Chapter 12 Felix was grumbling the entire way. He seemed still shaken by what had just happened, unable to stop sighing. He tapped my forehead. "You little fool! Just how much did you suffer back at the Hawthornes?" Suffer? 1 tilted my head and thought for a moment. If that dream was real, and I really had died in a remote Old Cottage, then yes, that would have been very unfair. But then again, before Violet came into the picture, Julian had always been good to me. I told Felix about my past with Julian. I told him how I'd once saved Julian's life. And how, during that mountain flood, when the rescue team could only save one of us due to equipment failure, he had given me the chance to live. Since we were kids, he'd always looked out for me. All the debts he owed me-he had long since repaid. Felix listened for a long while before saying, "A great kindness can become a great resentment." He explained that too great a debt of gratitude can eventually breed bitterness. I nodded in deep agreement. In my dream, Julian seemed crushed by the weight of the life I had saved-unable to breathe under the burden of gratitude. In truth, he had carried me for more than ten years, shouldering the weight of it all. In the end, when he couldn't carry me any longer and wanted to let gp...I didn't blame him. I just thought, even if we couldn't be husband and wife, we had at least been family. We didn't have to end in humiliation. Seeing me daze off for too long, Felix leaned closer, displeased. "Silly, stop thinking about him." "From now on, I'm the only family you need. "He lifted his chin, proud and defiant. I turned his words over in my head. Then, slowly, I began to laugh. Did that mean... he would take Julian's place and become my new family? Chapter 12 85.71%