Belated Moonlight: He Regretted Only After I Left-Chapter 109: A Long-Planned Secret Crush (Bonus)

Chapter 109: Chapter 109: A Long-Planned Secret Crush (Bonus)

"Jasper!"

Jude Kensington was both shocked and furious. He took several big steps forward, snatched the bottle from Jasper’s hand, and slammed it onto the coffee table with a loud "bang," "Are you fucking crazy?! Do you have a death wish?!"

The liquid in the bottle splashed out, soaking Jasper’s trouser leg, yet he showed no reaction. He merely raised his empty eyes, gave a blank look at Jude, and then slowly lowered them again, staring at his empty hand, as if the bottle was his only support.

"Look at yourself now!" Jude felt a painful ache in his chest from the anger, reaching a hand to pull him, "Get up! Get up!"

But Jasper seemed nailed to the ground, unmoving, instead letting out a low laugh, hoarse and shattered, filled with self-mockery: "Life? Ha... what’s the point of this life..."

"You!" Jude was completely enraged by his oil-and-salt-resistant attitude. The long-repressed anger and worry exploded at this moment.

He stopped talking, bent down, used all his strength to yank Jasper up from the floor!

Jasper, still not fully healed from his injuries, weakened from days of heavy drinking, was so frail that he nearly fell from the tug.

Jude ignored everything, half-dragging, half-carrying him forcefully into the bathroom.

"Jude... what are you doing..." Jasper struggled, his voice weak.

"What am I doing? I’m gonna get your fucking head straight!" Jude growled, pushing him under the showerhead and turning on the cold water switch!

"Whoosh—!"

The ice-cold water poured down instantly, drenching Jasper and chilling him to the bone!

"Agh!" Jasper shivered from the cold, letting out a short, sharp cry, instinctively curling up.

The cold water soaked through his thin shirt, sticking tightly to his skin, the bandages on his wounds quickly drenched, bringing a clammy, cold sensation.

He started shaking violently, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.

Jude stood beside him, chest heaving fiercely, "Jasper! Look at yourself! If you knew this would happen, why did you do it before?!"

"When Stella liked you, what the fuck did you do?! Huh?! Now she doesn’t want you, she’s with someone else, and you’re here making a fuss over life and death?! Are you still a man?!"

The cold water kept flowing, Jasper leaned against the icy ceramic tiles, the flow of water running down his disheveled hair, across his pale face, blurring his vision.

Every word Jude said was like a burning hot brand, fiercely carving into his heart, hurting him more than the cold water.

He suddenly raised his head, wet black hair sticking to his forehead, water dripping constantly from his lashes, those bloodshot eyes locking onto Jude, "Then what should I do?! You tell me... what the fuck should I do?!"

His voice was so hoarse it nearly broke, carrying a heavy nasal tone, "For her, I can even disregard my life! Whatever Shane Donovan can do, what can’t I do?! Huh?!"

He seemed to be not only trying to convince Jude, but desperately trying to convince himself, his voice carrying a broken sob: "If... if only I was the one who saved her back then... it was me..."

His words stuck in his throat, immense regret and despair drowning him like a tsunami.

Yes, if only it was him...

Would the person standing by Stella now, being watched by her with such trusting eyes, be him?

This hypothesis was like a poisonous thorn, constantly stabbing at his heart, making it hard for him to breathe.

Jude looked at him in this state, all the reproach and anger turned into a long sigh.

He shut off the shower.

The bathroom instantly fell silent, leaving only Jasper’s heavy, suppressed breathing.

Jude wiped the water from his face, looking at Jasper slumped on the wet floor, his expression complex.

He remained silent for a few seconds, seeming to make a difficult decision, finally, he slowly spoke up, his voice lowering:

"Jasper, I came today, aside from looking for you, there’s something else... I want to tell you."

He paused, reached into the inside pocket of his equally water-soaked jacket, and handed over an envelope to him, his tone carrying an ineffable complexity: "See for yourself."

Jasper’s fingers trembled slightly from the cold and the numbness of the alcohol, he hesitated, and took the envelope.

It felt a bit heavy in his hand.

He tore open the envelope’s seal and poured out a stack of photographs.

The photos were in color, but the pixels weren’t very high, giving them a distinct old-time feel.

He flipped through them one by one.

All the photos featured the same person without exception—Stella Sterling.

Sixteen, seventeen-year-old Stella.

Wearing a blue and white school uniform, with a simple ponytail, or letting her black hair drape smoothly over her shoulders.

In every photo, she carried that youthful and innocent quality unique to that age, yet stunningly beautiful, like a pearl just beginning to shine, pure, transparent, untainted by dust.

Jasper’s heart felt like it had been struck hard by something, the bittersweet and pain spreading through it.

This was a past he had never been a part of, Stella’s past.

It was a regret he could never make up for.

He greedily stared at the familiar yet unfamiliar face in the photos, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing her outline in the pictures, as if by doing so he could touch that bygone time.

However, as he looked closer, his gaze suddenly stopped short!

His pupils contracted sharply!

His vision was glued to the background of the photos!

These photos were taken at different times, different places.

Library, shaded paths, playground, in front of the school building...

But in these seemingly random candid backgrounds, there was always a silhouette that was blurred and yet impossible to ignore!

That figure, sometimes far, sometimes close, sometimes merely a profile, sometimes just a back view, sometimes merely a fuzzy outline in the crowd.

But Jasper recognized it at a glance—

It was Shane Donovan!

A younger Shane Donovan!

Wearing simple white shirts or dark jackets, figure upright, the cold sternness in those brows faintly discernible.

Not a coincidence.

Once or twice might be a coincidence, but in this thick stack of photos, almost every one... 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Had him!

Jasper’s hands began trembling uncontrollably with intensity, the photos rustling at his fingertips.

He suddenly raised his head, his blood-red eyes fixed on Jude, "These... these photos... where did you get them?!"

Jude pressed his lips, his voice dry: "I have a cousin, who was in the same high school class as Stella, and they were fairly close. A while ago she was sorting out old things, and found her high school album, scanned it and shared it in a private album, the password is their class number."

He paused, pointing at the photos, "I... I inadvertently clicked into it and saw them. They are all candid shots of Stella from back then... I thought... something was off."

"How... how could it be..." Jasper murmured as though all the strength had been drained from him, his gaze scattered.

He always thought it was because he didn’t know how to cherish, which allowed Shane Donovan to come in later and take advantage.

But now these photos, like resounding slaps, harshly landed on his face!

It turns out...

Before he even knew Stella...

Shane Donovan already liked her.

He wasn’t the latecomer.

It was a long-conceived unrequited love...

And he, Jasper Hawthorne, was the real...

Thoroughly—latecomer.