I had a brief, fleeting romance with my best friend’s younger brother. When we broke up, he asked me, “Were you just playing with me?” “Yes.” Years later, he became incredibly cold, refusing my kisses and dodging my hugs. “What are you doing?” I asked, frustrated. He blew out a ring of smoke, a smirk on his lips. “Playing with you.” 01 I got cheated on. Fuck. Seeing Connor Hayes making out with a freshman girl, my heart was a chaotic mess of emotions. Just a minute ago, we were texting each other “goodnight.” The next minute, I found him in the booth next to mine, kissing some undergrad like his life depended on it. I watched the whole thing. I was practically eating popcorn, enjoying the show. I almost wanted to leave a Yelp review. When Connor finally noticed me, he shoved the girl away in a panic. The flash of sheer terror in his eyes was priceless. It was incredibly awkward. I walked over, picked up a fruit platter from their table, and offered it to him with a sweet smile. “Want a bite?” Connor blew up. “Are you out of your fucking mind? You’re asking me if I want fruit right now?” “Well, you were kissing for so long. Aren’t your lips dry?” He took a deep breath, trying desperately to suppress his irritation. The freshman girl started fanning the flames. “See, babe? Look at her! She doesn’t even care about you!” Connor snapped at her, “Shut up.” The girl shrank back, terrified. I sighed. Trying to play peacemaker, I said, “Actually, she’s not wrong.” The girl clung to Connor’s arm. “Just let me have him, okay?” Her smug, triumphant face really started to piss me off. This girl’s favorite hobby was acting like a helpless baby. Even though she was only a year younger than me, she was constantly begging Connor to buy her Squishmallows and Jellycat plushies. I had even complained about it to my best friend, Chloe: “Why doesn’t she just walk around with a pacifier?” I raised my glass to her. “He’s all yours.” I turned to leave. Connor grabbed my wrist, his voice suddenly pleading. “I don’t want to break up. Forgive me, just this once.” I laughed. “Sure. Go kneel outside the campus gates for a whole day, and I’ll forgive you.” His face froze. Finally, he shoved his hands into his pockets, his eyes turning ice-cold. “Hazel! If you weren’t so damn frigid, do you think I would have looked for someone else? You won’t let me kiss you, you won’t let me touch you. Our relationship is falling apart—isn’t that your fault?” I stared at him. “If you’re walking down the street and a rabid dog bites you, do you blame yourself for being unlikable, or do you blame the dog for being rabid?” I’m not an idiot. Did he really think he could gaslight me? 02 Reeking of alcohol, I showed up at Chloe’s apartment. She was out of town on a business trip, and I really didn’t want to go back to my dorm, so I decided to crash at her place for the night. As soon as I walked in, I stripped off my jacket, leaving me in just a red-and-blue plaid slip dress. Lying in bed, I couldn’t help but overthink. Am I really frigid? Even when Connor held my hand, I just felt irritated and uncomfortable. Suddenly, the sound of running water from the bathroom reached my ears. Someone was here. Was Chloe back early? I walked straight over, needing to wash up anyway. I pushed the door open. Steam billowed out. But the person inside, standing there with only a towel wrapped around his waist, staring at me with dark, indifferent eyes… It was Liam Carter. Chloe’s younger brother. He had grown taller. More mature. His hair was cropped short. The muscles shifting under his skin were captivating, radiating strength. His lips were slightly pink, moistened by the steam. I want to kiss him. That was the only thought in my head. Seeing that I had absolutely no intention of looking away or acting embarrassed, Liam let out a sharp scoff. His tone was dripping with piercing sarcasm. “Want to hook up, Hazel?” I suddenly remembered something Chloe had once said about me. Hazel, you look so gentle and polite on the outside, but deep down, you’re wicked. So, fueled by Liam’s provocation, my rebellious side flared up. “Thanks for the invitation.” Dead silence filled the bathroom. Then, he let out a low laugh. “You’re still as bold as ever, aren’t you?” 03 Liam and I once had a very brief romance. I found out he had feelings for me when he was a senior in high school. At the time, I was a freshman in college, attending a local university with Chloe. That day, I had gotten into a massive fight with my stepdad. My mom was running a high fever, and instead of taking her to the clinic, he went to the local lodge to play poker. I had skipped class to come home, only to find her coughing uncontrollably. Pots and bowls were smashed during our argument, which only ended when my mom begged me to stop. My mom was deeply traditional. She believed men ruled the outside world and women ruled the home. So, she catered to my stepdad’s every whim. She held me back, pleading with me not to fight with him. Furious, I ran out of the house. I ran into Liam in the alleyway. He was wearing a hoodie, a black backpack slung over his shoulder. “Hazel?” he called out. “Liam? What are you doing here?” “Skipping SAT prep.” It was his senior year, and the pressure was on. Liam was brilliant, but his mom still forced him into tutoring. He reached out, his long fingers gently wiping a smear of blood off my cheek. “You’re hurt.” Only then did I notice the cut. A shard of porcelain must have grazed me when I smashed the bowl. His pale fingers were stained with a drop of bright red. I instinctively reached up to wipe it away. He shook his head. “It’s nothing.” Instead, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me toward the nearest clinic. “We need to clean this up, or it’ll scar.” By the time we walked out, the sun was setting. Liam admitted he had ditched his prep class entirely. “I already know all that stuff. I was just too lazy to argue with my mom about it.” I laughed, which tugged at my cut. I hissed in pain. “Genius perks, I guess.” “Does it still hurt?” Before I could answer, he leaned in. His thin lips pressed softly against my cheek. We were so close I could feel his breath. His skin was flawless, his dark eyes earnest and intense. “I like you, Hazel.” But I could see the tips of his ears burning bright red. I thought he was so brave back then. 04 Past memories shattered into fragments in my dreams. I woke up to the morning sunlight streaming into the room. The space next to me was completely cold. Liam was long gone. I sat up and looked around. On the nightstand, there was a stack of cash and a sticky note. It read: Thanks for the warm hospitality. I raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised by how much Liam had changed. The shy boy who used to blush at the slightest tease was now a seasoned player. That stack of cash was glaringly offensive. Clearly, he was used to pulling this kind of stunt. My body was aching, and my phone was dead. Annoyed, I plugged it in and powered it on. Chloe had called me several times. I called her back. “Hey?” Chloe sounded like she was walking, the rumble of her suitcase wheels echoing through the speaker. “Where are you? I’ve been calling you forever!” I ran a hand through my messy hair, mumbling, “I’m at your place. Just woke up.” “It’s noon! Why were you up so late?” I chuckled softly. “Good question.” “I’m almost home. Brought you some cake. Get up and come greet me.” My heart skipped a beat. That fast? I mumbled, “Alright, I’m getting up. How far away are you?” “Ten minutes.” I took a deep breath. I had a few drinks yesterday, my hormones had taken over, and I had spent an incredibly reckless night with Liam. How the hell was I going to explain this to my best friend? What a mess. I quickly got up, changed my clothes, and speed-cleaned the living room. 05 Chloe looked exhausted. As soon as she walked in, she started venting. “You have no idea, the clients on this trip were a nightmare. I’m so jealous of you. I should have just gone to grad school like you did.” “Want some gossip to cheer you up?” I asked. She perked up instantly. “Hit me. What happened?” “I saw Connor making out with a freshman last night.” “No way! The one who’s obsessed with Squishmallows? What is wrong with his eyes!” I nodded in disgust. “Exactly. Honestly, I must have been blind to date him in the first place.” We trashed Connor for a while. Seeing that I wasn’t too heartbroken, Chloe asked, “Where’s my brother?” I froze mid-sip of water. “Huh?” “Didn’t you see him last night? I gave him the passcode to the apartment.” Chloe and I had been joined at the hip since middle school. Sometimes we even brought Liam along on weekends. But she had no idea Liam and I ever had a thing. I remember when Liam and I first got together, he was so frustrated. He said it felt like we were keeping some dirty, underground secret. We dated quietly, and we broke up quietly. It was a secret that only belonged to the two of us. I kept my voice casual. “I saw him, but he went out last night.” Chloe went into her room to change into loungewear. I heard her talking through the door; she was probably on the phone with Liam. “My brother said he was out partying with friends. He just got back. Sounds like a long night.” “Is it his high school friends?” Liam was incredibly popular in high school—good-looking, great personality. “Yeah. He invited us to go to the club with them tonight. You down?” I pressed my lips together. “Sure.” Chloe gave me a wicked grin. “Perfect. Let’s go hit on some younger guys.” I was drinking water and nearly choked, terrified for a second that she knew about me and Liam. I cleared my throat. “Sounds like a plan.” 06 At the club. I finally got a good look at Liam again. He really had grown into a mature, striking man. Broader and more muscular than he was right out of high school. Chloe and the other guys hit the dance floor. Leaving just me and Liam sitting across from each other. His fingers, pale and long, swiped idly across his phone. He looked completely disinterested. He hadn’t glanced at me once. It really seemed like he had completely forgotten about me. Winning him back was going to be tough. I took a sip of my drink, trying to come up with a game plan. Just then, his friend Tyler walked over. Tyler was a good-looking guy, but he had a goofy, over-the-top swagger. He sat down next to Liam, pointing his chin toward a girl across the room. “Liam, check out that older girl. You think I have a shot?” Liam’s dark eyes rippled with amusement. “No chance.” His voice was as calm as if he were discussing the weather. I followed their gaze. It was a gorgeous woman in a black slip dress with dramatic, sultry makeup. Definitely an intimidating, mature