Aurora’s roar startled Heather, causing her to tremble and slowly lift her head to meet Aurora’s icy gaze. “That trash isn’t worth your tears, and remember, dignity is not given by others but comes from yourself. Even if she’s happy now, it’s only temporary. How can you be beaten by such trash? You need to become stronger, stronger than everyone else, and then you can rise above them all. Whether you want to hurt others or not, at least no one will ever trample on you again.” Aurora’s firm words began to change Heather’s heart.
“How should I become stronger?” Heather asked. “First, hold back those worthless tears; second, make your heart tougher than anyone else’s; and lastly, the workplace is not a place for vacation. Do you think people will leave you alone if you don’t provoke them? Whoever provokes you, you must pay them back double, so no one will dare to bully you again. Do you blame me for not speaking up earlier to have the president fire Alison?”
“I… I don’t dare think that way, you’ve already helped me a lot, you are a good person,” Heather admitted, though she felt slightly upset when she heard that Alison wouldn’t be fired. She hated that she had no background to get Alison kicked out of the company, but she held no grudge against Aurora.
“Good person? Good and bad are just relative, after all. You think I’m good, but some people hate me to the bone. As long as you can protect yourself, that’s all that matters! In that situation earlier, the president clearly wanted to save face for his brother. Even if I had spoken up, it wouldn’t have changed the facts, and would have only made things difficult for the president. Why bother? I have plenty of ways to deal with Alison.”
Aurora released her grasp, her lips curling into a mischievous smile, seeing this as further proof that Alison was just a bimbo. “So you mean…” Heather then realized she had underestimated her.
Her being so young and already a manager made sense now; she was far superior compared to herself. “Like Alison, who provokes at every turn with such lowly tactics. If we’re going to play, I prefer playing at a higher level. Do you want to become stronger?”
Heather nodded eagerly, “Yes, I want to stand high like you, looking down on others, not being trampled underfoot.”
“Then I’ll leave this matter to you. Give me your phone.” Heather quickly handed over her phone, and Aurora saved her number, then sent her another number. “Whose number is this?” Heather asked.
“Paul Montgomery’s wife. You don’t need me to teach you what to do next, do you? Revenge is most satisfying when it’s personal,” Aurora said coolly.
Even the slow-witted Heather understood her meaning, “You mean I should tell this to Mr. Montgomery’s wife?”
“I didn’t say anything. How you do it is up to you. I’m giving you half a day off to adjust your mindset, live for yourself. I don’t hurt others, but if someone dares to bully me, I pay them back worse.”
With that, she walked away from Heather, who listened to her footsteps fading away, murmuring to herself: “I don’t hurt others, but if someone dares to bully me, I pay them back worse. Yes, a tooth for a tooth!” Suddenly, it clicked for her. If she continued to endure, she would continue to be endlessly bullied by Alison. Dignity is self-bestowed-all children born of parents, why should she be bullied by her? This time, she wouldn’t be timid.
Aurora left the cafeteria with a heavy sigh, the only thing she felt she could do for Heather. She didn’t want Heather to endure what she had gone through years ago.
She had over an hour left and had planned to grab a quick lunch at a nearby restaurant when her phone rang.
“Have you had lunch yet?” Julian’s gentle voice came through.
Aurora’s furrowed brows relaxed slightly. “Not yet, I was just about to look for something to eat.”
“I’ll meet you where you got off this morning,” Julian said before hanging up. Aurora hadn’t expected him to come over at noon, and she was quite surprised.
She quickened her pace.
“Anne, shall we have lunch together?” Eric’s voice called out just as she was about to reach Julian.
The man had spoken some strange words in the elevator earlier, and being Paul’s son, she wasn’t sure yet if he was a friend or foe.
Aurora turned and said, “No need, I’ve already made plans with a friend.”
“But you were just in the cafeteria with Heather. Who did you make plans with in such a short time?” Eric’s tone was somewhat accusatory.
Indeed, changing friends so quickly might seem like an excuse to anyone.
Even if it was taken as an excuse, it didn’t matter. He wasn’t someone she cared about, so why bother explaining too much.
“Mr. Montgomery, our relationship isn’t such that I owe you any explanations. I have to go now,” she said, turning and walking away.
Eric watched her retreating figure without any sense of loss, pushing up his glasses. “Miss Aurora, you’re just as willful as when you were a child,” he said with a smirk.
Aurora walked briskly to Julian’s car. Julian had witnessed the recent exchange and felt that Eric looked familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before.
The sinister smile at the corner of the man’s mouth was not missed by Julian, who sensed that Eric was no simple character.
“Why did you come here?” Aurora asked as soon as she got into the car and was immediately pulled into Julian’s embrace, his kiss forceful, almost leaving her breathless.
Eric, not far away, watched as she entered the luxury car.
From his angle, he couldn’t see clearly inside the car, only catching a glimpse of a man in the back seat who embraced and kissed Aurora as soon as she entered.
He didn’t need to see clearly to imagine the intense atmosphere inside.
As the car slowly drove away, passing by Eric, he saw Aurora with a bashful and dazed expression, a stark contrast to her cold demeanor at the office.
Inside the car, the man kissed the woman in his arms while giving Eric a cold stare, a clear declaration of his claim.
The car sped away, but through the glass, Eric could still see the couple nestled together.
He adjusted his glasses with his middle finger and index finger, his smile widening. “Julian, interesting…”
Aurora, sensing the coldness in his gesture, pushed Julian away. “Young Master Barnet, aren’t you being childish?”
“It’s not my fault my Little Bunny is so attractive. You’ve only been at the company for a short time and already you attract so much attention,” Julian teased as he lightly touched her nose.
“That person is my relative; don’t think too much. Does every man have improper thoughts about me?” she said, somewhat speechlessly.