“You and Mr. Mysterious have come here to watch the stars, right?”
“Yes, and we also watched the sunrise here together.”
Cristofer nodded and said, “It’s meaningful to bury her ashes in such a place full of her parents’ fond memories.”
Estelle didn’t say anything.
It was getting darker and darker, and the surrounding was shrouded in darkness. The top of Mount Cloud overlooked the whole city. Looking down from here, they could see the city lit up brightly.
“Estelle, could you tell me more about the past between you and Mr. Mysterious?” Cristofer asked in a husky voice.
“Are you sure you really want to know about that?”
“Yes. I want to know how good he is and what makes you love him so much. And I want to know more about him so that I can be more like him.”
Seeing her silence, Cristofer smiled and said gently, “I’ve thought it through. As long as I can stay by your side all the time, it’s worth it to be Mr. Mysterious’ substitute. I’ll try my best to make myself more like him. It doesn’t matter that you don’t love me. I just hope I can spend more time with you.”
Estelle looked at him sadly, saying, “But it’s unfair to you. You don’t have to do such a thing for me. Besides, both of us are clear that no matter how you are like him, you are not him. It’s meaningless to play make-believe. We should face reality instead of deceiving ourselves.”
Cristofer quickly snapped, “I know that. But I can keep deceiving myself until I die.” Cristofer then added as he gazed at Estelle with burning eyes, “I can deceive myself that I am Mr. Mysterious for the rest of my life if that’s the only way I could redeem my past mistakes.”
When he spoke, his tone and voice were similar to Mr. Mysterious’. And Estelle could smell the familiar scents of cologne and smoke from his body.
“Estelle, I simply want you to be happy. If self-deception can bring happiness to both of us, then it’s not a bad choice for us to continue like this until we die.”
Hearing his words, Estelle smiled wistfully and replied, “The past between Mr. Mysterious and me was nothing extraordinary. We simply led a modest life when we were together.”
“Is that so?” Cristofer inquired.
“Yes. We rented a small, modestly decorated apartment in an old neighborhood. He was busy every day, but he always made time to provide everything the children needed and enjoyed. Moreover, he had an uncanny ability to discern even the subtlest shifts in my mood when we were together.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes, that’s all,” Estelle said with a smile. “Do you still recall when I told you that you didn’t understand women?”
Cristofer nodded, waiting for her to continue.
“In some women’s hearts, whether their husbands are wealthy or powerful is unimportant. Sometimes, they only want to live a simple but happy life with their husbands. Back then, York occupied the properties of the Hudson family, and you were with Gretchen. My mother and I were homeless and penniless. When I was in despair, Mr. Mysterious provided me with timely help and took me in.”
“He rented Room 1231 of the Grand Hotel of Hadale City for you, and you two stayed there before you rented the apartment? Am I right?” Cristofer asked.
“Yes.”
“No wonder you were so emotional when I wanted to rent the room that day.”
“The room is full of my memories about our past. But now…” Estelle paused and sighed. “The traces of his existence have been wiped away. What a pity. When I was with Mr. Mysterious, we would come here to watch the stars or the sunrise. I would cook for him when I was free. And we would take care of the children together. We didn’t have fancy meals every day, and we didn’t live in a big house. But such a simple life made me feel happy. It’s just what I want.” Estelle uttered sadly.
Cristofer sighed with emotion and asked, “Do all the women want such a life?”
“I don’t know what other women want. I only know that’s what I want.”
Cristofer nodded. “You are different from other women. Back then, Gretchen was with me because she wanted to marry into the Walliams family and be a member of the upper class. So did Mila. But you…”
“But I don’t want anything except for a simple life,” Estelle quickly said, chuckling, “Do you think I’m too naive?”
“No. I can easily win Gretchen’s or Mila’s hearts by giving them money. But I can’t win your heart even if I give you all that I have. You are not vain or greedy.”
Not knowing how to answer him, Estelle pointed to the sky and changed the topic. “Let’s watch the stars. They are so beautiful,” she urged just then.
Looking up at the stars in the sky, Cristofer smiled and said, “They are indeed very beautiful.”
“What time is it now?”
“It’s nearly midnight.”
It was not until then that Estelle realized that they had been staying here for a long time.
“Maybe I will never see you again,” Estelle murmured as she raised her head and looked up at the starry sky. “Mr. Mysterious, goodbye. And happy birthday to you.” She gave Mr. Mysterious a birthday greeting.
Hearing this, Cristofer was stunned and asked, “Are you talking to me?”
Without answering his question, Estelle smiled gently and said, “Let’s go down the mountain.”
“Okay,” Cristofer nodded and then added. “It’s too cold here at night. Let’s go.”
Before leaving, Estelle squatted down, gently touched the ground, and said softly, “Dear baby, Mommy’s got to go. If you feel lonely, you can come to my dream every day. Besides, don’t blame your Dad. He didn’t come to see you because he didn’t know of your existence.”
Standing behind her, Cristofer looked down at her thin figure quietly. When he heard what she had said, his heart suddenly ached.
After finishing her words, Estelle stood up. When she turned around, she surprisingly found that Cristofer was squatting on the ground with his hand on his heart and looking in great pain.
“What’s wrong with you? Does your arm hurt again?” Estelle asked anxiously.
Shaking his head with a pale face, Cristofer said, “No. Somehow, every time you mention this poor child, I feel a severe heartache.”
“Let’s go back now,” Estelle urged and helped him up.
“Don’t you want to watch the sunrise?”
“No,” Estelle said, shaking her head, “I won’t come here to watch the sunrise anymore.” Meanwhile, she thought, ‘Without Mr. Mysterious by my side, watching the sunrise is meaningless.’