Chapter thirty-one

"Go, go, go."

"Leave, leave, leave."

These were the only two phrases Zoe had in her mind for Nick.

After he left, she closed the door and locked it.

Turning to face the empty living room, she felt a sense of emptiness.

The Spring Festival Gala continued to broadcast, and the candies on the table had been devoured through the night, leaving only candy wrappers and the peels of sugar oranges in the trash bin.

Previously, when she was at his house, she would occasionally see him smoking, but tonight he didn't smoke at all and was busy eating this and that.

Zoe fiddled with her messy hair, sat on the sofa, tilted her head back, and looked at the ceiling.

After sitting alone for a while, she got up to take a shower and wash her hair.

After drying off, she came out again.

At that moment, the countdown for the Spring Festival Gala began, with the whole nation rejoicing as a new year arrived.

After tidying up a bit, Zoe returned to her room, lay down on the bed, played with her phone, and scrolled through her WeChat Moments.

Luna posted a photo on her Moments. Her hometown was quite remote, with mountains stretching out in every direction, but the house was large and built like a villa.

She had many friends and relatives, and each picture showed a different person.

Most of the food was seafood, and looking at the photos was enough to make one's mouth water.

Chi Ying and Chen Lin also posted on their Moments. Chi Ying was playing outside with several pretty girls, drinking milk tea, eating fries, and snacks. She looked very relaxed and happy.

Chen Lin posted a photo with her grandparents, parents, and brother. The family looked very happy and harmonious, and Chen Lin was smiling brightly.

Zoe... didn't post anything.

She didn't know what to post. Back in high school, she would post several updates a day.

She was very active, like she lived in her phone.

As the night deepened, the occasional sound of fireworks and firecrackers could be heard outside, but it was much quieter than before. It was time to sleep.

However, Zoe still couldn't fall asleep. She seemed to be addicted to scrolling through WeChat Moments, seeking some liveliness from others' updates.

As she scrolled, she came across Kaylee's Moments.

Kaylee posted a nine-grid photo.

Lindsay was wearing a red jacket and leaning against Kaylee's father. Kaylee herself only showed one hand and made a "yea" gesture.

She then posted it, and two other photos were of the food on the table and a picture of Kaylee posing with her father.

But there were no photos with Lindsay, and one showed Lindsay and her father giving Kaylee a red envelope.

Kaylee always loved to show off. After posting the red envelope, she also took screenshots of the red envelopes others had sent her on WeChat and Alipay, writing, "The red envelope from my little kitty is the biggest one!"

It was only 188 yuan. The last photo was a YSL Rouge Pur Couture lipstick, which some guy had given her.

In one WeChat Moment, she expressed how popular and loved she was.

Kaylee would sometimes block Zoe and sometimes unblock her. This post probably also meant to be seen by her, especially as Kaylee put the photo of Lindsay and her father together as the first one. Zoe glanced at the photo with Lindsay and then scrolled past it expressionlessly.

After a while,

She tucked her phone under her pillow, turned over, and forced herself to fall asleep.

For the next few days, people visited relatives and hosted relatives in turn.

The festive atmosphere of the New Year remained strong, and some shopping malls were still open without any break. However, Zoe didn't go out. She bought enough food for several days and stayed at home, eating sparingly.

Occasionally, she would study the recipes left by her grandmother.

Lu Yun sent her a red envelope and said he would have given her a bigger one if she had worked for longer.

Zoe accepted it and thanked him.

She attended the company's annual party on that day, sitting in the corner as a small employee, enjoying the food and drinks.

While watching others winning many prizes by breaking gold eggs, she won a lucky draw of 500 yuan, which was quite good.

As the new semester approached, tuition fees were due again.

Grandma left Zoe with a small share of two restaurants, which wasn't much, but it still provided her with a monthly income.

Combined with her salary from Shengding, these could cover her living expenses.

However, most of the tuition fees came from the money left by her grandmother.

When Zoe calculated the expenses, she felt a sense of distress and a little sense of crisis.

On the fourth day of the lunar new year, when her food supply was almost depleted, Zoe tidied up a bit and went out to buy groceries. With the sunny weather, she wore a light blue sweater, black leggings, and black high heels. As she descended to the first floor, the sunlight warmed her, and she raised her hand to shield her eyes.

As she walked down the stairs, a familiar voice rang out from the side.

Zoe squinted into the bright sunlight and saw a girl standing there, her face obscured by the backlight. She was dressed in a solid-colored top and a tight skirt, wearing high heels, and holding her arms... She had a rather proud posture.

Zoe turned and asked, "Who are you?"

The girl stepped forward and came to stand in front of Zoe, revealing her pretty face.

Zoe couldn't recall her immediately, but she felt a sense of familiarity, as if she had seen her before.

"I'm Nerida."

Nerida looked at Zoe with complicated eyes.

Zoe's hair was not tied up today, but slightly disheveled, falling over her shoulders, adding a touch of femininity.

After hearing the name Nerida, a scene flashed through Zoe's mind, and she quickly remembered.

