Ivan felt uncomfortable with the sticky gazes plastered on his body. He could feel Evelyn's anxious gaze on his face, causing him to break out into a cold sweat.Rejecting her outright would invite criticism from the people in the bar who had been paying attention to them. There might even be someone who knows about his situation, and Lucy might expose everything.Accepting Evelyn was an unacceptable idea. He could never say 'yes' to her. He was not in the right condition to, and he didn't have the same feelings towards her.He only saw her as a close friend and never had romantic feelings for her. He knew about her feelings, but he had been trying to avoid talking about it.Evelyn had always hinted at her feelings back in high school, but Ivan pretended not to notice. He had liked Lucy so much then, so he never paid much attention to Evelyn.One of the reasons Ivan hesitated to attend the class gathering was because of Evelyn. However, after thinking about it, he believed that Evelyn
"You are so wicked, Ivan. After all the sacrifices Evelyn made for you, you still came up with a foolish excuse just to turn her down. Can't you give her a chance? Can you swear you didn't notice her feelings towards you?" Linda said, and Ivan became confused.But with what she said, the men in the room took it personally and started criticizing Ivan, making him feel stifled.Evelyn, on the other hand, became very quiet. Her face turned deathly pale as Ivan rejected her. Her shoulders stiffened, and her eyes reddened, making her look pitiful. In turn, the men became more extreme with their words, portraying Ivan as a villain."Ivan, right? You're an asshole. How could you bear to hurt someone who mustered up the courage to ask you out?""Why are you talking to him so nicely? He's heartless. He's not a man at all.""Bastard, Evelyn, you can come to me. I will take care of you.""Such a pitiful girl. I feel so sorry for her. She fell in love with a scoundrel.""Do you even think you des
"I did not lie. Ivan is a very despicable person. I was threatened to date him," Lucy dropped a bomb, and Ivan snapped his head towards her in astonishment.He was shocked and nearly stood up to berate her, but when he noticed all the stares on him, he remained seated but pointed at Lucy with a scowl."What the hell are you talking about? When did I threaten you? What nonsense are you spouting?" Ivan did not want to talk at first because he did not want to have any confrontation with Lucy, but he had to.If he kept quiet, he would really be labeled as a despicable person. He did not want another round of jest.Lucy was satisfied when she saw his reaction. She wanted to get him worked up so that they would think he was guilty of something."Lucy, don't talk rubbish. Why would Ivan threaten you? He is not someone like that," Evelyn abruptly said, her eyes bloodshot, but she still supported Ivan.Belle looked at Evelyn for a while before she also nodded her head."Evelyn is right. Althou
"This is outrageous. When did I threaten you? When I proposed to you, you agreed readily, and I did not force you. I admit that I was too eager then, but I did not do anything against your will," Ivan retorted, his eyes full of resentment and anger.He was seething in anger, but he could not do anything but retort. Courting Lucy was one of the most unforgettable and regretful events in Ivan's past.After everything that happened between the two of them, he had started to regret ever meeting her or courting her in the first place. If he had known that the relationship between them would turn out like this, he would not have dared to enter it.But in this life, there were no 'ifs.' It had happened, and there was no reversal or going back in time, which was common in fantasies."You are drunk. You are definitely talking rubbish because you are drunk," Ivan added before scowling at Lucy in spite.He did not know what she was planning, but he was not going to allow her to have it and tramp
Ivan was right when he said that Lucy must have planned everything before coming. She had not initially planned on executing her plan, but when she noticed that they were all buttering him up instead of her, she decided to lay down her plan.She had not taken Ivan's requests to heart earlier as she already wanted to humiliate him in the cruelest way possible, especially in front of his friends. She believed it would be more painful that way.Lucy had not expected that there would be so many people interested in their matter, but she was not against it because it would make her plan work faster.She had cooked up a convincing story without any loopholes. She had prepared well to embarrass Ivan.She also made herself a victim to avoid ruining her reputation. She knew that Ivan would not be able to retort at that point because she had the right to decide what to do to him.Sure enough, Ivan could not say anything. He gritted his teeth and kept quiet, his head lowered, shoulders stiff, an
Ivan remained silent as Alex broke the silence."So, you can't talk now? You're despicable, pretending all this time. Who knows how many girls you've deceived and hurt? Thank God Lucy escaped from your clutches in time. You could have killed her," he spat, his voice filled with hatred. Linda chimed in as well."Who would have thought he was capable of such things? He's been hiding for years, pretending to be someone he's not. We wouldn't have known if the truth hadn't come out. It's disgusting."The people in the room glared at Ivan. Some were unaffected by the drama, while others sympathized with Lucy. Some were envious of Ivan's good looks, and some wanted to prove themselves as good people in front of the two women.Lucy felt satisfied with the outcome. She believed her performance wasn't in vain. When she noticed the pale-faced Evelyn, she nodded. It was exactly what she had hoped for.Ivan and Evelyn had been arrogant for far too long. Lucy finally had the chance to put them in t
"Are you deaf? Didn't you hear what I just said about him? He is good for nothing and would only drag you down. He would use you, turn you into an empty container before disposing of you. Are you not rational?"When Evelyn heard Lucy's words again, her conviction to support Ivan started to waver. She did not think Lucy would be so jobless as to cook up a story just to humiliate Ivan.Moreover, she had not seen or been in contact with Ivan for more than eight years. Different things could have happened, and as Lucy had said, Ivan might have done all those things Lucy accused him of.Also, from the moment Lucy started talking, Ivan never retorted or denied anything she said, no matter how extreme. He just kept his head lowered in silence, giving people the impression that he was guilty and unable to face them.Ivan, on the other hand, was experiencing complicated emotions. He felt angry, indignant, and disappointed. Having all these feelings at once strangely made him calm and expressio
"Ivan, don't you have anything to say? Like a refutation to what Lucy just said, do you have anything?" Ben asked tentatively, already feeling very guilty. He wanted to use the chance to show Ivan his concern.But his gaze on Ivan had changed slightly, and he became cautious around him. When he talked, his voice was tentative instead of the usual liveliness.Even a blind person could notice the changes."He definitely does not have anything to say. What can he say? He has been silent because he knew that he does not have the right to say anything," Linda said with a smirk.Lucy smiled and turned to her. "Remind me to give you my business card. You should come to my company tomorrow. I should be able to find a place for you."Linda's face flushed red with glee. She had decided to take a gamble, and her efforts had paid off. It wasn't easy to get a well-paying job recently, and she was not treated well in the company she worked in. With Lucy's help, she could hope for a better life.She