A Night with Her Cruel Mate

"No, you are not dreaming," Samuel answered. "Wasn’t it just seeing a director? What are you being so excited about?"
"You don't understand." Julia shook her head. "I’ve always dreamt of becoming a director ever since I was a child, and Director
Zhang has been my long-time idol."
"Why did you become an actress then? Shouldn’t you go into the directing field?" Samuel asked. The curiosity in his gaze was
apparent.
"It's complicated. Anyway, you won’t understand even if I explain it to you," Julia said while rolling her eyes. "By the way, how did
you know I'm here for Director Zhang?"
"Isn't it obvious?" It was now Samuel's turn to roll his eyes. "I just had to call Jelly Belly, and I’d know everything I wanted to
know."
Julia looked at Samuel in silence. She knew that he must’ve been worried about her and so he called her agent. This knowledge
almost overwhelmed her because it had been such a long time since someone actually cared and worried about her. Gratitude
was brimming in her chest. She had many things to say to Samuel, but they seemed to be stuck in her throat. In the end, she
only managed to say two words hoarsely. "Thank you."
"Don’t mention it." Samuel put his hands on Julia's shoulders. "Besides, I haven’t done much, nor can I do much to help you. At
the end of the day, you still have to rely on yourself."
"I understand." Julia nodded. "Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. It’s indeed my turn to stand up for myself now."
With that thought in mind, she felt much more relaxed. She walked back and forth around the party area, taking a bit of this and
that from the banquet tables. Her mouth went on a munching spree. This was a shocking and quite an unbearable sight. After a
while, Samuel finally couldn’t hold back and said, "Hey, please don't eat too much. We’re going to have some barbecue later,
remember?"
It took Julia a moment before she remembered their appointment.
They had promised each other that when they met, they would definitely find a place to drink and have a midnight snack.
Both of them were busy, so they didn’t have many chances to meet—a chance for a short gathering like this was extremely rare
and was thus very valuable for them.

"Oh, sorry, I really forgot that we’re still going to have a meal later." Julia quickly put down the cake in her hand. "But I’m telling
you this now—don't even try to pay for the meal later. Leave the bill to me. Just take it as a thank you for doing me such a big
favor."
"Don't worry. I won't."
The party eventually ended.
They were going to have a meal somewhere nearby, but Julia's dress was too eye-catching.
This didn’t really matter for Julia. After all, she wasn’t famous, and very few people recognized her. However, it was an entirely
different case for Samuel. She had to take his safety into consideration, so she asked him to go back to the hotel first and told
him that she would catch up with him after she bought some snacks for them.
"No way! It's late now, it's not safe for you to go alone," Samuel protested.
"It's okay." Julia laughed. "You have women chasing after you wherever you go, I'm not famous. I have nothing to fear."
Upon hearing what Julia said, a strange expression appeared on Samuel's face. He stared at her without saying a word,
seemingly trying to look into her heart.
"How about this?" A long time later, Samuel finally withdrew his gaze and compromised. "I'll drive you there and then wait in the
car. You’ll be the one to get out and buy our food. When you’re done, we can go back to the hotel together. Both of us will be
safe this way. What do you think?"
"Well, fine." Samuel's stubbornness left Julia with no other choice but to agree with him.
Fortunately, everything went on smoothly, and they could safely go back to Samuel's room. The moment they entered the room,
Julia immediately sat down on the sofa and took out a can of beer from their harvest bag. She opened the can and gulped the
beer down. Half of the beer in the can went into her stomach in a matter of seconds.
It was too late for Samuel to stop her, but he didn’t give up. He grabbed the opened can from her hand, saying angrily, "For
heaven’s sake! You’re wounded! You shouldn’t drink like this!"
"Never mind that..." Julia smiled bitterly and tried to grab the can back. "It's not a big deal. I'm perfectly fine."
Samuel held the can out of her reach. "Julia, did something happen? Do you have anything you want to tell me?"

"Nothing happened. I..." Julia looked away. She didn’t dare to look Samuel in the eye for fear that he would discover something.
The more she acted like this, the more suspicious Samuel became. "Tell me the truth, what happened?"
"Nothing happened. I'm really fine..." Julia frowned. "Give me the beer back."
"Julia!" Samuel fixated his gaze on Julia. "Do you not consider me your friend? Why are you keeping things secret from me?"
A bitter smile emerged on Julia's face. "It's not a big deal. I just... got a divorce from Terence."
"What?!!"
"No need to overreact." Julia stared calmly at Samuel who, at this moment, had nothing but shock in his expression. "Didn't you
say that I'd divorce Terence sooner or later? Now it’s just like what you’ve predicted."
"Are you the one who asked for a divorce?"
"No, I’m not." Julia slightly shook his head. "You know how much I love him. How could I possibly ask for a divorce? It was just
that he’s found someone more suitable for him than me."
"You mean...he’s going out with someone else?" Samuel knew about everything that happened between Julia and Terence. He
never thought that Terence deserved Julia, and he even often cursed their marriage in his heart.
But now that they really did get a divorce, he also didn’t have the heart to see Julia looking sad and crestfallen over the matter.
"Not exactly someone else..." Julia hesitated for a moment before she continued to speak. "Do you remember? I once told you
that the girl to whom Terence was engaged was my younger sister. Now, she’s back, so I naturally have to make way for her.
I’ve occupied him for three years. It's time for me to give him back."
Seeing Julia's forlorn expression made Samuel very uncomfortable.
He stared at Julia, saying, "Rest assured. Although Terence doesn't want you, I do. As long as you say okay, I’ll immediately
make our relationship public."
"You must be kidding me." A genuine smile finally appeared on Julia’s face. "Many girls will be heartbroken if you do that. They
will most likely be after my blood after they finish crying their hearts out, so for my safety, please don't..."

Julia refused with a smile. She thought that Samuel was joking, so she never noticed the bitterness in his expression.
Samuel had liked Julia from the moment they met. However, she had only even taken him as a good friend. She always poured
her heart out to him without keeping anything secret. She had even told him about her nominal marriage with Terence.
Aside from her feelings to Terence, it was also this friendship they had that had been holding Samuel back from confessing to
Julia.
But now, he finally saw hope again.
Julia didn't feel the change in Samuel's mood at all. She opened another can of beer, and this time, he didn’t stop her.
After gulping down one can after another, Julia finally fell asleep on the sofa. Holley picked her up and placed her on his bed. As
for him, he spent the night on the sofa.
When Julia woke up the next morning, Samuel was no longer in the room, but he left a note for her, saying that he was in a hurry
to leave.
Julia, who was still half-asleep, burst into laughter upon reading his note.
Samuel might be the only man whom she could feel so relaxed and free with.
Upon having a quick wash, Julia put on the dress she wore last night and then left the hotel under people's doubtful
gazes.