vibe. Tyler looked at me. “What do you think, Hazel?” I pretended to think about it, nodding, but I didn’t look at Tyler. I looked straight at Liam. “I think you have a great shot. After all, older women these days… really love younger guys.” I emphasized “younger guys.” Liam caught the hint. He let out a sharp scoff but didn’t say a word. Encouraged, Tyler turned back to Liam. “Bro, have you ever dated someone older?” Liam nodded. “Yeah.” “How was it?” Liam’s eyes swirled with a lazy, mocking amusement. He took a slow sip of his drink and looked me up and down. His voice was a slow drawl, laced with a hint of absurdity. “How was it? “Mind-blowing.” The corners of my lips curled up. As our eyes met, the tension in the air was palpable. Tyler yelled, “Holy shit!” and eagerly jogged off to get the girl’s Instagram. Once he was gone, the atmosphere froze again. Liam stood up and headed toward the restrooms. On the way, several girls asked for his number or snap. He accepted every single one. The boy who used to blush at a single kiss had turned into someone I couldn’t read at all. I waited for him in the hallway outside the restrooms. I pulled a slim cigarette from my purse. Whenever things got complicated, I needed a smoke to calm my nerves. It didn’t take long for him to come out. When he saw me, his pace didn’t slow down. He didn’t even look like he was going to say hello. I stepped in his way, flashing a bright smile, and held out my phone with my Instagram QR code. Acting as playful as I could, I said, “Hey handsome, can I get your Insta?” He laughed. “Sure.” Just like he did with all the other girls. Once the follow was accepted, I pushed my luck, stepping closer. “Going home together tonight?” He took a step back, the corner of his mouth ticking upward. “Get in line. Maybe one day it’ll be your turn to take me home.” 07 I went back to my campus apartment alone. I had to finish my master’s thesis in a few days and had already wasted too much time. In my dreams, the moonlight shattered and filtered through the thin curtains. Liam had confessed his feelings to me on a night just like that. It was right after he graduated high school. His parents asked Chloe and me to take him and his friend Mason on a road trip. Honestly, two teenage boys didn’t need us as chaperones. I only found out later that Liam had specifically begged his parents to make sure we came along. I had never seen him act so manipulative before. At the time, I didn’t really want to go, but Liam tugged at my sleeve. “Come on, Hazel. We haven’t been out of the city in forever. Let’s go.” I raised an eyebrow. “What? Are you scared of the dark?” His ears turned red, and he nodded. “Yeah.” Even though I already had a feeling he liked me, I stubbornly convinced myself he just had a dependency on me because we grew up together. I was practically his older sister. So, I agreed. We drove to Sedona, Arizona. Mason drove most of the way since he had just gotten his license and was eager to use it. It was a popular spot, famous for its red rocks and starry nights. We stayed at a rustic, vintage-style lodge. Mason was exhausted from driving, and Chloe, who hated the sudden drop in temperature at night, curled up in bed and passed out. By evening, only Liam and I were still awake. There were a lot of backpackers and kids who had just graduated high school hanging out in the main lobby. The owner lit a few candles. Everyone sat around sharing stories until late into the night. It was then that Liam, the shy little rabbit, turned into a persistent puppy. He followed me all the way to my room. As I was about to close the door, he stood there, looking at me with innocent eyes. I coughed. “Need something?” He magically produced a mug of warm milk from nowhere. “Do you want some milk before bed, Hazel?” I took it. It was warm. I had no choice but to let him in. I knew he had something to say. So I sat there, sipping the milk slowly. He rested his chin on his hand, just watching me in silence. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. “What exactly are you…” “I like you.” His voice was clear and moving, his confession flowing as naturally as a stream. I couldn’t help but laugh a little. “What do you like about me?” “A lot of things. If you agree to be my girlfriend, I’ll tell you about them, slowly, every day.” It didn’t sound like an empty promise. It sounded incredibly sincere. The night was intoxicating. But late nights are never a good time to make decisions. I smiled and didn’t say anything. Disappointment flickered in Liam’s eyes; he probably thought I was going to reject him. He stood up. “It’s fine. I’ll just take my time and earn it.” Just as his hand grabbed the doorknob, I caught his arm. “Little brother… do you know how to kiss?”

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He was the son of my late friend. I’m no saint. I only took him in because he looked pitiful, deciding to feed him and raise him on a whim. I never expected that the little “stray dog,” once all grown up, would turn into a “wolf.” A “wolf” with his sights set entirely on me. 1. I attended a friend’s funeral, but I ended up bringing her son home. I had intended to leave right after the burial service, but I paused by a tree, watching the boy surrounded by a crowd of people. I listened for a while. Those people were definitely scheming, trying to get their hands on the house and the money. They made a big show of saying they would raise him until he was an adult, their tone implying they were doing him a massive favor. But they clearly had no intention of giving him a single cent of his mother’s inheritance. I turned to look at the photo of the gentle woman smiling on the headstone and thought with a scoff: “You soft-hearted fool. I told you your relatives couldn’t be trusted, but you wouldn’t listen! Now they’re bullying your orphaned son.” But I didn’t plan on stepping in to help him. I owed his mother a favor, not him. I’m no saint. I was just curious to see what he would do. Would he cry and beg that pack of wolves? But he just stood there, his head bowed, without saying a word. Boring. I dusted off my hands, ready to go home. Suddenly, he raised his head and looked straight at me. His eyes were red, filled with a ragged, defensive stubbornness. In that moment, it was as if I saw my younger self from years ago—just like that, like a stray dog ready to bite. We locked eyes. Neither of us looked away. “Hey, want to come live with me?” I raised an eyebrow and smiled at him. The group of aggressive relatives finally noticed me standing there. A flash of awkwardness crossed their faces, followed immediately by anger. “This is family business!” I ignored them, swaying my hips as I walked up to the boy, dropping my smile. “I was a friend of your mother’s. I owe her a favor, so I can take you in, but…” I swept my gaze over the rest of the people there, enunciating every word clearly: “If they steal your inheritance, once you’re older and have the means, you’ll have to get it back yourself. I won’t help you.” It was as if I had ripped off their masks. The crowd started yelling, accusing me of talking nonsense. I just kept my eyes on the boy. “Of course, you can choose to go with them. It’s your choice.” In the end, he came home with me. After settling him into the guest room, a wave of discomfort washed over me—the feeling of a stranger invading my personal space. I shouldn’t have brought him back. Feeling a bit irritated, I retreated to my home office, using my design sketches to calm my nerves. 2. The next day, I was woken up by text messages from a client. I had finished revising the designs last night and sent them straight over. This was the first job I had taken since starting my own design studio. I say “studio,” but it was really just me and my best friend, Harper. The client was notoriously difficult to please—the kind who asks for “a vibrant shade of black.” Thankfully, they were finally satisfied with last night’s revisions. Rubbing my stiff neck, I walked out of the office. I caught a glimpse of a silent figure sitting at the dining table and nearly jumped out of my skin. I was genuinely annoyed. “Why are you just sitting there without making a sound!” He froze for a second, as if startled by my sudden morning crankiness. Then, trying to act calm, he pushed a piece of paper across the table toward me. “I apologize. I’ll be more mindful in the future. I drafted this agreement. You can take a look.” Utterly confused, I walked over, sat across from him, picked it up, and almost laughed out loud. Party A: [Left Blank] Party B: Liam. The gist of the agreement was that Party B would borrow funds for all living expenses while staying at Party A’s house, as well as high school tuition. The total amount, plus interest, would be repaid in full one year after Party B graduated from college. I peeked at him over the top of the paper, feeling a sudden urge to tease him. “How are you so sure you can pay it all back one year after college? Raising a kid is expensive nowadays. Also, why does it only cover high school? Don’t I have to pay for your college tuition and living expenses too?” Liam’s face turned red, and he stammered slightly, “I-I can add a clause to the agreement. If I don’t pay it back on time, the interest doubles.” He then hastily tried to explain, “I will definitely pay you back, I promise. My grades are pretty good, I can apply for scholarships for college, and I can work part-time on weekends and holidays during high school to cover my college expenses. I can also…” “Stop.” The more I listened, the more ridiculous it sounded. It wasn’t like I couldn’t afford to raise him. Thinking about him taking on part-time jobs… there are so many shady employers out there who love exploiting student workers, finding every excuse to dock their pay. I had been through it. He didn’t need to go through it too. “Just focus on your studies. Don’t even think about part-time jobs. I have money, I can afford to support you. There’s no need to sign this agreement; just consider it my way of repaying your mother.” I put the agreement down on the table and got up to go wash my face. “If you don’t sign it, I won’t stay here.” So annoying. Why is he being so dramatic? I really wanted to yell at him. But when I saw the earnestness and stubbornness in his eyes, and looked at the boy’s straight back in the morning light… I suddenly realized that this wasn’t just a promissory note; it was the last shred of pride for a “stray dog” with a heavy heart. I sat back down, picked up a pen, and swiftly signed my name in the Party A slot: Summer. Seeing the look of relief wash over his face, I found it somewhat amusing. “Go get cleaned up, we’ll go out for breakfast, and then to Target to buy your things. If I remember correctly, school starts in two weeks, right? Whatever you need, make a list, and we’ll buy it all at once.” I glanced at him. “I’m guessing your ungrateful relatives have already moved into your house. Before we go to Target, I’ll drop you off there so you can grab anything you can’t bear to leave behind. From now on, just call me Sum…” I paused, feeling a bit awkward. Given our age difference and relationship, calling me “Auntie” made me sound too old, but calling me “Sister” felt weird too. “Summer. I can cook, we don’t need to go out to eat.” With that, he got up and walked toward the refrigerator in the kitchen. Fine, just using my first name works too. But a second later, he turned to look at me, unable to hide his shock. 