Bought For A Baby, Kept For A Lifetime-Chapter 31: Her

This was a miracle!

No, if there was anything more outstanding than a miracle.

And this said miracle wasn’t just the fact that Andrew had managed to sleep and found a cure for his insomnia, it was the fact that someone... no, actually a woman had managed to make Andrew Sterling actually look flustered.

His ears had reddened in an unsuppressible blush.

Shawn couldn’t help but laugh out loud as he circled the desk to reach his friend, who was looking out the magnificent windows.

"Dude, I need answers. Have you seen your..."

"I have meetings to attend to, so if you have nothing serious to discuss with me, scram," Andrew spoke quickly and controlled in a business fashion as he packed up a few files on his desk and began making for the door.

Shawn quickly ran after him.

"You always find one way or the other to evade my questions. I’m your doctor here. Shouldn’t you be the one looking for me for your consultations? But you always make me come to you and still treat me like this. Do you know how many lives I could be saving in the time I’m coming to attend to you?"

Andrew spoke with nonchalance, not stopping or slowing down his steps as he handed his files to the secretary, who had immediately run after him the moment he came out of the office.

"I pay you enough to take your time. Time is indeed money, and I’ve already paid for that time. What I do with it is left to me, even if I end up sending you on errands instead of using your medical expertise."

Shawn touched a hand to his chest, feigning hurt as they rounded a hallway and entered the elevator.

"Ouch. I’m here not just for the money but for friendship. Don’t tell me you haven’t always known that?"

Andrew didn’t reply. Instead, he looked down at his watch and stepped out of the elevator when it opened, disappearing into the conference room where Shawn couldn’t follow.

The latter could only stand outside the conference room, looking thoughtful.

"He obviously ran away from answering my questions. I’ll have to find my answers elsewhere." Excitement was shining in Shawn’s eyes as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

On his way outside the company, he was rushing to get into his car when he caught a glimpse of someone. At first, his subconscious told him this person looked familiar, but he brushed it off until the person fully turned in his direction. He stiffened and stopped himself from entering his car.

A young woman with long wavy brown hair was standing outside the Sterling Enterprises company building. She was on her phone talking to someone, and a pleasant smile showed on her face.

"It’s her!" Shawn muttered to himself.

In this moment, his usually playful demeanor had vanished. There was an air of seriousness on his face as he stared unblinkingly at the woman.

She seemed to feel his gaze and raised her eyes to meet his. She frowned slightly, as if not recognizing the strange man staring at her.

Shawn showed a small, bitter smile before entering his car so as not to make the young woman uncomfortable with his stare.

"Annelise Thompson. I never thought I’d actually see you here," he muttered to himself, eyes looking lost in a distant memory.

The more he remembered that memory, the more his eyes showed a deep-rooted sadness—an unbearable kind of pain kept within for a long time.

He started his car and drove away, but his hand couldn’t help but touch a certain spot on the left side of his chest, as if that place held the darkest, most painful memories that shouldn’t be allowed to surface no matter what.

His handsome face banished the sadness and turned rigid with determination.

Anne’s gaze followed the silver Rolls Royce that had just driven past her. The man she just saw standing outside the car wasn’t someone she knew at all. She wracked her memory, but she was certain she really hadn’t seen this face before. So why had he been looking at her like he knew her?

Anne thought about it, forgetting that she was on a call with someone.

"Hey Anne, are you still there?" a female voice came from the phone. The voice sounded playful and cute.

Anne’s bright smile returned. Perhaps having received a positive call from Doctor Steve earlier and now another one from a friend she hadn’t heard from in a long time had put her in a good mood.

"Miss Jasmine, aren’t we supposed to be strangers now? A friend that goes ghost for three years automatically becomes a stranger," Anne replied.

"Come on, Anne. Won’t you forgive me, please? I promise I’ll explain everything to you when I return."

Anne stopped walking, masking the excitement on her face. "Are you really coming back?"

"Yes, tomorrow to be precise. I can’t wait to see you again!" Jasmine’s cute voice raised higher in excitement.

Anne had been so excited when she realized the strange number calling her for hours today turned out to be her old friend. Three years ago, Jasmine had left the country, and after a few times of contact after she left, Anne hadn’t heard from her anymore.

Anne knew that distance made people grow apart. When they would talk on the phone, most times Jasmine seemed distant. When they drifted apart without contact, Anne realized perhaps her friend was outgrowing her in those few years. It wasn’t an unusual thing to happen, but she was really happy to reconnect with her old friend now. Even though time had passed, the memories they shared together in the past were still fresh in her mind.

