The banquet ended smoothly.

Dylan wanted to invite Noelle to his house, but she rejected, saying, "I can stay in the hotel."

"I can stay with you."

"It's fine. You finally came back, so you should accompany your parents more." She smiled.noveldrama

She remained calm and composed as usual. After a moment of eye contact with her, Dylan finally spoke, "I'll have a good talk with my mother about this."

Noelle raised an eyebrow, initially thinking that Dylan must have overheard her conversation with his mother, Leah Neuman, tonight.

However, the next moment, Dylan added, "No matter what you're my guest here, and the way she treated you. was definitely wrong."

H

Only then did Noelle realize she had misunderstood. While Leah's attitude toward her tonight had been

unpleasant, it was nothing compared to the things she had said behind her back.

Noelle didn't elaborate further and just shook her head. "It's fine. After all, our relationship is just a contract, so I don't really care about how your mother treats me. You don't need to jeopardize your relationship with her on my account."

After she spoke, Dylan fell silent.

Noelle didn't say anything more and just waved before getting into the car.

Craig knew she was back, so he asked her to go home. However, she refused.

That wasn't her home anymore. Ever since she went missing when she was five years old, she had never gone back.

Noelle had quite a few drinks tonight, but she felt very sober when she reached the hotel.

It was already late at night.

Noelle stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows of the hotel, gazing down at the unfamiliar yet familiar city beneath her.

She was born here, had lived here for over a decade, and had even gotten married here. Yet, she had never truly found a sense of belonging in this city.

Thinking about it, Noelle quickly remembered a place, which was Serene Street. She had moved out in a hurry, and after what happened inside the house, the landlord had been extremely dissatisfied with her. So, Noelle had decided to pay an extra year's rent.

The landlord knew she had moved out, but she wasn't sure if he would rent the place out to someone else.

Before opening the door, Noelle knocked gently. After confirming that there was no one inside, she finally turned the knob and stepped in.

The furnishings inside were exactly as voted

remembered when she left. However, it seemed much cleaner, as though someone had deliberately tidied up the space.

Noelle stood by the door for a moment before walking further inside. She then opened the drawer of the computer desk. Inside were things she hadn't had the chance to take with her, including the sketchbook she had been working on since high school.

Hendrix had stayed here for quite some time, but he had never noticed this particular item.

By the light of the desk lamp, Noelle stared at her name on the sketchbook for a long time before finally pulling it

out.

She found the pot she had used to cook in the kitchen, and even the lighter was ready. But when she brought the flame close to the paper, her actions halted.

Her lips slowly pressed together. At that moment, she felt like she was holding a knife, about to cut off her own hand. Before the blade could fall, the anticipated pain and fear made her body tremble.

In the end, she let go of the lighter, placed the sketchbook back in the drawer, and turned to leave.