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He Watched the Aurora with His First Love on Our Anniversary

Novelix Completed

剧情反转、复仇、追妻火葬场、追悔莫及、打脸、背叛、出轨、大女主、女性力量/大女主、剧情/戏剧、现代/都市

Chapters (3)

第1章

On the fifth anniversary of our relationship, Adrian bailed on me at the last minute, claiming there was a sudden safety incident at his company. Seeing how crushed I was, my best friend Joss and my younger sister Mia offered to take me to the amusement park. All day long, they were unusually attentive—buying me cotton candy, standing in line with me for the roller coaster. I thought they were just worried about me being upset. Until I went to buy a bottle of water and overheard them whispering in a quiet corner. Joss lowered her voice. "Adrian ditched Nora on their fifth anniversary just to take Celeste to see the northern lights." Mia shrugged it off. "So he's helping his first love cross something off her bucket list. He's still going to marry my sister when he gets back." Joss gave a soft laugh. "We just have to keep Nora busy until tonight so she doesn't find out." Standing behind the vending machine, all I felt was a bitter kind of absurdity. So the comfort I thought I'd been receiving was really just the two people I trusted most covering for Adrian. I tossed the water into the trash, turned around, and walked out of the park. Then I sent Adrian one last message: "You watch the northern lights with her. Give her the rest of your life while you're at it." I blocked him, then left every group chat I shared with my best friend and my sister. This whole performance—one that everyone closest to me was in on, except for me—I was done playing along. ... I hadn't been out of the park ten minutes when Mia came running after me. She grabbed my wrist. There wasn't a trace of guilt in her voice—only complaint. "Nora, how could you just leave? Joss stood in line for an hour to get those fireworks tickets." Joss caught up too, stuffing her phone back into her bag. "We were just chatting. Why would you only listen to half of what we said?" I looked at them. "What was the other half?" Mia stumbled, then frowned. "Celeste has been dealing with psychological trauma ever since the avalanche two years ago. Her doctor said going back to the aurora observation site would help her recovery. What's wrong with Adrian going with her?" "So there was no safety incident at the company," I said. "Adrian was just worried you'd overthink it." Joss softened her tone. "Nora, he's going to propose the moment he gets back. Why ruin five years of love over something this small?" I actually laughed. They'd planned out my entire day for me—right down to when I should eat, when I should watch the fireworks. The only thing they hadn't planned for was me hearing the truth early. My phone buzzed in my palm. Adrian was calling from an unfamiliar number. The moment I picked up, his first words were, "Take me off the blocked list." There was howling wind in the background. And Celeste's voice. "Adrian, come quick—I think the sky's lighting up." Adrian muffled the receiver. His voice grew distant for a moment, then came back just as calm. "There really was a safety incident. I just came along with her afterward, on the way." "Manhattan to Iceland is on the way?" There was a two-second silence on the other end. "Nora, don't fixate on one line." "I'm not fixating. I've already let it go." "I saw your message." His tone cooled. "You can be disappointed. You can be angry. But don't test me by threatening a breakup." Joss immediately jumped in. "Nora, let him finish Celeste's treatment. Whatever you want to say, save it for when he comes back." Mia chimed in beside her. "If Adrian actually liked Celeste, do you think you'd have gotten to keep him for five years?" The words hit my eardrum like a needle. Adrian must have heard, because his tone softened a fraction. "I'll be back in three days. The Aurora system launch is that same day. Get the final presentation ready." The Aurora system was the risk-prediction program I'd spent four years building. At the hardest stretch, I slept at the office for three months straight. Adrian had once set an aurora snow globe on my desk—one that could record audio—and told me: When the Aurora system officially launches, I'll take you to see the real northern lights. Now the system was about to launch, and he'd already gone to see them with someone else. "Adrian, we've already broken up." He let out a low sigh. "You're just angry. Nora, don't make me come home and clean up your emotions." The call ended. Mia rubbed her nose, reached out to loop her arm through mine. "There, Adrian explained. Come on, the fireworks are about to start." I stepped away from her hand and took a car home alone. Adrian's wedding shoes from two months ago were still sitting in the entryway. Underneath the box was a travel brochure for Iceland. I used to think it was a hint about the proposal. Now I knew—it was just a page that had slipped out of Celeste's itinerary. The computer in the study was still on. Adrian hadn't logged out of his company account. An itinerary confirmation email sat open on the screen. The ticket had been booked half a month ago. The hotel: an aurora-view suite. Registered guests: Adrian and Celeste. The so-called last-minute incident had been a lie prepared for me from the very beginning. I was about to close the page when a new email popped up. Sender: Joss. Subject: PR Contingency Plan Regarding Ms. Nora's Withdrawal from the Aurora Project. Sent three days ago. I opened the attachment. The first line read: If Nora discovers the Iceland trip, sister Mia will handle appeasement; Joss will stall for time. And on the last page, two words scrawled in Adrian's own handwriting as approval: Proceed.

