Chapter 24: The Pain Bearing Within The Heart

“ What in the world is she thinking? Doesn’t she realize that her foolish acts will worsen things for both parties? “ Jennifer thought internally while gazing at the situation in front of her.

Mrs. Evangelina gazed at the blank check Mrs. Kyung was holding. Before she could respond, Sarah was quick to react. Snatching the check from her, she ripped it to shreds, rendering Mrs. Kyung speechless.

At a loss for words, Mrs. Kyung could only say, “ What did you—------? “

Having started her statement, however, she was unable to finish as Sarah snapped on the spot right then. “ Out! “ She shouted, signaling to Mrs. Kyung the way out of the restaurant.

“ What are you—-----? “

“ I said to get out. “ She shouted once more before adding instantly, “ Do you seriously think your money can erase everything? Just because you’re rich and everything, you think you can buy us? “

!

“ No, that’s not what I—-------- “

“ Then, what is it? Tell me what you’re trying to do! Are you trying to compensate us for your son’s doing? Are you truly that sorry? “

Not gaining any response to her questions, Sarah continued and said, “ You want to compensate us, don’t you? Then, listen to this! This is what I’d like from you! “

At the same time, at the Kyung mansion, Martin was searching for his mother whom he couldn’t find in the house. Inquiring from the maids, he couldn’t learn anything relevant either and that’s when he phoned their chauffeur and learned of his mother’s whereabouts.

Back at the Esperanza Restaurant, Sarah said sarcastically, “ If you were to give us your luxurious villa, then I might forget what happened. What do you think of my generous proposition, Mrs. Kyung? “

In response to her question, Mrs. Kyung said calmly, “ Child, I know how inconvenienced my son has been to you for all that he did, but aren’t you taking things too far? Even jokes are not taken that far. “

—

“ Jokes? Do you think I’m joking? “

Reaching the Esperanza Restaurant in the nick of time, Martin heard crystal clear Sarah’s words addressed to his mother. “ You rich people think you can do anything, don’t you? Were you that offended by the proposition I came up with that badly? I thought for sure you would be delighted, Mrs. Kyung but your reaction is unexpected. “

—

Snickering, she added, “ I thought you would go to any lengths so that your precious son is forgiven for his sins, so why deny my offer? Why play the offender? What’s the point of this act when you, yourself, offered money to us to let the whole matter go? “

!

“ Mother, is what she said just now true? “

!

“ Mat, Son, what are you doing here? “

Turning around at the sound of her son’s voice, she was stunned to see him appearing at the Esperanza Restaurant out of nowhere. Walking inside the restaurant, Sarah glared at him coldly when their gazes met.

Facing his mother now in front of him, he asked the latter straightforwardly, “ Mother, is what Sarah said just now true? Did you offer money to her family to cover up my crimes? “

Going silent and not daring to answer anything, Sarah stepped in and said, “ What do you want her to say? What do you want her to answer? Didn’t you ask her to come to humiliate us even more? “

!

“ No, I would never do something like that. Why would you think I would hurt you deliberately? “ Martin was appalled by Sarah’s wrong accusations directed at him.

Retorting back, She said, “ Why would I believe you when what you’ve always done is hurt me deliberately? “

Shattered by her words, he couldn’t argue anything back as he knew all too well how right Sarah was about him. Feeling ashamed, he lowered his gaze and said apologetically, “ All you’ve said about me is true and it’s a good thing that you’ve finally detangled yourself from this bad person that I am. Please, if it’s alright with you, there’s one last favor I’d like to ask of you. “

“ What else would you want from me? Haven’t you done enough already? “

Bowing apologetically toward her, his mother was stunned at her son’s conduct. Not giving much of a reaction, Sarah remained silent. At some point, Martin uttered the words straight from his mouth, “ Please forgive my mother and I for barging in without warning. Please forgive us for our lack of manners and demeanor! “

Stunned even more at her son’s prerogative, she shouted, “ Mat, what are you saying? “

Rising back up, he uttered slightly toward her, “ Mother, let’s go! “ Before stepping out of the Esperanza Restaurant without a word.

