Pay off debts

"I remember the old days. We also went together like this to my house and met my father." Gwen said quietly while looking at Arthur who was now in the same car as her.

Arthur wore formal attire to talk business to Gwen's father, Branimir Estelle. As per their agreement, Arthur was willing to solve Gwen's problems and it also involved getting her father out of his entanglement with the foreigner company.

"You are so handsome today. I don't think I'm the only one who thinks you have unparalleled charisma in formal attire." Gwen chuckled. "No wonder so many girls liked you back then. I really felt a lot of competition when I was your girlfriend."

After Gwen took the initiative to open the chat a second time, Arthur was still silent, no expression on his face. Maybe he didn't even hear what she was saying at all.

This silence suddenly made Gwen gloomy. "Do you think my father will agree? After what happened between you and me, will he agree to it? What if he doesn't agree?"

"Does he still have hope in the foreign company?"

"I don't know, he seems angry with me and still wants me to marry that old man ..."

"..."

"I heard that your father's company has been in high demand recently. You ... are really great. You're the one behind resurrecting that company that was on the verge of collapse, right?"

Arthur didn't understand why Gwen had to bring this up, but he guessed one thing,

"You want me to work with your father again?"

Their gazes met, it was still early in the morning and the sun was starting to show through. Arthur could see Gwen's gaze on him, not quite so clearly, but he could definitely see it. He averted his eyes again.

"Don't hope for it." Arthur said.

Gwen smiled bitterly. "I know. I would be shameless if I still hoped for it. But, you will forgive me, right?"

"... Yeah."

"Given how long I've known you personally, I'm sure you can see what's wrong and right." Gwen said softly, "I'm not saying I was right, but I wasn't wrong either because I was powerless at the time."

Arthur knew, but he chose not to answer. The human heart is very fragile in times of insecurity, whoever gives comfort will be the light for that heart to come back to life.

The real reason why he said that Gwen didn't need to hope was because he was about to leave his father's company. Sooner or later Matthew would take over, at least he didn't want Gwen to fall into Matthew's grasp again. He didn't want Gwen to become a weapon for Matthew to bother Livy in the future.

"Arthur, may I ask you a question?"

The car had just pulled up and Gwen deliberately held it inside temporarily. Seeing him looking at her, she knew that he was giving her permission to ask.

"In that year, when I left you, did you feel sad?" Gwen looked for an answer in Arthur's eyes to this question, she only saw a frozen and cold complexion.

"Why do you ask this?"

Gwen averted her eyes and leaned back in the car seat again. "Because I'm curious about something. If you are sad, it means you love me. But I want you to say it yourself directly. Did you love me at that time?"

Arthur's first reaction to this question was to immediately turn his eyes the other way. Even though this was a vague response, Gwen could feel the cold shoulder building a wall of rejection around her. She smiled bitterly, looked down and felt her vision blur with almost tears—she already knew the answer.

Many think that she was a lucky woman to have a lover like Arthur in the past.

Arthur was kind and caring, even though his words were cold, his actions were very gentle. He rarely got angry, if he was dissatisfied because of Gwen, he would just be quiet for a few hours, then he would calm down. Arthur was never rude, really a man who looked like he didn't have the heart to hurt anyone.

Though that's not the truth.

Arthur didn't hurt Gwen by his words, or by his treatment, but there was a small gap that Arthur's true feelings seemed to fill. One where it was a feeling of indifference that was firmly suppressed. That was what hurt Gwen the most.

"Arthur, can we ... go back to how we used to be?" Her voice trembled.

Arthur was still expressionless.

"I can not live without you." Gwen couldn't stop crying. "In that year, I really hurt you, but I didn't do it on purpose, I ... I ..."

Gwen couldn't help taking Arthur's hand and gripping it tightly.

"Arthur, please, come back to me, ok? We can go back to how we used to be. I love you so much, I feel guilty about what I did back then ... I didn't mean to leave you after that incident. Now that I realize it, there's no another man I love besides you. I really love you, Arthur."

Arthur closed his eyes to hold back the roar of anger in his chest. He recalled an incident he wanted to forget. Even though how he was blind had nothing to do with Gwen, but hearing her bring this up, his heart was filled with rage of almost buried grudges.

