What Separates Me and You

Chapter 334 He Knows What He’s Doing

The elderly couple continued planning their trip, their conversation flowing effortlessly. The devotion

they had for one another was truly enviable.

Josephine stared at them blankly as the bus pulled over to the scenic areas in Ecstasia.

Only when the vehicle finally came to a stop did she turn her gaze

towards the window, captivated by the endless expanse of flower fields that stretched before her. The

sight left her speechless.

The tulips swayed gently in the wind, an effervescent ripple trilling down their perennial length. There

was no end to this palette of colors nature seemed to have inadvertently spilled.

Lewis held her hand, guiding her off the bus and toward the fields. The air was saturated with a rich

floral scent intertwined with earthy undertones, the perfect backdrop for such a breathtaking display.

Josephine broke free from his grip and sprinted toward the fields. As she ran, butterflies stirred from the

clusters they were previously nestled in, fluttering around her. There were many tourists around the

area, but the number of visitors could hardly compare to the grand magnitude of the fields. If one gazed

at the fields from afar, the extent to which the fields. were populated seemed diffuse at best, in

juxtaposition to its vastness.

After running for a while, Josephine stopped to look at Lewis.

He was walking leisurely behind her, his hands in his pockets.

She gestured for him to take some pictures of her, which he did as she posed amid the flowers, her

laughter ringing with elation. With each press of the shutters, Lewis immortalized her joy. within the

pixelated memory of his phone. Josephine ran and ran and ran until even she herself could no longer

determine which direction they were currently moving in anymore.

Lewis followed closely behind, appearing visibly weak. He pressed his hand to his abdomen, though he

never stopped capturing pictures of her with his phone.

Meanwhile, Conrad discovered Lewis’ disappearance from the hospital.

Not even Josephine could be found in the finite space of the ward.

“Where did they go?” Gerald asked, bewildered.

He, too, was worried that Lewis had gone missing like he did last time. His two-week-long

disappearance had stirred up more anxiety than he cared to relive for the second time.

Conrad pulled his phone out and dialed Lewis’ number, but the latter ended the call even as it

connected.

Conrad could only press his lips together in exasperation before addressing Gerald wryly,”

He’s out there somewhere, having fun.”

Gerald was still puzzled. “Having fun? What-”

Lewis didn’t seem like an individual who cared much about fun, let alone sneak out of the hospital with

the injuries he’d sustained simply for the sake of enjoyment.

“Who knows?” Conrad ran his fingers through his hair irritably. Never had he been so worried about

someone before, especially when that someone was a man he greatly admired.

Once again, he tried calling Seth. After this morning, he’d been fully expecting the call not to go through

when Seth unexpectedly answered.

“Mr. Berg, are you calling to wish me a Happy New Year?”

“Is Chairman Alvarez with you?” Conrad ignored his jab and got straight to the point.

Seth laughed. “Isn’t he in the hospital? Don’t tell me he went missing again.”

“Yeah. He’s gone. He brought Madam with him too.” As he spoke, Conrad realized his mistake of

allowing Josephine to stay and care for Lewis, but it was too late for him to rectify that. In her current

state, she was about as useful as a bun was to a hound.

It wouldn’t take much for Lewis to trick her into running off with him.

Seth’s reply was calm. “Really? If he wants to act so recklessly and risk his death, then so be it. I’ll give

you a raise when I inherit Alvarez Corp.”

“You-

||

His callous words infuriated Conrad. “How dare you joke about this, now of all times?

Seth laughed as he spoke, “Don’t worry, little assistant. He knows what he’s doing. He’s not at three-

year-old, after all.”

“You think? I’ve never met someone idiotic enough to run off right after surgery with no regard

whatsoever for his own well-being.”

“Which is why I said he knows what he’s doing. Why do you even care so much? He should be the one

concerned about himself,” Seth said slowly, “Or, should I say, he might very well be more worried than

you are right now.”