Nerida was Nick's ex-girlfriend.

The girl who slapped Nick in front of the Dean's office.

No wonder she felt a sense of familiarity.

Zoe paused for a moment and said, "Hello."

Nerida glanced at the building Zoe lived in and then at the other side of the overpass, with a hint of disdain in her eyes that quickly dissipated.

She forced a smile and asked, "Are you free? Can we talk?"

Zoe felt a bit complex.

She replied, "I need to go shopping. I don't have time to talk."

Nerida's smile became colder but said, "Then I'll just follow you until you want to talk to me. If I can't catch you today, I'll come tomorrow."

This was a bit of a nuisance.

Zoe couldn't believe it.

She said coldly, "Then follow me."

Not really knowing what this person wanted to talk about, Zoe felt like she was being caught in a compromising situation.

She felt extremely uneasy and took the lead towards the overpass. Walmart was just across the street, not far away.

Behind her, Nerida indeed followed, and Zoe furrowed her eyebrows and walked faster.

Nerida also walked faster.

Until they reached the entrance of Walmart.

Zoe suddenly stopped, turned, and faced Nerida. Nerida, carrying a pretty purse, tilted her head slightly and asked, "Ready to talk now?"

Zoe glanced at her watch, "Half an hour."

Nerida seemed to have expected her to reconcile, smiling and nodding, "Okay, let's go to the coffee shop in the mall."

She gestured with her misty-colored finger towards the entrance of the large mall, and Zoe nodded, looking over. Walmart was on the second floor, so it was quite close. She nodded reluctantly, hoping for a quick resolution.

Ten minutes later, the two of them sat opposite each other in the Starbucks coffee shop on the first floor.

Nerida was still examining Zoe.

But Zoe asked, "What do you want to talk about?"

After a moment of silence, Nerida stirred her coffee with a spoon while resting her chin on her hand. After a while, she said, "Zoe, Nick is not a good man."

Zoe took a sip of coffee and was surprised to hear this.

What's the situation? Isn't this supposed to be a showdown?

Nerida sneered and said, "He's a cold-blooded animal. We dated for more than a year, and he never initiated contact with me. I was always the one reaching out to him. He treated me no differently from the other girls who chased after him. Sometimes, I wondered if it was because I was too proactive that he developed such a bad habit."

Zoe observed the anger in the girl's eyes and the disdain on her lips clearly. She had never expected their relationship to be like this.

"What's the point of you talking to me today?" Zoe asked back.

Nerida put down the stirring spoon and chuckled, "What's the point? I just want to tell you what kind of person he is. We dated for over a year, and he never kissed me or bought me any gifts. The only thing that was slightly special was that he would drive me to school and sometimes give me a ride home. Other than that, I felt like a stranger to him."

"Zoe, I know there's some ambiguity between you and Nick now, but you'll know how cold-blooded he is once you start dating him. There's also Leo pursuing you. Compared to Nick, Leo is much better. You should think clearly..."

Every word Nerida said made Zoe's heart tremble.

Just the mention of the kiss made her feel guilty.

But her subsequent words pushing her towards Leo added another layer of meaning.

After hesitating for a moment, Zoe said, "Thank you for telling me this. You're advising me like this because... you still can't forget Nick, right?"

Nerida's tearful eyes flickered for a moment, and she brushed away a tear from the corner of her eye. "Yes, maybe the one you can't get is always the best. I'm not willing to let go. I've liked him for so many years, and he was so close to me, but why didn't we have a result...?"

She had intended to give up, but then she learned from Ivy that Nick had also actively kissed and pursued a girl.

Although Nerida was sad, she felt even more reluctance. She didn't think Zoe was special because Zoe had also pursued Nick before.

Perhaps it was because Zoe no longer liked him after being away for a few years that Nick's pathological mindset was triggered, causing him to feel sad.

If it were her, she could do it too.

She was too reluctance.

Zoe watched Nerida crying and silently handed her a tissue.

"Will you? Zoe, promise me you'll be with Leo and not Nick, okay? He's not a good boyfriend, and you'll be hurt and sad... Will you?"

Seeing Zoe offer her a tissue, Nerida became even more motivated. She grasped Zoe's hand tightly, staring at her with pleading eyes.

Nerida was indeed beautiful, and her makeup didn't smudge even when she cried. She looked very pretty and pitiful, able to evoke a man's sympathy.

Zoe subconsciously wanted to withdraw her hand, but Nerida gripped it tightly, causing her pain.

How could one make such a request? Furthermore, relationships were a matter between two people. What was this supposed to mean?

Nerida was indeed being rather naive. Seeing Zoe hesitate, a cold gleam flashed through Nerida's eyes. She tightened her grip on Zoe's hand once again and said earnestly, "Really, Zoe, Leo is better. When he was a freshman, he had a girlfriend, and he treated her like a princess. He was so kind and caring towards her. Nick is not like that. Please... please promise me you'll be with Leo."

Zoe was feeling quite troubled and was about to speak.

A deep voice suddenly came from behind Nerida, "She dare?"