Chapter 53 For You, A Million Times Over
Luke said he would only listen to her from now on.
He also said that he would never break up with her.
Nobody knew how nervous Luke was when he said these words.
These days, Luke didn't take the initiative to find Natalie but frequently visited Alcomara. As he was busy, he always rushed there at midnight. Sometimes, he would spend time staying in front of her doorsteps, while at other times, he would wait downstairs until the lights in Natalie's room were off before returning home.
Rumors about how frivolous and arrogant Luke was were all over the place. People in the Athana circle acknowledged him as a person who couldn't be offended like a crown prince.
However, he was also a human with flesh and blood. When he fell in love with a girl, he would also feel anxious and worry about the gains and losses. Luke was afraid that Natalie would tell him to end their relationship.
The midday sunlight was pouring down like the clouds and velvet. The sunlight was inlaid with gold and watering the branches. The rays was pouring on them like falling stars.
Luke placed one of his hands behind Natalie's head and pressed her towards his chest. He held Natalie so hard until Natalie realized that it wasn't only her who was feeling afraid, but Luke too.
What was Natalie afraid of? Was she afraid of thinking about the past whenever she met her biological father or was she worried that Luke would also end up letting her down?
To be honest, she was worried about everything.
However, when Luke said that he would never break up with her, it didn't matter whether his feeling was being genuine or not, Natalie was suddenly determined for her love for Luke. She loved him more than all the concerns she had. 
It was also at that instance, Natalie could somehow understand why her mother had to bet herself on an unsustainable love. After she poured herself whole-heartedly into the relationship, it had become a path that had no way of return.
Since living in the Harts at the age of five, Natalie had been studying hard, working hard, and playing on a well-behaved, sensible character. In the past, she advised herself every day to never follow her mother's path to sacrifice everything because of a man. She ended up losing her love, her families, and her career.
Just like 20 years ago, her mother blindly believed in her irresponsible biological father's claim of counting on him and ended up quitting her job. So, when Forrest requested her to resign, Natalie was unwilling to give in.
No matter how deeply one was in love, a woman should always have the ability to support themselves financially. Leaving grounds for retreat wasn't a wrong thing to do.
Suddenly, Natalie remembered what Luke said before, "A girl's ideal is required to be supported."
Perhaps, Luke was different from them.
Natalie didn't answer. When her tears stopped flowing, she gently pushed Luke away and came out of his tight arms.
She lowered her head and stared at the tips of her shoes silently.
Luke's arm turned empty. Natalie's long silence was like long torture to him. Luke frowned and raised his hands to hold Natalie's face. His voice was soft but nervous, "Nata, don't leave me."
His tone was different from his usual coaxing. It was more like a request.
Natalie was stunned for a while. 
Actually, Natalie was aware of Luke's affectionate feelings toward her. However, she didn't expect him to love her so deeply and seriously.
At that moment, Natalie was thinking again.
How about her? How could she not have the courage to embrace this feeling because of afraid of losing it?
After a while, Natalie replied in a low voice, "I know."
Under his deep gaze, Natalie pulled down one of his hands on her face and pinched his fingers. Then, she raised her watery eyelashes.
"... I won't leave you." Natalie smiled gently.
Luke finally smiled in relaxation. He was relieved, and he raised his arms to hug Natalie back. However, at the next second, Natalie pushed him away.
The heart that was relaxed turned nervous again. Luke felt helpless and asked softly, "Why don't you give me a hug?"
"No..." Because of crying, Natalie's eyes were wet, and her cheeks were flushed, causing her a pitiful look. She looked at him and complained, "You hugged too tightly. I can't breathe."
It was really scary to say things slowly sometimes.
Luke laughed and let out a sigh of relief. He hugged Natalie gently and coaxed her, saying that it was all his fault.
Natalie stuck out her left hand from his arms, stretched out her empty wrist, and said with sadness, "I was careless in the shower yesterday, and the bracelet fell into the sewer..."
"We'll go and buy a new one." Luke caressed Natalie's thin and slender wrist and said gently, "We'll buy the one you like."
That day, they went to buy a new pair of couple bracelets.
Natalie chose a pair of diamond bracelets. The bracelet for women was in rose gold, while the one for men was in black. Natalie thought that it would match the black-golden watch that Luke was wearing.
