Dead at Heart (Ariel and Jayson) novel Chapter 740

Jayson kept his eyes on Ariel. "But I didn't cheat on you."

Ariel stayed quiet, letting him speak.

Jayson, still aching from the headache, held her hand and pressed it to his chest. "No one else has ever been here. Ariel, whether it was before or now, I've devoted nine years to you alone."

It sounded like a final, desperate confession, as if he were throwing caution to the wind. Perhaps his illness was making him unusually blunt.

"You really don't remember that 'matching profile photo' you misunderstood?" His tone was tinged with helplessness. "You don't even remember your own drawing?"

Ariel's frown softened, but she couldn't recall anything.

Jayson opened the bedside drawer and pulled out a framed hand-drawn picture.

On an A4 sheet, it showed the original copy of Jayson's profile photo, with a small signature—"Ariel"—in the lower right corner, written in neat, elegant script.

It was indeed her writing.

The moment Ariel saw that, a flood of distant memories began to return.

She used to love spending every day with her telescope and sketching related themes. Most of her drawings came from sudden bursts of inspiration, and she barely remembered them afterward. After all, she had drawn so many.

"Our grandfathers were comrades. That year was my grandpa's birthday. The Walker family was among the guests. You were shy and not the type to mingle. You stood quietly in a corner of the garden with your sketchbook. I could tell you didn't like social gatherings. That was our third meeting. You were 17, and you even insulted me."

Back then, Jeffrey had said to Timothy right in front of Jayson that the two kids were close in age. There might even be a little spark between them.

At the time, he hadn't thought much of it.

He had turned around only to find Ariel sitting alone, absorbed in a phone call with her friend, unaware he was watching.

She sat quietly, looking sweet, but her words were startling. "I really hope they don't set us up. He's too old. I can't date someone like that."

It had annoyed Jayson thoroughly at the time. He was barely 20.

Ariel remembered hearing Jeffrey's words back then, and of course, she had thought it ridiculous.

That day, Jayson had been the center of everyone's attention. She had counted no fewer than five young ladies fluttering over to him.

Getting tangled with the Larkins was out of the question for someone like her—caught between worlds, with no real standing anywhere. She had always been sharp and clear-eyed about that.

But the whole profile photo thing still left her with an indescribable feeling.

Jayson had carefully preserved the sketch she had tossed aside so casually.

Even Lucas, when he was the one who treated her best, probably wouldn't have done something like that.

Back then, when she had asked Jayson about whether he had a crush on her, it had been a joke. She wasn't serious about it.

But now, he was showing her undeniable proof. He had remembered that fragile version of her.