第2章

The next morning, Adrian had his assistant deliver a necklace. The assistant set the velvet box on my desk and smiled. "Mr. Hale said it's an anniversary gift. He hopes you'll cool off and be at the launch rehearsal this afternoon." The pendant was shaped like a silver snowflake. Identical to the one I'd received on my birthday three years ago. How lovely. A recycled birthday present. I flipped over the box and saw the duty-free receipt taped to the bottom. Purchase location: Iceland airport. Quantity: two. I pushed the box back. "Please thank Mr. Hale for me. Tell him to give this to someone more suitable." The assistant's face went awkward. "Ms. Sinclair, Mr. Hale also said the Aurora project is at a critical stage. It would be best if you didn't bring personal feelings into work." I lifted my eyes. "Pass one on for me, too. Tell him not to bring someone else's hard work into pleasing his first love." That afternoon, I went to the office. A massive poster stood outside the launch hall. Adrian's name was at the very top. Celeste stood beside him, credited as the creative originator of the Aurora system. My name was gone. Joss was directing staff to rearrange the seating cards. The moment she saw me, she pulled me aside. "Why are you here so early?" "If I hadn't come early, how would I have known someone else was already sitting in my seat?" She lowered her voice. "It's just a PR strategy. Celeste is an avalanche survivor—using her story makes the press pay attention." "So you erased my name." "Adrian said people who actually accomplish things don't need to fuss about credit." I looked at the friend I'd known for twelve years. Back when her old company had wrongfully fired her, I was the one who brought her into Hale Group. I begged Adrian to give her the position of PR director. The first time she got her bonus, she'd hugged me and cried, swearing she'd never let me down. Now she was using the crisis PR I'd taught her—to handle me. The big screen suddenly lit up. Adrian was joining a video conference from Iceland. He was wearing a black windbreaker. Behind him was a snow-covered cabin. Celeste, wrapped in his scarf, was sitting by a fireplace. "Let's start the rehearsal." I stepped in front of the camera. "Who approved the poster?" Adrian saw me. His brow furrowed slightly. "Celeste's story has more media value. After the launch, I'll acknowledge your contributions in an internal memo." "I don't want an internal memo." Celeste rose from the sofa and cut in gently. "Nora, don't blame Adrian. I just thought 'Aurora' was such a lovely name, so I agreed to help promote it." She raised her hand to adjust the scarf, and her wrist emerged from the sleeve—a leather cord bracelet on it. I had braided that one myself, for Adrian. Woven into the knot was an old chip—the processor that had burned out the first time the Aurora system successfully ran. Adrian once said it was proof of everything we'd endured together. I asked, "Who gave you what's on your wrist?" Celeste instinctively looked at Adrian. Adrian said flatly, "Just an old string. She liked it, so she took it." "That's mine." "Nora." His tone hardened. "Don't make a spectacle of this in front of the staff." Whispers were already rippling through the room. Mia had shown up at some point. She was standing in the front row, waving at me. "Nora, come down. Celeste is just borrowing it. You don't need to nitpick something like this." I didn't move. "The core module of the Aurora system belongs to me. As of today, I'm revoking the license." The room went silent. Adrian's gaze darkened. "Every piece of your development was completed at Hale Group. The intellectual property belongs to the company." "The original version was written before I joined Hale Group. I hold the original code and copyright registration." Joss's face changed. Mia hurried onstage and grabbed my arm. "Nora, are you insane? The company poured hundreds of millions into this project. If you revoke it now, you're just trying to force Adrian to come back and coax you, aren't you?" I pulled my arm free. "I'm just taking back what's mine." Adrian stared at me for a moment, then let out a small laugh. "You can't bring yourself to do it." "What?" "You spent four years grinding through this with me. The Aurora system is like your child. You won't actually destroy it." He was so certain. Certain I couldn't let go of the project, or of him. "Continue the rehearsal," Adrian instructed his assistant. "Suspend Nora's backend access for now. Restore it once she's calmed down." The screen went dark. Security walked over to me and politely asked me to leave. Just before the elevator doors closed, I saw two staff members carrying cardboard boxes out of R&D. Inside them were my original manuscripts. Taped to the top: an international express shipping label. Delivery address: the Iceland cabin where Adrian and Celeste were staying.

