Sophia didn't think much of it that time and replied, "Izzy caught a cold. She's not feeling too good, so she didn't want to come out."
He nodded calmly as though it was nothing, but his heart clenched in pain.
At that time, she was already someone he could not love, even if he was worried, he had no right to visit or care about her. In the end, he drove through the silent night, sitting outside the Davis family's mansion, guarding till the next morning before driving off.
He knew that Isabelle would always be a burden he could not carry but yet he could not let go.
Even though at that time they no longer were in contact, he still wanted to know how she was living.
Just like that, he continued to talk to Sophia to get snippets of information... Unknowingly, it lasted for four years, until the day James's mother Mrs. Williams came to him. She wanted him to act as James and marry Isabelle... Only then did he stop talking to Sophia.
Ever since the incident five years ago, he knew that Isabelle was someone he could never love, so he started to treat her coldly, but his love never wavered. He never thought of trying to love someone else or settling with someone more suitable.
Hence, when he heard Sophia telling Isabelle that he might be interested in her and could even potentially become her boyfriend, he wasn't just infuriated but worried as well.
He was worried that Isabelle would misunderstand him, think he liked her sister.
That day, he didn't return back to the set but waited directly at the hotel. Once Isabelle went it, he immediately joined Sophia in her car.
He was at the peak of his fury then, saying harsh and offensive words to her. But it was all for the best, if he couldn't get together with her, he wanted to make it clear to her.
"Knock! Knock! Knock!"
The sudden knock on the door jolted Alexander out of his daze. He arranged his expression before gracefully standing up to open the door.
According to Alexander's instructions, his assistant had gone to find Isabelle, telling her that Mr. Smith wanted to see her upstairs. Before leaving, the assistant hesitated before adding, "Miss Davis, Mr. Smith hasn't eaten since afternoon... He has been working the entire time and only now got some free time. I asked him if he wanted to eat but he refused, yet he'll have a long day tomorrow. Could you get him to eat a little later?"
Isabelle nodded, acknowledging his words, but once Alexander's assistant left, her smile soon faded.
For the entire afternoon, her mind was in a mess, circling around Sophia and Alexander. According to her sister, she seemed to have a good relationship with Alexander.
At the beginning, Isabelle had agreed to Mrs. Williams's request, hoping that after living together for a long time, sparks would fly between her and Alexander. But if he were to end up with Sophia, she wouldn't have a chance at all...
Her face sank, turning desolate. She stood at the entrance of the hotel for a long while before returning to her room. After finding her phone, she prepared to head up. Just then, Alexander's assistant called, passing on his instructions. She called the hotel restaurant's number to order a meal for supper.
This was the peak period where crew members were often in the elevator, so there was a high chance that she would meet someone she knew. Afraid to be seen, Isabelle took the piping hot meal to the stairs.
Just then, Annabelle received a call from a producer, but since she was having a mini gathering in her room, she left to the corridor to pick her call. The producer had a suggestive tone and she had to coax him.
There were constantly people walking around in the corridor so she retreated to the emergency staircase. But just as she was about to push open the door, she caught sight of Isabelle through the small glass. She was holding a tray of food and climbing up.
Annabelle was filled with doubt, who would she be bringing the supper to?
She hesitated slightly before ending the call with the producer. Pushing open the door, she followed Isabelle silently.
Alexander opened the door, and when he saw Isabelle, he turned to walk in wordlessly.
-
Isabelle took a deep breath at the door. Then in large strides, she walked into the room, closing the door behind herself.
Alexander seemed to have entered the shower as streaming water could be heard. Isabelle placed the supper she had bought onto an empty space on the coffee table in front of the sofa. She then reached out to arrange the documents and magazines that were carelessly strewn around the small table. She hugged the stack and was about to put it on the side when the shower door opened. Alexander looked straight at her.
Isabelle tightened her grip on the stack as she explained softly, "Your assistant mentioned that you haven't eaten so I got you some supper."
Alexander directed his attention to the coffee table. There was indeed a box of food there. His brows furrowed slightly and his gaze deepened.
He continued to stare at the food, not moving. Isabelle thought that he didn't want to eat so she struggled slightly before adding, "Your assistant mentioned that you've been working the whole afternoon, you must be tired. If you don't eat, how can you last till tomorrow?"
Alexander continued to stay silent, his gaze falling back on Isabelle.
Her fingers tightened on the documents she held. Weakly, she added, "Besides, even if you have no appetite, you should still eat a little, it's better than not eating..."
Isabelle was almost defeated at this point.
If she were to do away with the "married couple" title, they were practically strangers. On their marital night, she had even mentioned that she would not interfere with his life and he had told her "better remember your words." Hence, after their marriage, she had never questioned his lifestyle, not even said a simple word of care or goodnight... But now, she was insisting that he eat his meal. Was that considered breaching their agreement...
Isabelle felt increasingly more uneasy the more she pondered. But till the end, she weakly insisted, "It won't be good for your stomach if you skip meals often."
Alexander remained silent, staring unwaveringly at her.
Just when she was about to give up, he suddenly walked forward, sitting down on the sofa. He pointed to the box of food, asking, "What's there?"
Isabelle looked at Alexander in shock, and after a while, she still couldn't process his words.
Alexander seemed to be amused by her slow reaction, his lips curling upwards slightly. Continuing in a calm voice with no expression, he asked, "I thought you brought me food?"
Isabelle finally understood that he was referring to the supper. Her eyes curled slightly before she placed the stack of documents on his desk. Walking back to the supper, she opened the box and reported the food she had ordered.
Alexander continued to remain silent, staring at Isabelle, his expression gentle.
