30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 204: A Lesson in Humility

Though arrogant and overbearing in his dealings, Ethan was always low-key regarding the media. There wasn’t even a clear, frontal photo of him in the press. When they were at KFC last time, he had refused to let anyone take pictures of him.

"Didn’t you say you wanted to take photos?!" Ethan snorted, his voice tinged with annoyance.

She had been staring at the outfits intently, her eyes practically glued to them.

"It’s not necessary."

"I said we’re taking photos, so we’re taking photos!"

Lily glared at Ethan. He was only doing this because of her, yet his tone was terrible...

Would it kill him to be a little nicer?!

"This way, please. We have a professional studio and photographer here, and I promise we’ll make you both look fantastic," the salesperson said with a smile.

Honestly, they didn’t need much help to look amazing. The two of them were so naturally beautiful and well-matched.

With Ethan holding her hand, Lily followed him into the studio. It was well-equipped, even with simple wedding dresses and children’s toys.

Lily slipped into the parent-child outfit in the dressing room. The dress was a layered, beige-colored tulle with an off-shoulder top and small accessories, giving off a youthful and energetic vibe.

She looked at herself in the mirror. She wasn’t any worse than Aiko Nakamura, except... her bust wasn’t as "voluptuous."

But who needed to be that voluptuous anyway?

She was perfectly fine the way she was, Lily thought to herself.

"Miss, please come this way for makeup," a makeup artist approached her with a smile.

Before Lily could respond, Ethan’s authoritative voice said, "She doesn’t need makeup!"

Makeup just made her look too artificial.

Lily turned toward him and saw Ethan step out, wearing the T-shirt from the parent-child set. The tight fit accentuated his perfectly sculpted physique—his muscles and tall, handsome figure were on full display.

She realized it was the first time she had seen Ethan in a t-shirt. He looked... youthful and sun-kissed.

Seeing the word "youthful" associated with Ethan was a rarity.

Ethan, however, seemed uncomfortable in the t-shirt, tugging at the collar as he looked at her. His dark eyes froze on her for a moment, a flicker of amazement crossing his gaze.

This woman could pull off any style and make it her own.

Pure, clean, untainted by the world, with an inherent pride in her eyes.

"Wow... You two are such a perfect match. With these outfits, we can shoot a ’young parents’ sweet photo style," the photographer said excitedly from the side.

Lily blinked and said, "I want a ’queen’ style."

"Huh?" The photographer was dumbfounded.

Queen style?

The woman standing beside the man was petite and delicate, while the man exuded a much stronger presence. How could they possibly do "queen style"?

"What’s ’queen style’?" Ethan had no idea what these various "styles" meant.

"You’ll see once we start," Lily said mischievously, grabbing Ethan’s hand and pulling him toward the camera.

"Sir, please kneel on one knee, and then the lady will bend slightly and rest her elbow on your shoulder." The photographer instructed them from behind the camera.

Sir, lady...

Lily paused for a moment. They were indeed a young couple, but they weren’t legally husband and wife...

"Okay, both of you look this way," the photographer clapped his hands.

Lily snapped out of her thoughts, bent down slightly, and rested her elbow on Ethan’s shoulder, adopting a regal expression for the camera.

"Sir, your gaze should be a bit softer so you don’t overshadow your lady’s aura," the photographer suggested.

Kneeling on one knee, Ethan realized something was off and glared at the photographer, his eyes fierce. "What do you mean, ’softer’?!"

Why the hell was he being ordered around like a puppet?

"Uh... it’s because your lady wants to do ’queen style’." The photographer stammered, intimidated by Ethan’s menacing glare.

"Queen style?" Ethan stood up, turning to glare at Lily. "You’re messing with me, aren’t you?!"

"You’re only doing this because of me... Can’t you indulge me a little?" Lily said softly.

Ethan always acted like a tyrant around her. Now, it was just a photo—what harm would it do to let her have the upper hand for once?

"Why do I have to kneel?!" Ethan frowned, clearly unhappy.

Suppose she wanted to play the queen, fine. But why did he have to kneel?!

"If the lady is the queen, then the gentleman has to submit to her. That’s how we highlight the queen’s aura," the photographer quickly chimed in, trying to mediate the situation.

"Exactly," Lily nodded firmly.

"Why the hell should I take such a ridiculous photo?!" Ethan grumbled, turning and storming off without looking back.

Lily stood there, dumbfounded, watching him leave.

It was just a photo. Was there really a need to get so angry? If he didn’t want to take it, that was fine—she hadn’t forced him to.

Feeling slightly sorry for the photographer, Lily apologized, "I’m sorry."

She was already regretting taking these photos. Her mood darkened as she resigned herself to changing out of the dress.

Suddenly, Ethan returned, standing there glaring at her.

"I’ll change out of the dress, and we can leave," Lily said quietly, thinking he had come to hurry her up. Her face showed no trace of a smile. It wasn’t worth getting upset over something so small.