3. I had forgotten. The only thing in my fridge besides alcohol… was more alcohol. In the end, we still went out for breakfast, and then drove back to his old house. I didn’t go upstairs. He came down less than half an hour later, carrying only a photo of his mother, some books, and some clothes. He didn’t look well, and his eyes were a bit red. Those relatives probably hadn’t said anything nice, but I didn’t comfort him. It wasn’t my obligation to soothe his emotions. Some things you just have to endure on your own. We drove to Target. I let him pick out what he needed while I waited at the checkout. Harper called. As soon as I answered, I frowned and held the phone away from my ear. “Babe! I need comforting!” She was wailing dramatically on the other end. I sighed helplessly. “My friend, please control your volume, or I’m going to sue you for hearing damage. Tell me, what is it this time?” “It’s my dad again! He tricked me into another blind date! I just had a huge fight with him. Babe, I’m coming to sleep at your place tonight.” She pretended to sob. “I don’t have room. Someone’s in the guest room.” “What?! Summer, are you hiding a secret lover?” Her imagination was running wild. With a slight headache, I briefly explained the situation to her. She sighed in amazement and insisted on treating Liam to hot pot at a local place that afternoon, saying she felt bad for him and he needed a good meal. When Liam came out, he hadn’t bought many personal items, but he had a whole cart full of groceries. I looked at him in confusion. He explained in a low voice, “I’ll cook from now on. Eating out is a waste of money, and it’s not as healthy.” How domestic, a highly inappropriate thought popped into my head. The cashier gave us a very complicated look. Great, she’s misunderstanding the situation. I kept a straight face, paid the bill, and once we were in the car, I told Liam about Harper treating him to hot pot. He didn’t have any objections, just said that sounded good. On the way to the restaurant, I silently prayed: Please, Harper, try to keep a filter on your mouth later. 4. As soon as we walked into the hot pot place, I saw Harper waving frantically at us, her eyes lighting up when she saw Liam. Resigned, I led Liam over and introduced them. “Liam, this is Auntie Harper.” The woman across from me immediately got defensive. “What Auntie? Don’t listen to her nonsense. Liam, right? I’m your big sister Harper.” Liam obliged and called her “Sister Harper,” after which she sent him off to get dipping sauces. I knew she had something she wanted to say to me privately. Harper dropped her smile, looking deeply pained. “Summer, tell me the truth. Did you take one look at Liam’s face and decide to play some sort of grooming game? He’s underage!” I looked at her like she was an idiot, picked up my water glass, and didn’t reply. She continued her guessing game weakly, “Don’t tell me you want to… be his mom?” I choked, nearly spitting out my water. Harper hurriedly handed me a napkin. “Hey, I’m just throwing ideas out there! You hate drama more than anything. Don’t tell me it’s about repaying a debt of gratitude. I know you. You always keep things strictly business. You wouldn’t raise her son just because his mother helped you back then.” She was right. I wouldn’t. So, why did I take him in on a whim? Was it because, during that stare-down at the cemetery, I saw my past self in him? I didn’t know. Liam came back with the sauces, and Harper and I appropriately dropped the subject. During the hot pot meal, with Harper there, there was never a dull moment. She actually managed to make Liam blush several times. Before we left, as we stood by the car, Harper pulled me aside. She looked at Liam in the passenger seat and whispered, “I don’t know why you took him in, and if you don’t want to tell me, I won’t ask. Raising a kid isn’t easy. If you ever need anything, just say the word. Don’t try to shoulder it all yourself. You hear me?” I reached out, linked my arm through hers, and leaned close to her ear, drawing out my words, “I knowww~ You worry too much, Auntie Harper~” She playfully smacked the back of my hand in annoyance and let me go. Before heading home, we went to IKEA to order a wardrobe, desk, and chair to be delivered for the guest room. From now on, that would be his room. After getting everything arranged at home, I went back to my bedroom to catch up on sleep, leaving Liam to sort himself out. That evening, I was woken up by the smell of food. Rubbing my eyes, I groggily walked into the living room. Under the warm lighting, Liam was bringing plates out from the kitchen one by one. I looked at the table full of food, then looked up at him in confusion: Did I bring home a personal chef? Liam looked a bit embarrassed. “I didn’t know what you liked to eat, so I made a few different things. I accidentally made too much, sorry.” I waved my hand to show it was fine and sat down at the dining table, still a bit dazed. So this is what it feels like to have someone cook for you at home? In the days that followed, there wasn’t much interaction between Liam and me. Most of the time, I was holed up in my office drawing, occasionally going to the studio to meet clients with Harper. Since Liam arrived, the house was always spotless, and a few small potted plants had appeared on the balcony. Two weeks later, it was time for Liam to start school. It was only when I dropped him off for registration that I learned from his teacher he had ranked first in his entire school on his final exams last semester. This was what he meant by “grades are pretty good”? I turned to look at the boy, noting the tips of his ears turning red and his back subtly straightening a bit more. I chuckled inwardly; he was a bit like a cat. Since the school was close to home, after asking for his preference, we decided he would commute. The next day, we went back to the store to buy him a bicycle. With that, he officially started his junior year of high school, and I poured all my energy into the studio. Before I knew it, it was the Thanksgiving long weekend. 5. I didn’t expect to suddenly get sick on the first day of the holiday. It was probably because I had been so stressed with the studio recently, and the sudden relaxation caused my body to crash. Liam’s school had organized a study camp, so he left early in the morning and wasn’t going to be home for the entire break. I found some medicine in the living room cabinet, swallowed it with cold water, and groggily went back to my room to sleep. When I woke up again, I was parched. I could faintly hear the sound of someone rummaging through things in the living room. Forcing myself up, I grabbed a heavy book and tiptoed toward the living room. I locked eyes with the person in the living room and awkwardly lowered the book. Liam? Why was he back? Before I could ask, Liam, lips pressed in a tight line, walked over to me holding a thermometer gun. Before I could react, I stared blankly as he took my temperature. “You have a fever.” He looked at the number on the screen, his face darkening. “Yeah.” No wonder my whole body ached. “Why are you back?” Liam turned to put the thermometer back in the drawer, then picked up the medicine I had left on the table. “I came back to get a book I forgot. I saw the medicine on the table and guessed you were sick, so I asked the teacher for leave. I’m not going to the camp.” I frowned. “I can take care of myself. Go back to your camp.” He picked up the water glass I had used earlier and looked at me. “Oh, so drinking cold water and taking random medicine is how you take care of yourself?” I was momentarily speechless. I had the bizarre feeling that he was the parent here. “We’re out of fever reducers. I’m going out to buy some. I boiled some water in the kitchen; drink some of that first.” With that, he grabbed his keys and left. I sat on the sofa, dazed. In the past, I had gone to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy all by myself. When Harper found out afterward, she was teary-eyed and accused me of not treating her like a real friend. That wasn’t true. I just wasn’t used to depending on others. Subconsciously, I didn’t want to build close relationships with anyone. The sound of the front door opening pulled me out of my chaotic thoughts. Liam walked in, breathing heavily, a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. He had run all the way back. He went to the kitchen, poured a fresh cup of hot water, then squatted in front of me, taking out the medicine and carefully reading the instructions. I watched him do all this with a blank expression. The feeling of being taken care of was… entirely unfamiliar to me. Liam didn’t end up going back to the study camp. Under his supervision, I recovered quickly. I had suggested he use the holiday to go hang out with friends. But he just shook his head and chose to stay home with me. Sometimes, we would go out together to buy groceries. Sometimes, we would draw the curtains during the day and curl up in the living room to watch an old movie. Sometimes, after dinner, we would go for a walk in the neighborhood park. But we still didn’t talk much. On the last day of the break, Harper showed up at my door, looking despondent, carrying a bag of groceries. The first thing she said to me was, “Babe, that woman is back.” 6. The woman Harper was referring to was Autumn, our college classmate. Although Harper wouldn’t admit it, her rejection of blind dates all these years was largely because of Autumn. As an observer, I understood their entanglement, but it wasn’t my place to say anything. Neither Harper nor I were great cooks, so Liam eventually took the groceries into the kitchen. Harper followed him, familiar with the layout, and opened the fridge looking for alcohol. Finding only vegetables, she turned to me in the living room. “Babe, where’s your stash?” Liam stepped around her, went to the liquor cabinet in the dining room, handed