He opened his eyes again, only to move her hand away from him. "Forget the idea. I'm married now."

Gwen was shocked.

This time Arthur looked at her coldly. "Even if I haven't, returning to you isn't a good idea to think about. So don't expect anything from me."

Gwen hastily wiped away her tears and smiled bitterly. "You're right. I ... I'm very selfish, right?"

"Yeah. How selfish of you." Arthur replied sharply. "But it's not entirely your fault, and I'm here, meeting you only because I have a debt I have to pay off because of Matthew. Sorry that he had to instigate you to leave me in the past."

Gwen's body immediately stiffened. Even though Arthur wasn't looking at her, he could feel it. Gwen must have been shocked because he had found out the truth in the past.

The car door was immediately pushed open as soon as Gwen felt defeated, she couldn't hide her terrified and tense expression. She held the car door hoping Arthur would see a bit of her tortured efforts, but Arthur stepped out the other way.

Gwen clenched her fists silently, before finally entering the house following Arthur. Arthur's firm and sure footsteps shook Gwen's strength, she felt her heart uneasy.

Where did Arthur know about her being instigated by Matthew?

"Dad."

An old man wearing house slippers and holding a large white mug, turned to look at them at the entrance. Then his gaze narrowed.

"What the hell are you doing here?" asked the old man sharply.

Gwen replied quickly, "Dad, don't blame Arthur, I brought him here."

The old man sighed. "So you teamed up with him to wreak havoc?"

"Mr. Estelle, I don't have any bad intentions. I want to talk about a few things. And this is a matter of business." Arthur intervened in the commotion calmly.

Branimir Estelle, a temperamental old man, remembering that Arthur had caused his life to fall into a slump in the past, he could barely contain himself from getting angry.

"Go away! I don't want anything to do with you or your family anymore. Go!" Branimir threw his large mug on the floor, hot water splashing on Arthur's shoes.

Gwen immediately stood in front of Arthur. "Dad, please listen to us first. This is for the good of all of us. Please don't be angry, our misfortune has absolutely nothing to do with Arthur. We ... we have been tricked."

"Nonsense! Go away! Send him away from here!" Branimir grew enraged and almost threw something else before seeing his daughter protecting Arthur. "Why did you protect him? You canceled your own wedding and caused this misfortune. You are just like him! Don't you think I dare not throw this lamp at you!"

"Dad, how could you let me marry a man who is almost the same age as you? He is more suitable to be my uncle!"

"You dare to contradict me?!"

Arthur, who had not moved in his place until now, pulled Gwen aside and took one step forward. "Mr. Estelle, if you want to beat me, do so. Only then will you agree to talk to me."

When Arthur finished saying this, Branimir in a rage threw the table lamp and it hit him in the forehead.

***

"I-It's my fault …" Gwen lowered her head and didn't dare look at Arthur at all.

On Arthur's terms, they finally managed to get Branimir to talk.

Gwen didn't expect that Arthur was even ready with all the proposals for submitting cooperation for Branimir's company to his business partners. In other words, he didn't help him to his father's company, but to another company.

Indeed, it still did not make Branimir's anger disappear, for him it was Arthur who caused this misfortune and he should be held responsible. Branimir said it was a fair price after Arthur's father's company dumped him just as he was trying to survive bankruptcy and tried to believe in Arthur. In reality, it was Gwen who had made the decision to act, by forging her father's signature, without anyone's knowledge, and allowing her father to think that all of this was Arthur's fault.

From here Arthur didn't even believe that Gwen could do it.

"The wound looks deep. I'll take you to the hospital," Gwen said worriedly.

Arthur removed her hand from his forehead. "I can handle this myself. It's nothing."

Gwen didn't argue and let Arthur handle the wound himself with a wound plaster.

"Are you still mad at me?"

"Why should I?"

Arthur just felt that he didn't want to let Gwen do anything so she thought he was giving her a chance. He felt he was done with Gwen. This was their last business.

After studying Evander's report on the events five years ago, the chronology he was able to decipher was; when his father's company was almost bankrupt at that time, some of his father's colleagues were affected and suffered huge losses. Some companies chose to back off and give their cold shoulder, only Branimir Estelle's company tried to survive to solve the problem and help him. Just when the company began to revive under Arthur's hands, Branimir was kicked out of the shareholder register for no apparent reason, and Branimir thought this was Arthur's doing.

