Chapter 2

I took a deep breath and looked toward Landon and his parents, who had rushed over at the sound. Their faces showed bewilderment.

"It wasn't on purpose," I explained calmly, looking straight at Miranda. "Someone pushed me from behind."

"Who pushed you? Everyone saw you walking straight toward Celeste with that wine glass!"

Miranda wouldn't let it go, her tone both aggrieved and indignant:

"Landon, Mr.Bob, Ms.Bella, you must stand up for Celeste!"

Landon looked at me, his expression complex, with a trace of imperceptible scrutiny.

Then he looked at the pitiful, disheveled Celeste, his brows knitted tightly.

A sense of helplessness rose in my heart.

Sure enough, when the white moonlight is wronged, reason easily crumbles.

I turned to Landon with a bitter smile and said quietly:

"See? Item two on the list—late but here. Now, can you let go of my luggage? Let me leave."

The onlooking guests whispered among themselves:

"How can the Morrison family's daughter-in-law use such lowbrow tactics to compete for favor? So petty."

"She must be jealous. This woman is really possessive. The romance between Mr. Morrison and Miss White was legendary."

"Shh, I heard this Scarlett is just a substitute."

"Nonsense!"

Mr.Bob's face darkened, his voice booming over the surrounding chatter. "Scarlett isn't that kind of person! Until we figure out what happened, no one can jump to conclusions!"

Ms.Bella immediately took my hand, her tone firm:

"That's right! There are cameras everywhere in this venue. We'll pull the footage right now! We'll see who's really causing trouble!"

Just as the butler was about to carry out the order, Celeste, who had been silently wiping away wine stains, suddenly lifted her head.

She first cast an indescribable glance at Miranda, then looked at me, speaking in a gentle tone:

"Mr.Bob, Ms.Bella, Landon, there's no need to check the surveillance."

She paused, drawing everyone's attention:

"Just now... someone did accidentally bump into Scarlett, and she lost her grip on the glass. It was an accident, not intentional. Please don't misunderstand her."

Miranda stared in disbelief, eyes wide. "Celeste! You..."

Celeste gently but firmly interrupted her:

"Miranda, thank you for your concern, but it really was an accident."

She then turned to me with a somewhat pale smile:

"Scarlett, it's fine. It's just a dress. Don't take it to heart."

The truth was lightly glossed over, protecting my innocence, yet making this white moonlight even more inscrutable to me.

Landon visibly relaxed. He stepped forward to put his arm around my shoulder and whispered:

"See? I told you Celeste is kind. She wouldn't falsely accuse you."

Ms.Bella also patted the back of my hand reassuringly.

I watched Celeste's back as a server led her away to deal with the stain, then glanced at Miranda's face, which had turned various shades of red and green. I felt no relief.

Celeste... why didn't she take the opportunity to frame me, but instead helped me out of trouble?

After Celeste's candor and "rescue," she won everyone's favor, including my in-laws.

Ms.Bella patted the back of my hand:

"Scarlett, Celeste is so sensible. You were just reading too much into things last time. You need to be more gracious."

Mr.Bob sat in the living room reading the paper, not even looking up as he chimed in:

"That's right. Landon and she are old classmates. She has good intentions. Stop being so paranoid."

Landon was even more relieved. As he tucked in my blanket before bed, he sighed:

"Now you can rest easy, right? I told you Celeste isn't like that."

Only I stared at the ceiling. After everyone had fallen asleep, I pulled out my notebook.

I checked off item five: Everyone starts defending Celeste, and I become "unreasonable."

In the days that followed, Celeste became a regular at the Morrison house.