her a low-ABV bottle, and said quietly, “She just recovered from being sick. She shouldn’t drink.” My heart skipped a beat, and I looked nervously at Harper. Sure enough, the next second, Harper’s eyes were red, and she was accusing me of never telling her when I was sick. I had to meekly comfort her, insisting it was just a common cold and nothing major. Glancing at the busy figure in the kitchen, I had a sneaking suspicion Liam did that on purpose. I had to change the subject. “Did Autumn come looking for you?” Harper took a sip of her drink, looking defeated. “Yeah. She called and said she wants to get back together.” She slammed her glass down on the coffee table, agitated. “Who does she think she is? Why should I wait around for her? There’s a whole line of young, hot guys waiting for my attention.” Watching her pretend to be unbothered, I reached out my hand. “Give me your phone. I’ll call her and tell her to never bother you again.” Harper froze for a second, then tucked her phone against her chest like a little hamster, looking slightly wronged. “What are you doing! You’re making fun of me too.” I sighed. “I’m telling you to face your true feelings.” “Then she shouldn’t have just left for Europe for all those years without a word, and then come back with a breezy ‘let’s get back together,’ acting like the years we were apart didn’t exist.” Harper kept her head down, her voice choked with emotion. I moved over and pulled her into a hug. “Okay, then make her work for it.” By the time Liam brought out dinner, Harper had already finished a bottle of wine. At the dinner table, she insisted on drinking with Liam. I smiled helplessly. “He’s just a kid, he shouldn’t be drinking.” Harper didn’t care. “Liam’s almost an adult. A little alcohol won’t hurt. Come on, Summer, don’t be such a stick in the mud, okay?” And then I watched helplessly as Liam quietly slid his glass over. Fine. I give up. The meal lasted a long time. Even though Harper was laughing and joking the whole time, I knew she was really hurting inside. I knew how much she cared about Autumn, and how deeply Autumn’s departure had hurt her. All these years, she had been waiting for her. By the end of the night, Liam was a bit tipsy, and Harper suddenly turned into a messy drunk, demanding that Autumn come pick her up. Facing these two—one big, one small—drunks, my temples throbbed. I helped Liam to his room first. Before lying down, he kept mumbling that I shouldn’t clean up the dishes; he would do it in the morning. I chuckled, thinking his personality was like a little old man’s. I went back to the living room, squatted in front of Harper, and took her hand. “Are you absolutely sure you want to call her right now? I know you’re not actually drunk.” Harper went quiet. After a long while, she spoke. “I miss her a lot.” I patted her head and said softly, “Okay, I know.” I took her phone, called Autumn, and gave her my address. Then, I waited with Harper. About half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Harper, who had been slumped over, instantly sat up straight, chugged another glass of wine, and slumped over again. I shook my head helplessly and went to open the door. The woman standing outside still had that same aloof aura, perhaps even stronger after all these years, but the anxiety in her eyes was unmistakable. We nodded at each other, and I stepped aside to let her in. She walked quickly toward Harper, gathered her in her arms, and called her name softly. The aloofness vanished; that gentleness was reserved exclusively for Harper. I stood by the entryway, watching them. In a daze, it felt like we were back in college. Back then, Harper would often pretend to be drunk, and every time she made me call Autumn to come get her. The aloof girl would always rush over, carefully coaxing the “drunk” Harper. The scene from my memory overlapped with the one in front of me. It felt like nothing had changed. Autumn half-carried, half-supported Harper toward the door. I looked at Harper, who was burying her face in Autumn’s neck, pretending to be out of it. I spoke up suddenly. “Autumn, Harper is my best friend. This is the last time I’m helping you.” I didn’t need to say more; both she and Harper understood. Autumn turned around and looked at me earnestly. “Thank you.” I waved a hand and closed the door. 7. The next day, I went to the studio. Looking at Harper, who arrived late, sporting a hickey on her neck. I had a smile in my eyes, but I didn’t say a word. Harper, completely giving herself away, muttered, “I haven’t said yes yet.” But we both knew it was only a matter of time. Her relationship with Autumn was like playing a game of tug-of-war where the ending was already written. To be honest, I envied Harper’s courage. I envied her ability to place her heart in someone else’s hands. Unlike me… it felt like I had lost the ability to love anyone. Thanks to our hard work, the studio gradually got on track. I found myself with a lot of free time. Sometimes I’d go with Liam to the subway station when he went to school. Watching the people coming and going on the platform, I’d guess what they were thinking. Time for me felt both stagnant and accelerated. Before I knew it, it was New Year’s Eve. I received an unexpected phone call. I was at the grocery store buying flour when the phone rang. Liam had casually found out from Harper that I loved crispy fried pork. He had secretly learned how to make it. He planned to show off his skills tonight, but we were out of flour, and he was busy watching soup simmer on the stove. He couldn’t leave, so he “dispatched” me to buy it. The man on the other end of the line was my father. I had no idea how he got my number. When I answered, he only said one sentence: “Your stepmother was cleaning the room and found a letter your mother left for you. Come get it yourself.” Then, he hung up. The “stepmother” he mentioned was only a decade older than me. I sent Liam a text, and ultimately, I drove back to that “home.” 8. It was that woman who opened the door for me. “The letter.” I stayed standing in the doorway, with no intention of going inside. My father walked over from the living room, his tone unfriendly. “Don’t you know how to greet people?” I fought the urge to leave immediately and spoke again. “The letter!” The woman, perhaps worried we’d start fighting, hurried back to the living room. When she reappeared, she was holding an envelope, a fawning look in her eyes. She tested the waters: “Why don’t you stay for dinner?” My patience exhausted, I snatched the letter from her hand and turned to leave. Behind me, I heard my father’s dissatisfied reprimand: “Why did you ask her to stay? As far as I’m concerned, I don’t have a daughter!” I didn’t stop walking until I was back in my car. Only then did I realize the hand holding the letter was trembling slightly. Opening the letter felt like it was happening in slow motion. Until the first line of familiar handwriting caught my eye: My dearest Summer, do not carry the burden of the issues between your father and me. I abruptly folded the letter, losing the courage to read any further. I suddenly felt the urge to laugh, and then I couldn’t stop myself from laughing out loud. My mother was a gentle woman who loved to read. My father was a businessman who only knew how to make money. Back then, my father fell in love with my mother at first sight and pursued her relentlessly, but she was never moved. However, my father managed to persuade my grandmother, and under her “coercion,” my mother eventually married him. At first, my father was incredibly good to my mother, and our family had a period of true happiness. But later, my mother’s health began to decline, and my father started having affairs. My mother asked for a divorce, but he refused, so they were locked in a stalemate. Later, as my mother’s illness worsened and she was hospitalized, my father became even more brazen, openly bringing his mistresses into our home. Until the day my mother was critically ill, and I waited alone outside the operating room. With red eyes, I called my father’s phone over and over again. I sent countless texts, begging him to come to the hospital. But my calls and messages vanished into the void, until my phone died and shut off automatically. The light above the operating room went out, and my mother was wheeled out, covered completely in a white sheet. All I could hear was the nurses repeatedly asking me, “Where is your father?” I didn’t say a word. I just stared fixedly in the direction my mother had been taken, my eyes burning. Later, my father finally showed up, sporting hickeys on his neck. It turned out that while my mother was lying on the operating table, he was lying in our bed at home with another woman. I couldn’t understand. He had loved my mother so much; how could his heart change like that? Less than a month after my mother passed away, my father announced he was marrying that woman. I refused and threw a fit, but my father said if I didn’t agree, I could get out. My maternal grandparents had passed away early, so I went to my mother’s other relatives, hoping they would stand up for justice. But they had all been bought off by my father’s money. On the day my father married that woman, I ran away from home. I was 16. Since then, I never went back to that house. To support myself, I worked various odd jobs. A lot of shady employers love hiring minors because they’re cheap and easy to push around. Although I got beaten down by reality during those days, at least I could support myself. Later, I met Liam’s mother. She was a good person. Ignoring my fierce, defensive hostility, she gently but firmly pulled me out of the swamp and sponsored my college education. Liam?! I suddenly snapped out of my memories. Liam was still at home, waiting for me to eat New Year’s Eve dinner. I put the letter away and drove home. Pushing open the door, I locked eyes with Liam, who was standing in the living room under the warm light. He stared into my eyes for a long time, then went into the kitchen to heat up the food. I was thankful he didn’t ask any questions. After dinner, we sat at opposite ends of the sofa, but neither of us turned on the TV to watch the New Year’s countdown. It was too noisy. But doing nothing felt too lonely. So, I told him to put on a random playlist on his phone, and we just sat there, quietly listening to the music. At midnight, fireworks bloomed wildly outside the window. The music app played a song I wasn’t familiar with. A female voice sang: Hey, you must understand People who come will eventually leave The only constant in this world Is that people are fickle Later, Liam told me the song was called “Passing Through the Human World.”

