Chapter 4

Taking advantage of the alcohol's numbing effect, I boldly reached out and caressed Julian's face.

Julian, however, turned his head away, leaving my hand awkwardly suspended in the air.

"Stella, you’re becoming increasingly unruly! Even if we’re not blood relatives, I’m still your guardian! Doing this won’t just ruin you; it’ll ruin me!"

So, Julian was afraid I would ruin *him*.

All the grievances and helplessness transformed into a choked laugh, releasing themselves in tears.

"Julian, I thought my place in your heart might not be first, but at least there was a place. Now it seems, I’m just a burden."

Julian seemed about to say something, but swallowed it back.

The hand at my waist suddenly tightened, and Julian lifted me into his arms.

I wiped my tears upward, calmly looking at him. "Put me down, I can walk on my own."

Back in my room, I started packing my suitcase.

Now that I completely understood Julian’s true intentions,

our decade-long entanglement should finally end.

Staying at home before was just so I could see Julian every day.

Now, it was time to move back to the dorms.

After packing,

I suddenly realized there were only a few changes of clothes in my suitcase.

Nothing else I absolutely needed to take.

All the jewelry and necklaces were bought by Julian; I’d kept them neatly in my jewelry box because I couldn't bear to wear them.

Now, they weren't needed anymore.

On my desk, the paper stars I'd folded since childhood still sat quietly in a glass jar.

Inside them, every year's birthday wish was about Julian.

I ruthlessly tossed them directly into the trash can.

Even Julian's ID photo, tucked inside a book, went into the trash along with the book itself.

The trash can piled higher and higher,

my suitcase held less and less.

As I left, I even turned our joint photo face down on the desk.

When I went downstairs,

Julian saw me and asked what I was doing.

I simply said, "Moving back to school."

He just casually replied, "That’s fine. It’ll help you develop independence. Have the driver take you."

Develop independence?

Ha! In his eyes, I was still just a little girl who clung to him.

Clearly, my disguise was perfect.

I got into the car without looking back.

Behind me, Julian, who had been watching me, increasingly realized I was changing.

I, who never touched alcohol, now went to bars all day.

I, who had never dared to upset him, now openly defied him.

He thought I was growing up,

but in reality, I had simply seen him for who he was.

I, Stella Harrington, could pick up, and I could let go.

More than a decade of emotional investment had gone to waste,

but I had no regrets.

Back in my dorm,

after simply making my bed, I lay down, ready to sleep,

when I saw a concerned message from my advisor, Valerie Chen.

I knew Valerie had a crush on Julian back in college,

and despite repeated rejections, she never gave up.

My head was pounding from a day of drinking, so I replied directly: "Valerie, just tell me what's up!"

Valerie didn't hide her eager curiosity: "Does your guardian have a girlfriend now?"

"No."

"Then, can you help me pursue him?"

My typing hand trembled on the keyboard.

Even though I had given up, a sense of injustice still gnawed at me.

They say the one closest to you wins your heart.

But after more than a decade by Julian's side, our relationship remained strictly guardian and ward.

I gritted my teeth and replied with one word: "Okay."

After a day of drinking, my head felt like it would explode.

Yet, I couldn't find any sleep.

I only drifted into unconsciousness at dawn.