Chapter 26
A Farewell After Being Reborn
âI donât care about the beginning and the end of my life. Life goes on for me as usual. Iâll forever cherish
all three meals every day, and Iâll also remember to be kind throughout the seasons of life. The best
moment will come to me on the best day with the nicest weather where someone finally joins me on my
walkway of life.â
There was a photo of a fancy spread decked out on the table below the post. Next to it was a selfie of
Ivyâs side profile.
The photos and the tagline made it seem like Ivy was just posting about her daily life in an artistic way.
But those who were observant enough would notice a small section of a manâs arm being revealed in a
corner of Ivyâs selfie.
It was evident that the man was wearing a dress shirt. The watch he wore might not be eyeâcatching,
but it came from a luxury brand.
Sage was very familiar with the watch. In fact, it was one of the watches Ian often
wore.
It turned out that Ian had been staying with Ivy this whole time.
Then again, it wasnât unusual for him to be there. He had summoned all of his willpower just to
suppress his lust that night.
Since Sage refused to sleep with Ian, heâd have to find another woman to bed. He
was known to be a germaphobe who couldnât care less about random women,
hence the lack of romantic scandals he was involved in.
That was why Ian had no choice but to seek comfort and relief from Ivy, also
known as his female best friend.
Ian and Ivy must have gotten a lot closer than usual these days. That was probably the reason why Ivy
decided to post such sentimental stuff on her feed.
Sage chuckled dryly as she deleted Ivy from her friends list on the social media platform.
She had added Ivy in the past just so she could spy on her. Now that she no longer
cared about Ian, she decided to kick Ivy out of her social media feed so that she
could finally relax.
After putting her phone away, Sage decided to go out for some fresh air. The moment she drove out of
the garage, she heard her phoneâs ringtone.
Sage glanced at the caller ID. It was a call from Delilah Stromberg, also known as her best friend in her
past life.
The Stromberg family had transitioned into expanding their company in the finance industry over the
past two years. The scale of their company was quite small for the time being.
In Sageâs past life, the Strombergs somehow got affiliated with Holcomb Corporation right after her
admittance into the mental asylum. As a result, the Strombergsâ company shares started skyrocketing.
Despite knowing about Sageâs admittance into the asylum, Delilah never bothered visiting her at all.
Humans tended to weigh the pros and cons when their own benefits were infringed. Sage knew that
principle well, so she didnât really resent Delilah for
what the latter did.
But Sage also knew that she could never trust Delilah anymore in this lifetime. That was the reason
why she never contacted Delilah ever since she came to this lifetime.
So, why was Delilah calling her at this time?
Sage nudged her foot onto the brakes in order to stop the car. Then, she swiped a finger across her
phoneâs screen.
âWhere are you right now, Sage?â Delilahâs anxious voice drifted through the speakers the moment
Sage answered the call.
âI was about to go on a joyride. Whatâs the matter?â
âHow are you still in the mood for that? Didnât you see Iâbitchâs post on her social media feed?â
âAnd whatâs wrong with that?â
âEverythingâs wrong with the post! Hurry up and check it out!â Delilah urged. âI bitch cooked up a feast
and even posted a selfie with a manâs arm like the manipulative whore she is!
âShe wrote some bullshit about someone joining her on the walkway of life! God, she might as well
announce to the whole world that lan is spending time with her right now!â
Sage was calm as ever. âWhat does that have to do with me?â
âAre you nuts, Sage? This is terrible news! How could you say it has nothing to do with you?â
Delilah continued angrily, âDonât go out right now! Iâll come pick you up! Letâs head over to Iâbitchâs
place and expose her ugly face! That bitch is being shameless as usual!â
Delilah kept getting angry on Sageâs behalf in her past life. Sage had believed everything Delilah said,
causing her to humiliate Ivy countless times afterward. The more Sage humiliated Ivy, the more
disgusted and resentful Ian grew.
Now, Sage didnât want to waste time doing such meaningless things. If she wanted to humiliate Ivy
once and for all, sheâd do so by stealing Ivyâs thunder at her own profession which she took pride in.
So, Sage replied, âNah. I might as well use the time to read a few more books. Iâm going to end the call
now if thatâs all you have to say.â
âSage!â Delilah called out hurriedly. âIs it because youâre worried that you might run into Ian there? Is
that why you donât want to go over to Iâbitchâs place?
âWhy are you this dumb? Youâll be able to get evidence of him cheating on you with Iâbitch if you catch
him there! Once you hand over the evidence to Mrs. Holcomb Senior, sheâll deal with Iâbitch for you!
That way, you wonât even have to dirty your own hands!â
Why would Delilah involve Linda in Sageâs mess of a marriage? Was she planning on stressing the old
woman out?
Sageâs response came out more clipped than usual. âI said, Iâm not going. Do you not understand me?â
âSage-â
Sage hung up on Delilah right away.
The fact that Delilah kept provoking her to start a ruckus at Ivyâs place was more
than enough to prove that she was up to no good.
If it werenât for the fact that the Joyners and the Strombergs were good friends,
which led to Sage and Delilah being best friends for years, she wouldâve started a fight with Delilah
over the phone just now.
The recollection of her experiences while being confined in the mental asylum, coupled with the
unpleasant memory of almost getting sexually assaulted by Ian a few days ago, gave Sage an idea.
She wanted to pick up some selfâdefense skills just so she could protect herself.
Sage had always been a decisive person. She wasted no time in researching a couple of gyms and
complexes that provided classes on various combat arts.
Sometime later, she selected a largeâscale sports complex that specialized in
kickboxing techniques.
The trainers there had actual combat experience as well. So, Sage keyed the
location into her carâs GPS and drove over immediately.
There were only a few fancy posters advertising the sports complex being pasted on the buildingâs
exterior walls. Then again, it came with a vast parking lot with countless parking slots. That itself was a
huge pro in Sageâs book.
After successfully parking in one of the slots, Sage walked into the sports
complex.
The complex was very big. It played host to a variety of courts that were meant for combat art training.
They were all decked out with an array of professional training equipment.
More importantly, the trainers were all clad in camouflage outfits that showcased their amazing figures.
The outlines of their muscles could be seen through the fabric. All in all, those trainers were the
epitome of masculinity.
Ian might be goodâlooking as well, but he always slapped on an icy expression
whenever Sage saw him. Because of that, she was in no mood to admire his looks
no matter how handsome he was.
After ogling the trainers to her fill, Sage registered for a kickboxing class without any hesitation.
âWould you like a private trainer, Ms. Joyner? That way, youâll be able to focus more on your training!â
A staff member recommended the option to Sage.
Sage turned him down tactfully. âNo, thank you.â
If she were to choose that option, sheâd lose the opportunity to train with the other trainers. She didnât
want to settle down with one private trainer when she could easily have access to all the other trainers.
After paying the registration fees, Sage filled in her personal information at the reception counter. After
that, she booked her first kickboxing class.
When she was about to leave, she heard a surprised voice booming from behind her.
âIt really is you, miss!â
Sage turned around to see a young man in his early 20s clad in a camo outfit that was standardized for
all trainers working at the sports complex. He was good- looking and had a pair of bright eyes. He
might seem like a tall and slender man at first glance, but he was actually pretty muscular. 1
What a coincidence. It turned out that Sage had bought the soiled tux for this very man at the shopping
mall a few days ago.
âIâm Michael Olsen, and Iâm working as a partâtime trainer here.â Michael introduced himself albeit
bashfully. âWhy did you come here, miss?â