Chapter 7
1/2
After about half an hour, Hayden’s mysterious retreat was finally revealed.
It was just a small hill. However, this place was sparsely populated, and the air was refreshing. It was indeed quite suitable for calming one’s mind and taking a walk. While sitting on the hill, Zara could almost see the entire city.
“If only I hadn’t developed feelings so early,” she thought.
She had always known that Jonathan was a playboy, and she knew very well that old habits died hard. When he repeatedly refused her marriage proposals, Zara should have seen through his character and stopped wasting time on him.
If someone truly loved only another person, they would want to get married to offer the most basic sense of security for themselves and their loved ones. If Jonathan couldn’t even manage such a simple thing, then he surely had other ideas in mind.
Zara sat silently, showing no intention of speaking. At this moment, Hayden felt a bit regretful. If he had expressed his feelings earlier and returned to the country to win Zara over, he wouldn’t have appeared only after Jonathan had broken Zara’s heart.
The only reason he had kept his distance while Zara and Jonathan were dating was that Jonathan was a good friend of his.
But now, Zara and Jonathan had broken up. Furthermore, Jonathan even got involved with his sister, Harper. This, in Hayden’s mind, was a sign that he could rightfully pursue
Zara.
“Zar, do you regret it?” Hayden asked.
Zara had previously told him not to mention anything about Jonathan in front of her. When she heard him bring up her and Jonathan’s affairs, she became a little annoyed. “Hayden, did what I said just go in one ear and out the other?” she asked, fuming.
This time, Zara was truly upset. But Hayden’s intention was to help her sort things out and completely move on from that failed relationship. This way, she wouldn’t carry the emotional baggage from her previous relationship into this new one.
Right now, Hayden couldn’t shake the feeling that Zara might just be using him to get back at Jonathan. She might not really think that way, but this gnawed at his heart all the
same.
Despite Zara’s sharp retort, Hayden showed no signs of backing down. His expression remained solemn and composed.
He said, “Zar, I don’t want you to keep running away from the issue. Whatever it is between the four of us, whether you want to get back at Jonathan or my sister Harper, we will all have to face each other sooner or later.
“We will run into each other eventually, so we might as well deal with it head–on.”
Zara fell silent, realizing that she was wrong to lash out at Hayden. She apologized to him and then sat quietly without saying anything further, not responding to any of his heartfelt suggestions.
Hayden seemed to have anticipated this outcome. He merely glanced at Zara and didn’t say anything. He then looked away and sighed heavily, sounding both resigned and permissive. After all, he was just an outsider to her at this point. He understood that he couldn’t rush things.
And so, Hayden sat beside Zara sensibly. He pulled a few blades of grass from the ground and began weaving them together.
Since Hayden wasn’t speaking, Zara continued gazing into the distance. It wasn’t until she grew tired of sitting that she decided to get up and take a walk. She turned to invite Hayden to come along, but something caught her eye immediately.
It was a heart made of grass, with light shining through it. The small heart made from thin grass blades appeared to contain a smaller heart within it when held up to the sun. Hayden looked at the heart within the heart–shaped grass and said seriously, “If you don’t want to open your heart now, then keep your heart inside mine. After all, I’ve kept my heart hidden for a long time.”
Zara looked at Hayden in confusion, and her gaze became more complicated. Hayden’s feelings for her were intense, much like Jonathan’s had been eight years ago.
The only difference was that Hayden’s feelings were built on eight years of love for her. What had Jonathan felt back then? Perhaps he had just wanted to have some fun.
Zara held that heart in her palm and then got up to leave. Hayden watched as the heart disappeared from his hand and felt a fleeting sense of emptiness. Even so, a hint of tenderness appeared in his eyes.
He quickly caught up with Zara and asked, “Where are you going?”
Without turning around, Zara replied, “For a walk.”
Upon hearing this, Hayden trailed after her.
Along the path, there were various types of flowers. Since it had rained that morning, some raindrops still clung to the leaves. Instead of having a relaxing walk, Zara found her thoughts and feelings stirred by Hayden’s relentless attempts at pursuing her.
In fact, since Zara started staying over at Hayden’s place, she had already made up her mind. This time, there would be no rekindling of her relationship with Jonathan.