The bracelets were simple and low-key, but the partner's name could be engraved on the inner side of the buckle.
Natalie couldn't tell whether she was being compensated for what she had lost earlier in life. Nevertheless, when she put on the new bracelet, she felt like she had a new beginning.
Seeing Luke putting the bracelet on his wrist and holding her hand firmly, Natalie remembered what he said to her grandmother in the ward -- "From today onwards, she's mine."
There were things that couldn't be taken for granted. One would still have to give it a try before coming to a conclusion.
Natalie thought.
Just like she was worried about being triggered whenever seeing the famous Mr. Lever in Athana, who succeeded at an early age.
But what if one day, she was able to turn a blind eye to Mr. Lever or even meet him indifferently?
When they came out of the mall and were still on the roadside, Natalie couldn't stand still and hugged Luke by his waist. She seemed to be depending on Luke wholeheartedly while saying softly, "I'm dizzy"
"Who told you to drink that much?" Luke patted her head, "I'll take you back to sleep."
Natalie raised her head, "How do you know that I had been drinking?"
Natalie cried so hard last night and was also crying a while ago. Her eyes were swollen. She asked while looking a little tired, puzzled and childish.
"You've been here last night, right?" Natalie was recalling the fragmented memories left in her head and guessed.
Luke stroked the corners of Natalie's red eyes with his fingertips and chuckled, "Otherwise who? Besides me, who would dare to help you change your clothes?"
Natalie rushed to the hospital as soon as she opened her eyes in the morning. By now, she suddenly realized that she was wearing a nightgown when she woke up.
Was he being indecent again?
Natalie raised her head and pursed her lips.
Luke smiled while lowering his head. He pecked Natalie's pouting lips and pressed his forehead toward Natalie's. He continued slowly, "I also had washed your face, took off your shoes, wiped your body, changed your underwear..."
Luke started to become shameless as he spoke.
Natalie's ears turned red-hot in the blink of an eye. She immediately raised her hand and covered Luke's mouth, "Stop saying!"
Luke's smile deepened, and his peach blossom eyes were showing a hint of seductiveness. The tip of his tongue was warm and wet. He licked against Natalie's palm while catching her off guard.
Natalie felt like she was stroked by lightning and immediately pulled back her hand. She was still being hugged between his arms. She raised her eyes and glared at Luke shyly.
Luke was smiling nastily, and his eyes seemed lewd but elegant. He was staring at Natalie.
After lunch, Luke drove to Lithern Club to take Natalie back home to sleep.
Natalie was really sleepy. So, she fell asleep immediately as soon as she put her head on Luke's arm on the bed. She slept until the afternoon. By the time she opened her eyes, the setting sun was shining in the afterglow. The world outside of the window was in golden wheat color.
Natalie rubbed her eyes and sat up. As she saw that the place beside her was empty, she got out of the bed, wanting to find Luke. As soon as she opened the door, she could hear a melodious piano melody faintly coming from downstairs. 
The notes turned clearer as Natalie walked down the spiral staircase. She felt that the melody was familiar.
In the living room, there was an expensive, black upright piano. Luke was sitting there straight with his broad shoulders and narrow waist. His slender fingers were navigating the piano keys easily.
Natalie stood behind Luke and felt calm.
She remembered the night in Mt. Waters.
On the second floor of the glass room, the aisles were filled with pink roses while fluttering pure white snow were falling outside of the window walls. Natalie could still remember how charming Luke was when he played the piano under the orange light.
That night, it was also the first time where she called his name.
She could still remember the time when she looked at him with bright eyes in surprise and blurted out - Luke, you can play the piano!
However, no matter how surprised she was at that time, she now took Luke's outstanding as a matter of course. Because Natalie really thought that Luke was an awesome person.
Natalie felt that Luke was so great until she was reluctant to leave him, or rather, she couldn't leave him.
While comforting Grace, Mark once said that Luke wasn't going against her. It was that he hadn't yet met a girl who he liked.
Now that Natalie thought about it, he seemed to be speaking the truth.
Natalie never thought that an arrogant guy like Luke would have a gentle and affectionate side.
The last note of the melody gradually dissipated. Natalie stepped forward lightly and sat beside Luke like what she usually did in the past. 
