Rebirth: The New Bride Wants A Divorce-Chapter 372: I’ll wait

"One more..." Anna announced, tilting her head back and downing the last of the drink before the glass even touched the table again.

The dull clink echoed louder than it should have.

Betty, sitting across from her, stared at the empty glass, then slowly lifted her gaze to Anna’s face. Her brows knit together in worry. "Big Sis, why are you trying to get wasted all of a sudden?" she asked carefully. "You called me saying you wanted to meet. I didn’t think this was... this."

Anna laughed under her breath, a hollow sound, and slid the glass toward the edge of the table. "Because thinking hurts less when everything’s spinning."

Betty shifted in her seat, uncomfortable. She hadn’t touched the drink in front of her. Shawn’s warning echoed loudly in her head, and for once she was glad she had listened. "You don’t even drink usually," she said softly. "And when you do, you never drink like this."

Anna waved her hand dismissively. "People change."

"Not like this," Betty replied, reaching out to pull the glass back before Anna could signal for another. "Big Sis, please. Let’s just talk, okay?"

"Betty!" Anna suddenly called, her voice sharper.

Betty flinched. "Y-yes?"

Anna leaned forward, her eyes glassy but painfully aware. "Have you ever felt like your whole life was a lie?"

Betty blinked, caught off guard. "Why would I feel that?" she said after a second, forcing a small smile. "I’m Betty. I know who I am."

Anna stared at her for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Yes. You are Betty." Her lips twitched, but there was no humor there. "And I am Anna." Her voice dropped. "But I’m not the Anna I thought I was."

She slammed her fist against the table, the sudden sound making nearby patrons glance their way. Betty’s heart jumped, but she didn’t pull back.

"Big Sis, you’re scaring me," Betty admitted quietly. "Please don’t do this."

Anna scoffed. "I’m not trying to scare you. I’m trying to understand." She pressed her fingers against her temple. "Everything I believed, everything I built myself around... it’s all wrong."

Betty reached for her hand, gripping it firmly. "Then stop drinking," she said, her voice trembling but determined. "You’re not thinking clearly."

Anna tried to pull her hand away. "Don’t—"

Before she could finish, a familiar voice cut through the tension.

"That’s enough."

Both of them turned.

Kathrine stood beside the table, her expression tight, eyes flicking from the empty glasses to Anna’s flushed face. She didn’t look surprised—only tired.

"Since when do you drink like this?" Kathrine asked, pulling out the chair beside Betty and sitting down without waiting for an answer.

Anna blinked at her, then laughed weakly. "Oh great. And who did even call you"

Betty looked visibly relieved. "Kathrine, thank God," she whispered. "I can’t stop her." and Anna suddenly felt betrayed.

Kathrine placed a hand over Betty’s, grounding. "You did the right thing." Then she looked back at Anna, her tone softening just a little. "You don’t get to drown yourself like this and pretend we won’t notice."

Kathrine had been trying to reach Anna but her sister simply ignored her. If it wasn’t for Betty she wouldn’t have know where she was.

Anna’s smile faded. "You wouldn’t understand."

"Try me," Kathrine said quietly.

Anna opened her mouth, then closed it again. Her shoulders sagged, the fight draining out of her. "What if... what if I don’t belong anywhere?" she asked, her voice suddenly small. "What if everything about me was just... misplaced?"

The moment she said that Kathrine felt a tinge of guilt in her heart.

Betty on the other hand, squeezed her hand. "You belong with us."

"You say that because you don’t know." Anna shook her head.

Kathrine leaned in, her gaze unwavering. "Then let us know," she said. "But not like this."

She stood and signaled the waiter. "No more drinks for this table."

Anna watched her, eyes burning. "You always take control."

"Because someone has to," Kathrine replied calmly. "And right now, it’s not you."

For a moment, Anna looked like she might argue. Then her eyes filled, the defiance crumbling. She let out a shaky breath and slumped back in her chair.

While Anna was arguing with the girls outside the bar, Daniel waited patiently inside the car.

The low hum of the engine filled the silence as his gaze remained fixed on the glass doors ahead, reflecting flickers of neon lights.

From this distance, he could still make out Anna’s rigid posture, the sharp movements of her hands as she spoke. She looked smaller than she had earlier, but fiercer too, like she was holding herself together by sheer will.

"Sir, why don’t you go inside?" the driver finally voiced, glancing at him through the rearview mirror. "It might calm Madam down if she sees you."

Daniel’s fingers tightened briefly around his phone before he relaxed them again. He shook his head slowly. "No," he said, his tone calm but firm. "I’ll wait."

The driver hesitated, clearly wanting to argue, but one look at Daniel’s expression made him swallow his words and face forward again.

After crying her heart out earlier, Daniel wanted nothing more than to pull Anna into his arms and shield her from everything weighing her down. But he knew her too well. Comfort forced upon her would only make her retreat further.

Anna needed space before she could accept solace, needed to gather herself before she let anyone see the cracks.

When she had called Betty and asked her to meet her, Daniel had known something was coming.

Anna never reached out without reason. And when she did, it was usually because the storm inside her had grown too loud to bear alone.

So he stayed where he was, hands resting calmly on his knees, eyes never leaving the entrance. Waiting was something Daniel had mastered long ago.

Waiting, enduring, preparing for the worst so that when Anna finally walked back to him, he would be steady enough for both of them.

No matter how long it took, he would be right here when she needed him. But little did he knew someone was going to interrupt him.