Since they had committed to this relationship, she had no reason not to cherish it. Fighting over small things only caused unnecessary damage.

"Leave? We haven’t even taken the photo yet!"

Ethan snorted, grabbing her arm. Lily looked at him blankly and said, "I don’t want you to do this if it’s forced. I’m not that eager to take the picture."

"Stop talking, and let’s take the photo!" Ethan grumbled, pulling her along.

What kind of man was he if he couldn’t even fulfill his woman’s wishes? So what if he had to kneel? It was no big deal!

"I don’t want to take it anymore!" Lily pulled her hand away, her voice rising in frustration.

He would take the photo, then leave, then come back again... Did he ever think about how she felt?

Everyone in the studio stared at them, surprised to see Lily raising her voice. They had assumed she would be entirely submissive to Ethan, but here she was, yelling at him.

Were they about to witness a domestic dispute in the studio?

Ethan glared at her, his gaze sharp enough to pierce through her.

Not wanting to meet his eyes, Lily turned her head away, expressionless, her eyes stinging slightly.

After a long pause.

"I’m sorry," Ethan suddenly said, his voice quiet.

Lily looked up in shock, staring at him in disbelief. Did she hear wrong? Ethan apologizing to her?

Ethan’s expression was uncomfortable, and his dark eyes were fixed on her. "I’m sorry," he repeated.

Lily’s eyes instantly reddened, and she almost burst into tears.

She had told herself countless times not to care about such small things, but the truth was, she felt hurt—hurt...

She knew Ethan loved her deeply, but his temper was hard to change. When he got angry, he often stormed off without thinking about how she felt, leaving her alone and sad.

But now...

He had said sorry to her.

"I won’t walk away by myself again!" Ethan said firmly as if making a promise. He slowly raised his hand, his long fingers brushing against her reddened eyes, albeit awkwardly. "Don’t cry."

He knew he shouldn’t have walked off earlier, leaving her behind...

He was used to being proud and arrogant, used to people following him wherever he went.

Earlier, when she didn’t follow him, he had felt panicked... He was afraid she wouldn’t come after him.

She wasn’t his servant; she was his woman.

He understood now that he needed to break out of that habit.

"I’m not crying," Lily said stubbornly, blinking hard to keep her tears at bay. "Remember what you just promised. If you ever leave without me again or hang up on me, I won’t forgive you."

He couldn’t keep leaving her behind like that... It hurt her.

"Don’t you dare!" Ethan growled. Was she threatening him?!

"I dare."

This woman! Constantly pushing her luck!

Ethan’s face darkened, and he hugged her tightly, holding her fragile body close.

She felt so delicate like she could break under the slightest pressure...

I’m sorry.

Ethan repeated the words in his heart.

He didn’t want to see her on the verge of tears again.

"Alright, alright, it’s all good now. Let’s continue with the photos," the photographer sighed with relief. Finally, they could get back to shooting.

The rest of the shoot went surprisingly "smoothly." Although Ethan was still irritated about playing the submissive role, he cooperated with the photographer’s directions as best as possible.

But throughout the shoot, his grumbling never ceased—

"Do I have to kneel again?! How many kneeling shots do you need?! Are you kidding me?!"

"Why is she twisting my ear?!"

"You want her to sit on my back?!"

"If you ask me to kneel one more time, I swear I’ll lose it!"

Did this photographer have a grudge against him?! Why did he have to keep kneeling over and over?

The photo shoot was completed "safely" amidst Ethan’s constant threats...

"We also have some simple wedding dresses here. Would you like to shoot a wedding-themed set as well?" Undeterred by Ethan’s outbursts, the photographer was clearly enjoying the session.

It had been long since he had photographed such a handsome couple who didn’t need any retouching. He couldn’t pass up the opportunity to take a few more shots.

Wedding dresses?

Ethan had never seen Lily in a wedding dress.

His dark eyes gleamed. "Sure."

"No, thank you," Lily said at the exact moment, rejecting the offer.

Wasn’t she the one who wanted to take photos? Why was she refusing?

Ethan looked down at her, and Lily forced a smile. "I’m tired. I don’t want to take any more pictures."

A wedding dress... She wasn’t at the point where she could wear one yet.

She wasn’t a bride waiting to be married.

The makeup artist began undoing Lily’s hair in front of the vanity mirror. When she saw Lily’s ring, she gasped in admiration, "Your wedding ring is beautiful! You’re so lucky, ma’am. That gem must have cost a fortune, right?"

Lily smiled but didn’t respond.

Not every couple shopping in a baby store was married,... just like her and Ethan.

Looking into the mirror, Lily caught Ethan’s reflection as he stood behind her, his gaze fixed on her. Their eyes met, and neither of them looked away.

They stood there, silently gazing at each other, lost in thought.

Had he been watching her the whole time?

What was he thinking about?

"You must have been stunning in your wedding dress. Did you try on a lot of different gowns for the photoshoot? Is that why you don’t want to wear one now?" The makeup artist playfully asked as she continued to undo Lily’s hair.