CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 70: DO YOU LIKE ME?

She cared, she cared too much!

But she couldn’t say that.

If she did, Eugene probably wouldn’t go.

If he couldn’t calm Vivian down, and if Vivian went crazy and did something rash, all the blame would fall on her, and it might even implicate Angela.

Her father-in-law would undoubtedly use this to force Eugene to divorce her, and Vivian’s parents wouldn’t let her or Angela off the hook either.

For the greater good, she had to endure, no matter how much it pained her. Eugene probably thought the same, which was why he had to go see Vivian.

Victoria Sinclair smiled and shook her head, "I don’t mind. I know you only see her as a sister, a childhood friend, a buddy, never as a woman. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have a place here."

Victoria appeared composed and calm, as clear as a bright mirror, putting one at ease, but Eugene didn’t seem happy. A touch of barely perceptible disappointment flashed in his eyes as he released her hand and fastened his seatbelt, "I’ll take you home first, it’s no problem if I visit her later. From what I know about her, there’s a high chance she’s faking it."

He started the car and drove away from Splendor Estate.

"Maybe she’s not faking it." Victoria’s tone was gentle, but her heart was heavy with anxiety, "After all, she genuinely likes you."

Eugene was dismissive, "You’re overthinking it."

"I’m not. She really likes you, with the kind of feelings between a man and a woman, not the bond between siblings."

Eugene’s expression darkened, the veins in his arm faintly bulging as he gripped the steering wheel, remaining silent for a long time.

As he processed this, the atmosphere in the car sank to freezing point.

Suddenly, Eugene asked, "What about you?"

Victoria was startled, turning her head to look at him.

He was driving intently, his demeanor serious.

Victoria hadn’t yet responded when Eugene urgently continued, "Do you like me?"

Victoria was a bit nervous being asked, shy and reserved, she couldn’t voice her thoughts immediately, so she answered differently: "You’re my husband!"

The implication being, I must like you, otherwise I wouldn’t have married you.

But Eugene didn’t seem interested in guessing her thoughts.

He gripped the steering wheel more tightly, the atmosphere surrounding him gradually turning cold, his tone carrying more weight and a hint of irritation, "Whether it’s perfunctory or a lie, is it that hard to just say you like me?"

Hearing him say this, Victoria panicked.

Now, if she claimed she liked him, it would truly feel like perfunctory or a lie, even carrying a sense of coercion.

But if she didn’t say it, he seemed angry.

The anger was so evident that she couldn’t pretend not to see it.

She regretted a bit, she should have boldly confessed when Eugene first asked the question.

"I like you." Victoria lowered her head, knowing Eugene might misunderstand her words as a coerced lie, she still mustered the courage to confess her feelings.

Eugene smirked coldly, letting out a light snort, lowering the car window, one hand on the steering wheel, the other resting on the window, letting the air in.

Clearly, he didn’t believe her.

Victoria felt a dull ache in her heart.

She had confessed, yet received no response, making the atmosphere all the more subtle and oppressive.

Everything was fine when they left in the morning.

But after Vivian’s incident, some bad chemistry developed between her and Eugene, making their relationship a bit strained.

Perhaps it was because she had listened to Eugene’s story of his first love.

Or perhaps her father-in-law had said something unknown to Eugene.

Anyway, both of them were burdened with heavy thoughts.

Eugene dropped her off at the community gate and then drove away.

She stood by the roadside, quietly watching her husband turn to comfort another "emotionally wounded" woman, yet she was powerless.

Out of necessity, she had to willingly accept this fact.

She wasn’t as magnanimous as she had imagined.

Love is just that selfish.

The thought of Vivian crying in Eugene’s arms made her uncomfortable, her heart sour.

The house was cold and deserted, she could only go back to reading and studying.

Victoria changed direction, walking back to the office to work overtime.

——

The next morning, when Victoria woke up, she discovered that Eugene hadn’t returned all night. There was a late-night message from him on her phone: "Vivian attempted suicide, I won’t be home tonight, don’t overthink it."

This was the second time.

The last time was Renee, this time it’s Vivian.

She didn’t call to inquire, as she knew where Eugene was, what he was doing, and why he wasn’t coming home.

After Renee’s incident, she realized one thing.

For a couple to be together happily, they must trust each other unconditionally.

If trust can’t be established, then it’s better to just get a divorce, to avoid tormenting oneself every day with groundless suspicions.

Victoria had breakfast, cleaned the house thoroughly, and headed out to work.

Since it was a Sunday, there was only one on-call R&D staff at the office.

Victoria had just put down her bag when her phone rang.

Seeing the caller ID, it was her brother.

She gently slid her fingertip and connected, putting it to her ear, "Good morning, brother!"

Timothy Sinclair’s voice was urgent, carrying a sob, frantic and tense: "Sis, something happened to Little Ze, I’m at the hospital, I don’t have enough money for the medical bills, could you... could you lend me some..."

Victoria sprang up, grabbed her bag, and dashed out, "Brother, which hospital are you at, tell me the address?"

"The First People’s Hospital."

"How much money?"

"Still short by tens of thousands..."

Victoria immediately ended the call, transferred all the fifty thousand from her Alipay, then sent a WeChat message to her brother, and called a ride-share to rush to the hospital.

Victoria panted as she ran into the hospital’s surgery department.

Molly was sitting on a bench crying, Timothy was squatting in a corner with his head in his hands.

Victoria’s face was pale, anxiously walking in, "Brother, sister-in-law, what’s wrong with Little Ze?"

Molly looked up, glaring at Victoria with tear-filled eyes, but did not speak, turning her face to the side.

Timothy lifted his weary, weathered face from the corner, his eyes bloodshot, his grief mixed with fear.

Seeing Victoria approaching, he stood up quickly, ran to her, and grasped her hands with trembling hands, his voice carrying the most helpless sob of a man, "Sis, if something happens to Little Ze, what should I do?"

"Brother, don’t panic. What’s wrong with Little Ze?" Victoria was very worried about her nephew’s condition, her heart also fluttering with unease.

Timothy’s voice trembled, "Mom and Dad went on a trip with the senior group, leaving the child in sister-in-law’s care. I’m managing the fruit shop business, handling big group purchases and supermarket deliveries, and I also have to run business errands, leaving me no time to take care of Little Ze..."

Molly, listening on the side, suddenly burst into anger, shouting, "Stop making excuses. You’d rather mess around outside than come home to help me with the household chores and take care of Little Ze. You bear responsibility too."

Victoria ignored Molly’s fury and continued asking, "Then what happened next? What about Little Ze?"

Tears welled in Timothy’s eyes, swallowing down a lump, he leaned in nervously to confess, "A few days ago, the kindergarten assigned homework to Little Ze, your sister-in-law had a bad temper, she became very impatient while tutoring him, thinking Little Ze was too dumb, and hit him. Last night, she was teaching him ancient poetry, couldn’t teach him despite the long time, and hit Little Ze again. By the time I got home, Little Ze was already asleep, so I didn’t pay much attention, but this morning he wouldn’t wake up."

At this, Timothy covered his face, almost breaking into tears, "It’s all my negligence as a father. Little Ze was always cared for by Mom and Dad, but they went on vacation, I should’ve put aside my work to look after Little Ze, I... sob... sob..."

Timothy covered his face, squatting down, sobbing loudly.

Molly’s eyes were red, she glanced around, glared at him disdainfully, and gritted her teeth, hissing, "Why are you crying, such a grown man, it’s utterly embarrassing."