Wade saw it this time. Frowning, he stepped forward and took her hand. “Why so careless?”

Though his tone was mildly reproachful, his movements were quick. He pulled out disinfectant and a bandage from his bag and carefully cleanedthesmall cut on Janice’s arm. His brow remained tightly furrowed.

Janice looked at his expression and suddenly felt a pang of sadness. She bit her lip and asked, “Wade, if Alicia weren’t your sister, would you still want to marry me?”

Wade paused, his expression cooling slightly. “What are you thinking? I don’t want to explain this repeatedly. Hypothetical situations aren’t worth overthinking.”

He finished applying the bandage and let go of her hand.

His displeasure was clear, though the reason was something Janice couldn’t guess.

She understood that Wade was essentially telling her not to make a fuss over nothing.

Looking down at the bandage on her hand, Janice nodded quietly. “I’ll let you get back to your work.”

She quickly walked away.

When she returned to her room, Ariel was boiling water.

She immediately noticed Janice’s mood. She paused, walked over, and tilted his head as she looked at her.” What’s wrong? Are you upset? Did you two argue?”

Janice didn’t even know how to describe it. There hadn’t really been an argument.

Thinking back at the whole situation, it seemed she had only been making a mountain out of a molehill.

After all, Wade and Alicia were just siblings with a close bond. Why would she mind?

It made her seem unreasonable.

Janice lowered her head, feeling dejected. “Not exactly. I don’t know how to

put it.

Ariel was concerned about Janice. The latter was usually carefree and straightforward, but she could be a little slow when it came to feelings.

“You need to figure out what you really want. If you can’t handle something that makes you unhappy, don’t force yourself, okay?” She took Janice’s hand and spoke gently.

Feeling lost, Janice looked down. “I want to marry him. I’m not young anymore. I’ve been waiting for him to come back. My goal… I guess it’s just stability.”

As for everything else she was feeling, she even wondered if it was because they hadn’t seen each other for so long.

Ariel ruffled her hair. “That’s just the result. The process matters too. Your feelings will give you the answer.”

Janice took a deep breath, then waved her hand lightly. “Right. Relationships are about slowly working things

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out. I can’t rush to a conclusion.”

She quickly figured it out.

Bending over slightly, she beamed and held onto Ariel’s arm. She was still looking forward to the future.“It should get better, right? The wedding’s only a few months away anyway.”

Once they were married, she felt it would be a fresh start, and that bothofthem would be more responsible.

Ariel glanced at her, wanting to say something, but stopped herself.

Janice’s personality was different from hers. Janice had grown up loved and pampered. She was always radiating energy and optimism.

However, optimism could sometimes make things seem better than they were.

What mattered most was Janice’s own experience. Some lessons couldn’t be taught with words. They had to be learned through experience.

Janice decided not to dwell on what had happened with Wade. Cheerfully, she pulled out some snacks she had brought from Croinia. “I’ll make some instant noodles! I’m not used to the food here.”

Seeing her return to her usual self, Ariel let out a small sigh of relief.

After tidying up, Ariel opened her laptop to review detailed information about the country.

Not long after, her phone rang. She glanced at it and noticed it was a video call from Jayson.

It should already be the middle of the night in Croinia.

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