novelxo Chapter 39
Chapter 39: Not Worth It
Byron asked a routine question, and Candice didn’t pretend to look like she couldn’t let him go.
“Yeah,” she answered.
“Who changed it for you?”
“My mom.”
She still couldn’t hide it from her mother after all.
“Did you mention me?”
“No.”
She was distant and cold.
She sounded emotionless.
“Did she not ask about where you stayed?” he asked with a frown.
“I told her I stayed at a hotel.”
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After a moment of silence, he asked, “Did you block me?”
“I don’t want to give you any trouble now that you’re in love.”
Vicky wasn’t to be trifled with and she would definitely resort to all vicious means to protect her man.
A vulnerable and bunny-like girl like Candice would definitely be defeated.
At the end of the day, she was just too insecure and unconfident. Since Byron didn’t take her seriously, who was she to vie with Vicky?
He took out his phone and said, “How many Whatsapp accounts do you have?”
Byron tried searching for her account with her number but it was hidden. She had blocked him with her private account.
“I have one for work and one for private purposes.”
“Give me your business number.”
He was the type to remain in contact with the women he had dated, as long as things didn’t end too badly. Like Enos, he would help them out whenever he could, as a form of
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compensation.
It was often said that two people who had once truly loved each other can never be friends after the breakup.
So far, Vicky was the only woman whom he would never contact again for the rest of his life if they were to go separate ways.
He felt that he should be able to get along well with Candice.
Many of Enos’ friends had been exposed online by their ex- girlfriends who were influencers but Enos had never been accused or anything so far. He was generous and gracious. towards his exes. When it comes to sleazy social functions, he would even bring along the ex that was having it the worst in life, and give her some money for her appearance. Thus, most of his exes would be more than grateful to him.
Unfortunately, Candice wasn’t the same as them at all.
She simply refuted, “That won’t be convenient.”
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With that attitude, she was making it clear that she wouldn’t get involved with men who were attached.
For the first time, a woman was willing to end things peacefully with him and not pester him afterwards.
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Many of the women he had casually dated in the past would try to guilt trip him, threaten to kill themselves by slitting their wrists, overdosing on pills and pretending to jump off a building, in a bid to get back together with him.
At one point, Byron was terrified of women.
However, Candice’s act of drawing a clear line between them. made Byron feel rather displeased.
“Did you cheat on me right after finding a backup lover in advance?”
“Professor Wilson, aren’t we just friends? Even if I get married again, it shouldn’t count as cheating on you,” she said, catching the chance to criticize him.
She was usually quiet and harmless but once they fell out, she would definitely seize every opportunity to get back at them by hitting the nail on its head.
“Do you think Percy is a good man?” Byron said, feeling uneasy.
“He’s better than you, Professor Wilson.”
“Do you know him well?”
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“No but I know you pretty well, Professor Wilson. Men with personalities that are opposite of yours are definitely good,” she said sarcastically.
Be it an act to spite him or words of truth, her stubbornness was a huge torment for Byron.
“What do you think is the opposite of me?”
“What you’re like has nothing to do with me. Percy is the one who matters.”
She actually addressed Percy in such an affectionate manner.
He had never received such treatment from him.
For some reason, Byron was spurred by an inexplicable wave of emotions and he grabbed her arm.
“You don’t have to mistreat yourself. If you hate me, just take it out on me. You’re no match for him and there’s no way you can handle him,” he said.
Candice wriggled out of his grip and said, “It’s not worth it. to waste energy hating you.”
She was holding her phone with the screen unlocked and the interface of her email app showing. It seemed to be a
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resume and a job application being displayed on the screen.
Byron twitched unnoticeably before asking, “Is he worth it?”
Candice coc ked her head and looked down at the stairwell as she said, “At least he doesn’t play with my feelings.”
“That’s because Percy doesn’t have feelings.” He sent a contact request to her with one hand and accepted it using her phone with the other.
“He’s more heartless than I am,” he added.
