Chapter 15
Five years later.
After keeping her island closed for five years, Sylvia finally opened it for limited visits.
Of course, it was no longer called “the uninhabited island.” After much consideration, Sylvia had named it “Reunion Isle
People come and go throughout life–what matters is cherishing those you meet along the way.
Having left her mistaken past behind and found the right people here, she felt the name was particularly fitting.
Reunion Isle was beautiful, which caught the attention of a director vacationing nearby. After months of negotiations, Sylvia finally agreed to let them film a reality show on the island:
She set two conditions: they couldn’t damage the environment, and they couldn’t film her family without permission.
The director readily agreed to the first condition but struggled with the second. Since the show would be broadcast live with edited reruns later, there would inevitably be moments beyond their control.
After further discussion, they reached a compromise–the crew would try to avoid the family during filming, apply blur if they accidentally appeared on camera, and edit out those segments for the reruns.
A month after signing the contract, the director brought the cast to the island. Everyone had been briefed on Sylvia’s status, so no one dared to cause any trouble in her presence, and they made efforts to avoid running into her family.
Still, living on the same island meant occasional appearances on camera were inevitable. True to his word, the director ensured immediate blurring, so Sylvia didn’t worry about it.
Until… the show became a sensation, and a blurry screenshot went viral.
Edwin typically paid little attention to entertainment news. For five years, he had searched every conceivable location but found nothing.
He couldn’t even trace Sylvia’s last known whereabouts before she disappeared. Upon thorough investigation, he’d discovered that she had erased her identity records two weeks before their wedding day.
That meant she had been planning her escape for at least that long.
The realization left him both alarmed and filled with regret. His Sylvia had been planning her escape right under his nose for so long. But despite sleeping beside her night after night, he never had a clue.
It was only then that Edwin realized his feelings for Tiffany had long ago been worn thin through years of unrequited devotion–just like what had happened to Sylvia with Matt.
Love requires reciprocation. He had hopelessly devoted himself to Tiffany for ten years. He even pursued another woman, pretending to be madly in love with Sylvia just for Tiffany’s happieness.
But day after day, it was Sylvia who had been by his side.
It was Sylvia with whom he had pledged his life.
When he was sick or injured, it was always Sylvia who stayed with him.
As much as Edwin hated to admit it, he had fallen in love with Sylvia long ago. He was just too used to chasing after Tiffany to see what was really in
his heart.
He wanted to find Sylvia and tell her that his pretended love had somehow become real.
Five years of searching day after day, five years of constant failure, had shattered his confidence into countless pieces.
Even Matt Kingsley, who had willingly broken ties with his family to end his engagement with Tiffany, had begun to mock Edwin for his debons and
hubris.
Edwin had once asked Matt why he was so determined to break the engagement.
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Chapter 15
Matt said that years ago, he hadn’t understood his own heart and made a wrong decision. Once he finally realized it, he refused to keep making the same mistake.
But if they were talking about mistakes, Matt wasn’t the only one who had erred–Edwin’s mistakes were far worse.
Unlike Matt Kingsley had chosen to let go, Edwin wanted to find his way back to Sylvia
