Chapter 119-goodbye
After waking up, Charles took another shower and felt refreshed as he came downstairs. Suddenly, he noticed an unexpected figure in the living room. His step faltered just as he was about to move forward, and then he heard August’s voice, sounding as if it came from across centuries: "Charles!"
That single call of "Charles" stirred a torrent of mixed feelings inside him. It wasn’t the first time August had called him that, but after the layers of their past had been peeled away, the word now carried a different weight.
"Hmm, when did you get here?" Charles’s expression remained stern, but the faint curve of his lips betrayed his pleasure at seeing August.
"I just arrived. Janet told me you guys only returned to the country today." August searched Charles’s eyes and glimpsed the true feelings beneath. The man he once hated had now become his admired elder brother. He had once said that if they weren’t enemies, he would respect Charles greatly. Now, the man he admired was his own brother — a contradiction that left him torn between joy and sorrow.
Charles looked toward the small figure in the kitchen and felt a profound sense of peace. That solid feeling was something he truly savored.
Striding forward, Charles took a couple of steps and sat beside August. The shadow cast by the dim light made August feel a flutter of nervousness — never had he imagined a day would come when he could calmly sit and talk heart-to-heart with Charles.
He had never thought it possible before.
"Are you still with Manfred?" Charles asked, knowing a little about August’s situation, including the six years with Manfred and the peculiar habits shared between two grown men. He didn’t want to interfere with Manfred, but August was different — he hoped August could forget the past completely and start anew.
"As long as Manfred needs me, I’ll always be by his side," August said, uncertain himself of the feelings behind his words. He had once depended heavily on Manfred, trusting him unconditionally and never hesitating to follow whatever Manfred believed was right. But now, freed from the chains of hatred, he no longer wanted to hate anyone from the Elwin family, not even his biological father Derrick — because it wasn’t worth it.