Third person's POV
Both of them avoided discussing heavy topics during the meal. It wasn't until after finishing eating that Tabitha picked up a napkin, wiped the corners of her mouth, and then broached the main subject.
"What are your plans?" Tabitha asked.
"Tabitha, I've already found some clues about Jasper, but with the news of you being alive spreading, it's not safe to stay in Seattle anymore. I won't insist on you staying by my side, but at least you need to protect yourself and the children's safety. How about going to Hawaii? It's very safe there," Derek said sincerely.
"Do you want me to hide there for the rest of my life?" Tabitha frowned and questioned.
"At least for now, until I find out her identity..." Derek explained.
"As long as I don't show up, she will never reveal herself. Am I supposed to hide forever?" Tabitha interrupted him.
Tabitha put down the small spoon in her hand, looked at Derek seriously, and said, "Derek, let's be frank. Besides the matter of Wilmot today, what's more important is that I want to tell you that I hope you truly let me go."
"You want me to let go..." Derek's voice was filled with disbelief and pain.
"Yes, the meaning of divorce is that men and women can remarry and have no further connection. You should have your own life, and I need to move forward. Our relationship has long become the past," Tabitha said.
Derek's eyes revealed deep bitterness as he said, "Tabitha, you are so cruel..."
"Derek, we are both adults. You should understand the principle of parting on good terms. Do you think that at this point, we can still be together?" Tabitha's eyes showed a hint of helplessness and determination.
She hit the key point. Derek could only choose to be silent, not knowing how to respond.
Tabitha took a deep breath, her eyes showing a complex emotion, and slowly said, "Although I know that Elena deceived you at the beginning, the Silver Moon Wolf Pack incident did happen, and the scenes where you hurt me are still vivid in my mind. The moment when you broke my wrist to protect Elena, I can never forget it to this day."
Derek lowered his head, his voice filled with guilt, and said, "Tabitha, I'm sorry."
"These incidents are all obstacles between us. I'm sorry. I can't get over these past grievances and fall in love with you again," Tabitha's tone was unusually steady today, without any anger or excitement, as if she were calmly chatting with an old friend of many years.
"There is no possibility between us anymore. Why not let go decisively? If we continue to be together, it will only repeat the past and let the hurt spread to me and even the children again."
Derek could not refute any of Tabitha's words. He was silent for a moment and then spoke in a dull voice, "I want to see the kids."
Tabitha's expression did not waver at all, and she said, "There is no need. I have already told them that their father has passed away. If you can't give them care, it's better not to meet in the first place."
Tabitha's face was calm, and she continued, "I once loved you and hated you. But you also saved me several times in danger. The past grievances and love are really difficult to measure. I think the best ending is, instead of continuing to confront each other, it's better to break up and go our separate ways, isn't it?"
Derek's mood was heavy. After going through so many things, Tabitha's mentality had become abnormally calm.
She was like a wise person who had seen through the joys and sorrows of the world, transcending the worldly troubles, calm and restrained.
And he himself was like a person who had fallen into a dark abyss, immersed in the past of the two people and unable to extricate himself. They formed a sharp contrast between the two extremes.
The reason he gave in so much now was that he had not yet touched his bottom line.
Once the bottom line was really broken through, Derek would lose all his sanity and become a completely out-of-control beast.
He was now trying hard to hide the beastliness deep in his heart, for fear of scaring Tabitha again.
"What if I say I can't do it? Even if we divorce, I have the right to see you and the children, don't I?" Derek clenched his fists tightly, and the veins on the back of his hands bulged.
At the thought of never seeing Tabitha again in the future, he felt he would definitely break down.
"So you mean we can't agree?" Tabitha originally thought that after these days, Derek had changed a lot, and maybe he would be willing to let go.
But now she found that Derek's love for her had not decreased, but increased day by day.
She couldn't understand how such a deeply loving Derek could betray her in the first place.
"Tabitha, you are so determined to leave me. Do you really believe that Lucian can protect you? You would rather believe in him than in me?" Derek stood up and leaned towards Tabitha, and a strong sense of oppression came.