Candice flew into a rage and hollered, “I’m pleased with that!”
Her words had completely angered Byron.
“So you’d rather let him use you as a pastime than be my girlfriend?”
Neither of them would give her a proper status anyway. Yet, her bottom line with Percy was much lower than her bottom line with him.
Byron suppressed his anger and browsed through Candice’s Whatsapp Moments, only to realize that she had been rather active lately but her posts were all private.
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–[What a jerk. Serves him right for getting cheated on by a player.]
–[I’d be willing to give up five years of my life span for Byron to become impotent.]
–[Motherf***er.]
Byron pointed the phone at her and asked, “Are you happy?”
Candice reached for it and didn’t take it from him.
“You refuse to admit it? You’re using Percy to take revenge against me?”
He opened the first post, which Candice posted at 3:00 AM in bed.
She put him to shame by seeing his brother.
In fact, the player that Candice was referring to was Vicky.
Other women would only be cheated on by him, and never the other way around.
Candice had never taken the initiative to cheat on anyone. With Rufus, she had been passive too and was just a victim
of his tricks.
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Byron returned her phone and took out a bank card before saying, “There’s $150,000 in here.”
After deducting the 80 grand in compensation that Patrick asked for, the rest should be enough to last her for a while even if she remains unemployed.
It seemed that he had calculated it well in advance.
He wasn’t generous nor miserly. She wasn’t losing out but she wasn’t getting too big of an advantage either.
This is what a master of love is all about.
Candice took the card and weighed it while asking, “Is the password Vicky’s birthday?”
All of Byron’s passwords including the one for his computer in the office, the ending digits of his cell phone number as well as his car license plate were all Vicky’s birthday. It was a deep-rooted habit of his.
It was simply another stab to her heart.
After a moment of silence, he asked, “Can I transfer it to your account?”
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“Is the significance of you giving her money, and giving me money, the same?”
“Are you comparing yourself to her?”
“I’m just curious,” Candice said coldly,
They ended things in a rather unclear manner and he even claimed that they were “just friends”. Everything felt like a dream to her and it even left her feeling upset.
She wouldn’t be able to get closure unless she finds out. what exactly she meant to him.
Byron turned slightly sideways and said, “You two aren’t the same.” He paused for a second before continuing, “She is my woman.”
“Indeed, we’re different. Vicky is your legitimate girlfriend while I’m just a plaything that you use to relieve your boredom and loneliness,” Candice said, sounding even more unfeeling and colder than him.
There was dead silence.
Byron did not retort, and she stopped asking.
In terms of fidelity and purity, Vicky was not worthy of
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competing with Candice.
However, men do not necessarily love loyal and clean
women.
Pretentious women these days were usually popular with men and those who could act well, were even more favorable.
Unlike women, men usually couldn’t see through their facade.
Even if they end up finding out that the girl they were seeing were unfaithful players, they would have already been smitten with them by then.
Before the man falls for her, incredibly pretentious women would make sure that they maintain a facade perfectly. Once the man is in love, he would never be able to leave her.
Candice went to the counter around the corner to pick up her medication. The nurse handed her a large bag and said, “Doctor Samson has given you new medication to heal your cuts and remove your surgical scars, which are pretty deep.”
There was a total of four bottles, which were labeled with the numbers 1 to 4. The medicine in the bottles were to be applied in numerical order. Some had to be mixed together before application.
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While Miranda was applying the medication for her yesterday, she chided Candice for making the wrong decision to marry a scoundrel like Miranda.
It forced Candice to a point of being speechless.
Byron stood beside her and rummaged through the bag of medication before saying, “Come to my office.”
He walked back to the elevator, blocked the door,
gynecological departmentand waited for her without moving a muscle.
Candice entered with a straight face and remained silent throughout the descent from the seventh floor to the third.
In the confined space, she could tell that he was wearing the perfume that he initially did.
