When our eyes locked, an unsettling sense of unfamiliarity swept through me.
Joel was no longer the gentle and easygoing guy with tousled hair; instead, he slicked it back, his eyes devoid of warmth, replaced by sharpness and a hint of disdain.
Yet, facing this familiar face, I couldn't help but feel a surge of resentment. The boyfriend who once vowed to love and protect me... could he still feel a shred of compassion for me now?
Clearly not. Joel looked at me as if I were a stranger and asked sharply, "What are you doing here?"
His cold voice snapped me back to reality. He was someone else's fiancé now. Holding back tears, I spoke slowly and deliberately, "I'm begging Mr. Griffins to help my grandmother."
Jasmine pulled him away, signaling to bystanders. "She's here for money."
Several imposing bodyguards swiftly moved in to usher me away. With my grandmother's critical condition weighing heavily on my mind, I reluctantly set aside my pride and appealed to Joel. Kneeling before him, I felt like a desperate soul seeking mercy, reminiscent of the time Joel, in a drunken plea, had begged me not to leave him, calling me Jazz.
"Mr. Griffins, considering our past relationship, please help save my grandmother," I pleaded.
Joel glanced at me and asked coolly, "And what if I don't?"
I was taken aback by Joel's response. After all, my grandmother had poured her heart out to him.
"When you were sick, I used all my savings to pay your hospital bills, a total of twenty two thousand five hundred dollars. Please, Mr. Griffins, at least return those money to me!" I demanded.
Joel hesitated, clearly stunned. "What did you just say?"
Jasmine interrupted him, kissing Joel on the lips—a gesture that stabbed at my heart.
She spoke gently, "Joel, just give it to her. After all, you two used to..."
Joel hastily explained, "Jasmine, you know, I was just messing around with her."
Messing around? I'd never been in a relationship before Joel. And, for three years, I poured my heart into him, only to hear him say he was just messing around, just like when he left without a word.
Jasmine looked down on me, lifting my chin and sneering, "That woman looks so much like me. Joel, did you think of her as a substitute?"
Joel didn't hesitate to nod.
A substitute? No wonder he claimed he couldn't live without me from the first moment we met. Who was he really referring to back then?