Snow Fell, I Walked Away: He Came Back Too Late

When Celine woke again, she found herself at a military base thousands of miles away.

The moment Talia saw her open her eyes, she threw her arms around her, visibly emotional. "Celine, you're finally awake. I was scared to death!"

"How long was I out?"

Celine shifted slightly, and a sharp, piercing pain immediately shot through her abdomen.

"Three whole days!" Talia quickly pressed her back down and explained, "Mr. Mercer said the medical facilities here were better for recovery, so they transferred you to the base right away. Once you're healed, you can go straight into training. Do you have any idea that bullet nearly killed you? Don't ever push yourself like that again. It's not worth it for a bastard like Adrian! I heard he stayed by that assistant's bedside for three days and three nights and never mentioned you even once..."

Talia kept rambling on, but Celine's thoughts had already drifted far away.

That day still played vividly in her mind. The sight of Adrian carrying Lydia away had cut into her like a knife and lodged deep in her heart.

Once, he had looked at no one else but her.

But now, everything had changed.

Maybe because Celine had gone silent for too long, Talia finally stopped talking, pulled something from her pocket, and held it out in front of her.

"Look what this is."

Celine focused her eyes and saw a divorce decree in front of her.

"It's finally done."

Celine let out a quiet breath of relief and took it from her, her fingertips brushing lightly over the cover.

From today on, she was free.

She was no longer anyone's wife, no one's accessory.

She was only herself. She was only Celine.

......

Meanwhile, Adrian, still keeping watch beside Lydia's hospital bed, had just started to get up for a glass of water when a sudden heavy stab of pain hit his chest.

His fingers jerked around the cup, and it slipped from his hand, smashing against the floor with a loud crash as shards of glass scattered everywhere.

"Adrian? What's wrong?" Lydia sat up and looked at him in concern.

Adrian stared blankly at his own hand, forcing down that strange flicker of unease inside him.

Only after a long moment did he bend down to pick up the broken glass, but one careless move sliced his finger open, and blood immediately welled from the tip.

"Ah... blood, you're bleeding!" Lydia cried out.

Drops of blood fell from his fingertip onto the floor, blooming like dark red flowers.

A flash of that day suddenly crossed Adrian's mind, the image of carrying Lydia away, covered in blood, still leaving a chill of fear behind.

But Lydia was already safe. So why did he keep feeling as if something important was quietly slipping away?

He told himself it was because he had been too worried about Lydia.

After all, she had taken a bullet for him and bled that much.

As for Celine...

His heart gave a sudden jolt as he realized he had not contacted her in three whole days.

But what did that matter?

Her colleagues would take care of her. She had always been so independent, so strong, as if she had never needed to rely on anyone.

Lydia was different. Her parents had died young, and she was gentle by nature. Other than her little brother, she had no one but him.

Once Lydia recovered a little more, he would buy Celine some gifts to make it up to her. He believed she would understand.

With that thought, he stopped dwelling on it. He stood up and soothed her gently, "Don't be scared. It's nothing serious. Compared to what you went through, this is nothing. But you're not allowed to be this reckless again, okay?"

Adrian frowned, but his voice stayed gentle. "What would I do if something happened to you?"

"Adrian..." Deeply moved, Lydia wrapped her arms around him and said in a trembling voice, "I'd die for you if I had to, as long as you don't leave me..."

"Don't say that." Adrian cut her off at once. "Don't worry. I'll stay with you. I'm not going anywhere..."