Even though she knew they would meet again, Arya did not expect it to be so soon or so sudden.
Approaching rush hour, people were milling around the New Era Plaza. Everyone hurried slightly bent over and walked through the breeze, briskly going down the busy street.
Ethan's tall figure stood steadily within the crowd. His cold face was still handsome as ever. The only difference from three years ago was his newfound maturity.
Arya thought to herself, 
“It’s no big deal to act as if I don’t know the person.”
She tore her eyes away and focused on her documents. As she turned around and acted as if she did not see anyone, that certain someone called out to her and stopped her.
“Arya!”
Arya paused and held onto her documents tightly. Her fingers became pale and she put on a bitter smile before continuing to move forward. Her assistant saw what happened and did not say anything, just following loyally.
Ethan's expression darkened. He quickly tried to catch up and held Arya by the shoulder. 
“Arya! Stop, let’s talk!”
Arya was then forced to stop. She looked up at him and put on a smile, but her voice sounded dry and hoarse. 
“What else do we have to talk about?”
Her voice sounded calm and peaceful. She moved her shoulder away as Ethan looked at her. She closed the document and handed it over to her assistant.
“Be careful about the latter part of the operation. Do a fresh market research tomorrow morning and hand it to me next Monday. Also, send me the third phase of the Grand Waves Villa project to me. I need it by tomorrow morning,” Arya instructed simply.
“Got it, Director Arya!” Assistant Bella nodded. 
“Director Arya, just now, Richard sent the data for Imperial Sky Entertainment City over. Please take a look at it!”
Bella handed a blue folder to Arya.
Arya took it and flipped through it. She scanned through it and nodded. 
“Mmm, seems fine. That’s all for today. Send the things back to the office and you can finish for the day. Get the car over here.”
She closed the documents and handed the keys to Bella.
“Alright, Director Arya!”
...
She had changed a lot in the past three years.
The once-peaceful Arya was nowhere to be found anymore. What replaced her was the current distant and hostile Arya. She emitted the aura of someone detached yet capable and firm.
Ethan looked down at the cold street lamp, then glanced up to the girl across him. After some thought, he went up to her.
“Arya, I admit that I betrayed you in the past...”
He stopped behind her and then looked in the direction she was facing. The sky was dark outside with thick clouds covering it. It appeared all grayish. He blinked, then sighed,
“Sorry, Arya... If this can make you feel better, I hope you don’t blame it on anyone else... Just blame it all on me...”
For a brief moment, Arya felt a heavy pressure on her chest and she almost passed out.
However, her proud and stubborn self would never allow her to show her weakness in front of everyone else. She chuckled without even looking at him as she gazed at the gray sky. 
“I thought like many others you’d ask me ‘Hello, how are you?’, but it seems...”
She did not want to think about who was the traitor anymore. She did not want to relive the suffering she had experienced all these years. She did not want to know anything about them, yet her heart still felt like gray clouds. Without a huge downpour or a violent tornado, it would not go away.
Arya, you’ve overestimated your determination.
Why are you so sad?
Because you never stopped caring.
Why?
I’m not sure...
She took a breath and turned over to look at the cold shadows below and then realized the sky had grown dark. The street lights started to light up, the refracted and unbalanced light seeming lonely on the ground.
She watched the crowd walking about in the plaza and sighed, 
“I really wished... we never knew each other... that I never met you. Then, at least, I wouldn’t have to suffer.”
She turned away and walked towards the row of streetlights. She did not look at him, her slender figure passing through the evening streets. 
“I’ve already let go. We’re strangers from this point onwards, so please don’t bother me ever again and I’ll do the same...”
She left him with these words and her figure disappeared among the lonely street lights like the wind.
As Ethan watched her slowly disappear from his vision, he felt something in his chest as if something was leaving him. He clenched his fists as if he was trying to grab onto that something, yet his hands were empty. He simply could not catch anything...
He looked up at the lonely street lights and was suddenly reminded of many things —
Many years ago, a girl with two movie tickets stood under these street lights and waited for him for an entire night just to invite him out for a movie.
A long, long time ago, that girl would go a thousand miles through several cities just to get him Eason Chan’s autographed CD.
A long, long time ago...
Back then, things were really simple. They were very innocent.
He was grateful for everything she had done for him. During his time abroad, he would sometimes ask his friends to check up on her and was relieved to know that she was doing well.
Gratitude was not loved. Many people could spare gratitude for others, but not love. He could only apologize to Arya.
However, when he saw her turn her back on him and leave, he felt sorrow well up inside him as if he had just lost something important, something he could never get back again...
...
The car sped all the way. Arya first brought the documents back to the company. By the time she came out, it was already after working hours, and the sky had already turned dark outside.
Downstairs, her assistant Bella bade her goodbye. “Director Arya, I’ll go home first. Drive safely!”
Arya looked up at the still night sky. She thought about it, then said, 
“Get in my car. It’s on the way. I’ll give you a ride.”
“There’s no need, Director Arya. There’s still the town bus at this time anyway! It’s too troublesome. I don’t want to trouble you.” Bella smiled in gratitude.
