Chapter 8

Giselle was silent all the way home. She didn't say a single word. Anthony realized that Giselle seemed to be in low spirits as of late. However, he wasn't able to get anything out of her, so he could only try to review the incidents that had been happening recently to try and get to a conclusion. In the end, Anthony deduced that Giselle was moody because he'd been spending too much time on Melanie's case, thereby accidentally ignoring her for a long while. A wave of guilt washed over him. So, he decided to take the initiative again and spoke up. "It's going to be our third wedding anniversary soon. Let's go on a trip somewhere together to relax." There were only a few days left in the divorce cooling-off period and Giselle didn't want things to get complicated afterward. So, she used her injuries as an excuse to reject his offer. Anthony thought about it and realized that the trip was indeed a bad idea. So, he proposed a few other ways to celebrate instead. He listed each proposal one by one, but somehow Giselle managed to find an excuse to reject all of them. She didn't look like she was even planning to celebrate it. Her attitude was completely different from before. Back then, she would get excited at the mention of any sort of celebration, but Giselle was just completely stone-faced now. Anthony was starting to get a little suspicious, thinking something must be up. Giselle also realized that Anthony was looking at her in confusion. Worried that he would detect something fishy, she made her own proposal instead. "It happens to fall on the weekend this year. Let's just go back and visit our high school." Why was Giselle suddenly wanting to reminisce about the past? Anthony couldn't understand Giselle's train of thought. But, he also didn't want to rain on her parade. So, he nodded and agreed. It was silent in the car once again. Giselle flipped through her calendar and stared at two consecutive dates in it. She'd inserted the word "divorce" on the entry for September 7th. Meanwhile, September 6th happened to be their third wedding anniversary and also the tenth anniversary since she first crushed on Anthony. She wanted to go back to their high school on such a special date because everything started here, and she also wanted to end things here. Giselle thought of it as giving her ten years of youth a proper closure. While thinking, another smile appeared on Giselle's face. Her tone became more and more relaxed. It sounded like she was joking when she asked, "You're not going to stand me up this time, are you?" A rare chuckle sounded from Anthony. "Since when have I ever stood you up? Don't slander me, Giselle." Giselle just smiled without answering him. However, she started counting the instances in her heart. "Last time, you left me at the hospital because you were accompanying Melanie at the beach. "And the time before that, you forgot all about my birthday dinner because you were trying to gather as much evidence for Melanie's case as you could. "And another time before that, you left me behind in the suburbs because you were rushing over to her house to comfort her. "It happened every single time. As long as Melanie was involved, you'd always stand me up. There were no exceptions." … Anthony never came home for the rest of the week. The first thing Giselle did after waking up in the morning was to cross out the days on the wall calendar. She was the only one left at the old house because she was still clearing out the last of her things. Time flew. Before she knew it, it was already September 6th. Giselle woke up early that day to put on some makeup. She purposely put on a retro outfit from a few years ago and went downstairs with her camera. She was determined to take photos and make memories of such a memorable day. Anthony was waiting for her just then, and he opened the car door for her. Probably because Giselle knew she was about to regain her freedom soon, her mood drastically improved. She even started chatting with him about their school life last time. They got along quite well like a house on fire. Anthony also began to relax. He reminded her to take as many photos as possible after they'd reached. Amidst their banter, they eventually arrived at Sapphire High's gates. Giselle was the first to get out of the car. She then leaned against the window, waiting for Anthony to get down next. Anthony unbuckled his seatbelt. Just then, his phone rang with a notification sound. He tapped on the screen and saw that it was a text message from Melanie. "Tony, are you free now? I'm having a high fever. Can you please send me to the hospital?" Anthony froze when he saw the word "fever" in her message. Giselle cocked her head when she saw that Anthony made no move to get down from the car. She happened to catch Anthony's hesitation while he was still in a dilemma. However, a short while later, he finally made his decision. "Giselle, something came up at the firm. I need to go." Giselle was shocked. A hint of surprise appeared in her eyes. "Can't you go back just an hour later?" Giselle knew what was coming. Anthony was lying through his teeth. It had something to do with Melanie again, didn't it? "It's a very urgent matter. I need to leave at once." Since Anthony looked very certain, Giselle decided not to expose him. She just cast him a long glance before letting him go. Anthony put his seatbelt back on. Then, to express his regret, he decided to make another promise to Giselle. "Take the cab back later. I'll come over here again with you when I have the time. We could even eat with our old teachers and lecturers too!" Giselle didn't respond to his promise. There wasn't ever going to be a next time anyway. Giselle kept her head high as Anthony's car gradually disappeared from view. Then, she walked into the school with her camera in hand, ready to shoot some memories. It took her only half an hour to finish going around the school and finding all the spots she'd hidden herself in while "stalking" Anthony. After she was done taking the photos, Giselle had nowhere else to go. So, she hailed a cab back home. In the car, she tapped on the rainbow circle around Melanie's profile photo. As soon as she'd refreshed the page, she realized that Melanie's latest story was a video clip that showed she was a patient in a ward at the hospital.