Conrad’s brows creased in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Oh well, you’ll see. Regardless, if he wants to loiter outside of the hospital on New Year’s Day, let him.

It’s futile to prevent a man on the verge of losing everything from throwing in the towel at the very last

minute despite having long suspected the uselessness of his actions.”

The more Seth spoke, the more muddled Conrad became. Questions surfaced in his mind, but he

hardly knew where to start.

“Instead of worrying about him, why don’t you come over and pay me a visit? I’ll even

compensate you for your time,” Seth continued unabashedly.

Immediately, Conrad hung up in a fit of rage.

He turned to Gerald and instructed him, “Mr. Harris, I think it’s best to send someone after him. He just

had his surgery. I’m afraid something might happen to him.”

Gerald nodded. “Will do.”

At the same time, Josephine walked around some more in the tulip fields before stopping to rest. She

was overcome with exhaustion, having spent her energy running around in exhilaration earlier.

Fortunately, the attractions in Ecstasia were tourist-friendly, and there were many benches around for

them to stop for a break.

Lewis sat down beside her as well and opened a bottle of water. He handed it to her, watching as she

gulped down a few mouthfuls in rapid succession. Her thirst quenched, she turned to look at him, only

to realize the beads of perspiration that had long dotted his forehead.

Even though Elysium was known for its pleasant weather, it was rather cloudy today. The breeze,

coupled with the gloomy weather, made it colder than usual.

Josephine pulled out a tissue from her pocket, dabbing away the sweat on his forehead.

Yet, Lewis gripped her hand and stopped her from wiping his face any further. “I’m fine. There’s no

need for that.”

Her gaze remained on his face for a long while after, her meticulous survey of his features. catching on

the weakness that permeated his appearance. The shadowiness of the weather accentuated every

inch of skin on his face as well, the faint stubble on his chin conspicuously visible.

She was beginning to worry about his injuries. “Let’s head back to the hospital,” she signed.

Lewis raised his arms and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Why go back to the hospital?

There are still so many places we haven’t visited.”

Josephine bit her lower lip, the concern in her eyes overflowing. She could discern the exhaustion and

infirmity between his brows, his condition taking precedence over her desire to enjoy their outing.

After thinking about it for a while, she placed the water bottle down and reached out for his clothes.

“What are you doing?”

“I just want to take a look at your wound,” she gestured.

Lewis pressed his lips together and straightened his clothes. “No need. I told you I’m fine.”

Then, he stood up and pulled her along. “Are we done here? Let’s go to the next stop.”

Josephine tugged at his fingers. “Let’s take a picture together.”

He’d been entirely occupied with filming her alone earlier-she wanted at least one picture with him.

Lewis stared at her for a while before complying. He took out his phone and led them back to the

bench, though his photography skills were hardly up to par. In the picture, their heads. were closely

pressed together, their faces so excessively large that she no longer recognized herself.

In dissatisfaction, Josephine snatched his phone away and raised the camera to a better angle. She

angled herself toward him, making sure that the flowers behind them remained in the shot.

A click captured the moment they shared on screen, the image gradually appearing as she tapped on it

to view the end result.

In her version of their picture, her smile was as radiant as the flowers behind them, a blinding

opposition to the man beside her who sat woodenly, his expression blank.

She returned the phone to Lewis.

“Anything else?”

She shook her head. She no longer wanted to take any more pictures.

Lewis didn’t put much thought into it either. He stood and told her, “Let’s go to the next stop.

”

Josephine didn’t know where they were going next, but she followed him anyway.

As they exited the tulip fields, Lewis bought them both tickets for the cable car.

The cable car was suspended above the fields, offering them a complete view of the never- ending

tulips.

Josephine leaned against the window, surveying the area with interest. After a while, however, she

soon lost interest and shifted her gaze back to Lewis. “Where are we going?” she signed.

Lewis leaned back in his seat and tilted his head. His stare was intent, and he maintained a few

moments of silence before replying, “Do you want to go on a hot air balloon?”