Chapter 377: Chapter 377: Never to Meet Again
The security guard uncle touched the few strands of hair left on his head and said, "Since you’re their brother, didn’t they tell you? They’ve already moved!"
Warren Prescott’s temple throbbed.
"Moved?"
"Yeah, they just cleared out today. The furniture was sold this morning."
Warren Prescott’s face instantly turned cold and heavy, the joy from the earlier call with the committee seemed like a fire quickly extinguished by a bucket of cold water.
Soaked him to the bone.
They moved away...
Clearly, that evening, he had been chatting with Ashley Shaw on WeChat, and she hadn’t mentioned a word...
Warren Prescott had a bad feeling, his expression extremely unwell.
Nevertheless, he maintained his politeness and said to the old man, "Thank you, I understand. When I came over, I was in a hurry and forgot about this."
"No wonder." The security guard uncle, with his blurry vision, hadn’t noticed the change in Warren’s expression and reminded him, "Then this car..."
"I’ll drive it away now, sorry for the trouble."
"Not at all, not at all."
The security guard uncle stepped back two paces, making room for him to get in the car.
Warren Prescott sat in the driver’s seat, his hands shaking on the steering wheel.
Uncertain if he was angry, or anxious.
He drove out, parking by the side of the road.
He took out his phone and dialed Ashley Shaw’s number.
With each ring of the "beep," Warren Prescott’s heart sank further.
Meanwhile,
In Aethelgard.
Ashley Shaw and Ariana Grant had already returned to the hotel.
Ashley Shaw showered in the bathroom and lay down on the bed.
It was time to sleep, yet her mind was increasingly alert.
Lars Prescott’s call was truly bizarre.
She couldn’t believe that someone who wasn’t even willing to visit Elder Prescott would call just to ask if she could travel first class to Aethelgard.
Something must have happened.
Ashley Shaw suddenly remembered that Warren Prescott had originally planned to meet her for supper today, but less than an hour later, he messaged her saying something came up and the supper was canceled.
What on earth happened?
She didn’t care about other matters, but she was worried it might be related to Elder Prescott.
Ashley Shaw knew clearly when Elder Prescott passed in her past life, but there had already been so many variables this time around, she was genuinely afraid that the elder...
She dared not think further.
To her, Elder Prescott was both a grandfather and a mother.
Losing Elder Prescott would mean losing the only vibrant, living thing of her mother’s existence in this world.
Her heart was tightly constricted.
Ashley Shaw took a breath, found Warren Prescott’s WeChat, just as she was about to call him, his call came in.
Her heart pounded like a drum, so frightened that her hand shook while swiping to answer.
"Hello?" She stabilized her hand with difficulty, immediately pressing the phone to her ear.
"You..."
"You..."
Both spoke at the same time, then stopped simultaneously.
Ashley Shaw said, "You go first."
A cold voice came from Warren Prescott, "Shouldn’t it be you speaking first?"
Ashley was taken aback, then understood what Warren meant.
"You know." It was an affirmative tone.
"If the guard hadn’t told me, how long were you planning to keep it from me?"
Ashley was caught off guard, unable to respond before Warren asked, "Why keep it from me? Did you think I would trip you up, stop you from going to Aethelgard? Is that how low you think I am?"
"I didn’t mean it that way, I just hadn’t had the chance to tell you."
"Didn’t have the chance? The guard said you sold your furniture in the morning and the house is already listed for sale. A whole day, and you didn’t have time to tell me?"
"..."
"Ashley Shaw, what do you take me for? A tyrant?"
"..."
"I know I’ve done a lot of hurtful things to you before, but I sincerely apologized, why do you still look at me through tinted glasses?"
Ashley Shaw moved her lips, but in the end, only said two words, "I’m sorry."
"Sorry? What do you have to be sorry for? You originally disliked me, not telling me is completely fair. I was foolish to think we were friends."
Warren Prescott seemed like he was talking to her, but also as if he was talking to himself.
Ashley faintly felt something was off with Warren’s state, yet thought his reaction was normal.
A proud person, overly arrogant, upon finding out someone left without telling, would indeed react poorly.
However, this day was bound to come.
She inevitably had to make things clear with Warren.
Since they planned to be two non-intersecting parallel lines, she couldn’t soften.
No matter Warren’s attitude towards her, she absolutely did not want to die again.
Someone who’s died once may not fear death as much as a normal person, but would cherish life more than someone who hasn’t.
With that in mind, Ashley interrupted Warren’s self-monologue.
"I know you’re upset I left without saying, but I’m sorry, I truly don’t want to see you again."
On the other end, Warren’s breathing abruptly stopped, his fingers grasping the phone revealing a pale blue tint.
"Why?" he asked in a hoarse voice.
Ashley couldn’t explain the real reason, instead vaguely said, "Some hurts, when caused, are caused, and can’t just be erased with a ’sorry.’ If I forgive you, how do I make it up to the harm I suffered?"
How to make it up to the unborn child she’d hadn’t met in this world, still just a seed?
"I’m grateful for your help lately, but... honestly, every time I see you, it reminds me of the unhappy past. Instead, I’d rather we never meet again."
As Ashley spoke, she could hear heavy breathing on the other end.
"Do you really dislike me that much?"
"I wouldn’t call it dislike, just prefer never seeing you again."
"..."
"The money Rosalind Lynch gave me before, I said I’d give you half as a thank you. I’ve already transferred it to a card, it should arrive at the Prescott Family tomorrow. You can pick it up then. The password is the default, all zeros."
"Do you really want to draw a line between us that badly?"
"Yes."
The decisive answer made Warren’s handsome face instantly lose all color, even in the dark, appearing ghostly pale.
Ariana Grant pushed the door open at this moment, complaining, "They’re bullying us young girls, it’s just a hairdryer, and they nagged me for ages..."
Ashley gestured for Ariana to be silent, then turned and, in a calm voice, said to Warren, "I know, since you realized your misunderstanding, you’ve felt guilty towards me, and maybe from that guilt, other complex feelings arose. But these feelings should end today. When we meet again, let’s treat each other as strangers."
Warren felt a sudden pain in his chest, like something pierced through him.
"At least today, can we not be (strangers)..."
Before he could finish the word "strangers," the call had ended.