Sarah was too speechless to react in any way as she remained there immobile even after Martin Kyung alongside his mother were long gone from her sight.

Shutting the restaurant afterward, they went home as it had been an eventful day. At dinner, while everyone was eating, Sarah’s thoughts were elsewhere.

“ Sarah, why aren’t you eating? Is there something on your mind? “ Mrs. Evangelina asked her daughter who simply grinned fakely before focusing on the meal in front of her.

Jennifer and Lucas could spot from a mile away that something was troubling their friend. When dinner ended, instead of Sarah accompanying her mother to the kitchen to cater to the dishes, Jennifer went with her while Lucas and Sarah stayed behind.

While catering to the dishes in the kitchen, Mrs. Evangelina suddenly asked, “ Do you think my daughter will ever be the same again? “

Understanding what her question implied, Jennifer answered her as honestly as possible, “ Be the same as before, I don’t think so, but she’ll heal with time. She went through something terrible for a girl her age and developed emotions she never knew existed, but regardless of all the ill things, she’ll learn from them and move on. That’s part of growing up, so I’m sure she’ll be just fine, Mrs. Evangelina. “

Retorting to her statement, Mrs. Evangelina grinned slightly before saying, “ You sound so mature for your age, Jennifer. You must have gone through so much as well for such maturity to bear within your heart. “

“ You can say that again. “ She grinned bitterly as those words made their way out of her mouth.

On the other side, Lucas and Sarah were carrying on a deep conversation of their own. Reflecting on everything as a whole, Sarah asked Lucas, “ Why do you think he did that? Was it just so he could have me? “

Lucas was speechless at her question for a good minute before retorting rhetorically, “ Why wonder so suddenly about his motive? Are you intrigued? “

Nodding opposite, she said, “ No, I just want to understand why he did what he did so that I can move on, that’s all. “

Grinning from the corner of his mouth, Lucas uttered straightforwardly, “ Love is selfish, wouldn’t you agree? “

“ What? “

“ He must have loved you so much to the point of losing his mind in the process. If anything, one should be flattered to have such a person who would go to such unimaginable lengths just for love, but regardless of such deep feelings, what he did was wrong. He didn’t proceed using the right decorum and that was his gravest mistake, a sin even greater than the consequences of his actions. It’s understandable why you would hate him. “

!

“ Hate? Do I hate him? “ Sarah surprised herself at the sound of the words stepping out from her mouth.

Confused but also surprised, Lucas asked her straight-on, “ Don’t you hate him, Sarah? “

Retorting unsurely, She said, “ I don’t know. I’m resentful of what he made my family and I go through. I’m resentful for what he did to my younger brother and I should hate him for it. That should be the natural course for it and yet, I don’t know why but I can’t bring myself to pronounce such words that don’t go in accordance with my beliefs and teachings. “

“ Then, you might want to seriously think about what you want! “ Lucas retorted in response to Sarah’s words who said, “ Think about what I want! I don’t understand. “

“ Whether you want to keep bearing that resentment as you call it inside your heart or forgive him is entirely your decision to make and yours alone. “

“ Forgive him? “ She reacted strongly to the word, “ There’s no way I can forgive him for hurting my brother like he did. “

—

Standing up, Lucas said as he gazed at Sarah, “ Forgiving someone goes a long way and it also takes a considerable amount of guts to forgive someone who’s wounded your heart, but those who do it despite all the pain bearing within their hearts are truly noble and admirable, so seriously think about what you want! “

“ Do you want to keep feeling the way you’re feeling right now, or do you want to lift the burden carrying within your heart to finally feel alleviated of it all and move on with your life with a positive mindset? “

—

In the Kyung Mansion, Martin spoke straightforwardly to his mother as he asked her while gazing at her straight in the eyes, “ What you’ve done today, please don’t do it ever again! Whether Ms. Sarah forgives me or not has nothing to do with you. As a man, I need to bear the weight of my crimes, so I’ll kindly ask you to allow me the chance to repair the damages I’ve caused with my unruly nature. “

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