“The town bus should be quite crowded at this hour. Coincidentally, I want to go to the tea shop near your place for some tea leaves,” Arya calmly said before taking out the car keys from her pocket and marching over to the driver’s seat. She pulled the car door open and very quickly hopped in.
Bella hesitated for a moment before she leaped into the front passenger seat. She put on her seatbelt and thanked her with a broad grin. “Thank you, Director Arya!”
Arya nodded slightly before she casually put a CD into the player before starting the car. Then, they were on their way.
The songs that blasted out of the speakers were the perfect music for speeding. Bella thought the music was familiar, yet she could not put her finger on their titles. She turned to look at Arya, noticing that she was leaning her head in one hand while she draped the arm on the car window. The other hand gripped the steering wheel steadily as her weary eyes stared ahead. A cool breeze continued to pour in from the car window, riling up her beautiful hair...
She somehow felt a faint air of repression and desolation.
Bella hesitated but she still could not help herself. 
“Director Arya, have you been worn out recently? You seem very tired...”
When she heard this, Arya was startled for a moment. Her calm eyes rested on Bella. “I’m fine.”
“Director Arya, the colleagues in the office have actually been secretly talking about you...”
Bella suddenly wanted to find a topic to chat about with the girl beside her. Even though Director Arya usually looked very distant, she understood that Director Arya was actually a very approachable and very kind person. She was very caring and considerate towards her subordinates.
When her father had fallen sick and was hospitalized, the expensive medical costs overwhelmed her. After Director Xi found out, she immediately handed her $50,000 to help her resolve the emergency, and she had been immensely grateful to Director Arya.
She even heard that she frequently looked after the orphanage in the north of the city. She offered that orphanage a lot of help.
“What do they say?” Arya asked plainly, well aware that the employees of every company would have some internal gossip, which was usually about the upper management, so she expected it.
“They say that you’re talented and good-looking, yet you’re very mysterious. They wonder whether you’re single or not. A lot of the male colleagues in the company want to court you, Director Arya, but they don’t dare to... However, I think that the person that gets to marry you’ll definitely be extraordinary. They’d also be very lucky...”
She felt that Arya was in a rather mild mood, so Bella felt comfortable saying these things.
“Lucky?”
Arya muttered softly, then she laughed coldly. Self-mockery flashed across her eyes, then her gaze dimmed again.
When she noticed that Arya had suddenly fallen silent, Bella suddenly did not dare to say anything further and the car instantly fell into silence again.
She dropped Bella at the tea shop nearby and picked the tea leaves up. When she drove past a high-class entertainment club under Emperor Entertainment City, she stopped.
Even though the place was not technically the center of the city, it was still crowded.
Arya walked in when it was bustling inside. The resident singer on stage was passionately singing a moving song, unlike the usual bars that always blasted music when one entered. This entertainment club was quieter compared to other clubs.
Arya had been here a few times although she did not frequent such places. If it were not for the fact that she felt a stifled upset feeling in her heart, she would not have come.

Arya sat down in a dark corner of the bar when the bartender smiled and asked her, 
“Miss, what would you like to drink?”
“A bottle of whiskey please,” Arya said softly. When she saw the bartender’s slightly shocked reaction, she just shifted her gaze downwards.
“Miss, whiskey is pretty strong. I’d suggest you get something else. Girls don’t really order this.” 
The bartender was a very handsome fellow and was doing his job as he smiled and added,
“A lot of girls like to drink things like Tears of a Lover or whatnot. Do you want to try that?”
“There’s no need. Just get me the whiskey,” Arya simply said and she lifted a hand to her hurting head.
“Miss, for your whiskey, do you need...”
Before the bartender could finish, Arya had already raised her hand to stop him from continuing, then she picked up the bottle and poured herself a drink. She frowned and pulled her attention back to her drink, downing the glass.
Once she emptied the glass, the burn instantly spread down from her throat and then to her chest. In that instant, it seemed as if her entire being was being burnt away.
The dazzling lights flickered and lit up this somber corner. On stage, the song changed one after another. Arya did not know how many glasses she had drunk, but no matter how many she downed, she could still vaguely feel clear-headed.
There were some things that she would like to forget, yet she could not no matter what. Not only could she not forget them, but at this moment, the thoughts appeared incredibly clearly in her mind, swallowing whatever remaining self-control she had.
Ethan severing all relations with her, Victoria's tearful look begging for her forgiveness, her father’s hostility, her mother’s indifference, and everyone’s warmth gradually fading away...
She had asked herself more than a thousand times if she could redeem herself and make all of her past stays, yet her answer always remained the same: cold air.
How could she make it all stay, how should she move them?
She had tried everything and put great effort in, but no matter what she did, she still could not change anything. She still could not get her parents to reconcile, and she could not force Ethan to return to her side and love her deeply.
Perhaps he had never belonged to Arya. How could that count as getting him to return to her side then?
Arya lowered her head and chuckled at herself. Her slightly hazy line of sight passed through the swirling liquid in her glass and she looked in dismay at her unbearably haggard appearance. Suddenly, she felt exceptionally bitter.
