Isabelle didn't think about going back to the city. After her make up was removed and she returned to her hotel room, she noticed a slight fever.
Camila was so worried she wanted to take her to the hospital no matter what. Isabelle was afraid that this would drag on for a few days, which would interfere with the shooting. but since she had four to five days off, she decided she might as well go back to the city.
First, she went to the doctors for a check-up, where they confirmed that it was nothing severe. She'd just caught a cold, and so they prescribed her some medicine.
Back at York Garden, Isabelle took the medicine and climbed into bed.
After about half an hour, the medicine started to kick in. She felt dizzy and fell asleep.
Perhaps it was because of the unsettling cold, but Isabelle didn't sleep well. Various pictures flitted through her mind.
The Isabelle before she was ten years old possessed the world's purest form of happiness. She had a successful father and a loving mother.
But on the year she turned ten, she lost her happiness in just one night.
It was a Thursday and her parents were going to participate in a charity dinner. Before leaving, her father had patiently helped her finish her homework. He had solved the most difficult questions for her. Her mother had run a bath and prepared a set of pretty clothes for her to wear to school the next day.
At that time, Isabelle acted like a little adult. She sent her parents all the way to the door and instructed them to look out for their safety.
She must have looked adorable at that time as they both kissed her on her forehead before waving goodbye and driving off.
Her mother had trained Isabelle to be an independent girl. Every time after she showered, she would request for Isabelle to wash her own socks, but every time, she would come up with a different excuse to escape that responsibility. But that day, she decided to wash her socks on a whim. She washed her socks seriously and had even hung her clothes nicely. Sweetness spread across her heart as she thought of how proud her mother would be.
But on the second day, when she opened her eyes, it wasn't to her mother's praise but to her uncle's eyes. He asked if she wanted to come stay at his house for a while.
At ten years old, she was still just a kid. She didn't detect the difference in her uncle's eyes and, since every time her parents were busy, she would be sent to stay at her uncle's house temporarily, she nodded in agreement, even packing her own luggage.
Her uncle had a daughter that was of the same age who she had a close relationship with. Every kid would be happier with company; hence she didn't suspect anything. But when her parents didn't come after a long time, she decided to ask her aunt and uncle. They told her that her parents were overseas and would only be back after a while.
She believed them.
But one day, when she had quarreled with her cousin over a toy, she told her that her parents were dead and would never be back. The Isabelle at that time didn't understand the concept of death but she could fully understand the meaning of "never be back". In her fear and horror, she broke into tears in an instance, waking her aunt and uncle.
That night, her cousin was sent to the study room to be punished while her aunt and uncle spent half the night trying to console Isabelle, telling her that they would rush back. She truly believed their words then, but later, after many days, she started to pester them, asking when her parents would come back.
Gradually, she stopped asking, understanding her cousin's words.
Her aunt and uncle had always treated her well, everything her cousin had, she would have, sometimes even better. But even though she was grateful, she could never feel secure.
To an outsider, she was a girl born with a silver spoon. She had beautiful clothes that were the envy of girls her age and even a cute phone that other girls her age could only see on magazines.
Since she wasn't her aunt and uncle's biological daughter, they would never treat her as strictly as they would treat her cousin. Even if both of them were to get into trouble, they would always punish Sophie, her cousin and not her. When they quarreled, Sophie would be the one getting scolded.
The difference in treatment made her aware of their distance. She would always be an outsider, and her own home had been destroyed when she was ten in a car accident. From then on, she never fought with Sophie, learning to give in, learning to make hot tea for her aunt and uncle after a hard day at work.
She always thought that her youth would stay innocent forever, but that was only until she met him.
That day, she and her table mate had classroom duty. After class, the sky was clear and the sun was bright, but by the time they locked the classroom door and walked out of the school, a sudden bolt of lightning struck the sky.
Isabelle hugged her bag as she rushed towards the bus stop. Halfway through, it started pouring. Isabelle continued to hug her bag, running towards the nearest shelter.
She ran into a dilapidated house, and just then, someone else rushed in as well. Out of curiosity, she lifted her head, glancing towards the other person.
The person was a boy with white skin. He had on a pair of headphones and his bag slung over one shoulder. Both his hands were held against the wall. He had his head turned so Isabelle could only catch a glimpse of his profile, but she noticed that he was wearing the same uniform as her, just that his were pants and hers was a skirt.
Isabelle was considered a tall girl, even taller than some guys her age, but this guy was so much taller than her.