Luke smiled when he turned his head and saw Natalie.
He stretched his arms around her shoulders and hugged her closer, "Have you had a good sleep?"
Natalie responded and rested her head on Luke's shoulder. She was pressing the piano keys with her fingertips. She asked lazily since she just woke up, "What's this piece called?"
Natalie remembered that he played the same piece when they were in Mt. Waters.
Luke replied and said that the name of this piano piece was: What falling in love feels like.
What falling in love feels like.
Unexpectedly, Luke told her a lover's speech. He said that when he played the piece last time, he was full of questions. But today, he played the piece with an answer in his heart.
Natalie was delighted to hear what he said and hooked his neck to ask for a kiss.
Luke had no resistance when Natalie was acting cute. He smiled and pressed his palm on the back of Natalie's head. He lowered his head and covered her lips. Their lips and teeth were attached and glistening.
-
A few days later, Lucas asked Natalie to visit his office and handed her the invitation that was personally sent by Mateo.
It was a delicate, thick green card with golden borders.
When Natalie unfolded it, she saw elegant handwriting saying: Dear Natalie, welcome to join the Wolsher Institute of Medical Life Sciences. Please register yourself to the institute before October 14th with this invitation.
The signature was "Mateo".
Natalie was shocked. She... she was chosen.
"You don't need to doubt anything. Your grades, academic qualifications, and job assessment scores are among the best in the pre-selection name list." Rarely, Lucas let out a smile. He was congratulating her but also feeling happy for his student to be having a bright future.
That being said, Natalie wasn't stupid. She knew that Lucas must've been putting effort to recommend her for her to be selected. Otherwise, a girl with no background like her would never be chosen without any obstacles.
"Thank you, Mr. Atkinson." Natalie stood in front of Lucas's desk while holding the invitation letter. Her eyes were full of gratitude, "Although everyone is afraid of you, you've been taking care of me ever since I started studying with you. I've learned a lot from you."
In fact, since their first meeting, Lucas wasn't optimistic about Natalie's performance as he viewed her as a little girl. However, it turned out that she was a person who dared to ask and act. She never disappointed others.
Lucas was also feeling fortunate that he hadn't read Natalie wrong. He always believed that she would become an excellent doctor in the future.
"I just think that everyone who works hard deserves to be seen." Lucas said softly and bent his lips, "As a doctor, except being professional, it is also crucial to have medical ethics. Most importantly, a doctor needs to ensure his or her health."
Lucas said, "Take care of yourself once you reach there."
This light but sincere concern made Natalie think of the idiom: a teacher for a day was a father for life.
Natalie's eyes felt warm, and she smiled, "You too."
The surprise that this invitation letter brought to Natalie was immense but at the same time, stressful.
The registration date was at October 14th.
This also meant that she would need to leave Alcomara and go abroad to start a three-year study life after a week.
October 14th.
While caressing the date on the invitation letter, Natalie thought that she was fated with this date. The day on which she was lost in Athana was also October 14th...
-
The next day when Natalie's grandmother was discharged from the hospital, Natalie didn't dare to visit her because she was afraid of angering her grandmother. Therefore, she went to find Nanny Fannie privately to ask her to help take care of her grandmother. Natalie told her that she would need to go to Wolsher to study for three years starting next week.
Nanny Fannie was happy for Natalie. She told Natalie to go abroad at ease as she would take good care of her grandmother.
About her going to Wolsher, Natalie had informed Mia, Sherman, and the other close colleagues.
Except for Luke. This was because she was having a hard time confessing to him.
Natalie had all kinds of worries. She was worried that Luke wouldn't be happy as she didn't discuss with him about this matter beforehand. She was also worried that Luke wouldn't be willing to wait for her. After all, it was three years but not three days or three months.
However, she would need to tell him about this ultimately and it was impossible to hide it.
As Natalie felt that she couldn't confess in person, she called Luke in the morning.
In the call, she talked hesitantly but eventually, she was able to inform Luke that she would be going to Wolsher a week later.
The cold autumn morning wind was blowing. Natalie was sitting on the balcony while wearing long-sleeved pajamas. She was holding the phone by her ears, but her palms were sweaty.
