30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 219: Hats and Heartache

"Don’t you think these hats are beautiful?" Lily smiled as she exited the car and walked into the shop. She tried on various hats—cute and elegant—examining herself in the mirror with each one, unable to decide. "Ethan, which hat looks good?"

Lily seemed genuinely excited, enthusiastically trying on every hat. She looked adorable in all of them.

To Ethan, his woman was the most beautiful, no matter what.

He stood there, staring at her for a long time, unable to take his eyes away.

"Does this hat look good?" Lily asked, wearing a beige woolen hat; her face lit up with a bright smile as she turned to him.

"Hideous," Ethan snorted coldly, though his words didn’t match his feelings.

Hideous? Really?

"Is it the hat that’s ugly, or do I look bad in hats?" Lily asked, her eyes full of curiosity.

"Both are ugly!" Ethan scoffed, glancing at the small shop’s hats, which were cheap and of poor quality. If she wanted a hat, why not go to a designer store?

Lily looked slightly disappointed as she stared at herself in the mirror. Did she really look bad in hats?

But in the coming days, she would have to rely on hats...

Even if they were ugly, it was better than being bald.

"Let me try another one," Lily said, hiding the sadness in her eyes as she removed the hat. Just as she grabbed another to try on, she noticed strands of her hair left inside the woolen hat.

Her body froze, and her face turned pale.

Her hair was falling out again...

She had never lost so much hair before.

Please... not so soon. Even just two more months to enjoy my long hair would be enough.

"What’s wrong?" Ethan asked, noticing her change in expression. He moved toward her, reaching for the hat in her hand.

Lily quickly put the hat back on her head, forcing a smile. "I think this hat looks great on me. I’ll take this one."

Of course, his woman looks good in anything.

"Hideous!" Ethan huffed from his nose, though his eyes sparkled with a hint of affection. Out of habit, he pulled a platinum card from his pocket.

Lily immediately pressed his hand down and handed cash to the shopkeeper instead.

This man... does he think every shop accepts cards like he owns the place?

Watching Lily pay, Ethan’s eyes darkened. Next time, I’m bringing cash.

He hated the sight of a woman paying.

Wearing her new hat, Lily drove slowly down a busy street. "So, what’s fun to do in this city?" she asked.

"There’s a highly regarded God of Wealth temple," Ethan said with a snort, scrolling through local tourist information on his phone.

The God of Wealth temple...

"What else?" she asked.

Ethan, who had already made enough money, thought the temple was better suited for others to visit.

"Dinosaur park, forest park, ocean park..." Ethan listed off a few options, his disdain growing with each one.

To him, all these places could have been more exciting. A trip to the opera or a concert would have been far more worthwhile.

"Let’s go to the ocean park. I want to see the dolphin show," Lily said with a smile. Oh, we’ll need a camera. Do you have any cash, Mr. CEO?"

"I’ve got a card," Ethan replied curtly, knowing he never carried cash. Was this woman mocking him?

"..." Lily didn’t know what to say about a man who had made it a habit never to carry cash.

Since Lily didn’t have enough cash to buy a camera, the two went to a high-end electronics store and purchased a Hasselblad DSLR. For once, Ethan’s card proved helpful.

As they left the store, Lily immediately pointed the camera at them and snapped a photo. When the flash went off, Ethan frowned in displeasure. "Lily Anderson! Give me the camera!"

"Why?" Lily asked, reviewing the picture she had just taken.

"Don’t look at it. Give me the camera!" Ethan demanded.

"No!" Lily had already seen the photo by this point. In the picture, Ethan looked down at her with a gentle gaze, his perfectly defined features softened by the faintest trace of a smile. His expression was tender and affectionate—entirely unlike his usual demeanor.

Lily froze for a moment before breaking into a smile.

This man...

"Give me the camera!" Ethan barked, reaching out to snatch it. Lily looked up at him, her smile widening. "Ethan, you’ve been sneaking looks at me, huh?"

"I wasn’t sneaking!" Ethan glared at her, grabbing the camera. He tried to delete the photo but hesitated at the delete button.

"The evidence is right there in the photo," Lily teased.

Why didn’t he admit it? He didn’t want her to have the camera because she might catch him sneaking glances at her again.

"I look at my woman openly and proudly!" Ethan growled, narrowing his sharp eyes at her in a way that threatened them; say one more word, and I’ll pin you down right here.

"Alright, openly and proudly," Lily said with a laugh, choosing not to argue further. When dealing with a temperamental lion-like Ethan, it was better to stroke his mane than provoke him.

"Are you laughing at me?" he asked, his tone accusing.

"I’m not!"

"Then why is your laugh so ugly?"

Her laugh isn’t ugly... yet he keeps sneaking glances at her. Lily shook her head, amused at the contradiction.

At the ocean park, it was time for the dolphin show. Ethan held Lily’s hand as they found seats in the middle of the stands. The audience was packed, and quite a few women kept glancing at Ethan.

Lily noticed their stares and leaned toward him, whispering, "They’re looking at you more than they’re watching the dolphins."

"I said we should’ve gone to the concert hall. You’re the one who wanted to see the dolphins," Ethan replied with a smirk. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and shot a sharp glare at the women, who quickly averted their gazes.

