From Saving Me to Regretting Me

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When I was sixteen, Lucas killed my stepfather, the beast who had molested me for years.

When reporters asked if he regretted his impulsive action, he smiled calmly and candidly: Of course I regret it. I regret not getting rid of him sooner.

As everyone watched in shock, he lowered his eyes and laughed softly.

"Trading my worthless life for Violet's peace of mind and freedom for the rest of hers."

"It was worth it."

Three years after Lucas went to prison, I turned around and fell into the arms of a wealthy elite.

That same year, Lucas had his sentence reduced.

Later, Lucas and I reunited at a nightclub after his release.

He had leaped from being a discarded pawn of the Reed family to becoming the revered Mr. Reed of the elite circles.

And me? I was just a waitress serving drinks to pay off debts.

Someone in the private room asked, "Mr. Reed, I heard the woman you once saved, her sugar daddy went belly up. If she knew who you are now, she'd be kicking herself."

Lucas held his girlfriend close and casually blew out a smoke ring.

"That's all in the past."

The next second, his cold, piercing gaze drifted lazily to the top of my head.

"But I've long regretted it too."

The moment Lucas finished speaking, the room erupted in chaos.

"I heard that woman was Lucas's childhood friend. The second he went in, she immediately climbed into Daniel's bed."

"But even fate can't stand watching a backstabbing bitch like her have everything go her way."

"Look, Daniel went bankrupt and left her alone to pay off the debts while he ran off to avoid trouble abroad."

Amid everyone's ridicule, Lucas's dark, deep eyes never left me.

"Yeah, she deserves this ending. She brought it on herself."

I stood beside Lucas holding a drink tray, my chest feeling as if it were pierced with countless fine needles.

My heart ached unbearably.

"Waitress, come pour the drinks... wait! Aren't you Violet?!"

The woman beside Lucas exclaimed in surprise, and everyone's eyes immediately turned to me.

She rose gracefully, dimples gracing the corners of her mouth.

"Hello, I'm Madeline. You're Violet, right? I recognize you."

"Thank you for letting him go, for letting Lucas see what kind of person you really are. I'm able to be with him partly thanks to you."

"You absolutely must come to our wedding."

I smiled awkwardly, my fingers unconsciously clenching tight.

The next second, Lucas's jacket was stained with spilled wine.

The incident caught me completely off guard.

After a long moment, I heard Lucas's icy voice from above.

"Is this the level of professionalism from the waitstaff here? Call your manager."

I suppressed the bitterness in my heart and spoke tremblingly.

"I'm terribly sorry... Name your price, I'll... compensate you."

The previously lively room fell silent in an instant, until someone broke the stillness.

"Compensate? Can you afford it?"

"Lucas wears only designer brands. How will you pay? By selling yourself?!"

"Strip off one piece of clothing for a hundred grand. Strip everything and I'll pay for you-how about that?"

The crowd around continued their jeering, their mocking or gleeful voices drilling into my ears.

"Any woman who caught Daniel's eye and climbed into his bed must have a smoking hot body."

"Strip and let us feast our eyes!"

"Yeah, when will you ever pay off your debts as a waitress? Why not come with me instead? I'll give you five thousand a night-how about it?!"

"Lucas, what do you say?"

Lucas just took a sip of his drink without answering.

I listened to the tide of humiliation.

My hand holding the drink tray wouldn't stop trembling.

"Enough, stop it."

In the dim lighting, I saw Lucas furrow his brow, a hint of restraint seeming to flash in his eyes.

Even knowing he hated me to the bone, I couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope rise in my heart.

Thinking he would step forward like before, protect me, save me from the flames.

But the next second, Lucas's words made my heart stop violently, cold blood coursing through my entire body!

"Violet, when you betrayed me, did you think about today?"

"Strip off one piece of clothing-two hundred grand."

I instantly froze in place, swallowing the sourness in my throat. My trembling fingers fumbled with the buttons on my clothes, creating several tangles before I managed to undo one.

Whistles blew continuously behind me as Madeline walked up to me in front of everyone, swirling her wine glass.

The next second, sharp red wine splashed directly at my face. My eyes stung unbearably-I could barely open them.

"Oops, so sorry~ my hand slipped."

Through my blurred vision, I saw Madeline playfully stick out her tongue at Lucas.

He smiled indulgently and reached out to pull her into his embrace.

"No need to apologize. At most, we'll give her an extra three thousand."

I pressed my lips together, my nails digging in tighter.

"It's taken this long and the jacket's only half off. So slow. Let me help you!"

