Chapter 709:

In that moment, she wondered if she might actually be a bit tipsy. Elyse stood there, collecting her thoughts, the chill hitting her face sharply. She looked up to see snowflakes beginning to fall, recalling Irving’s earlier prediction of snow in the restaurant. As a snowflake drifted toward her, she reached out and caught it gently in her hand. Gazing at the snowflake, she sensed a presence and looked up. Jayden, dressed in a gray coat and carrying a black umbrella, was staring directly at her. Elyse was rooted to the spot, their eyes locked. Time seemed to stretch, and Jayden slowly moved toward her under the glow of the orange streetlights. At that moment, the rest of the world fell silent to Elyse; her focus was solely on Jayden. With each step he took, the sound resonated like a heartbeat, syncing with her own. Jayden was standing in front of her, shielding her with his umbrella. Elyse slightly parted her lips, unsure of how to respond. Seeing her astonished look, Jayden unexpectedly felt a surge of comfort. He scoffed, “Are you a fool? You know you can’t handle your liquor, yet you still choose to drink outside?” Elyse was stunned. Was this really Jayden? Was he the one she had been thinking about day and night, or was he just a figment of her imagination? Noticing her confused expression, Jayden laughed out of frustration. “Don’t you remember how you tend to kiss people randomly when you’re drunk?” Elyse snapped back to reality. “When have I ever kissed people randomly?” Jayden clenched his teeth. “So, you’ve forgotten kissing me too, have you?” Elyse tried to remember, but her thoughts were jumbled. She couldn’t recall a thing, bewildered by his presence. She reached out to touch his face, tentatively asking, “Are you the real Jayden or just my imagination?” Feeling the chill of her touch, Jayden quickly caught her hand, warming it with his own. Elyse sensed his warmth and hesitantly asked, “Are you alive?” Jayden laughed out of frustration. He had tracked down her flight details and flown over on a private plane. He had been following her all day, yet she still questioned his existence. Growing even more exasperated, he exclaimed, “You don’t even know if I’m alive or dead?” Elyse gazed at him, feeling somewhat wronged. “You appear in my dreams every day. How can I be sure if you’re real now or just a hallucination after drinking?” Jayden was once again at a loss for words. Releasing her cold hand, he grasped the back of her head and kissed her while she looked on, puzzled.