On the 5th of October, Elsie's birthday party was held in the garden of the Britt's.
It was pleasant in the evening of early fall. The lawn was decorated with exquisite underground lights. From the second floor, they were like fireflies flitting to and fro, shining like tiny stars.
Emily took a few pictures of the lawn with her phone.
She was often mocked at parties in the past. Elsie had never stood out for her. Only when she began to cry would Elsie hypocritically came to comfort her.
Emily found the past amusing.
By then, she was very grateful to Elsie for coming to her rescue. Even when Elsie coaxed her into a cupboard and got her locked for three whole hours, she would find excuses for Elsie, believing that Elsie was just too busy to remember.
The butler hadn’t found Emily until the party was over.
The cupboard was stuffy and hot, and there wasn't much air. Emily was very weak when they found her. However, she still remembered how they feigned shock. It was funny that Emily thought they were really worried about her and told Maury she accidentally fell asleep in the cupboard and therefore saved Elsie from a lesson.
The more she recalled, the more stupid she felt she was.
"Miss Sydnee, sorry for disturbing you. It looks like you're looking for something. Do you need any help?"
A man's voice came from below.
Emily shook her head. She didn't turn on the lights in her room. No one could see her, but she was not in the mood of eavesdropping.
She sat on the swing on the balcony, closed her eyes, and began to think about what she should do with her money.
However, their conversation rushed into her ears.
"Thanks. I just find the lights beautiful." Her voice was gentle and soft.
"They are, indeed. I didn't even notice if you didn't tell me. They look like fireflies."
"Yes, small but bright."
Finding it noisy, Emily dug her ears and wanted to leave. Just as she was about to stand up, the man continued, "Yes, small and bright, just like you. Has anyone told you how charming you are? By the way, I'm Marquise Buckley."
The name sounded familiar.
Emily was about to get off the swing when she suddenly remembered that Marquise was Eliot's college classmate!
Eliot once told her that Marquise was a playboy and a girl-hunter, but in the previous life, Emily did not understand what he said. She only remembered asking Eliot, "So is he a good guy or a bad guy?"
Eliot shook his head, "Not a good guy, but also not that bad."
"Why?"
"Because he likes to play the field, which means he likes a lot of women."
Emily's cheeks puffed up, "Then he's a bad buy."
"Why?" Eliot was curious.
Emily thought for a moment and said, "Mom said that a man can only love one woman in his life. He can't be shared, otherwise, he will destroy another family."
Eliot became silent. After a while, he stroked her hair and said, "I'm sorry."
"Why did you say that?" Emily asked in confusion.
Eliot hugged her and said, "'I'm sorry' means 'I love you'."
"Then I'm sorry, too."
They both laughed heartily.
Emily remembered in her previous life, Marquise married a gentle and virtuous woman. However, he indulged in dissipation every day and ignored his family, even when his wife was pregnant. Therefore, his wife resolutely divorced him after giving birth to the child.
It is said that after the divorce, his wife had a rough time and even suffered from depression because she missed her son too much. In addition, she became weak in that she didn't take good care of herself after the baby was born.
Words had it that she died a year later.
But just that year, Marquise married another woman.