Following her vision, Estelle had the makeup artist work on Wallace according to her specifications and used the materials from the box to create a pair of large earrings and a bracelet. Given Wallace’s short hair, large hair accessories wouldn’t suit her, making earrings and wrist jewelry a more fitting choice.
An hour later, Estelle had transformed the woman before her into an elegant and chic vision. Wallace’s eyes welled up with tears as she gazed at herself in the mirror. She carefully dabbed her eyes with a tissue, not wanting to ruin the makeup.
Estelle didn’t immediately ask why Wallace shed tears, sensing they weren’t tears of dissatisfaction. Instead, she patiently waited for Wallace to speak.
“Thank you, Estelle,” Wallace said, her voice slightly choked with emotion. “I had almost forgotten that I could look this good without all the dressing up. I’ve been working so hard over the years that I didn’t have time for myself, let alone dating or getting married.”
Estelle offered a warm smile in response. “As women, we should have our own careers. If we only focus on relationships or marriage, we might end up heartbroken. You see, the more we invest in a relationship, the easier we get hurt. It can be a devastating blow to us when a relationship fails.”
Reflecting on Estelle’s wisdom, Wallace nodded in agreement. “You’re absolutely right. These bracelets and earrings are amazing. I can tell you put a lot of effort into their design.”
“It’s a worthwhile trade-off to expend some brainpower on design as long as I don’t go bald,” Estelle quipped playfully as she reached into her bag to retrieve a tissue. However, as she did so, a small bag fell out, and she swiftly caught it before it hit the ground.
The transparent plastic bag was secured with a rainbow-colored ribbon, containing numerous star-shaped candies individually wrapped in glass paper. The vibrant colors of the candies complemented one another, creating a visually appealing sight.
“It nearly fell to the ground. Oh, these are…” Wallace’s voice filled with astonishment as she gazed at the small bag in Estelle’s hand. “Aren’t these the star-shaped candies we used to enjoy in our youth? I’ve hardly come across these candies since the factory ceased production.”
Estelle was left speechless as she stared at the familiar candy wrappers.
‘These are star-shaped candies? Back when we were students, Cristofer would always take out these candies from his pockets whenever I had low blood sugar. As the market developed and time changed, more similar products were produced, so the factories eventually stopped producing the star-shaped candies. So, how did they end up here? Did Cristofer prepare them for me?’
When Estelle was still lost in her trace of thoughts, Wallace looked at the candies and sighed, “I was in college during that time, and I often hung out with my friends. And when we were out, we often bought these candies because they were our favorite.”
“I haven’t seen these candies for years.” Estelle loosened the ribbon and poured out a few candies for Wallace. Then she gave Eva and the makeup artist some.
During this little free time after work, they gathered together and talked while eating the candies as if they had gone back to old school days, talking to their best friends after class.
Eva said jokingly, “If I could go back in time, I would first remember the winning lottery numbers during that time and make a fortune.”
“I thought you would study hard and get a good job. I didn’t expect that you would rather get some free money,” Estelle said amusedly, “There are no free lunches in the world. You should be careful if one day you can get a free lunch. Besides, the lottery numbers might also change if you could go back in time. Actually, I also had this dream when I was young. But after becoming a mother, I became more practical.”
With a cheerful personality, Eva didn’t mind Estelle’s disagreement. She pouted, “I can have another wish. What about remembering all the answers to the SATs?” After that, she put her hands together and pretended to pray, which amused Estelle and all the other people.
The star-shaped candies were smaller than a fingernail, so it would only take about 10 minutes to melt in the mouth. Although Eva didn’t stop talking, she ate the candies very quickly. It was her first time eating these candies, so she accidentally got her fingernails dirty when she tried to unwrap the second one. Then she asked Estelle for help. “Estelle, do you have any tissue? I put everything in the car except the iPad.”
“You are an adult. Why are you as sloppy as my three children?” Estelle looked through the stuff in her bag while smiling. Before she found the tissue, she first felt an angular box. Suddenly, she stopped moving.
“Anything wrong?” Eva moved closer to Estelle with her dirty hands held high. Before she saw anything, Estelle moved the bag away. Then Estelle answered hurriedly, “Nothing. My hands got stuck when I took the tissue.”
Her words sounded strange, and both Eva and Wallace leaned in to get a better look at the bag. Estelle worried they might see the box, so she hurriedly covered it. Unfortunately, the box slipped out, and she had to quickly bend down to retrieve it.
The box, about the size of a fist, appeared square from the top but had a distinctive diamond shape from the side, which was a unique feature of jewelry made by Hans International Corporation.
Eva, with her long tenure at the company, recognized the brand immediately. She exclaimed, “Hey! Isn’t that a jewelry box from Hans International Corporation? It’s likely designed for a bracelet or ring. Using it for candies seems like such a waste.”
“Hans International Corporation?” Wallace asked, putting the pieces together. She then turned to Estelle and said, “Oh, Mr. Hans gave this to you.”
Estelle and Cristofer had often been in the local news, portrayed as a loving couple. Their images frequently appeared on TV and in newspapers, except for that one incident earlier. As a result, anyone who followed the news knew who they were, and Wallace was no exception. Estelle tried to convince herself that she could temporarily forget about Cristofer when she was working. However, she heard someone mention his name behind the scenes on the runway. Stammering and hesitant, she responded, “It’s… it’s just a coincidence. After all these years, they haven’t produced these candies.”
Estelle didn’t even believe her own words, and her voice trailed off so softly that others couldn’t hear her clearly, making her seem even more uncomfortable.