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When Ethan took me to a bar, his friends started teasing him: “Look at the great Ethan Carter, babysitting at a bar?” He shoved a bottle of chocolate milk into my hands: “Kids grow up fast these days, gotta keep a close eye on her.” Later, when I brought a guy friend to meet him, he looked at me and smirked: “You used to call me ‘Hubby’, now you’re calling me ‘Brother’. Don’t you think that’s a little inappropriate?” 1 After my parents passed away in an accident, I was taken in by the Carter family. Before I even had a chance to get used to my new surroundings, Mr. and Mrs. Carter had to leave on a business trip, leaving me alone in the house with their only son, Ethan. He was tall, lounging lazily on the sofa, his long legs seemingly taking up too much space. He had an arrogant, rebellious air about him, and a face that was undeniably striking. I was a junior in high school; he was a senior. Without thinking much of it, I called out, “Brother.” He frowned, his expression flat. “Who’s your brother?” I quietly pointed at him, “You.” I set my backpack down, but before I could even sit, Ethan suddenly spoke up: “I…” I jumped, standing up as straight as a flagpole. He stayed silent for a moment, looking annoyed. “My mom said our families arranged for us to get married when we were kids?” I nodded. “My grandma arranged it with your grandma when they were young.” If it weren’t for that connection, I probably wouldn’t have been taken in by the Carters. “What century is this? Arranged marriages? I don’t want any part of it. Do you?” His eyes were a very light shade of brown. Looking at me against the light, he gave off a somewhat intimidating vibe. I shook my head. “I don’t want it either.” He smirked. “Good. From now on, we live our own lives and mind our own business in this house. Got it?” I nodded. After making that clear, Ethan got up and headed upstairs. I quickly grabbed my backpack and hurried after him. “Bro… Ethan, where am I sleeping?” “Across from me.” I thanked him and hurried downstairs to grab my suitcase. It was heavy, and I struggled to pull it up the stairs. Finally, Ethan effortlessly took it from me and dropped it at my door. “Don’t bother me.” SLAM. His door shut firmly. Mrs. Carter had prepared everything for me. The bed was made, the closet was stocked with new clothes, and there was a desk set up. I tried to do some homework but couldn’t focus. I was starving. I went downstairs to the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was fully stocked with sodas and energy drinks, but not a single piece of actual food. I went back to my room, grabbed some cash, and headed out to buy groceries. This was an upscale suburban neighborhood. I wandered around for a bit, but there weren’t any stores in sight, barely even any people. I had to head back. After hesitating for three seconds, I knocked on Ethan’s door. It took him a long time to answer. He had headphones around his neck and a look of deep annoyance on his face. “Didn’t I say…” “I’m hungry,” I blurted out, my face burning with embarrassment. He paused, looking at me strangely. “You’re this old and you still need someone to feed you?” I felt a bit exasperated. “There’s no food in the kitchen.” “Then go buy some. Out the door, take a left, then a right, walk about half a mile, and there’s a grocery store.” I bought groceries, came back, and knocked on his door again. “What now?” I blinked, feeling like Ethan was looking at me like he wanted to eat me. “Do you want to eat?” “You can cook?” “Yes.” “Why wouldn’t I eat a free, home-cooked meal?” “If you eat my food, you have to take me to school on Monday and introduce me to my teachers.” I looked away awkwardly, avoiding his intense gaze. “I don’t know the way.” And I didn’t know a single soul at this new school. Ethan let out a cynical laugh. “You really know how to push your luck. Fine, deal.” “Thank you, brother.” I practically flew downstairs. After my parents died, my grandma took me in, and we lived with my uncle and aunt. It was okay at first, but over time, my aunt grew to resent me, and by extension, my grandma. After my grandma passed away, my aunt stopped hiding her disdain. Once, I was falsely accused of stealing money and was beaten. When I fought back, I was locked out of the house and told I couldn’t eat. So, when Mr. and Mrs. Carter showed up with a letter from my grandma to take me in, I went with them without hesitation. No matter how bad it was here, it couldn’t be worse than living with my aunt. Except that Ethan seemed to find me really annoying. By the time I finished washing the vegetables, a figure suddenly appeared in the kitchen doorway. I jumped. “When did you get here?” “At the rate you’re going, we won’t eat until midnight. Move over.” “I can help prep.” “Don’t need it.” I had no choice but to leave. I sat on the couch, scrolling through my phone, occasionally glancing towards the kitchen. Half an hour later, Ethan and I were sitting across from each other, eating. I took one bite of the stir-fry and my whole face scrunched up. I had never tasted anything so awful in my life. If you can’t cook, just say so! I can! Why did you insist on doing it? This food could probably poison a pig. Ethan seemed completely oblivious to how terrible his cooking was. “Are you getting full just looking at it?” I quickly looked away, trying to be polite. “The food you make is… very unique.” “If it’s so unique, then finish it all.” My eyes widened. He put down his chopsticks. “This is the first time I’ve ever cooked for someone…” Realizing how that sounded, he roughly ruffled my hair. “Just don’t leave any leftovers.” 2 Thank goodness there were eggs. I made myself a bowl of egg fried rice, cleaned up the kitchen, and went upstairs. Ethan went out. Having the house to myself was relaxing. I did some homework, washed up, and got into bed. Just as I was drifting off, there was a knock at the door. I opened it, yawning. Ethan saw me, his eyes sweeping up and down, and whatever he was about to say died in his throat. After a long pause, he shoved a bag into my hands, his face dark, warning me, “Don’t ever dress like this around the house!” I looked down. I was wearing a little spaghetti-strap nightgown. My face turned beet red. It wasn’t like I did it on purpose! “Though, honestly, you’re flat as a board front and back, so there’s not much to look at anyway.” Me: “…” Considering he brought me late-night takeout, I decided not to argue. “Thanks for the food.” “Don’t flatter yourself. It was leftovers for the dog, but the dog was asleep.” “What dog? We don’t have a dog.” Realizing Ethan was smirking mischievously, I raised my voice in annoyance. “Ethan!” He gave a long, drawn-out “Oh.” “Not calling me ‘brother’ anymore?” Brother, my foot. Ethan was super annoying, but the barbecue was delicious. 3 The next day was Saturday. Even though it was the weekend, I still woke up early. As I came downstairs, I heard a bunch of loud, male voices coming from the living room. I hesitated, wondering if I should go down. The guys in the living room saw me and all turned to stare. Three seconds later. “Holy shit, Ethan, why is there a girl coming downstairs in your house first thing in the morning? What did you do?” “You animal, she looks so young! No wonder you kept lagging out of our game last night, you were busy…” “Shut up, all of you.” Ethan kicked the guy closest to him, frowning. “Come down.” It was incredibly awkward, but I went down anyway. Ethan’s friends all looked older than me, so I just decided to greet them all as “brother.” The guys were thrilled, eagerly shoving sodas into my hands. “Nice to meet you, little sister.” Ethan suddenly reached out, yanked me to his side, snatched a soda from my arms, opened it, took a sip, and said in a teasing, arrogant tone, “Exactly how many ‘good brothers’ do you have?” “Come on, man, why are you bullying the poor girl?” Ethan gave me a half-smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Was I bullying you?” This guy was so mean. Honestly, I wasn’t really a “good girl” either, but living under someone else’s roof, I had to play the part. So, I gave him a sweet smile and said in my most innocent voice, “My brother is the best to me.” I almost gagged after saying it. Ethan was clearly taken aback, looking at me like I was a ghost. He dragged me out to the garden and warned me in a low voice, “In front of other people, untangle your tongue before you speak to me!” I blinked innocently. “Okay, brother.” “Alright, Chloe, it’s only been one day and you’re already getting bold. Think you can walk all over me?” “I’m not walking all over you. Don’t be dramatic.” For once, Ethan was speechless. He suddenly chuckled, took a step closer, and his voice dropped low. “Call me ‘brother’ again. Let me hear it.” He was too close. So close I could hear his heartbeat and smell the faint, clean scent he wore. I held my breath and took a step back. “Brother.” Then I turned and ran as fast as I could. I was all bravado and no substance. Behind me, I heard Ethan click his tongue, and a barely audible whisper reached my ears. “Little wildcat.” 4 Ethan and his friends were barbecuing in the backyard. They had ordered pre-marinated meat, so they just had to grill it. But teenage guys are terrible at barbecuing. They weren’t paying attention, grilling while playing on their phones, and the meat was turning into charcoal. I watched the third batch of burnt chicken wings get tossed and sighed. At this rate, we wouldn’t eat until next year. “Let me do it.” “Alright, Chloe, you keep an eye on it. I’ll take over when I finish this match.” I grilled a whole plate and set it on the table just as Ethan came out after changing his clothes. He was wearing a black t-shirt, his hair still damp. When he wasn’t talking, he looked very cold and unapproachable. I asked, “What do you want to eat? I’ll grill it for you.” “Hey man, your sister is pretty good at this. It’s actually delicious.” Ethan grabbed the entire plate. “If you want to eat, grill it yourself.” “Come on, man, taking the whole plate is just cruel.” “My sister grilled this for me. You got a problem with that?” He pulled up a chair and sat down. Seeing that I wasn’t moving, he said, “You try a piece first.” I suddenly had the strange feeling of being a king’s food taster, testing the meal to make sure it wasn’t poisoned. I rolled my eyes, plopped down in the chair next to him, and feeling mischievous, put on a glove, grabbed a chicken wing, and said, “Ethan.” He looked up at me, and I took the opportunity to shove the chicken wing into his mouth. My fingers brushed against his soft lips. It felt like an electric shock. I flinched, my hand knocking over a glass of hot water on the table, spilling it all over him. I saw him stiffen and quickly grabbed some napkins to help him wipe it up. But as soon as I reached for the cup, I froze. The water had spilled right onto… that specific area. My face slowly turned crimson. I had never felt a water glass burn so hot. I didn’t know whether to grab it or leave it. I swallowed hard, bracing myself, and moved the cup. I thought I saw him flinch, but before I could be