She felt tense while waiting for Luke's response. She was nervous like the time when she was waiting for the teacher to announce the test results during her studying days.
Luke was quiet for a while, and he asked, "For how long you'll be going?"
"Three years..." Natalie's voice was barely audible.
Luke suddenly stayed silent.
Luke's silence made Natalie's heart felt crumbling... Sure enough, he was uncomfortable with this. How tolerant one must be in order to accept a long-distance relationship for three years at this young age. 
Natalie lowered her eyelids while covering the sadness in her eyes.
Actually, she had prepared several sets of words in advance to deal with all of Luke's possible reactions. She might be acting thoroughly, or she was being a little silly. 
Natalie took a deep breath and said one of the sentences that she prepared in advance, "Luke, I want you to wait for me to come back, but you can also..."
After a pause, she gritted her teeth, "Fall in love with others whenever you want... As long as I get my graduate certificate after the three years, I'll definitely go to Athana to see you."
Natalie said with sincerity, but her voice getting lower and lower.
Of course, these words didn't reflect Natalie's original thinking. However, she was afraid of instilling a burden on Luke by pressing him with her feelings and thoughts.
Luke needed to wait for her because of her reasons. She didn't want to constrain him in this long waiting process.
After saying these words, Natalie held her breath and felt complicated.
"Let's not talk on the phone." Luke said slowly with an unusual calm tone. He said solemnly, "After this meeting, I'll go to your place."
It seemed that a face-to-face meeting was inevitable.
Natalie bit her lower lips, and her heart was pounding hard, "Ok..."
Natalie couldn't keep her mind calm. While waiting for Luke, Natalie spent her time sitting on the sofa absent-mindedly throughout the morning. She also couldn't concentrate while feeding Fourteen with dog food.
Because she couldn't guess what Luke was thinking, Natalie felt afraid while waiting.
Gradually, Natalie realized that all along, this relationship was always associated with one word -- wait. She couldn't go to Athana with Luke while Luke couldn't stay in Alcomara forever.
With him in Athana, Natalie was willing to give it a try. But about this matter of studying abroad for three years, she couldn't think of a second way to solve the problem.
That day, Natalie didn't have the mood and appetite to eat her lunch. At 1 pm, she was still slumping on the sofa while thinking that Luke should be on his way. When she thought about this, her heart throbbed again.
Suddenly, Natalie received a foreign call.
"Hi, who is it?" Natalie asked spiritlessly.
It was a woman over the phone. Her voice was recognizable, and her tone was arrogant. As she spoke, Natalie could tell who was it immediately.
Sloane Crosley.
Natalie was surprised for a moment, but she guessed that Sloane was here to make trouble again. So, she asked lightly, "Is there something important, Ms. Crosley?"
Sloane's words weren't subtle and she directly asked for a meeting with Natalie. As if she knew that Natalie would refuse, she straightforwardly threatened her, "I think, you wouldn't want others to know that you are an illegitimate child of Mr. Lever, right?"
Natalie was stunned at her words and felt unbelievable that Sloane was able to find out about this. However, Natalie didn't seem to be threatened.
After a while, she said calmly, "Sorry, I'm not free."
"In the book bar downstairs of your house. Ten minutes."
Natalie frowned. She could tell that Sloane had figured out all of her information, including her residency. If she refused to meet her today, she wouldn't give up easily.
-
After Luke got off of the plane, he drove to Clovervale Residence.
He was driving quickly as he was afraid of Natalie overthinking things. In the call during the morning, Natalie mentioned that he could fall in love with other girls at any time. Was she that unconfident of her importance in his heart?
Although Luke did stun for a while when he heard that she was going to Wolsher for three years and didn't answer her on time on whether he was willing to wait for her, he couldn't be blamed, right?
Who wouldn't be surprised when they knew this all of a sudden?
Luke was aware of the concerns that Natalie had. However, since they couldn't make things clear through the phone, he went straight to the airport after the meeting.
Luke believed that he had to have a face-to-face meeting with Natalie to show her his attitude on this matter.
The car was driving on the highway, and the phone on the phone stand suddenly vibrated. He pressed the speaker.
The caller reported the situation to him, "Mr. Bennington, Ms. Crosley had reached Alcomara and went to meet Ms. Moore privately."