"I’m not jealous," Lily said, refusing to admit it. She lifted the camera and began taking pictures of the dolphins.

"Stubborn," Ethan muttered.

"You sneak looks at me," Lily shot back as she continued snapping photos.

"I look at my woman openly and proudly!" Ethan retorted. Is looking at your own woman a crime?

"Stubborn," Lily said, using his own words against him.

Ethan pinched her shoulder lightly as a playful punishment before answering a phone call. Leaning down, he whispered into her ear, "I’ll take this call."

"Okay," Lily replied with a nod. The arena was filled with noise—cheers, clapping, and the sounds of dolphins splashing in the water.

Two playful dolphins leapt into the air, spinning in mid-air before diving back into the water. They performed a synchronized routine that was met with thunderous applause.

Lily turned on the video recording function on her camera, capturing the dolphins’ performance with a smile.

But after just a short while, her hand began to ache. Holding the camera felt unusually tiring, her hand growing sore and weak. Lily frowned.

Switching hands, she tried to keep recording. But now both hands felt fatigued, and her fingers started trembling.

Her smile faltered.

The camera in her hands shook slightly as her strength gave out. Lily stared at the trembling screen, her heart sinking. I can’t even hold a camera anymore...

The dolphins continued their playful display in the water.

But her hands wouldn’t stop shaking, and the footage she was recording wobbled uncontrollably.

I’m not ready for this. I’m not ready for my hands to lose their strength... I’m not prepared for my life to end here.

Around her, the crowd laughed and cheered at the dolphins’ antics. But Lily felt like she was in a void, unable to hear anything. Tears welled up in her eyes but didn’t fall.

I’m not ready...

She had always thought she was getting closer to her dreams, that one day she could become a director on her own merits. But now... she couldn’t even hold a camera steady.

Her dreams, her life... were they about to come to an abrupt end?

She was unwilling to accept it. There was still so much she hadn’t done. She had yet to direct her own film or create a work that was hers. And now, she couldn’t even hold a camera without her hands shaking.

Meanwhile, Ethan had stepped into a quiet corner to answer his call. "You idiots! Why haven’t you caught Aiko Nakamura yet?!" he growled into the phone.

"Sir, I just discovered that Ms. Nakamura has many people secretly protecting her. I didn’t have enough manpower this time, so I avoided making a move to avoid spooking them. We’ll try again later," Cipher Stone explained on the other end.

At least Cipher had the sense not to act recklessly.

Aiko Nakamura, the fiancée his father had arranged for him, had connections protecting her. If she wasn’t captured cleanly, the fallout could get messy, and if his father found out, there would be trouble.

"Keep a close eye on her, and don’t let her slip away again," Ethan said coldly before ending the call. He kicked a nearby wall in frustration.

What’s Aiko’s background? Who’s protecting her?

As Ethan returned to the stands, he saw Lily sitting in the crowd, holding the camera. But even from a distance, he noticed her hands trembling.

When he got closer, he saw her pale face, her tightly pressed lips trembling slightly, and the unshed tears in her eyes.

Ethan felt like someone had punched him in the chest.

Her hands were starting to shake.

This meant her symptoms were progressing. From this point on, her suffering would only increase, and her body would grow weaker by the day.

Seeing her fingers tremble as she struggled to hold the camera, Ethan felt an overwhelming urge to kill whoever had done this to her.

Everyone else around them held their cameras steady, capturing clear footage. But Lily’s recording was shaky—her hands couldn’t even hold the camera still.

Tears finally slipped down her cheeks as she placed the camera on her lap, quickly wiping her face. She pulled out a small mirror to check her appearance, ensuring she looked normal.

Then, she deleted the shaky footage from her camera, her heart aching so much she nearly cried again.

I can’t even record correctly anymore. I can’t let Ethan know I can’t hold a camera steady.

"Lily Anderson!" Ethan’s voice called out through the noise.

Lily turned to see him walking over with a cup of hot drink. He sat beside her, the cup topped with two straws.

I can’t let him worry.

Adjusting her emotions, Lily smiled at him and teased, "Ethan Blackwood, did you just do something so cheesy?"

Sharing a drink with two straws was something other than what he would typically do.

"Who’s cheesy?!" Ethan snapped, glaring at her.

"...No one," Lily quickly replied, not wanting to provoke him. Ethan pulled out one of the straws and handed her the drink.

"Aren’t you drinking too?" Lily asked in surprise as she reached for the cup.

Ethan immediately pulled the drink back and glared at her. "Drink it. Stop asking questions."

Why does she always have to talk so much? One moment, she calls me cheesy; the next, she thinks I’m not drinking. Just drink the damn thing!

"Okay," Lily said, taking the cup.

The warm drink flowed down her throat, soothing her stomach. It felt comforting.

This may be for the best. My hands were shaking earlier while holding the camera—if I had to keep the cup, Ethan would’ve noticed and panicked.

Wait...

Did he already see my hands shaking? Is that why he brought me the drink?

Lily’s eyes widened in realization as she stopped drinking, her lips leaving the straw.

Ethan casually watched the dolphins’ performance, but then he naturally took the cup from her and drank from the same straw she had just used.