Half a month passed.
No one knew what role Credence had played in Hugo’s matter. In the end, the perpetuating online discussion of the issue pertaining Hugo and the Fisher Group gradually quieted down.
Apart from Hugo and that vile history teacher facing up to less than two years in prison, the Fisher Group’s stocks stopped fluctuating.
The price of the shares was high enough to return to its original position, as if it had just gone on a rollercoaster. It had even increased a few percentage points higher than what it had originally been worth.
The news of the female student’s tragic death got drowned by the everyday news of celebrities having affairs outside of their marriage. Like an unimpressive drop of water dripping into the vast sea, it soon disappeared without a trace.
Looking at such a result, Dorothy felt an inch of pity, but more was the feeling of rage.
She couldn’t figure out if the society was the one who was too twisted or if she was the one who was too green. How could the life of a young woman from an ordinary family be nothing more than an insignificant and powerless ant in front of these rich people? Without the freedom to direct their own lives, they were at the mercy of the rich and powerful.
However, Belle’s condition had greatly stabilized in the hospital, and she had recovered her former spirits, which gave Dorothy a sense of comfort.
That afternoon, Germaine and Juelz came together to go through Belle’s discharge formalities alongside Dorothy.
Germaine held the lively and lovely Belle tightly in her arms and did not let go. She raised her eyes and looked at Dorothy as she suggested, “Dory, in order to mark the occasion of Belle being discharged from the hospital, I’ve booked a private room for us to let our hair down. Let’s go and enjoy our heart out tonight! All the expenses will be on me.”
“Let’s go, my dear Dory.”
Juelz outstretched his long arms and perched them on Dorothy’s slender shoulders. His handsome face was full of smiles. “It’s rare for Germaine to treat us. Tonight, we’ll have to eat and drink until she doesn’t even have a single cent.”
He was enthusiastic yet still kept a distance, so Dorothy felt at ease.
She smiled and asked, “So, where are we going?”
When she heard that it was the bar where she had once been saved by Credence, Dorothy could not help but let out a bitter laugh.
She was really fated with this bar. The many things that had happened to her, had taken place in this very bar.
…
An hour and a half later, the evening lights were turned on.
Dorothy and the others led the curious Belle into a place where lights were shooting out all around.
The interior of the bar was better decorated than it had been six years ago. She could not help but lament that so much time had passed, and not only had she changed, even this place had been upgraded by a lot too. She almost thought that she had entered through the wrong door.
In the private room on the top floor, Dorothy got some light snacks that were suitable for Belle. Seeing that her eyes were glazed over and sleepy, she picked her up and brought her to a big bed in the inner room. She covered her with a light and thin cotton quilt and sat on the edge of the bed. Reaching her hand out, she gently patted Belle’s belly while humming a lullaby for her to fall asleep more easily.
After Belle fell asleep, Dorothy leaned over and kissed her little face dotingly. Then she turned around and walked out of the room. She returned to the big private room outside and began to drink with Germaine and Juelz.
In order to liven up the atmosphere, Germaine had invited more and more people over.
Soon, a few men and women unfamiliar to Dorothy arrived, but they seemed to be Germaine’s friends. Open minded as they were, they forwent their status and started to lose themselves in the fun.
In such a lively atmosphere, it was easy for people to release all the dopamine inside them.
Dorothy, during her four-year marriage with Credence, had experienced more sadness than happiness. After the divorce, she had been subjected to more than half a year’s worth of imprisonment. After getting out of prison, she had given birth to her precious daughter, Belle in Monticello. It should have been a happy incident, had it not been for Belle’s worsening health during the past six years. With ever increasing visits to the hospital, despair still knocked on Dorothy’s door, never happiness.
At that moment, she let go of all her pain and identity, completely indulging herself in the party. It was the first time in her life experiencing such deafening music and losing herself in happiness.
When someone clinked glasses with Dorothy, she tilted her head and downed the alcohol. It did not take long for her to get drunk.
She drank five to six glasses of champagne, beer, and red wine too. Her head started to swim and she could not recognize anyone, and she had no idea who she was too.
Seeing that Dorothy was almost drunk, Germaine arched her eyebrows and winked at Juelz, who was sitting opposite her. She said, “Juelz, don’t say that I don’t give you any help. Dory’s just right here, and she has had too much to drink. Have it your way. I’m all for it after all. The opportunity is right in front of you, so it’s up to you whether you want to take it or not.”
Germaine was right.
The adrenaline-pumping party was a plan set up by Germain to get Dorothy and Juelz together.
She knew that he liked Dorothy and had loved her for eleven long years, but alas, their relationship remained stagnant. Although they were closer than friends, they were not lovers yet. They lacked that certain spark between them.
They were less than lovers, yet more than friends.
Their ambiguous relationship always made Germaine, a woman with a temper, scream in frustration.
That was her rule in life. In life, she should never move around with other people in a limbo and live a life that was worse than death.
Therefore, she had set all of this up to make an opportunity for Juelz and Dorothy to be together.
He was a man, and she was a woman. He already held an interest in her, and all she needed to do was to spark that flame between them.
They were just like her relationship with Jeremy.
Oh, that wasn’t right.
She and Jeremy’s circumstances were completely different from theirs. She had always been one to court him eagerly. Not only was Jeremy not interested in her, he was even disgusted with her.
Raising her head and pursing her lips, Germaine swallowed a glass of red wine, and with it, the tears that she had not been able to shed.
Mentally, she bemoaned, “Jeremy, oh, Jeremy. If you detest me, I would rather you never have given me such warmth and happiness from the very beginning.”
“Why would I remember those tender feelings that had transpired between us, though? I won’t dare forget it, nor would I dare to lose it. How could you toss it away at the behest of your whim? How could you just abandon it?”
Loud deafening music could be heard as some people were howling and others were drinking wildly. There were people who were pretending to be drunk, but in actuality, they were just hiding the pain in their hearts. After all, who was willing to hear them out?
Germaine drank the wine in one gulp. She stood up and slammed the cup on the table, hard. She waved her arms and roared, “Pipe down, people, calm yourselves. Songs have been sung and wine has been drunk. Let’s play a super cool game, shall we?”
Already drunk, Dorothy leaned on the sofa, her cheeks flushed. However, she raised her hand and replied enthusiastically, “What game are we playing?! Count me in!”
Sensing Germaine’s hinting look, Juelz finally made up his mind and took Dorothy into his arms. He raised his eyebrows and looked at her deeply, “Dory, let’s play a game. Do you dare bring one of the men in this bar back home?”
“Right! There are so many handsome men around here, so there’s definitely going to be one who’s right up your alley.”
Germaine sidled up to Dorothy’s side at the right time. After she said that, she smiled, her crescent eyes glittering.
“I’m on it. Both of you, just wait and see.”
Dorothy grabbed Germaine’s arm and staggered to stand up. She narrowed her eyes and walked out of the booth, “I’ll definitely bring a nice man home. Juelz, Germaine, both of you, you’ll have to call me ‘boss’ later!” She broke into a burst of unreserved laughter.
The alcohol had pushed her over the edge of salvation.
Juelz followed her from behind and shook his head dotingly, “Dory, stop looking. I’m just right here.”
He was right there!
He was waiting for her to turn back and hold his gaze, so that she could take him back home, back to where her heart was.
“No, I don’t want you at all.”
She narrowed her eyes and started murmuring in a low voice. She turned to the corridor and casually grabbed a man who had brushed past her and asked in a muffled voice, “Hey, handsome, where are all the hotties?”