Look at you, Arya...
Look at your battered self right now. You look just like a clown buried in stagnant water. When will you truly understand that once some things leave you, no matter how hard you try, they’ll never come back?
Never ever come back...
The sky turned dark. Not many cars were on the road now. The wind breezed through the streets and it started to drizzle. Soon after that, New York was covered in a thin mist, and the dried-out roads became all wet again.
Arya staggered out of the club. While she could still think clearly, her whole body was swaying from side to side and she could not even stand properly.
She did not remember how much she drank. She just remembered that she felt the burn at first, and then was numbed by the sensation. Then, at one point, she felt nothing at all.
She clung to things around her to help stabilize her body. Doing her best to go over to her car, she took her car keys out and wanted to open the door, but her hands shivered uncontrollably and the keys fell to the ground.
Cold rain and a strong breeze passed through her. She felt like she was thrown into a burning fire at one point, then thrown into an icy cold world in the next second. The strong blast of air was causing her a headache. She suddenly felt a searing pain in her chest and she lost all her strength, slumping onto the floor right beside her car.
Her eyes started to burn. The pain in her chest and the suppressed feelings were almost breaking her.
There were so many times that she wanted to just cry it out. She wanted to just get drunk and forget about everything, but her calm conscience forbade her from doing so.
Her eyes were dry, so dry that no tears could come out from them.
Her tears had probably dried out many years ago, and there were no tears left to cry now.
Ethan, you’ll never know how much effort I put in to make you love me...
She thought that for every ounce of extra effort she put in, the warmth between them could accumulate and maybe one day, he would turn around and realize how good she was. After all, they had a marriage contract, didn’t they?
...
The rain infiltrated the cold and lonely city along with the cold wind. Maybe Arya was not the only one feeling miserable in this cold rain, but this was the first time feeling the heart-wrenching pain so clearly.
She had not even felt this sort of excruciating pain when Ethan left her coldly. She thought it might be better if she just passed out. At least, she did not have to suffer.
...
“Master, that looks like Director Arya!” Assistant Rick suddenly exclaimed as the car moved forward.
Xavier frowned as he was scrutinizing the data on his laptop. He raised his head and looked in the direction Rick pointed in. He saw a woman in a beige windbreaker squatting on the ground of the parking lot, seeming to look for something.
“Brother, it’s Ms. Arya!” James, who was driving, recognized Arya instantly.
“It’s Director Arya, alright. She seems to be drunk and it’s pouring outside!”
Rick was the assistant to the previous president of Knight's Inc Corporation, David Knight, and he was now the assistant to Xavier. He used to work in the head office and knew Arya. He always had a favorable impression of the smart and beautiful Director Arya.
...
Arya had no idea how long she searched for. She could not find her keys. Waves and waves of dizziness hit her. Her outfit was all soaked through and she barely managed to stand by leaning on her car.
She was very drunk when Xavier's car stopped beside her. Her eyes could not focus properly and she seemed a little surprised when Xavier appeared before her. Her soft lips opened slightly and she was about to say something, but nothing came out of her mouth. Before she could, she blacked out.
Xavier swiftly stepped forward and held her falling body.
“Brother, it really is Ms. Arya. Her wound hasn’t recovered yet!” James frowned as he looked at the girl Xavier held. He did not miss her hand that was still bandaged. A strong stench of alcohol permeated the air and it was pretty uncomfortable.
“That’s some strong alcohol I’m smelling. Just how much did Director Arya drink?”
Rick was surprised to find the unconscious Arya. He had no memory of Arya being drunk, not even during company dinners.
“Brother, let’s get back into the car. The rain is getting heavier!” James quickly opened the car door.
Xavier frowned and looked at the girl in his arms. He glanced at the ground and found the keys. Rick picked it up as Xavier turned around and hurried towards the car.
“Where do you stay?” Xavier asked Arya as he helped her into the car. However, Arya was already sound asleep and did not hear him at all.
“Cough...”
Arya leaned towards the window uncomfortably after coughing for a little. Her body shivered and curled up. Her hair seemed pretty wet too.
“Brother, where should we go?” James asked from the driver’s seat.
Xavier raised his head and realized that they were at a crossroads. He turned and look at the drunk Arya as he was silent for a second. Then, he said, “Go back to Maple Residence.”
At Maple Residence, Xavier's private villa in the Grand Waves Villa area.
He then turned to take a blanket from the back to cover Arya's quivering body. Afterward, he took the documents beside him and continued reading.
Noticing that, James quietly raised the temperature in the car.
The car passed through the rain and drove towards the north of the city. After they passed the long and wide highways, they finally reached the entrance of a high-class housing area.
“Master!” The security guard recognized Xavier's car and greeted the quiet man politely. He then opened the gates and let the car in.
After going through some winding roads, they arrived in front of a villa.
James quickly parked the car and opened the door.
Xavier put his documents away and turned to the sleeping lady. He gave it some thought before exiting the car and carrying the girl in his arms.
“Get the documents into my study room.” He left with those words before walking into his villa.