I've Been There Before

Grace slowly woke up and found the room was dark. She got up from bed and walked to the living room. She was not surprised
when she saw Caden sitting on the sofa. He was watching TV under the warm light.
In the living room, the TV sound was very low, as if he was afraid that the loud noise would wake her up.
The sound of footsteps came from the corridor, and he turned around to have a look.
Then their eyes met.
Neither of them seemed to have any mood swings, as if they were already an old couple. They also seemed to have a common
understanding, for they did not mention yesterday’s incident.
It was as if nothing had happened to them.
Caden stood up and walked to the table. He slowly reheated the food and put it back onto the table.
Grace walked over silently and sat down to eat.
There seemed to be no love or hatred between them, as if they didn’t have so many painful memories.
After a meal, the atmosphere was harmonious, and they even had the illusion that everything was going well.
After finishing eating, she put down her chopsticks.
When the chopsticks hit the table, they made a slight sound.
“Let me go,”
Grace said in a hoarse voice.
Caden was washing the dishes, and when hearing this, he suddenly stopped his movements. “You’re tired. Humbert said that
you are not in good health. You must go to sleep now. Tomorrow morning, I’ll go to the supermarket to buy a chicken and make
you some soup.”
“Let me go,” she repeated in a low voice, not responding to his words.
“Be a good girl.” He put the dishes and chopsticks into the sink. After washing and drying his hands, he walked towards her.
Then he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and said, “Go to sleep. Everything will be fine after you wake up.”

“Let me go,” she just said with a calm look.
She didn’t try to break free from his embrace. Although he was so close to her, she couldn’t feel any warmth.
Her eyes were like dry lakes devoid of any water vapor.
Caden continued, “Grace, please go to sleep. I will pretend that I haven’t heard your words. In the future, don’t say such stupid
things again.”
His voice was as gentle as before, but she could tell there was a hint of warning in his words.
“I want to leave this place...”
Before she could finish her words, he was already angered.
“Do you want to leave this place or do you want to leave me?”
He tightened his grip on her, and his temples pulsed. It was evident that he had flown into a rage. Suppressing his anger, he said
in a low voice,
“Don’t say anything stupid, and don’t let me hear the word ‘leave’ again.” He gritted his teeth. Only he himself knew how painful
he was.
“Grace, you have been so smart since childhood. You must know how to make the right choice in your own interests.”
He didn’t understand that the negotiation skills in business were useless when it came to love.
The reason why he could show a tough attitude in business was that he owned capital assets. However, he couldn’t use the
same attitude to treat his beloved woman.
He didn’t understand this. He just wanted to keep her by his side.
Even his two good friends had kindly reminded him that he should let her go.
However, every time he thought that Grace would leave him and have nothing to do with him in the future, he would hardly
control his emotions.
He would be so flustered that he didn’t know what to do.

She was the only antidote to his sickness.
Grace just looked down and wore an ironic smile ... He had always been like this!
He had never changed!
Mr. Venus’ words flashed through her mind. He told her about the conflicts between the two families and the beginning of her
relationship with Caden. It turned out that everything was just a mistake.
She also had a hot temper. She wanted to roar at him and ask him why he treated her like this.
Mr. Venus’ words were like a giant hammer that shattered her into pieces. She remained silent and pondered for a long time. The
conflicts between the two families made her very upset...
In the end, she didn’t say anything.
She didn’t tell a single word to the man behind her.
Since they had made a mistake at the beginning, he didn’t need to know about those things.
“Caden, you said that you hated me.
I understand.
I know your feelings quite well.
But I already have nothing left.
I don’t understand why you are still interested in such a useless woman like me.
Let me go, so that I will never disturb or trouble you again, okay?”
She tried to persuade him, but she forgot that he was too stubborn sometimes.
“No!” he shouted angrily. The only thing she knew was to leave him!
In order to leave, she could do anything!
Didn’t she want to stay by his side?

“Good girl, let’s go to sleep,”
Caden said.
He clenched his fists tightly and waited for her answer in fear. He was afraid that she would be determined to leave him. In that
case, he would no longer be able to control himself and might even do something terrible!
Time slowly passed, and the woman in his arms seemed to guess his thoughts. Then she said, “OK.”
Only then did he let go of her and watch her walk into the bedroom. When the bedroom door was gently closed, he finally
unclenched his fists.
When Grace woke up again, everything had changed.
Overnight, all the windows in the house were equipped with aluminum alloy fences.
The sunlight flooded into the room, and she opened her eyes. After turning to the window, she could no longer look away, for she
saw the burglar-proof window that prevented her from running away.
She stared at the security window for a long time, and then she suddenly smiled with tears welling up in her eyes ... He built
another prison for her.
She propped herself up and walked barefoot to the window. Then she grabbed the burglar-proof window tightly ... This was
another prison built for her. She smiled bitterly, with tears falling down her cheeks.
She recalled the painful days she had spent in prison for three years. During that period, she also held the fence on the window
tightly, because that was the only place where sunlight could pass through.
The sound of someone turning the key came from outside the door. She changed her clothes in a hurry, wiped away her tears,
and turned around to walk out of the bedroom.
With a plastic bag in his hand, Caden walked to the table.
“The chicken I bought today is especially good. I caught it myself. I also brought you some breakfast. Grace, wash up and sit
down.”

As he spoke, he placed the plastic bag by the sink. There were plenty of vegetables and meat products in it. Standing in front of
the sink, he rolled up his sleeves and began to wash the vegetables.
She placed her hands behind her back. Her fists were clenched, with nails digging deep into her palms. Looking up, she found
that the balcony had also been equipped with burglar-proof windows. It was impossible for her to escape from this house.
A gust of wind blew, but she felt it was suffocating.
It suddenly occurred to her that Caden wanted her to wash up and then have breakfast.
In great despair, she decided to follow his instructions.
After washing herself, she sat down quietly to eat the breakfast he had brought back.
In the open-plan kitchen, he was washing vegetables and cooking the soup, while she was quietly eating the hot breakfast at the
table.
The atmosphere was warm and pleasant.
She didn’t even ask when the security windows were installed.
Everything seemed to be fine, but every time she glanced at the security windows, a glint of disgust and fear would appear on
her face.