Chapter 53: Chapter 53

"Fine, if you want, next time I'll invite you to come along," July said with a smile, but Primrose maintained her expression and didn't respond with much enthusiasm.

"That's okay; your dad is busy at the company, so he can't come home for dinner with us. Let's just eat," July added.

The three of them sat down at the dining table, and Primrose glanced over; all the dishes were her favorites. However, at the moment, she didn't have much interest in enjoying the delicious food because there were still a few things bothering her.

Joel naturally didn't dare to start a conversation with Primrose, fearing that she would get annoyed, and July only spoke occasionally, asking about Primrose's current life at Nancy's home. Primrose answered truthfully, saying that she felt comfortable and happy there and had no plans to move out for now.

Listening to this, Joel's eyes became somewhat dimmer, and his face showed a hint of loss, looking worse than before. Primrose pretended not to notice and continued to eat her dinner.

After a somewhat awkward meal, July pretended to be tired and said she wanted to rest in her room, leaving Primrose and Joel alone in the living room to talk. She didn't want to interfere in the young couple's affairs and didn't want to force anything.

Primrose just wanted the two of them to calmly sit down and talk things through. Regardless of what their decision would be, she would support them and not interfere in their lives. After all, they were both grownups and mature enough to make their own decisions.

Now, with just the two of them, Primrose's gaze became somewhat colder; she obviously did not feel particularly enthusiastic about being alone with Joel. This attitude made Joel even more hesitant. He started speaking with a hesitant smile while sitting down on the sofa next to Primrose.

"Primrose, in these past few days, I haven't bothered you because I wanted to give you time to calm down and relax a bit. But now, I also want to clarify what happened, because you seem to have misunderstood many things about me."

Primrose leaned back on the sofa, looking straight into Joel's eyes, waiting for him to continue. At this point, she just wanted to resolve everything quickly because maintaining this cold and distant state was exhausting.

"I don't know what you saw that day, but I can guess. You only saw me and Auntie passionately kissing on the sidewalk, looking like a real couple, right?"

Joel asked in a low and sincere voice, wanting to clearly understand the scene Primrose witnessed that day and explain it thoroughly to her.

"Yes, I saw you and Auntie passionately kissing on the sidewalk, looking extremely sweet like a real couple," Primrose said with a sarcastic tone, and Joel's face showed more helplessness. Obviously, that was the source of Primrose's coldness in the past few days.

"But that was just a part of what happened that day," Joel continued, sighing and looking sincerely into Primrose's eyes.

"On that day, I had just come back from the company, and I went to buy some pastries and a special gift for you. It was not a planned meeting with Auntie; we just happened to run into each other."

Primrose half-believed and half-doubted, staring at Joel intently. At this point, she still didn't fully trust him, but she didn't interrupt and let Joel continue.

"At that time, Auntie kept approaching me and saying meaningless things, claiming she regretted and wanted to go back, but I rejected her. In the end, she saw both my hands were full of things, and I couldn't resist, so she forcibly kissed me, and that's the scene you saw that day."

Joel spoke with a tone of sorrow and helplessness, and he didn't expect everything to happen as coincidentally as it did when Auntie kissed him just as Primrose appeared. Obviously, even a TV drama couldn't be this dramatic.

"After that, I pushed her away, causing some trouble for Auntie's family as a punishment. I assure you, her family is currently dealing with a financial crisis at the company, and they don't have the time and courage to bother with our lives anymore. Besides, from now on, I will be cautious not to let Auntie get close to me again. Please trust me."

"The lack of vigilance that allowed Auntie to take advantage and forcibly kiss me was my fault, and I deeply regret not avoiding it earlier. After returning home, I immediately threw away the clothes I wore that day, took multiple showers, and brushed my teeth many times. If you find me dirty and don't want to be with me anymore, I won't complain. But please, don't be this cold, and don't treat me like a stranger."

"You can resent and scold me as long as you want, and you can even move out of this house, but please don't disappear so that I can still see you, okay? And please, don't mention divorce."

Joel spoke sincerely, his voice both melancholic and slightly tearful. He couldn't believe that a misunderstanding like this could lead them to this point, and the idea of divorce was something he couldn't bear.

Without proper communication between them, they allowed the misunderstanding to grow, resulting in the breakdown of their relationship. Primrose was in pain, not knowing how to accept reality, as everything had changed in ways she couldn't predict.

Upon hearing Joel's explanation, Primrose finally realized that everything she believed based on Auntie's words without questioning Joel directly was all wrong.

She believed Auntie's confident assertions and thought that Joel and Auntie were having an affair behind her back. She saw Auntie provoking and saying provocative words, believing that Auntie had Joel's protection and that everything Auntie said represented Joel's thoughts and intentions.

She saw Joel and Auntie kissing on the street and assumed that they were shamelessly having an affair in public.

From beginning to end, she followed everything Auntie said without ever asking Joel about it, not even mentioning it in front of him.

And so, Joel didn't know what was happening, such as how Primrose felt when betrayed and when she received the request for a divorce. He didn't know what he had done wrong.

Between them, there was a lack of communication, leading to a misunderstanding that caused their relationship to break down.

Primrose felt that she needed time to think everything through clearly, and her face became expressionless. Joel was also very patient, giving Primrose the time she needed to process everything, and he gently observed each change on her face while sighing softly.

Primrose didn't show any signs of hatred or suspicion, which meant she still believed his words and there was still a chance to salvage their relationship.

There were numerous thoughts swirling in Primrose's mind at this moment, making her feel confused and causing her language ability to seem lost. It took her a while to find her voice again.

"So, you and Auntie never had anything between you from the beginning, and it was all just a misunderstanding?" Primrose asked, her thoughts still in disarray as she looked toward Joel.

Joel nodded firmly. "Yes, from the beginning to the end, there has only been you in my heart, Primrose."