Hearing this, Luke frowned. He stepped on the accelerator and asked in a deep voice, "Where is it?"
-
The book bar was near Clovervale Residence and wasn't far away.
Looking at the time, Natalie thought that it might still take a while for Luke to reach here. It would be okay for her to meet Sloane for just ten minutes.
The book bar was big and had two floors. The first floor was a quiet area where people read books silently. The second floor had booths for chatting or drinking coffee. 
When Natalie arrived, there were only a few customers in the book bar. She crossed by the rows of solid wood bookshelves and went upstairs to the second floor. On the seat by the window, she saw an elegant woman wearing a couture dress.
Natalie stroked the hem of her skirt and sat down on the sofa opposite that woman.
Sloane was sipping on a cup of coffee slowly. She raised her eyes and looked at Natalie. Then, she pushed one of the coffee cups on the round table towards Natalie.
"Thank you." Natalie didn't pick it up.
Sloane was having an attitude as if she was winning. She said slowly with a smile while commenting on the book bar, saying that the bar was normal, but the coffee was alright.
"Ms. Crosley, please speak your intentions." Natalie didn't have the mood to chat with her, "I have other things to do later."
Sloane put down the coffee cup slowly, and the porcelain cup knocked on the table lightly. "As long as you don't interfere with the marriage between the Crosley and the Bennington, I won't reveal your relationship with Mr. Lever."
Natalie looked at the confident woman in front of her quietly who thought that she had a hold on her. Suddenly, Natalie smiled.
Sloane looked at Natalie.
She heard Natalie saying, "Has Ms. Crosley made a mistake? It's not me but Mr. Lever who would be disgraced when this matter is known publicly."
Hearing this, Sloane frowned. She didn't think that Natalie would've such an indifferent attitude.
Natalie smiled, "I believe Ms. Crosley would need to have a deeper thought about this. I heard that Mr. Lever's status in the Athana circle isn't low. If you spread this matter, perhaps you would end yourself in a bad situation."
"It doesn't matter to you, Ms. Moore?" Sloane stopped pretending and said straightforwardly, "When this matter was known publicly, do you think you're still worthy of marrying into the Bennington family as an illegitimate daughter?"
"Do you like him?" Natalie asked suddenly.
Sloane was surprised, and she looked at Natalie suspiciously, "What?"
"Luke." Natalie was staring at the person in front of her without avoidance, "Do you like him?"
"Is this important?"
Natalie replied without hesitation, "I like him."
Upon Sloane's slightly annoyed gaze, Natalie's face was pure and clean but was also calm, "Actually, I think that you're quite pitiful. You obviously have no feelings for him, but you still have to work hard in order to marry him. Just because of the sake of the company, you have to sacrifice your happiness."
"Won't you feel wronged for not being able to be with the person you truly love?" Natalie looked into Sloane's eyes and asked sincerely.
Like being stabbed in the heart, Sloane went quiet unexpectedly. She fixed her gaze with complicated emotions.
"Something like this is normal within our circle. As long as it's beneficial to the company, there's nothing that can't be done." Sloane wasn't willing to let go of her pride and sneered, "You said you like him. But how much do you like him? How long can it last?"
Natalie stood up and smiled, "My love towards him made me want to work hard to become a person worthy of him. This is my greatest sincerity towards this relationship."
"If Ms. Crosley still wants to persuade me to break up with Luke, then this is my answer. Thank you for your coffee." Natalie smiled gently and nodded politely to bid farewell.
After saying that, Natalie turned around and left.
As soon as she took two steps forward, she ran into a man.
Or rather, she ran into the man head-on. The man seemed to have been standing there for a while.
Natalie was shocked. Her ability to be eloquent disappeared suddenly. She turned silent while looking at the man.
Luke lowered his head and smiled. He didn't know what to say all of a sudden.
There happened to be a book called "The Kite Runner" on the bookshelf beside him.
After a while, he raised his hand and took the book. He turned it to the last page and tore off a small piece of paper.
"Ms. Moore." While tearing, he said in a warm and hoarse voice.
Natalie was nervous because of his unfamiliar way to call her. She bit her lips silently and reached out to take the note he handed over.
When she looked down at the note, Luke said, "I'm willing too."
On the note, it was writing,
For you, a million times over.