was the perfect companion.
With him around, Josephine didn't need to worry about her safety; so when she wanted to drink, Otis agreed.
Josephine also knew that with Otis by her side, she could finally let herself get drunk for once.
Since coming back, she had expected to run into Stuart.
But she never thought that after five years, Stuart would still be hung up on the past and even more determined to chase after her.
To be honest, he had changed a lot.
He was nothing like the old Stuart.
But this new Stuart was a stranger to Josephine.
From childhood to now, she had never seen a Stuart who was gentle and considerate towards her.
As she thought before, if Stuart had liked her from the start, then her life all these years had been a joke.
Just a big joke.
Josephine downed another glass of wine.
She always had a low tolerance for alcohol and rarely drank before.
This time, she wanted to get drunk.
She didn't want to think about anything, letting all her worries and troubles fade away with the booze. When she woke up, it would be a new day.
Hopefully, by then, she would be a new person.
Josephine indeed got herself thoroughly drunk.
Seeing her finally slumped over the table, Otis sighed and carefully picked her up, taking her away.
Unexpectedly, as they exited the elevator, they saw Stuart standing at Josephine's door.
"What are you doing here?" Otis asked.
Stuart was silent for a couple of seconds before accepting the reality that Otis was holding Josephine.
"What happened to her?" He stepped forward to take Josephine from Otis.
Otis dodged him. "Whatever happened to her has nothing to do with you, right?"
Stuart smelled the alcohol. "You let her drink?"
Otis didn't even want to respond to him.
Seeing Josephine sleeping quietly in his arms, Stuart felt a surge of jealousy.
"What exactly happened?" he asked in a low voice, "Give her to me, I'll take care of her."
"And who are you to her?" Otis freed one hand to open the door. "Just an ex-husband. What gives you the right to care for her?"
The door opened, and Otis carefully carried Josephine inside, quietly taking her to her bedroom.
Josephine might feel uncomfortable, but there was nothing Otis could do.
He was, after all, not in a convenient position.
As he left Josephine's house, he saw Stuart still standing at the door.
"You just left like that?" Stuart looked at him incredulously. "Is there anyone to take care of her?"
"She's asleep," Otis replied, "She's good on her own."
"She's drunk," Stuart said, "Even if a drunk person is asleep, they still have all sorts of issues."
Otis thought for a moment and said, "Thanks for the reminder."
He turned to go back inside.
Stuart raised his hand to halt him. "You sure you're the right one to take care of her?"
Otis retorted, "And you think you are?"
Stuart replied, "I have experience taking care of her."
Otis was surprised. "Really? You've taken care of her? Weren't you always hurting her, bullying her, and insulting her?"
Josephine hadn't told Otis about the past, but Otis had heard a bit from Laura and could guess the general situation.
Stuart naturally knew how many outrageous things he had done in the past, but it wasn't Otis's place to lecture him, was it?
Seeing Stuart's face darken, Otis pressed on, "You know, causing harm isn't like tossing a rock into a pond, where the ripples fade fast. It's more like leaving a mark on someone's heart. Even if it heals over time, it can still hurt like hell if it's poked at. Stuart, can you handle seeing her go through that kind of pain??"
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