"I can’t wait to see you too," Anne replied.

The next day, Anne waited eagerly at Verizon City Airport.

Pulling a lilac-colored luggage, a young woman with adorable features and wide baby-blue eyes could be seen looking around for someone at the airport.

If there was one thing Jasmine was looking forward to returning to in this city where she had nothing but bad memories, it was seeing her old friend again.

I guess Anne is the only good memory I have here. Whether here or in Canada, all I have are a stack of bad memories. The good ones are worth holding onto because they’re the only sources of light.

With a light smile on her face, Jasmine searched around once more until her gaze landed on the familiar figure.

Her friend had changed a lot. Anne used to be the beauty most people would stop to compliment. Who would have thought three years would have enhanced and shaped her former childlike beauty into that of a delicately grown woman—more eye-catching and hard to look away from.

Jasmine couldn’t contain her excitement as she screamed for her friend in a loud voice, ignoring the fact that many people had turned to look at her.

Anne, who was looking in a totally different direction, heard the familiar voice and her head whipped in that direction instantly. She sighted Jasmine bouncing towards her.

Three years didn’t seem to have changed much on her friend, except for the fact that her long strawberry-blonde hair was now a short and bouncy ash blonde with purple highlights.

She was still the same bright ball of energy as she threw her arms wide open and embraced Anne really tight.

"It’s so great to be home. I’ve missed you!!!"

"I’ve missed you too! You’ve grown taller," Anne remarked, noticing how Jasmine was now a few inches taller than her.

"I should have gone into modeling, shouldn’t I?" Jasmine replied laughingly.

"You totally should. It’s not late yet. It would suit you."

Jasmine merely laughed, shaking her head. They talked laughingly, catching up lightly as they proceeded to the new apartment Jasmine would be staying at while she was here.

"Won’t you be staying at home?" Anne had asked curiously.

"Home is anywhere I can live and have peace. This new place is home for me now." Jasmine’s bright energy was still intact, but Anne detected a hint of sadness to her voice as she keyed in the password to her apartment.

Three years ago, Anne could still remember the chaos in Jasmine’s life before she had left for Canada. That family chaos had almost broken the always lively girl Jasmine used to be. Seeing the look on Jasmine’s face now, she realized perhaps it wasn’t over.

She suddenly felt a pang in her heart for the three years she’d been separated from her friend. She regretted losing contact with Jasmine back then. But in all honesty, Anne had tried everything to keep contact, to reach out even when Jasmine pulled away from her. But when the latter suddenly seemed to completely cut her off three years ago, Anne had given up.

She knew she had put in the effort back then, but Anne regretted giving up. Especially because she knew who Jasmine’s family had raised her to become.

They entered the bright yet empty-looking space with only a few pieces of furniture.

Jasmine sighed exasperatedly, "It seems I have a lot of work to do to make this place look like home."

The more Anne watched Jasmine, the more she realized something had really changed about her. Though her energetic self remained, there was still an air of maturity. It was the kind of maturity one would see in someone who a major event had changed, but they’d still try to hold onto who they’ve always been. However, that scar would still remain.

"Jasmine, what happened to you?" Anne could no longer hold back the question. For some reason, she feared hearing what Jasmine would say. She feared hearing what difficulty this ray of sunshine had to go through.

Jasmine stopped amid roaming here and there, fixing things kept crookedly.

She smiled evasively, "What do you mean what happened to me? I’m perfectly fine."

Anne caught her arm again before she could slip away. "There’s something wrong, and I understand we might not be as close as we used to be anymore but..."

Before Anne could finish talking, she caught the tears that had gathered in Jasmine’s eyes. Anne’s eyes searched Jasmine’s in shock. That was because in the past, no matter the chaos Jasmine had to go through, she never shed a tear.

She would jump around, mask everything with unbeatable energy and a happy smile, but she wouldn’t allow anyone to see her tears. Anne couldn’t believe Jasmine was crying in this moment.

Jasmine did everything to hold back her tears. She wanted to be strong like she used to be, but it was undeniable that the former strength had been broken out of her. The tears began pouring down like a broken dam. She could hardly find her voice as she broke down completely.

Anne didn’t know what to do when her friend suddenly began to cry so brokenly.

Three years was enough time to pull one away, yet it was still enough time to break one’s soul.

Anne would know—after all, she had sold her own soul in a span of time much shorter than that.