In a soft voice, she suggested, “Leonel, we don't have to keep struggling like this. It's been three years- Maybe it's time to leave the past behind. We don't need to force ourselves to be together."

Leonel's response was cutting. "Then maybe you could talk to me nicely instead of leading me to bed."

He stood up and leaned in, his slender fingers gently pinching Alexis' chin.

"It's too late for that now, he said, before heading upstairs to change.

He swapped his casual attire for a suit and tie, adding a lapel pin that gave him an air of sophistication.

Alexis wondered why he was dressing so formally for a mere hospital visit.

As Leonel descended the staircase, he caught Alexis’ puzzled gaze.

Looking down at her, he said flatly, "You should change too."

Alexis thought her outfit was appropriate a white shirt and knee-length skirt, suitable for her afternoon court trial.

However, as Leonel sat on the sofa holding Evelyn, who was playin with his lapel pin, he casually remarked, "Your clothes are too plain Alexis couldn't help feeling a bit irked. Why did it matter if her outfit was plain for a hospital visit?

Nevertheless, she went upstairs to change, her annoyance simmering.

Entering the master bedroom, Alexis stopped in her tracks, surprised.

On the bed lay a soft red wool dress, accompanied by a dark-colored, thin overcoat and a pair of stockings.

The ensemble, she imagined, would look very feminine.

Leonel had prepared this for her? She couldn't fathom why he would choose such an outfit.

She wanted to ask him, but knew he wouldn't explain, especially not in front of Evelyn.

Perched on the edge of the bed, Alexis gently ran her slender fingers over the clothes, her thoughts drifting to her past with Leonel.

They had been good together once.

Had Serenity not entered the picture, perhaps they would have had a happy life together. But life was unpredictable, full of unexpected twists.

What truly came between them was not Serenity, but their own state of mind.