It was the particular one that Vicky liked, with a strong, bitter, and spi cy scent that symbolizes loneliness, as well as possessiveness.
It was faint, masked by antiseptic alcohol and the pungent smell of medicine.
She exited the elevator and went straight to Consultation Room 2, not intending to let Byron do what he wanted.
Harry had just finished seeing his last patient and was getting off work when he looked up and saw Candice.
“Candice,” he greeted.
“Help me change my dressing.”
“Why don’t you ask Doctor Byron? He’s on duty too.”
“Are you blind?” A grim male voice came from the doorway.”
Harry looked over Candice’s head and sized up Byron, who was blocking the door with a gloomy expression.
Harry did not want to get involved in this turbulent vortex.
“Your wounded area is too sensitive for me to do it for you.”
She threw the medicine on the table and said, “Aren’t you a doctor?”
“I’m in charge of male patients’ fertility systems. I’m not in charge of handling the upper bodies of female patients.”
Candice didn’t bother to waste her breath and dragged him to the cubicle where she drew the curtains and took off her top quickly.
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“Hurry up and get to it.”
Harry was at a loss for words.
“Get to what? We’re in broad daylight…” Harry exclaimed.
“Change my dressing,” Candice explained.
He turned around and fled, only to bump into Byron who was about to enter.
“Do it for me! She’s too unbridled!”
Byron stopped and peeked through the gap in the curtain to see her fair ankles, which were exposed under her cropped jeans. There were some words spray-painted onto her sneakers-“Byron” and “Idiot” on the front and sides respectively.
Byron burst into silent laughter that he contained in his throat.
She really hated him so much that she was trying to take it out on him in every way possible.
He lifted the curtain as if nothing had happened and cleaned
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his hands with disinfectant.
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“You are free to go wherever you want after your dressing is changed.”
Candice quickly fixed her top and pushed him away.
“I don’t need you.”
Caught off guard, Byron took a step back and hit his waist. hard against the corners of the cabinet. There was a dull pain but he almost subconsciously went to check her chest before he even stood still.
“Does your wound not hurt?”
She shrugged him off and slammed the door straight away.
The door closed and soon popped open again. There were numerous people pacing back and forth in the corridor.
It seemed that it wasn’t just out of a doctor’s professional instincts. He seemed to be concerned about her.
Noticing this unexpectedly unusual behavior of his, Byron frowned.
He followed her out and stood at the end of the escalator,
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where the protective wall was a half-meter-high reinforced glass that gave a clear view of the upper and lower floors.
He watched Candice registering, queuing, and attending the consultation on the 5th floor, her petite and slender body drowning among the countless patients. She was stubborn and incredibly rational.
He could have changed her dressing within five minutes but she chose to waste two hours getting it done.
Byron was so annoyed that he unzipped his white coat to breathe.
At the same time, a man in a jacket passed by and said, “Doctor Byron, you’re getting carried away with looking at the pretty girl…”
“There’s no pretty girl,” he said calmly before turning around to see that it was Samson.
“Aren’t you away for a consultation and conference?”
“I rushed to the general hospital for the consultation halfway through the conference. The patient was the father- in-law of an official of the National Land Resources Bureau. He had three crushed ribs and hypertension complicating the myocardial infarction, with a survival rate of less than 25%. But I succeeded in saving him and the video of the
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surgery was added to the clinical textbook of thoracic surgery.”
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Byron’s gaze was still on Candice so he wasn’t really paying much attention to Samson.
“Seems like you’re going to be promoted to Fellow of the Medical University at the end of the year,” he remarked.
Samson shook his head and said, “There are only a few nominees in the city. I’ll be happy with keeping the title of professor and retire in honor.”
Candice walked out of the clinic and a doctor in a white coat stood behind her.
“Miss Candice,” she greeted.
After being stunned for a moment, she finally recognized him.
“Doctor Joe?”
Overjoyed, he asked, “You remember me?”
Of course, she did. Harry had helped him ask for Candice’s number while she was hospitalized.