第3章

I stopped those two boxes. The assistant blocked my way. "Ms. Sinclair, this was arranged by Mr. Hale." "Those manuscripts are my personal property." "Mr. Hale said Celeste is going to talk about the development story at the launch. She needs to understand the process." I tore off the shipping label and pulled the manuscripts against my chest. "If she wants to tell a story, let her tell her own." The assistant tried to stop me again, but Mia came charging out of the elevator and yanked the box straight out of my hands. "Nora, stop making a scene." Her motion was too rough. The bottom of the box split open, and hundreds of pages scattered across the floor. A cup of coffee tipped from the hand of a passing employee. The brown liquid soaked into the earliest calculation drafts. I crouched down to gather them. The edges of the pages had stuck together. A gentle touch and they crumbled. Those were the last set of data my father had worked on with me before he passed away. He didn't understand programming, so he'd worn his reading glasses and checked every line of numbers with me, jotting derivation notes in the margins in red pen. Mia saw the handwriting on the pages. Her expression stiffened for a moment. "They're just a few drafts. There's a backup on the computer." I looked up at her. "That's Dad's handwriting." Her lips moved, then she looked away. "If Dad were still here, he wouldn't want to see you destroying Adrian's company either." Joss crouched down to help me pick them up, whispering, "Nora, after the Aurora system launches successfully, Adrian's going to give you a five percent cut. If you cooperate now, everyone comes out ahead." "You knew all along he was going to give the credit to Celeste, didn't you?" Her hand stilled. I pressed further. "Iceland, the itinerary, the project—what else don't I know?" Mia answered impatiently. "Adrian just owes Celeste an explanation. The reason they broke up back then was because Celeste went on a mountain survey in his place, and that's how she got caught in the avalanche." "So?" "So the Aurora system was originally something Adrian was making for her." Mia looked at me. "You just executed his ideas." Four years of development. More than seven hundred days and nights. In Mia's mouth, it was reduced to "executed his ideas." I gathered up the manuscripts that hadn't been soaked and turned to leave. Adrian's video call rang the assistant's phone. "Put her on." The assistant handed me the phone. It was already deep night behind Adrian. Celeste was leaning against his shoulder, asleep. He didn't push her away. He just lowered his voice. "Celeste has an interview in the morning. Give her the manuscripts." "No." "Nora, stop being unreasonable." "Adrian, do you have any idea that those pages have my father's handwriting on them?" He was quiet for a moment. "I'll have someone restore them." "Some things can't be restored." "Then rewrite them." Weariness crept into his voice. "You're a professional engineer. There's no reason to torment a sick woman over a few old pages." Joss spoke up beside me. "Mr. Hale, the media already knows Celeste is the project's originator. If the manuscripts don't arrive, the interview will fall apart." Adrian heard her out and said flatly, "Take the manuscripts." The assistant stepped forward. I backed into the wall, and the pages in my arms tumbled to the floor again. Mia seized the moment to grab the box. Joss stood in front of me. She said in a low voice, "Once the launch is over, I'll get them back for you myself." "With what?" Joss looked away. Through the phone, Adrian made his usual verdicts on everything. "After the project's done, I'll take you back to the old house for a few days. I'll have your father's study restored the way it was." "Restored?" I froze. "What happened to the old house?" Silence spread around me. Mia's face went white. I stared at her. "You touched the old house?" "The company was strapped for cash last year. Adrian took out a second mortgage on it." Her voice grew smaller and smaller. "Just to bridge the gap." That brownstone was the only inheritance our father had left the two of us sisters. Ownership: half each. My signature had never appeared on any mortgage document. "Whose name is on it?" Mia gripped the box tightly. "Nora, Adrian promised to give me a new apartment. I just thought—the old house was sitting empty anyway." "I'm asking you, who signed?" She looked up, eyes red. "I forged your signature. But Adrian said the loan would be paid off the moment the Aurora system succeeded." Adrian didn't deny it. He was, in fact, still calm. "Nora, I'll explain this when I'm back. For now, sign the authorization, or the bank calls in the loan early and we lose the house." The assistant produced a document at just the right moment. The last page already had a signature tab stuck on it for me. I looked at my sister, at my best friend, and at the man on the screen who had once promised to safeguard everything precious to me. Then I took the pen. The tension finally left Adrian's brow. But he didn't see that in the space for authorization duration, I hadn't written permanent. I'd written twenty-four hours.