Love Began with the First Meeting
Chapter 1017 Extra Story 155 Of Aaron The End

Although Freya hadn't raised Ximena herself, they naturally shared a deep bond as mother and daughter. Freya's motherly instincts of affection and protectiveness were still there and she felt concerned about Ximena. "Perhaps there's a feeling of dull incompleteness in your heart because you think that a family looks incomplete without a child, but Ximena, don't you think that your life would be incomplete without him?"

Hitting the nail on the head, her words explained why Ximena kept holding back on her feelings. It was human nature to always want more. When they possessed one thing, they would want another. When they got what they wanted, they would want something else. "I can't make a decision for you," Freya said seriously while staring at her daughter. "Ximena, ever since I met you, I have known that Aaron would do anything for you. I think that is something that you should cherish, or you might come to regret not doing so once the chance passes you by. And believe me, good chances don't come in a person's lifetime very often."

Ximena kept thinking about what Freya had said to her and also what Molly had said to her... and even what Hanson had said to her. None of them put any pressure on her or forced her to make a decision. All of them said that the final decision would be up to her. However, nothing worth having in life came easily.

At this point, she just wanted someone to give her a direct answer, so the first person she called was Molly and all she said was "Ximena, the answer lies in your heart!"

A breathtaking sky of perfect midnight velvet loomed over QY Island, with stars so brilliant they drew the eyes heaven bound. Although it didn't look as peaceful as it was in Dragon Island, the aroma of the tall grasses were an intoxicating perfume and the tapestry above was a painting more sublime than any man could create.

When Ximena and Aaron left the house of the political commissar of the island after dinner, they decided to take a moment to walk under the stars that hung above them, like tiny diamonds strung in the air by invisible strings.

"Where are we going?" Ximena asked, bested by her curiosity. "Weren't they supposed to build a resort just ahead?" Outsiders had been prohibited to enter that area since two years ago. The property belonged to Leng's Corporations who were looking to develop a resort there.

"Hmm..." Aaron answered softly, not giving away too much. While Ximena wondered the reason behind such secrecy, he grasped her hand and pulled her to go on walking forward.

Ximena let him lead without asking anymore questions, with her cold hand in his warm, easy clasp. His big callused hands assured reliability, making her feel safe in his grip. They weren't pretty to look at but they told tales of all the hardships he had to overcome to be the man he was today.

Aaron was able to perceive Ximena's slight uneasiness. Feeling her hesitation, an indistinct smile played at the corners of his mouth. He squinted his eyes to look ahead and without saying a word, he urged her with a slight pull to carry on walking. All the while, the scenes from a memory of when they had dinner at the house of the political commissar a while ago came to Aaron's mind. His thoughts specifically revolved around the words of the wife of the political commissar who had told him "for a man to replace love, he would have to first swallow his own pride."

Aaron didn't think her words could be relevant to this predicament because he was more than willing to give up everything he hand in QY Island for Ximena's sake. In comparison to that, his pride was nothing at all. The thought left a bitter smile on his face. In front of Ximena, he could be as humble as the air she breathed.

"I wonder whether firefly squids show up in winter..." Ximena mumbled as one corner of her mouth crept up. Ever since she had heard of Watasenia scintillans, or more commonly known as firefly squids, from Molly two years ago, she had been on the lookout for it whenever she had the chance, but until now she still hadn't had the chance to witness such a grand spectacle.

Suddenly, Aaron stopped dead on his tracks and turned around to look at her. "Ximena, what do you want?" After a brief pause, he continued, "I always wanted to build a wooden house by the seaside, so I could feel the sea breeze and look at the line where the blue sky meets the sea..."

Ximena chuckled, feeling as though she had heard something familiar from him before. The scenes from the past came to her mind momentarily and she said, "If everybody got whatever they wanted, the world would have been a peaceful place." "Then, what do you want?" Aaron asked with a faint smile on his face.

After pausing to think, Ximena answered, "It's hard to say. There are so many things that I want. But for now, I just want to see the firefly squids at the sea!" "Okay," Aaron answered. With a suspicious smile on his face that puzzled Ximena, he pulled her to stride the barrier that had prevented them from seeing the sea.

When she saw the telltale disturbance of phosphorescence waggling in the sea water, the shock overcame Ximena and she just stood there staring in awe, too shocked to comprehend what she was seeing. "How could it be possible?" "Why not?" Aaron asked back.

Ximena didn't know how to express her feelings. She looked at the seaside and then at Aaron. "They're not supposed to be here at this time of year, are they?"

"Ximena, if you really wish for something hard enough..."

Aaron's deep voice rumbled next to her ear and she froze, chills flying up and down her spine. "Anything is possible. For instance..." His eyes looked as deep as the farthest yet the brightest star in the black sky. Staring at Ximena with such eyes, he finished his sentence slowly, "I love you!"

"Aaron..."

"Woosh-bang-"

All of a sudden a sharp percussive explosion lit up the night sky in a colorful glare. Fiery sparks whipped the sky, bursting through the night, brilliant inks of light on a canvas of stars.

The fireworks interrupted Ximena's words as she looked up to the sky without a conscious thought. The confusion set in, and she wandered what was going on as she looked at Aaron with a baffled expression, "What..."

"Ximena," Aaron called her name, interrupting her again. Getting down on one knee, he opened a jewelry box in his hand slowly, revealing a simple and elegant platinum ring. "Without flowers or too many romantic gestures, in the company of firefly squids and the brilliant night sky above as witness, I'm proposing to you accompany me in the wooden house from where we can both look at the horizon between the blue sky and the sea."

Gazing with his soulful eyes at Ximena, who didn't know how to face such a big surprise, he continued, "Marry me, Ximena!"

There was an old saying that if a man brought a woman to see the firefly squids, he had earned the right to ask for the woman's hand in marriage.

Suddenly, Ximena felt slightly dizzy and light-headed, almost struggling to stay on her feet. Finding it difficult to respond quickly, she lowered her eyes to look at Aaron, who looked more serious than ever. The fact that he threw the magic question at her on such an unsuspecting day was beyond her expectations.

He had once asked her what she wanted, out of the blue. On that same day, he took her to the tube-shaped apartment, where he tore away the scars that had haunted her since childhood.