Can't Let Go of This Love

Chapter 5 Please Help Me

In Jerry's memory, Scott rarely took Briana out, and Jerry had only seen Briana twice.

The first occasion was when Scott forgot some documents at home, and Briana delivered them to his office. Faced with Scott's cold reception, Briana showed a momentary hint of disappointment but didn't utter a complaint.

The second encounter transpired at Scott's grandpa's birthday celebration, which was during the second year of Scott and Briana's marriage. The entire Fisher family alienated her, and Scott didn't make her known to anyone.

On that evening, Briana seemed like an unpaid servant, occupied with chores and not receiving a single kind word. Instead, she was criticized for being a pain in the neck.

From Jerry's perspective, Briana was a model wife, easygoing and considerate, a completely different person from the aggressive and menacing woman tonight.

Scott kept his eyes on the direction Briana went, not uttering a word.

Jerry cleared his throat, changing the topic. "I ran into Elian at the entrance."

Scott asked, "Who's that?"

"The editor-in-chief from GioJewelry Magazine."

"Emm... Heard that name somewhere before."

Fisher Group had some dealings with GioJewelry Magazine, and Scott had crossed paths with Elian a few times.

Jerry said, "Elian just told me that he found Bria. If things go smoothly, she'll be the hotshot designer for their magazine. Do you remember Bria?"

"Nope."

He didn't see the point of remembering someone who didn't matter.

Jerry said, "But You surely remember sponsoring the 7th Emerging Designers Competition three years ago, right? Bria won first place, and she had the chance to receive full financial support from your company for her studies in Paris. Surprisingly, she declined that opportunity for some unknown reason."

After a pause, he added, "But I heard she asked the organizer if she could skip the financial support and get cash instead. The organizer verified with you, and you turned her proposal down. After that, we never heard from her again. She was a designer with immense potential. What a pity."

Scott slowly withdrew his gaze, lost in thought. It wasn't clear if he was processing Jerry's words.

"Oh. Doesn't ring a bell."

*****

Elian drove Briana and Kaylee home, bidding farewell. "Ms. Fisher, looking forward to your work and our collaboration."

Briana nodded. "Thank you. I'll give it my all."

Elian smiled at them. "Take care. See you next week."

Back at home, Kaylee asked, "Honey, are you still upset about those two bastards?"

Briana was a bit distracted, and she echoed Kaylee. Soon, she came back to her senses. "No, I'm thinking about the design theme."

Elian had given her the theme "First Love", and Kaylee mentioned it was the magazine's top series after signing the new designers, which targeted young consumers. So, the design was quite crucial for them.

But the term "first love" was entirely unfamiliar to Briana.

The delightful fluttering that came with being around a crush had long faded away over the past three years of her marriage with Scott, leaving nothing behind.

Kaylee asked, "Speaking of which, have you not been in touch with Desmond all these years?"

Briana shook her head.

Three years ago, she won the first prize in the competition and could have had the opportunity to study in Paris, but she turned it down.

Desmond Olsen, her friend in college, had come to see her a few times and asked why she did so.

Briana didn't dare to tell him the truth, so she deleted all his contact information.

What could she say? Should she tell him that while she was enveloped in the joy of winning the first prize, she suddenly learned about her father owing a million dollars to a loan shark?

Kaylee sighed, leaning back on the sofa. "Honestly, I still feel sorry for you and Desmond. Back in school, you were such a perfect match. Everyone could tell that you liked each other. You were just a step away from making it official. I thought you two would be together after going to Paris, but who'd have known... Well, that's fate."

Briana remained silent for a long time before saying, "The past is the past."

At night, as Briana lay in bed later, the words Krista had said to her in the restroom uncontrollably echoed in her mind.

Though Briana knew Scott would never use such vulgar and crude language to talk about her, the meaning conveyed didn't deviate.

Briana knew she had implicated Scott, so over the three years, she tried her best to play the role of a good wife.

She satisfied his needs, prepared his breakfast every morning, ironed his clothes before work, and remembered the patterns of all his ties.

She even covered up her allergy symptoms and made him his favorite hummus.

Yet, his dislike for her never diminished.

Thinking about it, Briana felt her heart clench with pain. She buried her head in the blanket, in a half-asleep state, recalling some things.

Three years ago, to pay off her father's debt, she sacrificed her dignity to ask the organizer of the competition if she could skip the chance to study in Paris and get cash instead.

She still remembered the sarcastic tone of that person. "I'm sorry. Our boss said this opportunity is for those genuinely dreaming of design, not for those treating this competition as an opportunity to profit."

After hearing this, Briana was stunned for a long time. She spent the entire night crying.

Who wouldn't want to chase their dreams?

A few days later, her father ran away, and the loan shark came to her home, forcing her to make a choice: Either chop off her younger brother Caleb's hand or leave with them.

With no other option, Briana followed them out of the house in silence, ignoring Caleb's desperate cries.

Those people sold her to Dusk Club, a place designed for wealthy and lustful individuals to indulge in entertainment.

They spiked her drink. Even though she had mentally prepared herself to face it, when that obese middle-aged man in his fifties or so entered the room, she still could not help but think of Desmond and the unfinished Paris appointment.

Summoning strength from somewhere within, she pushed the man away and staggered out.

She didn't know how far she had run until she finally saw a blurry tall figure ahead. Collapsing to the ground, she clutched the man's well-fitted suit and begged, "Please help me..."

After that, she blacked out completely.

When she woke up again, she found herself in an unfamiliar room, with a stranger lying beside her. The scattered clothes by the bed were evidence enough of what had transpired the night before.

After the initial distress, she began to console herself. At least the man was good-looking, far better than the obese guy last night.

She rushed back home in a panic, only to discover that the loan shark had returned to find her. Fortunately, Caleb wasn't at home because he had gone out looking for her.

Briana called Caleb to reassure him, instructing him not to come home, and suggested that he lodge with a friend instead.

Then, she sought shelter at Kaylee's.

Hiding for two months, one day, Briana realized she was pregnant.