sure, a hand clamped down on the back of my head, forcing me to look up and meet his eyes. Our eyes locked. Ethan’s dark eyes were fierce and intense, but his voice was a bit hoarse. “Staring at a guy’s crotch… what’s wrong with you? Get up.” He pulled me up, quickly let go, and took long strides back into the house. The other guys were confused. “What’s wrong with him? Where’s he going? Is he done playing?” “He spilled something on his pants…” After saying that, I followed him upstairs. A while later, Ethan came out. Seeing me standing there, he wasn’t as fierce as before, looking a bit cocky. “Didn’t get a good enough look?” I choked, looking at the ceiling, looking at the floor, looking anywhere but at him. “Are… are you burned?” Ethan was an only child. If he got seriously burned down there, I’d be dead meat. Ethan was silent for a long time. I thought he wasn’t going to answer, when his voice, deliberately lowered, tickled my ear. “Do you want to… check it for me?” 5 Truly spoken like a teenage boy. They’ll say anything. I pretended to be innocent. “Sure! And I can hand-wash those pants for you, too.” As soon as the words left my mouth, Ethan’s look changed to one that clearly said, “Are you out of your mind?” Three seconds later, he gritted his teeth. “Get out of my sight. Right now.” I sprinted into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face until the burning sensation subsided. ………… On Monday, I woke up bright and early. The housekeeper had already made breakfast. I had just finished eating when Ethan came downstairs, his hair a mess, looking like he had just rolled out of bed. He grabbed a bagel, swallowed it in two bites, chugged a glass of warm water, and was done in less than a minute. “Let’s go.” Now I understood why Mrs. Carter told me not to wait for him to eat. I hurried after him. When I saw him pull out his bicycle, I was dumbfounded. “Where am I supposed to sit?” There was no backseat. Ethan just gave a casual “Oh.” “You can run behind me.” I almost choked. Then I saw him let go of the handlebars and lean back slightly. “Right here on the crossbar. Take it or leave it.” Take it. Of course I’d take it. I awkwardly climbed on. It wasn’t until he grabbed the handlebars, his body leaning forward, practically caging me in his arms, that I felt incredibly awkward. “Did you take a shower this morning?” I asked, trying to make conversation. “Did you see me?” I almost fell off the bike. “No, it’s just… your body wash smells exactly like mine.” I figured Mrs. Carter had bought us the same kind. Ethan gave a lazy “Oh.” “So you’re saying you smell like me?” Is that something you should say?! Wait, what kind of inappropriate conversation was this? What was I even saying? This was a terrible attempt at small talk. I just shut my mouth and stayed quiet the whole ride to school. Ethan might have a sharp tongue, but he made sure everything was taken care of. He showed me around, took me to the principal’s office, and only then went to his own homeroom. I was put in my new class and ended up sitting next to a girl named Maya. We became fast friends after bonding over some school gossip for one period. After class, she came back from the bathroom and handed me a meal card. “Ethan told me to give this to you.” “Did he say why he gave it to me?” “Probably worried you wouldn’t be able to eat. You’re new so you might not know, but our cafeteria doesn’t take cash. The staff member who handles the cards is only here on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so you wouldn’t be able to get one today. Hey… you two aren’t dating, are you?” “He’s my cousin.” “What a shame. Incest is illegal.” “…” 6 After dinner, Maya and I went for a walk around the track, which really just meant we were going to watch the guys play basketball. “Guys look their absolute best during two stages of their lives: high school and college. The abs are just top-tier. We’re here to relax so we have energy for evening study hall. Look, all these girls are here to relax too,” Maya said. I suddenly remembered a funny video I’d seen online recently about a girl playing blindfolded hide-and-seek with a bunch of hot guys. I chuckled. My eyes were drawn to a tall, lean guy in a blue and white jersey. He did a three-step layup and dunked the ball. The girls around me went crazy, cheering excitedly. Caught up in the atmosphere, I let out a loud, piercing wolf whistle. Suddenly, everyone around us went completely silent, making my whistle echo incredibly loudly. Not just the girls, but even the guys on the court turned to look at me. “Whoa, Ethan, another girl’s gone crazy for you.” The guy in the blue and white jersey was none other than Ethan. Our eyes met, and he smirked. He looked good, but I could clearly see the mischievous glint in his eye. I pretended to be cool. “Let’s go back.” “You don’t want to watch anymore? Ethan’s really good at basketball, and he’s hot.” “Do you think your own brother is hot?” “No, I think my brother looks like a dog.” “I feel the same way.” 7 After evening study hall, I didn’t wait for Ethan and walked home by myself. I had just finished a practice test when there was a knock at the door. I opened it a crack and peeked out. “What’s wrong?” “Come out.” “I’m scared of the dark.” Ethan looked a bit exasperated. “You weren’t scared when you were wolf-whistling at the track, were you?” “That wasn’t me!” He gave a slow, sarcastic “Oh,” pulled out his phone, and played a video someone had clearly taken of me. The entire second floor echoed with my very loud, very inappropriate wolf whistle. “…” “Good girl?” Ethan let out a soft laugh. I felt like he was mocking me. “…” “From now on, at school, you are not allowed to whistle at guys. If I catch you, I’ll break your legs.” 8 Ethan started biking me to school in the mornings and walking me home after evening study hall. Before long, a lot of girls knew that Ethan had a “cousin” who had just transferred. So, all the love letters they were too scared to give him directly were shoved into my hands, and all the gifts they were too shy to present in person were given to me to pass along. The most ridiculous one was a girl who called me in the middle of the night, asking me to go check if Ethan was asleep, and if he wasn’t, to take a picture of his abs for her. She even Venmo’d me twenty bucks. Hesitating for even a second would have been disrespectful to that twenty bucks. I immediately knocked on Ethan’s door and poked my head in. “Are you interested in a quick business opportunity?” “Are you short on cash?” “It’s super easy. You just let me take a picture of you, and you make five bucks. Good deal, right?” “Nudes?” My eyes lit up, but I tried to act demure as I pulled out my phone. “Oh, I couldn’t possibly ask for that.” Ethan’s lip twitched, and he motioned for me to come over. I eagerly trotted over. He snatched my phone out of my hand. I tried to grab it back, but he pinned me down with one hand and scrolled through my phone with the other. “I’m only worth five bucks?” “Give it back!” “My picture, and you only give me five bucks. Chloe, you’re pretty good at using me to make money. A high school boy is worth more than…” “Ethan!” My face flushed red. Like a cat getting its tail stepped on, I lunged at him. He was caught off guard, and I tackled him to the floor. The phone slipped from his hand and slid across the room. I was a bit dazed from the fall, but my first thought was: Thank god he didn’t see my texts. My conversations with Maya were completely unhinged. But man, that fall hurt. I complained, “Why are you so hard everywhere?” “Get up.” Ethan’s voice sounded a bit strained. I mumbled an “Oh” and let him pull me up. Before I could fully recover, Ethan practically shoved me out of his room. The door slammed shut, almost hitting my nose. The next second, the door cracked open and my phone was thrust out. Weirdo. I was suddenly annoyed. I went downstairs to get a glass of water, and as I walked back up, I could faintly hear the shower running in his room. The next morning during reading period, I found a fifty-dollar bill tucked inside my English textbook. Mrs. Carter always put money in an envelope for me; only Ethan would just slip it into a book. He remembered me saying I was broke last night and was worried I wouldn’t have money to spend. My heart felt full, and an uncontrollable feeling slowly began to bubble up inside me. 9 Half a month later, Mr. and Mrs. Carter came back and brought us gifts. Ethan grabbed his, lazily headed upstairs, but was stopped by Mrs. Carter. “Help your sister carry hers.” “It’s okay, Auntie, I can carry it. It’s not heavy,” I quickly said, hugging the large stuffed animal she had given me. “Your brother hasn’t been bullying you, has he?” “No, my brother even bought me a bike.” Then I added, feeling a bit shy, “He gave me pocket money, too.” Ever since the photo incident, he stopped giving me rides on his bike. “If he gives it to you, take it. Seeing you two get along makes me happy. We’re family, don’t treat him like a stranger. If anyone at school dares to bully you, tell him.” “Okay, Auntie,” I said sweetly. Ethan suddenly let out a short laugh, clearly mocking the fact that I acted differently around his parents than I did with him. “What’s so funny?” Mrs. Carter asked. “Nothing. Just suddenly remembered that when I was playing basketball, a girl wolf-whistled at me.” He’s never going to let that go, is he? Mrs. Carter frowned. “Don’t you go messing around with girls!” “Maybe the girls are messing around with me.” “What?” “Mom, I’m going upstairs to do homework.” Ethan dropped the subject and looked at me with a half-smile. “Sister, aren’t you coming up?” I was. I followed him with a deadpan expression. Before going into my room, I gave him a deep bow. “I’m sorry, brother. I shouldn’t have tried to sell your photo. And I’m returning the meal card from last time. Thank you.” “Kowtow once and I’ll forgive you.” I instantly bristled. “I didn’t even sell it! I gave the money back!” “Then we’re good, right?” “I don’t have to kowtow?” I was still a bit confused. “Are you thinking of some weird way to get back at me?” “Want to know?” I didn’t say anything, and Ethan added, “I wouldn’t recommend being curious.” “???” “The things teenage guys think about are dirtier than a public restroom.” 10 The weekend came quickly. Ethan had made plans to hang out with some classmates. Mrs. Carter was watching TV and pulled some cash out of her wallet, stuffing it into my pocket. “Have your brother take you out for a bit. Buy some snacks you like.” “Mom, we’re a bunch of guys. What are we supposed to do with a girl tagging along?” “Why can’t you have fun with a girl around?” So, Ethan was forced to take me with him. Once we were out the door, I said, “You go hang out. I’ll just walk around for a bit. We can call each other when it’s time to go home.” “My mom said you have to stay with me.” My eyes widened. “Since when do you listen to her so well?” “She controls the family inheritance. If I don’t listen to her, she might not give it to me. Then how would I take care of you?” “…” When we got to the venue, I finally realized Ethan was attending a classmate’s birthday party. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I could have bought a gift. It’s rude to show up empty-handed.” “You’re with me, why do you need to buy a gift?” True. Anyway, everyone thought we were cousins. Suddenly, my hair felt loose. Ethan had untied my hair tie, letting my hair fall over my neck. “What are you doing?” “Borrowing a hair tie. To ward off evil spirits.” “…” I was wearing a v-neck dress that day and had been feeling a bit chilly. With my hair down, I felt much better, so I let him be. He opened the door and walked in, and I followed closely behind. There were quite a few people in the private room, both guys and girls, most of them his classmates. My mind instantly flashed back to what Ethan had said at home. He probably really didn’t want to bring me along, right? But he couldn’t refuse. I picked a spot in the corner and sat down. A girl in a little white dress stood up, walked past me, and stood in front of Ethan, looking shy. “Ethan, sit next to me. I saved a seat for you.” The crowd started cheering and teasing them. Amidst the noise, only the two of them were standing, like the main characters in a movie. For some reason, I felt a bit down. I weirdly found myself disliking that girl, while simultaneously realizing how inexplicable my reaction was. Overthinking it gave me a stomachache. Just then, Ethan suddenly spoke up: “Sorry, it’s taken.” The room went silent for three seconds. His friend nudged him. “Since when? You’re not just making that up, are you? There are no girls around you. You don’t even have a female mosquito buzzing around you.” “Hey, Chloe, have you ever seen Ethan’s girlfriend?” a girl suddenly turned and asked me. I let out a confused “Ah.” How was I supposed to know? Afraid of saying the wrong thing, I just looked at Ethan. But he didn’t give me a single hint, so I just made something up. “I don’t remember clearly. He’s had quite a few.” The room erupted in laughter, everyone teasing him. That uncomfortable feeling in my chest grew stronger, making me so agitated I couldn’t stay another second. I got up and headed to the restroom, splashing my face with water to calm down. Someone tapped my shoulder, and I turned around. “Hey, it looks like your time of the month started,” she said, pointing at my dress. My periods have always been irregular. No wonder my stomach hurt. I went into a stall and texted Ethan: “I’m leaving first.” He replied instantly: “???” Leaving right after arriving seemed a bit dramatic, so I explained: “My stomach hurts.” He didn’t reply again. I put my phone away and snuck out of the building like a thief, looking around nervously. Whatever, it was dark outside, no one could see. I’d just go home and change. I even got a plastic bag from a convenience store to sit on so I wouldn’t stain the Uber seat. Just as I opened my phone to request a ride, a dark shadow loomed over me. I jumped. “Ethan? Why did you come out?” “Didn’t you say you weren’t feeling well?” Realizing he wanted to take me home, I quickly waved my hands. “You don’t have to.” “If I let you go back alone late at night, my mom would kill me.” So it was because he was afraid of Auntie. I felt a bit disappointed. “I’m not sick.” He looked up at me. I looked a bit uncomfortable and mumbled, “My period started.” He clearly didn’t anticipate this. He froze for a moment, his ears gradually turning red. “Is your dress stained?” I gave an “Mhm.” “I just don’t know if I stained the sofa in the room. Could you go in and check for me?” He was silent for a moment, then took off his jacket and draped it over me. His voice was a bit low. “It covers it. Stay here and don’t move. I’ll go check.” I obediently waited for him. In less than three minutes, Ethan came back out. “No stains.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “Do you need to buy… that?” “Yeah.” After he bought it and I went to the restroom to sort myself out, I felt the atmosphere between Ethan and me had become a bit weird. “I called an Uber. It’ll be here soon.” “I might… stain your jacket.” I stammered. “If it gets dirty, it gets dirty.” 11 In the Uber, Ethan and I sat on opposite sides, leaving enough room for two people between us. The driver laughed. “Young lovers having a fight?” I glanced at Ethan; he showed absolutely no intention of speaking, so I explained, “We aren’t a couple.” “Haha, my wife said the exact same thing back in the day.” “He’s my brother,” I insisted. The driver laughed even harder. “My wife loves calling me ‘brother’ too.” “…” I sat there with a deadpan expression. Ethan, however, chuckled. “She does love calling me ‘brother’.” “…” After getting home and changing clothes, I curled up in bed. Just as I was about to fall asleep, Mrs. Carter brought me a steaming bowl of ginger tea. “Stomach cramps? Ethan came to find me earlier and said you weren’t feeling well.” My eyes welled up with tears. When I lived with my aunt, if I avoided cold water during my period, she’d call me dramatic and say I had “princess syndrome.” “Thank you, Auntie.” When my mom was around, she used to make this for me too. Mrs. Carter rubbed my head and tucked a hot water bottle into my bed. “Put this on your lower back, it’ll help. If it still hurts too much, take a painkiller. You can always call me if you need anything.” Watching Mrs. Carter’s retreating figure as she headed downstairs, I suddenly really wanted to call out to her. I wanted to tell her that I wasn’t actually as perfectly well-behaved as I seemed. I loved causing trouble, I could be mischievous, and sometimes, if I bombed a test, I’d get a call home to the parents. But I was so terrified that if she found out I was disobedient or difficult, she’d be disappointed. My aunt always told me I was a burden, and if I didn’t learn to behave, no one would want me. Tears fell drop by drop into the ginger tea, creating tiny ripples. Suddenly, my bedroom door opened. My tear-stained face collided perfectly with Ethan’s gaze. I frantically wiped my tears, but he was already standing in front of me, leaning down to look at me. He asked, uncertain, “Did my mom scold you?” “How is that even possible?” He was silent for three seconds. “Does it hurt a lot?” “Not really. Don’t stand so close to me.” I couldn’t exactly tell him I was crying because I was touched, could I? It was a little embarrassing. Ethan pinched my cheek. “You don’t have to get up so early tomorrow.” Maybe because I was living under someone else’s roof, I basically never slept in. I always tried to help out with chores whenever I could, even though Ethan usually ended up interrupting and finishing them for me. My eyes darted around. “Got it.” “Why do you get up so early anyway? It’s only been a few days and you look ten years older. Keep this up and you’ll be a haggard old lady before you even graduate high school.” “…”

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I was being cyberbullied. And the person leading the charge was none other than my own biological mother. Years ago, she secretly gave away our family’s entire fortune, including our house. She forced me to take out student loans and work multiple part-time jobs just to survive. Now that she’s older and broke, she wants me to take care of her. In her dreams! 1 I was scrolling through TikTok one evening when I stumbled upon a video of an elderly mother traveling thousands of miles to find her daughter. The woman in the video was my biological mother, whom I hadn’t seen in years. She wept in front of the camera, her eyes swollen and red. She claimed that a few years ago, after a minor argument, her daughter cut off all contact with her. Now, realizing her mistakes, she wanted to find her daughter and apologize face-to-face. But her daughter had blocked her on every platform and refused to see her. The comment section was overwhelmingly taking her side. TikTok’s algorithm is truly something else. The account I was viewing belonged to my mother herself. On her profile, there were several other videos with a similar theme. Each one expressed her deep remorse, while subtly painting me as a cold, heartless daughter. Of course, not every single commenter was buying it. Occasionally, there were voices of doubt. But those dissenting voices didn’t last long before they were bullied into deleting their comments by her supporters. “This poor woman is already suffering so much, and you have the nerve to doubt her?” “Do we always need a perfect victim?” 2 I opened Twitter and switched to my burner account. Just as I expected. My mentions and comments were all at 99+. My message requests were overflowing with the most vile “greetings” from strangers. Yes, I was being cyberbullied. And the one spearheading it was my own mother. Someone had used the name of the university my mom mentioned in her videos to track down my burner account through the school’s official page. “Holy shit, she actually has the nerve to come looking for you?” My roommate and best friend, Chloe, had also seen my mom’s videos. She stormed into my room, phone in hand, looking furious. I showed her the 99+ notifications on my Twitter. “Not only does she have the nerve, but her plan is working.” The comments under my public tweets were a sea of insults, and my DMs were filled with people demanding an explanation. With just a few videos, my mother had managed to turn her long-lost daughter into public enemy number one. I was actually quite thankful that I inherited her ruthlessness and cold-bloodedness. Otherwise, facing this barrage of hate, I might have lost sleep due to anxiety. Maybe even fallen into depression. Chloe, seemingly realizing something, suddenly said, “Thank god you were prepared…” I offered a small smile. Yes, I was prepared. The digital footprints those self-righteous netizens found were crumbs I had deliberately left behind. Everything on my public Twitter account was preparation for this exact day. Because years ago, I already knew this day would come. 3 My falling out with my mother happened right before I started college. My dad used to run a fairly successful diner. But during my senior year of high school, my dad passed away from an illness, and my mom immediately sold the diner. Considering my dad had just died, I understood her decision. Our family had saved up a good amount of money over the years, and our house was fully paid off. So even without the diner’s income, my mom and I wouldn’t have to worry about money for the rest of our lives. But I never expected that right before I left for college, my mom would suddenly lose her mind. “I sold the house,” my mom announced out of nowhere. “What?” I couldn’t process what she was saying. With housing prices skyrocketing and inventory tight, selling meant it would be incredibly difficult to buy a new place. My mom acted like she didn’t even hear me and continued, “I’ve donated all our savings, including the money from selling the house.” “Lily, for your college tuition, you’ll need to apply for student loans.” She paused, then added, “As for living expenses, you can use your winter and summer breaks, and weekends, to work part-time. I’m sure you can earn enough yourself.” I was completely blindsided by this barrage of news. “Mom, please tell me you’re