Talia frowned at the declaration. Glancing around the cemetery, she had goosebumps on her skin. She didn’t want to hear anything about ghosts in this kind of place. So, she pinched extremely hard on his arm, causing Jayden to groan from the pain.
She turned to her grandma. “Can you give us a few moments, granny?”
“Okay! I’ll wait for you two at the gateway of the cemetery,” Charlotte nodded and took the fallen basket from the ground. “I hope Jayden can take us home so that we don’t need to ride a taxi.”
JD nodded. “Don’t worry. I’ll drive all of us home.”
Charlotte smiled at the two lovebirds as she strolled toward the trees.
Talia made no response even after the disappearance of her granny, but Jayden finally spoke when they’re both alone now.
“How have you been?” JD returned her hug and squeezed his arms around her waist. “I apologize that I couldn’t reach you in the past fourteen days. I tried to call you many times, but I couldn’t reach you. So, I decided to wait until the end of finals week before I could meet you in person.”
I really wanted to know the truth from you, JD. If you don't have the same feeling, then please don’t be too nice to me. Since I couldn’t bear this heartache anymore, I would stop admiring you. I’m only glad that I got to see you one last time.
Talia hiccupped and sniffed without answering Jayden.
JD wrinkled his brows as he tried to wrench them apart. But Talia refused to let go until Jayden heard the sniff coming from her. He lifted her head and startled at the wet tears, dripping down on Talia's face.
"What's wrong?" JD inquired as he gazed over her body. "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Looking into his eyes, she shook her head and asked the question that she dreaded to hear the answer. “Jayden, do you even like me a single bit about me?” She sobbed as her voice resonated around their surroundings. “Did you find someone new in the past several days? Was that the reason why you stopped calling me? You never left me hanging without a word. Did you really don't want to befriend me anymore?”
JD pulled her against his chest again, squeezed his arms tighter, and rested his chin on her hair.
Talia could hear the badump in her heart and couldn’t breathe, not because of his hug but because of her bewilderment. She hoped that time would stop so that she could treasure this moment forever.
“Talia, I like the way you said my name,” JD whispered to her ears. “Do you even know the long days and nights I thought of you for the past fortnight? I’m not really lying. I tried to call your house, but I never reached you there. Please don’t be sad."
“Why is that?” Talia muttered as she squeezed her arm tighter. “I’ve been waiting every day for your call.”
Letting out a groan, JD mumbled in an annoying tone. “Ever since your half-sister had met me in front of your house, she intercepted the call every single time. I tried to ask her to give the phone to you, but she threw a tantrum and nearly burst my eardrums with her sobbing.”
“Really?” Talia narrowed her eyes in confusion. “But why did I never see Abigail hand the phone to me?”
“I have no clue, but I think your sibling might be interested in me,” Jayden explained. “She always bragged about herself and insulted you with bad names.”
“Don’t take it to heart! Abigail was always a spoiled brat. She always said and did what her heart desired. I saw it all the time.”
Jayden patted Talia’s head and tightened the hug. “Are you telling me you never expect any changes in your stepsister?”
I did notice her change, but I assumed her transformation was due to our father’s scolding. No wonder Abigail became so strange these past few days like she had been reborn!
Talia recalled the days that Abigail always woke up every morning to do the chores, but she ended up causing such a mess in the house. Her half-sister even pushed her away and tried to wash the dishes, but she ended up breaking every plate. Abigail tried to sweep the floor, but she ended up sending the dust into everyone’s faces. Her half-sister tried to mop the floor, but she ended up throwing the rags outside when she slipped and fell on her bottom. The oddest part that creeped out Talia to this day was when Abigail always said nice things to her and her grandma, but with an intimidating glare that created goosebumps on their skin.
“So, she became that way to impress you!” Talia mumbled with a frown. “Pity! You haven’t shown up in time to watch her change.”
Jayden didn’t want to cause another misunderstanding, so he continued with caution. “Why do you say that? Don’t think too much!”
“Nah, don’t worry,” Talia mumbled. “It was just that my father expected her to become hardworking to do the chores. Pity! She doesn't use that much energy to help me finish the chores, but she made such a mess for me to clean up after herself. I’m just worried that you might have feelings for her.”
Jayden relaxed and comforted the woman in his arms. “I wouldn’t like her and couldn’t even stand your sibling because she was exactly like my ex-girlfriend, who was always a selfish person.”
“Then, what about me? I’m a poor person, who has no money. I’m not even a pretty woman, who would not be fit to stand next to you,” Talia’s voice quivered. “Someone like me, do you think you can love me?”
He lifted her head with his right hand and explained, “I never regret falling for you in the past. The moment I knew about you, I found out that you are the woman I’m looking for because you had a kind personality. I don’t care about your money, your background, or your appearance. What I want from you is your heart, and I promise not to let you down or let you live in misery.”
“I always yearned to hear that for a long time,” Talia snuggled into his shoulder and hugged him with a tight force she could muster due to her happiness. “I would never let you go, Jayden.”
He returned the hug and looked straight into her eyes, “So, you have forgiven me now?”
Talia wiped her tears at last, smiled at him, and nodded. “Yeah!”
“Let’s go, your grandma would have waited for a long time now. “I want to show you your Christmas presents too.”
As they headed toward the entrance of the cemetery, they met Charlotte sitting on the bench of a pagoda. JD led both to walk toward his vehicle, who he parked on the right side of the street.
12
Talia opened the door on the back, but JD wanted Talia to sit on the passenger side. So she hopped to the front seat while Charlotte sat on the back. Driving toward their home in twenty minutes, Jayden parked at the back entrance this time.
Charlotte hopped out of the car and hurried to bring the two gifts of her granddaughter to the car. She even waved at them as Jayden drove toward an empty park near a river.
“Merry Christmas,” Jayden handed two presents to her. “Open the small one first.”
Talia was more interested in the bigger presents, so she ripped the wrapping papers. In the box, she finds a beautiful, golden yellow gown with roses on the chests and ruffles on the skirt. She gawked at the sparkling dress and lifted her head to glance at Jayden.