Isabelle placed the food neatly in front of Alexander before helping him open a pair of disposable chopsticks. Passing them over, she added, "I don't know what you like so you can just have a little of each..."
Alexander stared straight at her, seemingly studying her.
Just like that, their gazes collided.
Stunned, Isabelle couldn't continue her sentence. With widened eyes and her head slightly lifted, she returned Alexander's gaze.
He no longer had a complicated and distant look in his eyes, it was replaced by something deeper; his eyes were shinning.
As she stared, her heart rate quickened uncontrollably, her face reddening slightly. Not until she felt her face burn did, she come back to her senses, averting her gaze. Nervously, she passed the chopsticks, "Chopsticks."
Isabelle's voice jolted Alexander back to reality. He blinked a few times before arranging a cold and distant expression back into place. Wordlessly, he took the chopsticks. Lowering his eyes, he started to eat casually.
Alexander ate gracefully, not making any sound.
The entire room was silent.
Isabelle knelt in front of Alexander for a long while before managing to collect herself from the eye contact. Lifting her eyes slightly, she peaked at the man in front of her.
After sneaking a glance several times, she realized that Alexander was focused on the food in front of him. Hence, she mustered more courage and started to sneak longer stares at him.
Alexander was still wearing the same set of clothes he had on for lunch. He had removed his jacket, undid his tie, and unbuttoned the top two buttons, exposing his exquisite collar bones. He had his cuffs rolled up, revealing a small section of his strong muscled arm, adding a hint of casualness to his elegance.
He focused on his food, his long lashes fluttering slightly from time to time.
The first time she had seen him, she was mesmerized by his looks. After thirteen years, regardless of how many times she had dreamed of him, she would still get mesmerized and awed by him.
To her, he was the only one is this world whose looks could stand the test of time.
Isabelle stared in a daze. After some time, Alexander seemed to have noticed and suddenly looked up. Isabelle looked back down in shock, her heart beating rapidly once again.
Subconsciously, Isabelle tried to find an excuse to hide from Alexander to calm herself down. But when she turned towards the window, she stopped in her tracks and, unconsciously, exclaimed, "It's raining!"
As she exclaimed, she stood up, walking to the window.
Alexander froze when he heard her, slowly turning towards the window. Indeed, big droplets were splattering onto the window, drenching it in rainwater. In front of the window, Isabelle stood transfixed.
Alexander glanced over for a brief moment before averting his gaze. He finished off all the food that Isabelle had bought and set his chopsticks down.
He wiped his mouth with a piece of tissue then tossed it into the bin nearby. Hesitating for a bit, he took large strides to the window where Isabelle stood.
Alexander was much taller than her. Since it was late into the night, the window was like a mirror. He could clearly see that Isabelle was transfixed, focusing all her attention on the rain outside. Her eyes were shinning and he couldn't help asking, "You like rainy days too?"
Isabelle was about to reach out her hand to caress the window, along with the droplets that streamed downwards. Only when she heard his question did she realize that unknowingly he had appeared beside her. Her fingers paused on the window for several seconds before she nodded her head lightly.
"Yes, I like them."
Alexander remained silent, but right then, he had on a gentle and warm expression.
For some time, Isabelle continued to randomly caress the window. She only realized afterwards that Alexander had asked if she liked rainy days too. She turned her head and looked at Alexander, throwing his question back at him, "You like rainy days too?"
"Yes, I like them too," Alexander replied in an usually gentle tone, as though there was a deeper meaning to his words.
So they both liked rainy days... maybe that was what carrying a torch was like, when both of them had a something in common, it was as though they were much closer.
A sweet sensation spread through Isabelle's heart.
She liked rainy days because that was how they had first met, seeking shelter on a rainy day.
That day, she had fallen head over heels for him.
But what about him?
Just when Isabelle was hesitating whether to ask him why he liked rainy days, the man beside her who rarely spoke said, "Initially, I didn't really like them."
He paused, seemingly in deep thought, then continued in a light tone, "Afterwards, because of an incident, I started liking rainy days."
Just like that, Isabelle's heart skipped a beat. The reason he liked rainy days was the same as hers... But she started liking them because of someone while he started liking them because of an incident...
This was the first time after their marriage that she had spoken to Alexander so calmly. She started to get braver, asking out her suspicion, "What incident made you like rainy days?"
Alexander stared out at the pouring rain, his expression turning sorrowful. "That was the first time I got close to the most important person in my life..."
Alexander stopped, suddenly realizing what he was saying.
Isabelle stood beside him, focusing all her attention on his words. But after waiting for a long time, he still remained silent, not finishing his sentence. She turned her head suspiciously, looking up at him.
Through the window, Alexander caught sight of Isabelle's expectant face as she stared at him.
The incident five years ago had taken away his right to have her. Even if he loved her, it had to be hidden deep in his heart, but just now, when he wasn't paying attention, he had almost exposed himself.
Alexander's throat moved, his senses overtaking his emotions. Lightly, he said, "Forget it, it isn't worth mentioning."
"Oh," Isabelle replied softly, not saying anymore. She stared out at the pouring rain, her feelings dampening.
Alexander had said that he had met the most important person in his life on a rainy day, was it the girl that he liked?
So they both met the person they love the most on a rainy day, just that the person she loved the most was him and the person he loved the most was someone else...
Just moments ago she was cheered by their common interest, but now, she couldn't help feeling sad and bitter.
Their conversation ended and the room fell into silence once more. They both stood in front of the window, gazing out at the rain, lost in their thoughts.
He was thinking about her.
She was thinking about him.