Flora simply rolled her eyes and ignored him.
I forced a smile at them. “I want to be alone, okay? I need some space.”
“Say no more. We’ll go for a walk outside. Call me if you need anything!”
As she spoke, Flora dragged Warren away.
I closed the door behind them and fell into a daze. My mind was an absolute mess and I had no idea what to do.
“My dear, don’t be sad. The netizens don’t know what they’re talking about,” Yana said gently in an effort to comfort me.
I sighed. “Honestly, I don’t care what they think about me. I’ve been looked down upon ever since my mother was executed, so I’m used to this kind of thing. But I do care about what Rufus thinks. What if he hates me because of this rumor?”
“Sylvia, if you think like that, you don’t understand Rufus’ love for you at all,” Yana said in a serious tone. “He isn’t that kind of man. Haven’t you realized this after spending so much time with him the past few weeks? Rufus loves you wholeheartedly, but you don’t trust him enough.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust him. I’m just scared of losing him,” I explained incoherently, throwing my hands in the air helplessly. “When you have something so wonderful, you can’t imagine what it’ll be like to lose it. I admit that I have an inferiority complex. Whenever I encounter stuff like this, my first reaction is to fear. But it doesn’t matter if others try to hurt me. That I can endure. But now that I have Rufus, I can’t help but always worry that I’ll lose him someday.”
“I know how you feel, Sylvia. Now calm down and call Rufus,” Yana suggested.
“I…” I faltered.
“What’s with the hesitation? Rufus always supports you.”
Sylvia’s POV
Finally, I plucked up the courage to take out my phone and tapped on the first number in the contact book. My heart started to race.
The call connected after the first ring. Rufus’ pleasant voice sounded from the other end of the line.
“Sylvia, have you made it back to your dormitory?”
He still sounded so gentle, as though nothing had happened.
Somehow, his soothing voice calmed me down. After some slight hesitation, I asked, “Did you close the forum?”
Rufus sighed. “So you did see it. Sorry, I didn’t want you to know.”
I couldn’t help but grasp the phone tightly and asked in a slightly bitter voice, “Does it bother you? It’s true, the she-wolf in the pictures is me, but I promise nothing happened between me and Warren. I managed to escape through the sky light.”
I was met with silence.
I became flustered. “Why aren’t you saying anything? What those netizens said, it’s all false. I would never do such a thing-“
Rufus interrupted me. “Come outside. I’ll wait for you at our spot.”
Without waiting for a response, he hung up the phone. The busy tone echoed in my ear like a siren, but I was too shocked to put the phone down.
Heart beating wildly, I immediately ran out of the dormitory. The landscape by the side of the road was like a blur as I zipped past it.
Finally, I arrived at our usual meeting spot. Rufus was already there, waiting for me. The dim yellow street light couldn’t hide his dignified aura.
I suppressed my agitation and took a deep breath. Suddenly, I felt nervous, and my footsteps slowed down.
“Rufus…” I walked slowly towards him.
In the next second, I was pulled into his arms violently. I no longer suppressed my feelings. I threw my hands around his neck and a lump formed in my throat. “Why didn’t you leave-?”
Rufus immediately pulled away from me and flicked my forehead with his finger. “If I left, I was worried that some silly girl would overthink things again.”
I rubbed the spot he hit and pouted. “I wasn’t overthinking!” I argued defensively.
Rufus cast a sidelong glance at me and said, “You didn’t now, did you? Then why did you sound so guilty when you called me just now? Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do!” I grabbed his hand tightly. “I was just a little panicked at the time.”
Rufus pulled my hand and pressed his lips against it. “Sylvia, no matter what happens, I’ll always trust you. You’re the only one in my heart.”
Rufus’ words were like a blazing sun on a dreary winter day, making a flower bloom in my heart. I lowered my head, unable to meet his gaze. Tears welled up in my eyes.
“Well, to be honest, I’m scared…”
“I understand.” Rufus pulled me into his arms again. He stroked my hair and said in a calm and gentle voice, “Let’s make our relationship public, Sylvia. I don’t want to see you get hurt anymore. I’ll take care of the things you’re afraid of. I love you so much that I can’t stand it anymore.”
I didn’t reply to him immediately. I buried my face in his chest for a long time before I finally said, “I love you just as deeply, Rufus. And because of that, I can’t bear to stain your name because of me. I don’t want you to fight against the whole world for me. I’ll be heartbroken. So give me some more time. Let me become stronger.”
“I don’t want you to be so tired all the time,” Rufus whispered, breaking my heart.
“I’m not tired at all,” I said bravely. “I’m willing to do anything for you. We need to follow the original plan and keep our mate bond a secret. As for the rumors, just let them be. I only care about how you feel about me. As long as you trust me, I don’t care what others say.” I wriggled out of Rufus’ arms and kissed his lips. “Because I love you, I have the courage to face all of this.”
Warren’s POV
Wearing a straight face, I walked along the path in the garden with Flora. It was already our third lap. My palms started to sweat.
Flora was scowling. She hadn’t said a word since we came downstairs. It was obvious she was worried about Sylvia.
“Are you tired yet?” I asked in a measly attempt to break the silence.
My voice brought Flora back to her senses and she blinked at me blankly. “You’re tired already? You can go ahead. I want to keep walking.”
I instantly regretted asking such a stupid question. Leaving Flora alone was the last thing on my mind.
I pretended to think it over for a while before saying, “Forget it. I’ll accompany you for a little longer. I can tell you’re in a bad mood.”
“It’s okay. You can go. I’m fine by myself,” Flora said, glancing at me indifferently. Then, she raised her head and looked up at the starry sky.
“I have nothing else to do anyway. Let’s talk,” I said shyly, my cheeks burning. Fortunately, it was dark, so I hoped she wouldn’t notice how flustered I was. This was the first time I had ever been so thick-skinned. I was unaccustomed to the feeling.
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