A man's drunken laugh rang in my ears, followed by a harsh riiip-

My jacket was torn open by brute force, revealing my short waitress uniform underneath.

"Well, well, dressed so slutty. Who are you trying to seduce?"

I desperately clutched at my skirt hem, but to no avail.

More hands joined in.

My skirt zipper was pulled down, the hem roughly torn open.

Large expanses of skin were completely exposed to the cold air and prying eyes.

"No!"

I screamed until I lost my voice, curling up my body desperately, trying to use the remaining scraps of fabric and my trembling arms to cover myself.

"Fuck! Never thought this bitch had such a hot body. No wonder Daniel was willing to spend a million to buy her!"

"So what? She's probably been used up by everyone. Otherwise why would Daniel be willing to abandon such a beauty?"

A bone-chilling wind blew through the window, so cold it felt like it was cutting straight through my skin.

But even more piercing than the cold wind was the inescapable, burning humiliation.

Tears blurred my eyes as suffocating panic occupied my entire mind.

Through my blurred vision, I desperately reached out, trying to grab Lucas's pant leg.

But I saw him intimately leaning against the sofa with Madeline, carefully wiping the wine stains from her hands, looking at me as if I were someone completely insignificant.

No longer with the heartache of before.

I collapsed on the floor, trembling like a leaf, my heart aching as if being slowly sliced apart.

"Violet, if you can't handle just this, did you ever think about how I survived those five years inside?"

"This is what you owe me! You deserve this!"

As he spoke, an unfamiliar man took the opportunity to tear off my last shred of covering.

His disgusting thing suddenly appeared before my eyes.

The darkness from ten years ago engulfed me once again, my stepfather's sick, leering expression constantly surfacing before my eyes.

"Let me taste what this bitch is like!"

Instantly, I felt all the air around me being sucked away, the icy suffocation gripping my throat.

I kicked hard at the man's groin. A howl followed as a sharp slap came flying at me.

Tears mixed with blood blurred my face as he grabbed my neck and slapped me again.

During the struggle, a crystal ring on my chest fell to the ground and shattered.

"You fucking bitch, believe me when I say I'll kill you! I'll fuck-"

Before he could finish, Lucas kicked the man to the ground.

His gaze locked deadly on the ring.

After a long moment, his calm expression finally showed a crack.

His throat rolled slightly as he stared fiercely at the man against the wall.

"That's enough, stop messing around. Everyone get out!"

Everyone's eyes focused on me, whispered conversations continuing around me.

Unable to bear this terrifying pain any longer, I picked up my clothes from the floor and fled in panic.

After returning to my rental, I desperately scrubbed my body.

Trying to wash away that sticky, disgusting feeling.

I didn't stop until my skin was raw, cracked, and bleeding.

When looking for bandages, my eyes were drawn to a protective charm in my nightstand drawer.

Lucas crawled up the three thousand steps, kneeling and praying every step of the way to get it for me.

I clutched the charm tightly to my chest, and my tense nerves finally relaxed temporarily.

In my dreams, I returned to the year I first met Lucas.

My mother divorced and remarried with me to my alcoholic stepfather who turned violent when drunk. My nightmare began that day.

Unable to bear the humiliation, I tried to drown myself in the river, but was saved by Lucas, who shared an equally tragic fate.

I'll never forget his determined expression.

"Hey, I saved your life, so from now on, I'm protecting you!"

"Cough, cough. My name's Lucas. What's yours?"

"Violet, nice name. Don't be afraid, I'll protect you."

"As long as we keep living, we'll find a way out eventually. Anyone who dares bully you, I'll fight them to the death!"

...

Later, he truly put his heart into keeping his promise.

At thirteen, my mother died. My stepfather told me I'd have to trade my body if I wanted him to pay for my education.

Lucas rushed in alone, using his young body to shield me from my stepfather's fists, pulling me out of that muddy home.

"Violet, come with me. I'll protect you!"

At fourteen, I was diagnosed with kidney failure. Lucas, who never believed in gods, threw himself to the floor and begged heaven to give me a chance to live.

He knelt in the church for three days and three nights just to pray for my safety.

"Violet, Violet... please open your eyes and look at me. It's me, Lucas."

"I won't let you leave me like this. I'd rather lose you in life than lose you to death."

At fifteen, facing pressure from tuition fees, Lucas skipped classes to work odd jobs, do manual labor, and collect trash others threw away, saving up seven years of tuition for me.

"Don't be afraid. You just focus on studying and boldly move forward. I'll always be behind you."

