Lucas said, "It's more interesting to hear it from you."

Aveline suddenly smiled. "Alright, how about this: I tell you something about me, and you tell me something about you. Deal?"

Lucas saw the bright, playful look in her eyes and nodded. "Deal."

Aveline promptly stood up. "We should get some drinks for our stories, otherwise, it won't be fun."

Lucas watched as Aveline eagerly fetched the drinks, his gaze

deepening. Remembering her behavior when drunk, he chose not to stop her.

She soon returned with a pack of beer, placing a bottle in front of him and one in front of herself. She opened hers and took a sip, closing her eyes briefly. "That's the taste!" Lucas opened his can and took a sip, a rare hint of warmth softening his sharp features.

Aveline began, "I grew up in an orphanage."

She raised an eyebrow at Lucas.

"Is that it?" he asked with a faint smile..

"Yes." Aveline nodded.

He chuckled softly. "I once lost my memory."

Aveline was speechless. She had hoped to uncover something significant about him, but she had forgotten his usual reserve and cunning nature-always causing others to lose out, never himself.

Aveline took a bite of the meat skewer before saying, "After I started junior high school, the orphanage director stopped supporting me. I had to collect scrap to pay for my education, but luckily, she didn't kick

me out."

Lucas' expression shifted slightly. "When I was very young, I saw my mother jump off a building.”

Aveline's eyelashes fluttered as she looked at him in shock. "You..."

He had witnessed his mother's suicide? How much psychological trauma must that have caused him?

Lucas took another sip of his beer. "Your turn."

Aveline pressed her lips together. "My story seems insignificant

compared to yours. When I started high school, the orphanage director kicked me out. I came here to work, and later... I received my college acceptance letter."

Lucas responded calmly, "Later, my eldest brother and second brother died as well."

Aveline was at a loss for words. His life truly seemed tragic.

She picked up her beer bottle and clinked it against his. "Cheers!"

Lucas raised an eyebrow, noticing the sympathy in her eyes. For some reason, it touched something deep within him.

He suddenly asked, "You didn't know any of this, did you?"

Aveline's eyes widened. "How could I know? When I met you, you'd already lost your memory!"

"Right, that's true," Lucas murmured, almost to himself.

She was an orphan with no background, always struggling on her own. She had no connections to those people and couldn't have known his past. How could she have intentionally gotten close to him? Lucas lowered his gaze, letting the coldness in his eyes dissipate completely. He took another sip of his beer.

Aveline, holding her bottle, stared at his face and suddenly asked, Answer me honestly. Do you really love Sophia?"

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This was a question that had been nagging at her. She had seen how he acted when he truly loved someone, and he wasn't like that with Sophia. Was it merely because Sophia had saved him that he felt obligated to divorce her out of gratitude?