Annabelle Linton looked at him with a sarcastic gaze, as if she had already seen through everything. There was no hesitation in her voice. "You’re just upset because I don’t adore you anymore, because I’m not in love with you, because I won’t let you take your frustrations out on me.

You just feel like the world is short one lovesick fool to prove your charm, and now your precious, arrogant ego isn’t satisfied. Is that what you call love?

In your heart, I can only ever be a dog groveling at your feet. A creature for you to order around, to insult, to summon and dismiss at will—a beast with no human dignity to speak of.

I’m not allowed to resist you or defy you. The moment I say something you don’t like, you think I’m being insubordinate, that I’m challenging you. And you call that love?

Yes, it’s ’love.’ The love you have for a dog!

Now that I have someone more important in my life, you can’t stand the thought of what you consider your property leaving with someone else!

Your possessiveness is acting up. You keep making scenes, starting arguments, and even accusing others of seduction and being fickle. You use other people’s lives to patch up your pathetic pride and vanity. Leona Grant, is *that* your so-called love, hmm?"

Annabelle Linton let out a few low laughs, her face devoid of expression as she stared at him. "No, that’s not love. That’s an insult! In my eyes, your ’love’ is nothing but an insult. An insult that says I can only ever be your pet, with no freedom, no thoughts of my own, forced to live my life just waiting for a glance from you.

And you? When you feel like it, you’ll humor me for a bit. When you forget about me, you just toss me aside and leave me to fend for myself. Leona Grant, are you trying to get back at me? Is this revenge for bothering you for over twenty years? Now that I’ve stopped, you come running to bother me, just to show me how pathetic and annoying I used to be, right? Fine."

Annabelle Linton stood up. Her eyes were as still as a calm lake as she stood directly in front of him. "I was wrong. Now, take that gun in your hand and kill me. Let’s end all this resentment between us.

From now on, the Annabelle Linton who either loved or hated you will be gone from this world. The Annabelle Linton who angered you and bothered you will be gone. So go on, shoot. If it means an end to all this, I’m willing to die."

Annabelle Linton stared at him, her expression a mask of cool determination.

’Yes,’ she thought, ’I’ve made up my mind.’

’If my life is just going to be like this from now on, then it’s better to just die now.’

’The only funny thing is that I’ll still be dying at his hands, in the same place as my last life.’

’I wonder if I’ll be reborn again after this.’ 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

’If I have a next life, I absolutely, positively have to stay far, far away from Leona Grant.’

When Aaron Wyatt heard this, his eyes flew wide with shock. He pushed his weak body to a stand and abruptly pulled Annabelle Linton into his arms. "Annabelle, what nonsense are you talking about? If you die, what am I supposed to do? How am I supposed to live without you?"

A single tear escaped the corner of Annabelle Linton’s eye. She smiled and said, "You have to live well, of course. Be happy for me."

Aaron Wyatt hugged her tighter. "No, I won’t allow it. If we die, we die together. If we live, we live together. Don’t you dare think about leaving me behind again like you did two years ago."

Annabelle Linton’s words made Leona Grant feel what it was truly like to have his heart torn to shreds.

The rims of his eyes turned red. He stared at her, unblinking, unable to believe that the first person he’d ever loved, his first real love, saw him this way.

The pain in his heart was so intense it was numbing. He didn’t know what expression to make, or what he could possibly say.

He just looked at her, grief-stricken, and asked in disbelief, "In your eyes... is that really the kind of person I am?"