They were the only ones in the house seeking shelter and, since they didn't know each other, they remained silent. When the rain finally calmed, the guy suddenly reached out with his hand to pull his bag forward. He straightened, turning his face slightly. That was when she first saw how he looked.
He possessed the most beautiful face that she had ever seen. He had a clean look that was not commonly seen, and in that instance, she felt as though she had come face to face with the main character of her dreams.The boy seemed to have realized someone was staring at him. He looked up, sweeping a frosty glance over Isabelle, jolting her back from her dreams. Treating her as thin air, he left the shelter without any emotion evident on his face.
Only when the back view of the guy could no longer be seen did Isabelle walk towards the bus stop. Right then, the bus arrived. Isabelle tapped her card and sat down by the window. Looking out at the thoroughly washed city, the memory of the boy from before flashed past her mind.
The third year of middle school was a critical period, Isabelle's thoughts were quickly swept by a sea of questions, but whenever she took a break, the boy from before would cloud her mind.
However, she didn't meet him even in graduation. Yet on the first day of high school, she and Sophia met James and through him, she met the boy from her memories.
Unlike Isabelle, that boy, seemed to have forgotten their meeting in the rain. When James had introduced them, he nodded his head coldly, not even bothering to open his mouth. Isabelle only found out his name from James afterwards.
Alexander Smith... That night, when Isabelle was leaning on her desk studying, she couldn't help but write those two words in her book.
Those two words consisted of many strokes. Slowly but very seriously, she wrote each stroke neatly into her book. With each stroke, Alexander was not only engraved in her book but also in her mind and her young heart.
In her high school, the classes were separated according to grades. James and Alexander had excellent grades, both entering the first class. Isabelle and Sophia both had mediocre grades, entering the third class.
James and Isabelle were close and would often hang out together, hence the frequency of her meeting Alexander increased significantly. With each meeting, she started to pay more attention to him, and late at night, when she lay on her bed, the frequency at which she thought of him would also increase.
Gradually, it became an obsession. Whenever she went to the washroom, she would deliberately pass the first class just to sneak a peek at him. When she managed to catch a glance of his familiar form, her heart would thump uncontrollably, but whenever he wasn't around, her day would dim slightly. After class, she would drag her friends to the field for a jog, acting as though she was there to exercise when her true intention was to watch Alexander play basketball.
After year one, Isabelle was sure that Alexander would pick science major so she followed along blindly. She also found out that the classes would be separated according to the grades once again. In order to enter the same class as Alexander, she studied hard for the very first time in her life.
It wasn't that Isabelle didn't get tired, but knowing she would be in the same class as Alexander gave her a strong drive to carry on.
She persisted and was rewarded with surprisingly good grades in the exam that would decide her class. All the teachers were shocked, naming her the black horse.
As per her wish, she successfully entered the first class for the science.
However, she only realized after that Alexander had done badly that exam, entering the third class.
Just like that, Isabelle's dreams were dashed... She became classmates with James and Sophia entered the third class for the arts.
All her friends were happy to see her doing well, but she could only plaster a forced smile to accept their blessings. Afterwards, she had hid in the small forest behind the teacher's block, crying till dusk.
Even though she was upset, she knew that the outcome would stay the same. The fact that they were not classmates was a reality that she had no power to alter. Just like in year one, she continued to observe him secretly from afar.
The girls in the third class were vastly different from the girls from the first class. Third class girls didn't care about their studies and if they liked someone, they would go all out. Every time Isabelle passed by the third class; she would see Alexander being surrounded by a group of girls who seemed to be trying to get his attention. Even though he would always wear the same cold expression, ignoring their presence, Isabelle couldn't help feeling jealous. Bitterness would often eat at her the whole day, making her moody.
Several times, Isabelle saw Alexander talking to a girl after school at either the gate or at the bus stop nearby. She recognized her as his class president who was involved in multiple communities in school. At that time, Isabelle felt as though a dagger was thrust into her heart, the pain she felt was so unbearable as though the world was going to collapse.
She would try to decipher and analyse their relationship when she was at home.
It wasn't that Isabelle and Alexander didn't share good memories, though. For instance, in year two, there was one time when she had hurt so badly that her face went pale as a sheet, and she had to use the wall as a support, not able to continue walking. He had then supported her all the way to the nurse's office.
Even today, she could still distinctly remember the events of that day. She lay on the bed in the nurse's office and he had sat on the chair next to the window reading a book. They didn't speak at all but the warmth she felt was enough. She had felt as though she owned the world at that moment.