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It was said that his first love was a civilian soldier, with whom he was in a long distance relationship for seven years. They were often away from each other and over time, their feelings for each other faded so they ended things.
The following year, his first love switched careers and suddenly got married to a restaurant owner.
Seven years of love and perseverance collapsed in just one night.
He was so affected by it that he remained single until now. He was attracted to Candice the moment she said she had medical insurance when she was in the emergency room.
At such a critical juncture where she was vulnerable and covered in blood, her top concern turned out to be saving money on her medical bills. She was just like a virtuous and frugal wife.
“Has your wound healed?”
“Pretty much,” Candice answered with a nod.
“Do you need a lift home? My shift ends at eight, so you can wait another three hours,” he said after taking a look at his watch.
She chuckled and said, “It’s alright, I drove here on my
own.”
On the third floor, Samson pointed at Doctor Joe, who was blindly trying to impress her with acts of service.
“Your love rival, eh?”
Byron hadn’t crossed paths with him but he recognized Joe to be the deputy director of dentistry who was determined to marry a virtuous woman.
He was a typical guy who was still a virgin.
He had gone on a few dates but none of them worked out. He turned down all fashionably-dressed women as he was traumatized by his ex.
Women like Candice would be popular among middle-class men as she was a safe option that was more capable than a pretty face.
The risk of her cheating men out of their money was almost non-existent.
Byron looked away and said coldly, “She’s not my girlfriend, so how is he my love rival?”
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Vicky returned to the playhouse to star in plays soon after she was discharged.
Byron would pick her up whenever he was free. It was the weekend today and he didn’t have to go to work so he decided to wait for her at the playhouse with a bouquet of flowers that he had bought.
Vicky came out with a bunch of colleagues and one of the supporting actresses exclaimed, “Vicky, which playhouse is that hunk from? Is he waiting for you?”
Standing on the steps, Byron was holding a cigarette with one hand and smoking it while staring at her.
“He’s my husband,” Vicky said smilingly.
“Vicky, you’re married?”
“Soon. I should be getting married either this year or next.”
Another actress asked, “If you get married, will the playhouse still promote you? They’ll probably get someone to replace you as the lead actress.”
“My husband is rich and has a powerful background. He can invest money to support me.”
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Her colleagues were green with envy. It was an industry full of superficial and materialistic people. Those who were famous or had rich investors to push themselves to fame, would be put on a pedestal and enjoy all the attention.
They walked over while surrounding Vicky. Byron was getting distracted while smoking so he barely responded to their greetings.
They bade farewell on a nonchalant note.
In the car, Vicky confronted him with displeasure, “Did you have a bad day at work? Why did you ignore my
colleagues?”
Byron started the engine and casually replied, “I didn’t hear them.”
Vicky leaned in close and pressed her hand against his abs.
“Are you feeling it?”
She thought that he was just sexually frustrated because she had neglected him lately due to her busy schedule. Now that she was at the peak of her fame, she had lots of performances and rehearsals scheduled.
“I’ll make it up to you,” Vicky said while teasing him gently with her index finger.
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Holding her hand, Byron said, “Don’t move about while I’m driving.”
Keeping his eyes fixed on the road ahead, he seemed to be joking but at the same time, he was rather stern.
“I understand, you’re tired from rehearsals and you’re not in the mood.”
Vicky suddenly had a bad premonition that she might have been overconfident.
Byron may have high libido but he was somehow extremely restrained too. An extreme man like him would be dead serious about love but at the same time, he might really cheat once he feels empty and lonely.
In the evening, Vicky snuggled up in his arms after taking a milk bath.
“I’m going on tour the day after tomorrow, and I’ll be away for about a week,” she said.
While reading a medical book, Byron said in a rather casual tone, “That’s pretty long.”
Vicky sna tched the book from him and tossed it aside.
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“I might be away for longer.”
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Immediately afterwards, she leaned back and hugged him while asking, “Shall we do it tonight?”