My Rival: The Twenty-Year-Old Me - Chapter 18
I brought the project materials home.
Outside the window, neon lights flickered behind Ellie, who was sitting on the carpet in a camisole and shorts.
A faint smell of alcohol permeated the living room as she swirled a glass of whiskey in her hand.
When she looked at me, her face was already flushed.
I’ve never been good with alcohol.
She staggered forward and grabbed me, lifting my shirt.
The twisted lines on my waist and abdomen had faded, not so noticeable, with a scar stretching across.
Her fair fingers trembled slightly as she gently touched my lines and scar.
Her bright black eyes suddenly turned red, and she muttered, “Alexander got drunk today and said you have stretch marks, a knife scar, and had cancer. He questioned why you think someone could love you after the divorce.”
“Eleanor Vance, is the cost of marriage and childbirth so high? Didn’t you just get sick and have surgery?”
I sighed lightly, “Childbirth is like that.”
She threw herself into my arms, crying, “How can I be so healthy and cheerful, yet he says this about you!”
The young girl cried heartbreakingly, as if she had experienced it herself.
–I will always stand by myself, I will always sympathize with myself.
She looked up at me seriously and said, “Eleanor Vance, I want to go abroad, let Dad give him some money as a thank you.”
I wiped away her tears and smiled with relief, “Yes, Eleanor Vance, you must fly forward.”
“When you can’t control your life, don’t step into marriage, don’t step into childbirth.”
With my forehead against hers, I smiled, “I love you very, very much, love the original you.”
She looked into my eyes, tears flowing freely, nodding desperately.
She cried until her voice was hoarse, and I soothed her, “I got VIP tickets for the French version of Notre Dame de Paris, we’re flying to J City the day after tomorrow to see it, okay?”
Her sobbing suddenly stopped, and she looked at me and asked, “Really?”
Then I tapped her nose, “Eleanor Vance, remember to buy some Apple stocks when you go back, get rich.”
She broke into laughter, her clear laughter echoing throughout the room.
The world of the young me was so, so big, with many, many points of support and passion.
Alexander Vance could make me cry, but he wasn’t worth abandoning everything and suffering.
I will always save myself from the fires of life.
Countless times.