But in the end, they still made small talk. That was because the girl she had seen talking to Alexander several times before coincidentally came into the nurse's office to buy plasters and then came over to initiate a conversation.
When the girl left and the nurse's office was quiet again, Isabelle mustered up her courage and asked him the question that was constantly on her mind. "Are you together with that girl?"
Once she asked the question, she almost bit off her own tongue. Would Alexander see her as a gossipy girl?
Isabelle lifted her eyes anxiously, secretly observing his expression. When the question sank in, he frowned slightly before lifting his face from his book to glance at her. In a light tone, he replied, "No."
Isabelle nodded, making a "oh" sound.
Alexander then returned his attention to his book.
Silence fell on the room and after a long while, Alexander spoke up again, "Our class will be organizing an activity soon, and we're both in charge."
Alexander kept a straight face as he spoke, his eyes never leaving his book.
Isabelle had buried into her blanket, breaking into a wide grin soundlessly.
Due to the extreme pain, the nurse had to give her painkillers. Before Isabelle could foot the bill, Alexander had handed the nurse thirty dollars.
At the door of the nurse's office, Isabelle thought for a while before rushing to Alexander's side. Reaching for her wallet, she took out 50 dollars and passed it to Alexander.
"Here's the doctor's fee, thank you for your help."
Alexander swept a glance at the 50-dollar banknote she held and the wallet she had open. Inside, there was a thick stack of 100-dollar bills. His eyes dimmed slightly before he turned and took large strides away, ignoring Isabelle.
The second time Isabelle had studied hard was after a picnic. At that time, James and the group were barbecuing outdoors. They had invited a lot of friends and Alexander was included.
That day, the weather was good and the skies were clear. Everyone laid down on the grass after the meal to cloud gaze. Somehow the topic shifted to their ambitions and their dream universities. Alexander was the only one who remained silent the entire time. On the way back, Isabelle heard James asking Alexander, "Bro, what about you? Which university do you want to go to?"
"Harvard university."
Harvard university was globally acclaimed and one had to be the top of the cohort to enter. Isabelle dared not even dream of entering it.
She was not sure which university she wanted to enter, but when someone asked her if she wanted to enter a university in NY, she nodded. She didn't have any preference, but since NY was a pretty city, she decided that it would be nice to enter a university there.
The only reason Isabelle liked NY was because the city was pretty. But to her, no city could overshadow Alexander. Even if she knew that Alexander and Harvard university were both unattainable dreams, she still wanted to go ahead and fight for it.
That day, she set a new goal in life and that was to enter Harvard university to become Alexander's schoolmate.
It was much more difficult to enter Harvard university than it was to enter the first class. Students from the whole country were vying for a slot there. It was a school that parents could only dream their child would enter. A person's ability was indeed infinite and her obsession for Alexander was so insane that as long as it was an opportunity to get close to him, she would go all out.
From that day till the end of the exams, she immersed herself in her studies. Other than studying, sleeping, eating, and secretly thinking of Alexander which she then turned into motivation, she didn't do anything else.
Her hard work was rewarded and she was repaid with amazing results. She was just one mark below James and that result easily got her into Harvard.
Isabelle began to search for Alexander's results after finding hers. He had gotten about ten marks more than James!
The instance she found out that they all passed the cut off for Harvard university, she started crying tears of joy.
Her dreams were finally going to come true.
On a hot summer day, Isabelle received her acceptance letter. During an early autumn day, she happily took her acceptance letter to Harvard. Knowing that James had also entered Harvard university, she invited him for a drink after completing the administrative procedures.
Causally she asked, "Where's Alexander? Isn't he with you?"
James bit his straw muttering, "Bro? He didn't come to Harvard; he went to NY." He paused for a while before continuing, "During the holidays, he was scouted to be a celebrity and would have to visit NY often. So he went to the university there."
Can one know how it feels to have the whole world crushing down on you?
Even after so many years, Isabelle would still feel that same feeling every time she dreamed of that moment. It felt as though a ray of lighting struck her, electrifying her whole soul.
She had used all of herself to work towards Harvard university, but he had gone to NY to act?
Wise people once said that fate was what brought people together. She and Alexander were probably two people born without fate.
Even if she used up her entire soul to chase after him, to love him, she won't be able to get even a bit of it back...
Youth, seemingly beautiful, was filled with sorrow.
Tears started to well up in her eyes, streaming down her face.
With her eyes shut, tears started streaming down her face as she dreamed of the past.
Regardless of how much effort she had invested, she was never able to get close to him.