Chapter 629: Her first and last kiss
Zoren’s frustration and disappointment stemmed from the fact that he couldn’t protect Penny the way he should have. However, he might not have been there to stop the attacks or prevent the situation from escalating, but he still came.
He appeared just when no one — not even Penny — expected him.
Things could have gone for the worst, but they didn’t because he stepped in. She could’ve hurt someone tonight that she would have regretted once she woke up. Many possibilities could have occurred if Penny had been left alone. She could have done something much worse once the fight was over and she decided it wasn’t enough.
"Zoren Pierson," Penny called, tilting her head slightly. "Aren’t you a lovely man? Surely, I was making good choices in this lifetime."
Zoren’s face was still sour because even if she said all of that, it wasn’t enough to give him peace. At the end of the day, even if he was protecting her emotionally, he needed to do more than that.
"Zoren." Penny wiped some blood off his palm with her thumb as she spoke. "I’ve been studying myself for quite some time now, and there’s only one thing I can say."
She looked up at him and smiled. "I didn’t change. Though I might have made smarter decisions in this lifetime, I was the same as I used to be... just a lot happier."
"I’m saying this because I don’t think I will have the courage to tell you this. Or perhaps I’ll think that you’d understand even without me telling you," she continued in the same mild tone. "I am more capable, smarter, and wiser. You can’t change me, and I can’t change myself even if I want to. I am like this."
"I would jump into the middle of the battlefield if it meant I could save the people I love and care about. I went to prison to save my brother, and even if it hurt... I don’t regret it. The only regret I feel is that I was doing so much for the wrong people," she added. Oddly enough, she looked at peace while talking about this.
Penny slowly leaned in and hugged him, patting his back as if to comfort him. "Even if you sacrifice your life, there’s no way you can stop everything from hurting me. It’s not because your efforts are not enough. It’s just because I am human, and I will get hurt one way or another. It’s an inevitable part of life. You’re not God, and you can’t protect me at all times."