"Well, I hurt my fingers, not my hands," Estelle declared. Even though she thought that Ethan was
making it a bigger deal than it actually was, she was still sweet about it. She casually ate the fruit and
continued to watch the show.
"You are just like Emily, you know that? She found out that the HT Group is making jewelry again, so
she went back to work immediately. You find out that I cook, so you stay by my side to help me. Both of
you liked to help your men."
Ethan was joking, of course. He thought that Estelle was only half-listening to his words anyway.
However, Estelle's eyes went wide and her smile faltered. She couldn't believe it. "Wait, Emily went
back to Love and Dream?" she asked to clarify.
"Yes, it's her first day back to work today. She's in much better condition now, I heard," Ethan replied.
Estelle didn't pay attention to the rest of the things he said. All she could focus on was the fact that she
had wronged Emily before. Now that Emily was back to Love and Dream, Estelle knew that this could
be her chance to make amends for her previous actions towards Emily. "I'll go there too then," she
announced with a firm tone.
"You're going to Love and Dream?" Ethan walked up to her and saw her expression. He knew that she
was serious about it. "You and Emily… Have you considered any other options?" he asked.
Estelle shook her head slightly. In her perspective, she didn't need to think about it. There were no
other options. She had to go there to make amends.
On the second day, Estelle immediately went straight to Love and Dream for her interview. Most of the
people in the company already knew who she was. When they recognized her, their expressions turned
sour. It was as if they were seeing a monster.
"Miss Bai, a candidate specifically requested you to be their interviewer," one of the employees notified
Emily, who was busy reviewing the design drafts. She looked up with an arched brow and said, "We
have the HR department for that kind of thing. You can ask the people from there to be the
interviewers."
"It's me."
Recognizing the familiar voice, Emily looked up immediately. Her eyes went wide when she saw
Estelle's face; it was as if she was seeing her nightmare come to life. Emily's hand, which was holding
a pen tightly, started to tremble. She pretended to be calm, but her voice was shaky as she spoke,
"What are you doing here? Are you going to tell me that Love and Dream is plagiarizing again?"
Seeing Estelle made Emily feel like she re-opened a scar and exposed a deep and bloody wound.
When she saw Emily's pained expression, Estelle's guilt grew. She pursed her lips and said, "Emily…"
"Don't say my name so casually," Emily told her with a scowl.
"Miss Bai, I want to work for Love and Dream once more. I made a mistake before, but this time, I…"
"Stop!" Hearing this, Emily couldn't stand to listen to Estelle anymore. She interrupted her and coldly
hissed, "Are you seriously trying to apply for Love and Dream? Don't make me laugh. Did you forget
what you did to Love and Dream before? You once said that my company copied the works of other
companies. Now, you want to get interviewed for a job? Miss Wang, maybe you should get your brain
checked because you're not making a lot of sense right now."
As Emily ranted sarcastically to her, Estelle couldn't seem to find the right words to say. She took all the
blame and accepted Emily's harsh words. She bowed her head. "It's all my fault, I admit that. I was in a
bad place at that time and felt like I had no other choice. I can't ask you to forgive me for those
mistakes. I just want to come back to Love and Dream so that I can at least make up for what I've
done,"
Estelle explained in a cracked voice. She was sincere and humble as she apologized to her.
Emily curled her lips into a smug smirk. If a person could betray others once, then they would definitely
do it again if they had the chance. "You can leave now. This place is too small to accept someone like
you." Memories of what had happened started to come back to Emily like she was in a flashback. She
recalled how much she had trusted Estelle in the past, how disappointed she had been after Estelle
betrayed her, and how much pain Estelle had caused her. All of the things Estelle had done was like a
big slap across Emily's face.
"Miss Bai!" Teary-eyed, Estelle explained further, "I was really being threatened at that time. On top of
that, my father was also seriously ill when it happened. I was left with no choice but to agree. I'm sorry.
It's all my fault. I just want another chance so I can make amends." She voiced out all her hardships
during that time and begged for forgiveness.
