"No." After the word blurted out, he met her teasing gaze. He fell silent for a moment before pulling out a chair to sit opposite her. "Sign it."

"Are you busy, Mr. Cook? If not..."

"I am."

Luna arched an eyebrow. Fine then.

Signing the contract took less than two minutes. Gideon signed it hastily and prepared to leave, but as he passed by Luna, she caught him by the sleeve. "Is a ghost chasing you, Mr. Cook? Why run so fast? Anyone who didn't know better would think I'd done something to you."

Gideon gritted his teeth. "Luna!"

Luna let go of him and gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Forget it. You can go. It’s just my unrequited passion anyway. Gideon, I promise there won't be a next time. I’ll go far away and won't bother you anymore—mmph!"

Gideon seized her chin, his kiss hot and intense, deepening as if he wanted to rub her into his very soul.

That day, everyone peering through the glass outside the conference room saw their usually cold and stoic CEO pinning someone to a chair and kissing her!

...

Luna sat in Gideon’s office, tugging at the hair of the ugly doll, feeling a bit puzzled. "Isn't this the one I threw away? Why is it here, and why does it look so battered?"

Hearing this, Gideon silently averted his gaze.

The stains couldn't even be washed out anymore. Did he really dig it out of a trash can?

Luna’s heart felt as sweet as honey. She looked up at the man behind the desk and tilted her head slightly. "Mr. Cook, are you actually busy? If so, I'll go have lunch by myself."

Gideon cleared his throat. "I'm not busy. What do you want to eat?"

When they left the company, Gideon held her hand tightly in his palm, the curve of his lips softening.

His Ugly Duckling, his Luna, had finally returned to his side.

"We’re going to the Civil Affairs Bureau this afternoon."

Luna shook her head.

Gideon froze. Had she still not forgiven him?

Seeing his reaction, Luna couldn't help but laugh. "Are you silly? With such a massive asset division given to me, I didn't dare sign that divorce agreement at all. At the time, I just wanted to find a reason to leave you. And this..." She raised her hand to show him the ring. "I’ve kept it all along."

Gideon lowered his eyes, his gaze full of self-reproach. "I'm sorry."

"I forgive you." Luna leaned against his shoulder, her smile exceptionally relaxed.

Chapter 36: The Feeling of Death

They had missed out on so much; now that they had finally cleared up the misunderstandings, she felt truly happy.

After cursing the Heavens so many times before, she finally wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for giving her a chance at rebirth, for letting Gideon appear in her life, and for giving her a love that was etched into her very bones.

The winter sun was exceptionally bright and warm, and every face seemed to overflow with joy.

When they reached the restaurant, Gideon went to park the car while Luna waited by the roadside. Just then, an old woman approached and said, "Young lady, I left my bag across the street. My legs aren't what they used to be; could you go over and pick it up for me?"

Luna helped her sit on a bench and smiled. "Grandmother, wait for me here. I'll get it back for you in no time."

"Good, good. Watch out for the cars, dear."

Luna gave a nod and, when the light turned green, followed the crowd across. She picked up the bag and was about to head back when the light turned red. She stepped back into the safety zone, counting the seconds.

There weren't many pedestrians at this moment. Sunlight filtered through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

She looked up and saw Gideon standing there, quietly watching her. His expression was soft, his lips slightly curled, and his dark eyes were full of doting affection.

He was always so radiant; among the thousands of passersby, her eyes saw only him.

Luna raised her hand and waved, giving him a big smile. But the expression on the man opposite her suddenly changed, his pupils constricting sharply. Before Luna could even think about what was happening—bang—she was sent flying...

In just a few short seconds, she fell from the air to the ground.

Warm blood gradually blurred her vision. Strangely, she didn't feel much pain; this feeling felt very familiar.

The surrounding figures gradually slowed and overlapped, and all sounds felt very far away, yet very close.

In a daze, she heard someone calling her name over and over, with a mix of shock, rage, and grief.

A heart-piercing sound.

It sounded like Gideon’s voice.

She remembered now; this was the feeling of death.

A tear traced the corner of Luna’s eye. But... she didn't want to die.

Her Gideon—they had only just reconciled. How could she die?

If she died, what would he do?

Was a human life really this short?

So short that she didn't even have time to carefully experience what happiness looked like. So short that much of her love for Gideon remained unspoken. So short that she didn't get to see him grow old.

The Heavens are fair to everyone; they gave her a chance at rebirth, but also stripped her of the right to enjoy love.

She didn't blame anyone, but she was truly reluctant to let go.

Gideon, Gideon, Gideon...

But even if she was reluctant, what could be done?

Luna could no longer hold on. She slowly closed her eyes and offered a faint smile toward the figure running toward her.

Gideon, I love you.

...

Three o'clock in the morning.

The moment the clock on the wall chimed, Luna snapped her eyes open. She scrambled into a sitting position, gasping for breath. She looked at her surroundings and touched her body.

She wasn't dead?

Holy crap, she really was blessed. To survive such a massive car accident—the Heavens were truly generous to her.

Luna let out a breath and put on her slippers. Just as she left the hospital room to ask the nurse's station how long she had been unconscious, the nurses who were dozing off suddenly snapped awake at the sight of her, staring with wide, disbelieving eyes.

Chapter 37: An Insignificant Person

"You... you're awake?!" As she spoke, she hurriedly dialed a phone, her tone full of irrepressible excitement. "Dr. Song, come quickly! The patient in room 907 is awake! Yes, yes. Do we need to notify the family? Oh, oh, I see."

After she finally hung up, Luna said softly, "Can I get a word in?"

"Dr. Song says you just woke up and should stay in bed. He's coming to examine you right away." The little nurse who had made the call stood up and, without a word, helped her back to her room.

After sitting back on the bed, Luna said, "How long was I out? Weren't my injuries quite severe? Why do my arms and legs feel perfectly fine now?"

The little nurse sighed. "You too—you’re so young, what could be so bad that you’d want to jump off a building? Of course your limbs are fine. If it weren't for..." As if remembering something, she shook her head, her expression one of unabashed envy and jealousy.

Luna had a "question mark" face and only reacted after a moment. "What did you say... jump off a building?"

"Yes. You’ve been in a coma for half a year. People with worse injuries than yours were discharged two months ago, but you showed no sign of waking up. Many doctors checked on you, and since you had no external wounds or incisions, they couldn't explain why you wouldn't wake. They feared you’d become a vegetable. Fortunately, you finally woke up today."

After listening to the nurse's rambling, Luna was completely stunned.

Was she back in her past life again?

So she hadn't died after jumping off the building, just fallen into a coma?

Luna’s mind was like a tangled mess, unable to pull the threads apart.

A few minutes later, doctors and nurses came in to examine her. She was like a toy doll, being pinched here and prodded there. After about ten minutes, Dr. Song took off his stethoscope and let out a sigh of relief. "All vitals are perfectly normal. You can notify the family."

"...Wait." Luna stopped him, her expression a bit dazed. "My family?"

"Yes, Mrs. Cook. Mr. Cook left instructions to notify him as soon as you woke up. But I was afraid there might be complications, so I examined you first. It’s still early before dawn; you should rest for a bit."

After everyone left, Luna sat on the edge of the bed in a daze.

Shouldn't she be dead? Why was she still alive?

This was far too beyond common sense.