Those eight years of having a relationship with Jonathan seemed to have been a waste. After all, how many sets of eight years could one have in one’s life? Unfortunately, she had wasted it all on Jonathan.
As people reached a certain age, they would start to long for a stable life. However, Jonathan was still chasing after excitement and new experiences. Zara should have realized sooner that he was not a man she should entrust her future to. In the end, she even had to propose to him herself.
To Jonathan, the idea of marriage was nothing but a burden. He always had a reason to not get married, and Zara accepted every excuse.
He would say things like, “We’re not mature enough yet. Let’s wait a little longer.” or “I’m really busy with work now. We’ll talk about it later.” Half a year ago, he came up with the most ridiculous reason by saying, “Zar, I’m not the marrying type. I really love you, but I don’t want to get married.”
Throughout the time they were together, Jonathan had never mentioned being a misogamist. If he was, why had he never brought it up before?
Back then, Zara had already understood that Jonathan didn’t want to marry her. He had fallen in love with someone else–someone other than her.
She never imagined that of all the women he could have fallen for, he fell for Hayden’s sister. Under the guise of taking care of Harper, Jonathan had gotten cozy with her and even told Hayden that he had gotten tired of Zara.
Zara couldn’t understand. If he didn’t love her anymore and wanted to be with someone else, why couldn’t he have told her sooner? Why did he drag it out until she had to find out for herself?
Chapter 7
2/2
After all, as Hayden had pointed out, the four of them were intertwined. So, they would inevitably cross paths. No matter how much she tried to avoid it, she could only escape temporarily but not forever.
It was better to face reality than to hide from it.
They continued walking. Zara, holding the heart made from grass in her hand, suddenly stopped. Hayden was caught off guard and bumped right into her.
Zara turned around and looked at Hayden. She said seriously, “You’re right, but I have one condition. Although I’ve agreed to let you take responsibility for me, I hope we can still maintain some personal space.”
Hayden agreed to her condition without a moment’s hesitation. “Alright.”
Back at Hayden’s residence, Zara noticed that her belongings had already been moved over. She then looked at Hayden, who was tidying up the place like a housekeeper, and realized that his style was to act without asking for input.
What surprised Zara was that he didn’t let her stay in his room. However, she didn’t intend to ask him about it either.
Hayden’s phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and cast a quick look at Zara before stepping outside to answer the call.
“Hey, Hayden. Jonathan told me that Zara is at our place.”
Hayden’s deep–set eyes and sharp nose gave his side profile a very defined look. Upon hearing Harper’s question, his eyes darkened.
“Why ask if you already know the answer?” he responded indifferently.
He didn’t have a strong bond with Harper. He only felt a sense of familial responsibility toward Harper, as he was her older brother. If she had the audacity to wrong his future wife, he would not let her off easily even if she was his sister.
After all, Harper was the undisputed third party in Zara and Jonathan’s relationship.
Harper knew Hayden’s quick temper well, so she decided to get straight to the point. “Jonathan told me that you and Zara are… Is it true? But Zara hasn’t broken up with Jonathan yet. How could she be with you?”
Hayden’s eyes which were deep and distant conveyed a sense of cool detachment. He rarely bothered to put on a pleasant countenance toward others, especially toward those with ulterior motives like Harper, as well as those who intentionally hurt Zara.
“Harper, just because we’re siblings, this doesn’t give you the right to mess with me. I’m warning you. If you do anything to hurt Zar again, we may as well cut off all ties,” Hayden warned.
Harper was stunned by Hayden’s change in attitude. No matter what trouble she caused previously or how unreasonably she acted, Hayden would always be there to smooth things over for her.
But now, he was threatening to cut ties with her for the sake of an outsider!
“You’ve changed, Hayden. I don’t even recognize you anymore. You never treated me like this in the past.” Harper voiced her dissatisfaction pitifully like she’d been wronged.
Hayden wasn’t one to be swayed by others playing the pity card, unlike Jonathan.
“You’re the one who changed, Harper,” he retorted calmly, his tone icy. His gaze remained calm and unruffled. “From now on, don’t bring your issues to me.”
