Devil's Prisoner of Love by Prefer

Chapter 527: No What-Ifs

Heather got into the car, her soft scarf wrapped snugly around her neck. The warmth wasn't just physical; it seeped into her heart as well.

All her life, she had been like an unnoticed little stone by the roadside, kicked around by passersby and ignored by others-until she met Aurora.

It was Aurora who found her, picked her up from the dirt, and polished her until she became what she was today. Aurora had given her a new life, transformed her into someone who finally caught the world's attention. She was no longer the forgotten pebble left in a corner.

Ian had confessed his feelings to her. They shared similar backgrounds and pasts, and she genuinely liked him. Receiving her first gift from him-a scarf-brought her joy that lasted for days.

At the bottom right corner of the scarf, there was a cute little deer embroidered on it. Heather kept touching the small deer over and over again. This Christmas Eve was the happiest she had ever experienced.

Gemma, watching Heather's blissful, almost girlish demeanor, felt a storm brewing in her chest. Her voice was laced with sarcasm as she said, "After all these years, Ian's still using the same tricks to chase girls. I remember back in our freshman year, he gave me a scarf for Christmas too."

It wasn't a lie. Back then, Ian had mistakenly taken Gemma for a sweet, innocent girl and had gone out of his way to pick out a scarf for her from a store.

That Christmas Eve, it had been snowing. Ian called Gemma to let her know he had a gift for her. Gemma wasn't expecting an expensive Louis Vuitton bag, but at least a bottle of Chanel or Dior perfume would have been nice.

Even if it wasn't 50ml, surely 30ml would suffice. After all, it wasn't that expensive-just a few hundred dollars.

Excited, she ran downstairs to meet him. Ian stood in the snow, holding a boutique bag. The moment Gemma saw the bag, her heart sank.

As expected, he pulled out a scarf, explaining that it was to keep her warm in the cold weather. Gemma awkwardly thanked him.

"Do you like it?" Ian's face lit up with hope as he asked.

like it." But inside, she was fuming. Her friends were all receiving jewelry, perfumes, coats, or handbags as gifts, while she got a

miserable, even a little resentful. Was Ian just clueless, or was

for the sake of having him do her assignments in the future, Gemma pretended to like the gift. When Ian hesitantly asked, "Can I help you put

hurriedly. "I'm heading back to the dorm soon, and I'll have to take it off anyway.

off now," Ian

she entered the building, she unceremoniously tossed the scarf

was that Ian had turned back, reluctant to part from her, and

snow, staring at her action. To Gemma, it was just a scarf. But to

heavy, but Ian felt colder. That was the first time he saw the two-faced nature

bad? Was the scarf so

wasn't until much later that Ian finally understood the truth. The

Gemma on a backstreet, hanging onto the arm of a

just released a new dress. I think it'd

short?" the

goes to the

Let's go get it. You'll wear it

so naughty..." Gemma giggled

watching the scene unfold. He knew that brand; many girls in his class

he realized it wasn't that Gemma disliked the scarf-it was that it was too inexpensive for her

giving Heather her gift, Ian thought carefully. He wasn't the same freshman anymore. He had saved a few months' worth of wages and could afford

then he reminded himself: Heather wasn't Gemma.

he saw Heather's shy, elated reaction, he knew he had