At sixteen, my stepfather lured me home with my mother's belongings to assault me. At the critical moment, Lucas came in with a knife and ended the nightmare that had haunted me for years.

He held me tightly in his arms, crying even harder than I did.

"Violet, thank god you're okay. You never have to live in fear again. Your nightmare is finally over."

"From now on, you're the freest, most carefree Violet."

The sound of my phone ringing pulled me from my dream.

The club manager's voice came through.

"Violet, it's almost evening and you're still nowhere to be seen. I'm marking you down for being absent!"

"Hurry up and get to Twilight. Some big shot specifically requested you for service!"

The moment I stepped into the private room, I saw Lucas.

The dazzling crystal chandelier's refracted light outlined his distant yet handsome profile.

All the top-tier elites were competing to toast him and curry favor.

The manager gently pushed me forward from behind.

"Serve this important person well. If anything goes wrong, you'll pay for it!"

Lucas sat in the main seat, his gaze casually sweeping over me, fingers lightly tapping the table.

I looked at the wine glass pushed in front of me and instantly understood my situation.

I could only pick up the glass and drink it all under everyone's watchful eyes.

At this moment, a pot-bellied man stood up, his greasy, fat hand landing on my shoulder.

"This waitress is quite a looker."

Everyone first glanced at Lucas, and seeing his expressionless face, they began forcing drinks on me.

The sharp, burning liquid went down my throat and then surged hotly through my body.

When drunk and dizzy, I laid my head on the table.

I vaguely heard someone discussing my fate.

"Mr. Reed, if you're not interested in this top-tier beauty, why not do me a favor and let me enjoy her tonight?"

After a moment, Lucas's mocking, contemptuous voice rang out.

"A woman who's been used up-I'm not interested."

A lewd smile immediately spread across the man's fat face.

Suddenly, a pair of hands appeared on my chest, groping everywhere.

Like a bucket of cold water poured from head to toe.

I used all my strength to struggle and rise, but he pushed me back down.

"Oh, quite feisty. If you serve me well, you could fly up the social ladder from being just a waitress."

Even though I held back my sobs, tears still fell quietly.

My shattered dignity made me lower my head to Lucas once again.

"Please, help me..."

As I spoke, I turned my face away, painfully closing my eyes, but my body shivered uncontrollably.

Lucas laughed, his superior manner carving his noble face with striking definition.

A cold voice poured into my ears, "Violet, what makes you think I would help you?"

I was pressed into the man's embrace, the glass on the table reflecting my desperate, pale face.

"Look, no one will help you. If you behave, I'll take you to get a room. If you resist, I don't mind performing for everyone right here."

"In front of everyone, let me feel if you're soft... huh, why does this face look so familiar?"

The man suddenly stopped moving, roughly turned my face, and pulled out his phone.

The next second, a young girl's crying voice echoed through the entire hall.

My stepfather's seductive, lewd voice pulled me back into my childhood nightmare!

It was the video that beast had recorded all those years ago!

Blood instantly rushed to my head, then drained away completely the next second.

"Holy shit, so she was already used up when she was just a teenager."

"Already knew how to seduce people at such a young age, and now she's pretending to be some virtuous woman in front of me."

The man's foul words echoed in my ears as my vision went white.

The sounds from the video continued.

"Good girl Violet, spread your legs..."

The empty hall erupted in an uproar.

I thought my nightmare had long ended, that my life would clear up.

I never imagined it was just the prelude to an approaching storm!

I stood barefoot and helpless at the center of public opinion, my blood cooling bit by bit until I was completely cold and trembling.

"Lucas..."

In the crowd, I met Lucas's eyes out of focus, only to see in his pupils-

Shock, disbelief, despair, my own face pale as paper.

Lucas only froze for a moment before grabbing my chin, lifting my face to force me to meet his eyes.

Then he suddenly laughed.

"Violet, isn't that the truth?"

"Aren't you just a slut who sleeps around?"

My world instantly collapsed.

Rage surged through me like never before. I let out a shrill cry.

Using all my strength, I slapped Lucas across the face.

What I got in return was more abuse and a barrage of hits from all sides.

Warm liquid poured from my nose and mouth simultaneously, the metallic sweetness spreading throughout my mouth.

Suddenly everything began to spin.

Before losing consciousness, in my last glance, I seemed to see Daniel rushing over, his face full of anxious panic.

I only heard an enraged roar in my ears, followed by the sounds of fists and kicks.

"Lucas, you beast!"

"Violet doesn't owe you anything!"

"Do you think you got out so fast and made it in the elite circles all on your own? Think again!"