At that time, Branimir had not expected his sacrifice standing by their side to be rewarded like this. At the same time a foreign businessman offered help to revive his company. At first Branimir didn't really believe it and refused. But Gwen persuaded him until he agreed. Then Branimir's greed began to trick Gwen into marrying the owner of the company.

Finally, after Branimir's success for several years, he had to experience another misfortune when Gwen suddenly called off the wedding. He was again at a loss because the foreign businessman started to put pressure on him and created a series of accusations that his company had embezzled project funds and stolen confidential documents for its own interests.

Until now the company really fell.

"Since you already know who did it, you should also know that I am completely helpless. Everything I said wasn't entirely a lie, it's just that I was threatened. Arthur, I was threatened. Matthew said that I would get the same fate if I be by your side."

There was no expression on Arthur's face at all. Previously he suspected Gwen was not threatened and left at the persuasion of others. But that wasn't persuasion—it was a threat.

At that time Arthur was blind and almost paralyzed because he consumed poison that was tucked into his food by his stepmother for years. As a result of the poison, some of his nerves were disturbed. For four years, Arthur underwent rigorous, painful therapy for his recovery.

Even the doctor said if he was even a little late, he would not only be paralyzed and blind, he could be deaf and mute.

All of this was done because of the greed of his stepmother who wanted his father's wealth to fall into Matthew's hands. When the company began to rise from bankruptcy, his father praised him very much and made him the sole successor to the company—perhaps this made his stepmother angry. Especially after Arthur managed to get eighty percent of the shares of the company. Even his father currently only owns less than fifty percent of his own company.

"Arthur, I'm sorry. Trust me, I really regret it." Gwen said again after seeing Arthur fall silent.

Arthur closed his eyes, took a deep breath and let it out.

"That's enough," he said. "Next go with your father to a faraway place. Don't involve yourself in these things anymore."

Gwen stared at him in disbelief and sadness. She stretched out her arms and easily hugged Arthur tightly, she didn't care that she was selfish and that Arthur would reject her. She just wanted to hug this man tightly.

"Sorry. I really am sorry."

***

"Where's Livy?" Arthur didn't delay asking his maid just as he got home.

The maid glanced anxiously at Arthur's bandaged forehead and replied, "Young lady has returned to the dorm, she brought some of her clothes too."

Arthur headed to his room satisfied and saw that there was a small memo stuck to the doorknob. The memo was written in thick marker.

[After coming home, take a shower and eat. I have prepared a lot of juice for you in the fridge :)))]

The dark clouds hanging over his heart disappeared in an instant, replaced by a cool breeze that made him relax a little. He withdrew the memo and brought it in. As soon as he closed the door, he immediately knelt on the floor.

The adrenaline rush today was really draining him. Branimir is really an old bull that is hard to beat. After being hit by the table lamp, Arthur actually almost fell because his head was dizzy, but he held it in to negotiate with the old man.

Now, he couldn't even move his fingers.

After limping, he made it to his bed and immediately lay down. He turned his head sideways to turn on the light and found another memo.

[Don't sleep before eating and taking medicine! ^o^]

Arthur again felt sweet to his heart with this little concern. If there were two memos he found, there must have been a third and a fourth.

Just as he was about to get up to take a shower, there was a knock on his bedroom door. He immediately let them in. A maid comes with a tray. He inhaled the fruity scent in the air.

"Sir, tomato juice for you. Hmm, this ... m-must finish. After that bathe in milk and honey. Then eat and take your medicine. At night, n-no liquor, you should replace it with hot tea." The maid spoke fearfully, then continued, “T-These are all young lady's orders.”

Arthur's face was expressionless.

The maid put the juice on the table. "That's it, sir. I ... I'll be going."

It was a pity that he couldn't see the maid's frightened face until her cheeks were red. He just frowned at her words and didn't know how to react. He then covered his face with his palms and laughed.

"Why are you so cute, Livy?"

It was as if there were ten thousand sugars in the air and Arthur felt immense sweetness.

... to be continued ...