"It's just not possible. There's no excuse for what you did," Emily said coldly. However, she couldn't
help but feel a little sorry for Estelle. It seemed that she had been really suffering at that time. However,
Emily couldn't just pretend that it hadn't happened. It had caused her too much pain to forget so easily.
"I know you won't forgive. I can't even forgive myself for what I did. I just really… I feel guilty about what
I did. All I want is to make it up to you. I don't even need my salary. Just let me work here," Estelle
begged with tearful eyes.
Emily frowned at her actions. She couldn't stand someone begging in front of her; her heart was too
soft.
"I can write down the guarantee. If I do anything wrong to you or this company again, let God beat me
to death! I will take responsibility for it!" Estelle promised loudly.
"That's enough!" There was a sudden throbbing in Emily's head as she watched Estelle begging to be
in Love and Dream. She closed her eyes to try and suppress her emotions. "Fine. Since you said that, I
will allow you to work here. However, this is your last chance." Emily's expression was deadpan. Truth
be told, Estelle's story had touched her. But she couldn't let that show.
'She agreed to it?'
Several emotions crashed over Estelle like waves. She was overjoyed, grateful, and excited, all at the
same time. Tears started to stream down her cheeks and she kept bowing down to Emily as an
expression of her gratitude.
When word got out that Estelle was coming back to the company, all the other employees were
displeased. Their negative opinions didn't change even after they found out that it was Emily herself
who had approved of Estelle's return. They all felt like Estelle didn't deserve to come back to Love and
Dream. But they couldn't do anything about it since Emily had made up her mind. Estelle was returning
to Love and Dream.
It would be a good thing if Estelle had turned over a new leaf. However, if they found out that she was
still the same person, then they wouldn't be polite about it.
Estelle cherished this opportunity with all her heart. This was her second chance to work for Love and
Dream. She'd been dreaming about it ever since the time she had made a mistake. Now, her dream
had come true, and it was Emily who had personally approved of her return. So this time, she was
determined not to let Emily down. She had to seize this opportunity.
The first step was to bring Emily some breakfast. With two breakfast meals in her hands, Estelle
casually walked into the elevator with Emily already inside. The two looked away from each other.
Estelle wondered why it was only Emily inside the elevator during working hours. The latter wasn't
expecting to run into Estelle so early in the morning. So, they were awkwardly riding the elevator
together.
It didn't help that the elevator wasn't that spacious. With the two of them inside, it felt like it was already
cramped. Even if they looked away from each other, they could still feel each other's presence. They
could only keep quiet and not acknowledge each other during the elevator ride.
The two of them kept their mouths shut, not wanting to talk to each other. Yesterday, they had caused
quite a scene. Today, they couldn't even look at each other without feeling embarrassed. Both of them
felt uneasy being around each other.
Finally, Estelle cleared her throat. "Good morning," she greeted in a low voice and smoothed out her
hair. Her eyes kept darting around and she didn't know where to put her hands. She couldn't help but
feel flustered around Emily.
"Good morning,"
Emily replied without emotion. Her heart was beating fast from the interaction. When she had agreed to
let Estelle come back to the company, she had thought that the chances of her seeing Estelle would be
slim. Yet, she had met Estelle in the elevator on her first day of work. It was so uncomfortable that
Emily almost pulled out her hair in frustration.
"Well, I bought you some breakfast." After saying this, Estelle separated the two breakfast bags in her
hands. She was so nervous that she almost spilled the porridge as she tried to hand it to Emily.
'Why did she buy me breakfast? Is she trying to win back my trust again?'
There were countless questions in Emily's mind, but they were not easy to ask given the current nature
of their relationship. Eyeing the breakfast bag that Estelle handed over, Emily debated on whether to
take it or not. Finally, she looked away again and said, "Sorry, I don't like the food from that restaurant.
It gives me an allergic reaction."
"Oh, I didn't know about that. I'll buy you breakfast from another restaurant next time," Estelle replied.
Dismay could be heard in her voice. Both of them knew the truth, but neither was willing to say it out
loud. Estelle gave a defeated smile and tightened her grip on the breakfast bags. She was lost on what
to do.
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