joking. This isn’t funny,” I said, my voice tight. As far as I knew, between the money from selling the diner and our savings, we had at least a million dollars. Not to mention the house… “I’m not joking,” she said, dead serious. “I know you’ve been watching those wilderness survival videos lately. If you want to experience that, I can help you figure something out, but you can’t just…” Before I could finish, my mom cut me off impatiently. “Lily, are you not understanding me? I donated all our money. I am not humoring you.” “Instead of wasting time here, you better hurry up and figure out how to apply for those student loans. Don’t blame me when school starts and you have no money for tuition.” Hearing this, a deep sense of despair washed over me. 4 Ever since my dad died, my mom had stopped joking around with me. But this was huge. She hadn’t breathed a word of it beforehand. So even though she had laid it all out, a tiny part of me still held onto hope. After all, with the house money, she had well over two million dollars. Even a saint reincarnated would hesitate before giving all that away at once. But when I checked her bank account balance and saw zero, my hope shattered. “Something this massive, and you didn’t even tell me before giving it all away?” I was so angry I could barely breathe. My mom just replied coldly, “Lily, this is the money your father and I worked hard for. It has nothing to do with you. How I choose to handle it is my business.” “Even if I didn’t donate it, even if I burned it all, you still wouldn’t have a say.” At those words, tears finally spilled down my cheeks. I thought that after my dad died, my mom and I, depending solely on each other, shared a special bond. I never imagined this was how she truly felt. “You’re eighteen now. Legally, I have no obligation to support you anymore,” my mom said with absolute cruelty. I thought back to her obsession with those wilderness survival videos over the past six months and couldn’t help but ask, “So you’ve been waiting for this day all along, haven’t you?” “Yes,” my mom admitted readily. She pointed to a few cardboard boxes stacked in the corner of the living room. “I’ve already bought all my gear.” “I negotiated with the buyer; you can stay here until you leave for college, so you have a place for a little while longer.” 5 I felt like the sky had fallen. The last time I felt this way was when my dad died. I grew up middle-class, so I had never really experienced hardship. And now, I was suddenly being told I had to rely on loans for college and work part-time just to eat… My mom was ruthless enough to not leave me a single dime. “If you want to do charity, I won’t stop you. But I’m your daughter, and you couldn’t even leave me enough for basic tuition and living expenses?” I genuinely couldn’t understand why she would do this. “Lily, you’re eighteen. You need to learn to be independent,” my mom said, looking at me with undisguised disdain. “Do you know how many kids out there can’t even afford high school? I supported you through graduation; you should be grateful.” “So you’re saying you’d rather abandon your own flesh and blood to help people you don’t even know?” I asked, my eyes red. But my mom dodged the question. “The money is already donated. There’s no point in arguing about it now.” As if afraid I wouldn’t believe her, she showed me her text history with a real estate agent. It turned out she had been planning to sell the house long before my final exams, just waiting for me to turn eighteen. 6 To ensure I could actually attend college, I had to put this situation aside temporarily and focus on securing my student loans. I had never looked into it before and had no idea what the process was. I had to research everything online and consult with my high school counselor. Meanwhile, my mom had absolutely no intention of helping me. While I was running around getting my application materials together, my mom packed her bags and left. Just like when she donated all our money, she didn’t say a word to me. If I hadn’t noticed her things missing and called her, she probably never would have told me. Over the phone, my mom said, “Lily, when school starts, you’ll have to get there yourself. I won’t be dropping you off.” Maybe I had heard too many cruel things from her lately, because hearing this, I felt completely numb. When I didn’t respond, my mom added, “Don’t blame me for being a tough mother. You’re not a kid anymore. You need to learn to survive on your own. Don’t expect me to hold your hand for everything.” “Have I ever expected you to?” I asked, my voice devoid of emotion. When my dad died, she cried every day and handled nothing. Even my dad’s funeral arrangements were handled by me with the help of relatives. The line went silent for a moment. My mom replied coldly, “If you’re upset about this, we can just cut ties. It’s not like I’m expecting you to take care of me when I’m old anyway.” With that, she hung up without a second thought. 7 I was having breakfast with Chloe when the media started calling. These journalists were relentless. Just by piecing together clues online, they managed to track down my contact info. I agreed to a one-hour interview. The condition was that they couldn’t edit or reorder my words out of context, and my face had to be blurred out. Desperate for the exclusive, the reporter agreed. But just to be safe, Chloe set up a camera on a tripod nearby to record everything. The reporter asked, “Have you been in contact with your mother?” I shook my head, squeezing out a few strategic tears. “There are things the internet doesn’t know. The truth is, long before I started college, she had already broken my heart.” I then showed her the barrage of abusive DMs and comments I had received. “I understand that strangers who don’t know the full story might use this kind of language. I get it.” “But she’s different. We both know exactly what happened back then.” “Yet even as I’m being cyberbullied, she hasn’t stepped up to clarify anything… How could I possibly reach out to her under these circumstances?” The reporter paused, then asked, “Are you saying there’s more to the story from back then?” I nodded with a bitter smile. “Right before I left for college, she suddenly informed me that she had sold our house and donated all the money, along with our savings.” “She told me to take out loans for school and work part-time for living expenses.” “She even left without telling me.” I grabbed a tissue and wiped away my tears. After a moment to compose myself, I continued, “When I got back from finalizing my loan paperwork, I realized she was gone. I called her, and she told me she was cutting ties and that I wouldn’t have to worry about taking care of her when she got old.” The reporter looked shocked; she clearly hadn’t anticipated this. I forced a smile. “To be honest, at that time, the house plus our savings amounted to well over two million dollars.” “And she donated all of it?” The reporter’s eyes widened. “She didn’t leave me a single cent.” I looked down, involuntarily recalling my first days of college. 8 “When I first started college, I had so little money I wouldn’t eat breakfast, terrified that if I ate one meal, I wouldn’t have enough for the next.” I wasn’t just trying to play the victim. At the very beginning, I truly lived like that. “During the hardest times, I would just buy a bowl of plain rice and pour the free cafeteria soup over it. If I got hungry at night, I just drank lots of water.” As I spoke, the tears flowed again. Chloe, standing by the camera, wiped her own eyes. She had witnessed my struggles firsthand. “To save money on shampoo, I chopped my hair off.” I pulled out a photo from my freshman year and showed it to the reporter. Seeing the photo, the reporter’s eyes also grew a bit misty. She asked, “Did your mother contact you at all during college?” “No.” I shook my head. “Even though she knew what university I was at, she never once came to see me.” I looked up, tears still streaming down my face. “During my sophomore year, I had acute appendicitis. I needed surgery, but I had no money.” I looked over at Chloe and smiled through my tears. “In the end, it was my roommate, Chloe, who paid for my surgery.” “As they were wheeling me into the operating room, I kept thinking: a roommate I had only known for a year was willing to help me in my darkest hour, yet my own biological mother…” I paused. “…could be so cruel.” “After all this time, have you forgiven her?” the reporter asked. A slow smile crept onto my lips. “If she had truly donated that money to charity, I might have found it in my heart to forgive her. There really are people in this country who can’t even afford to go to school.” “If?” The reporter caught the key word. I chuckled and said slowly, “But from what I’ve discovered, she never actually donated that money…” 9 I was about to elaborate when I saw Chloe frowning. “Sorry, let me interrupt for a second.” She walked over with her phone and whispered, “Lily, you’re trending on Twitter. And they’re destroying you.” Hearing this, the reporter across from me immediately grabbed her phone, likely checking Twitter. I took the phone from Chloe. The screen was on the trending topic tearing me apart. The live feed for the hashtag was filled with uninformed users condemning my cruelty. Of course, there were a few scattered tweets questioning my mom’s narrative. I clicked into a few of the top tweets and realized my mom had posted another video playing the victim. A large influencer account had picked it up, and it shot straight to the trending page. This influencer, completely ignorant of the actual situation, based solely on my mom’s video, concluded that I was a heartless monster who abandoned the mother who raised me. With their dramatic embellishments, I sounded like the devil incarnate. The comments were calling to doxx me. That comment alone had tens of thousands of likes. Chloe saw the tweet too. She was furious. “This person is literally spreading libel! I’m finding a lawyer to gather evidence right now. We’re taking legal action. Let’s see if they keep running their mouth then!” “Yeah,” I said, handing the phone back to Chloe. “I’ll leave that to you.” The reporter looked back and forth between me and Chloe. “This is…” I smiled. “She was my college roommate, and she’s my best friend.” She’s also my savior.

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After we broke up, the campus golden boy made our relationship public. I posted on my Instagram Story: “Thanks for asking. Loved him once.” He replied to my story the very next second: “? That’s not what you were saying in bed last night.” 01 I was drunk. Friends were egging Carter on, telling him to pick the type of girl he liked from the crowd. He lazily peeled his eyes open, pointed straight at me, and said, “Her.” That day marked exactly one hundred days since we broke up. 02 In a blurry, drunken haze, Carter and I ended up sleeping together. When I woke up the next morning, I let out a scream. “What are you yelling for?” he mumbled, rolling over lazily. “It’s not like we haven’t slept together before.” I kicked out my leg and shoved him right off the bed. 03 He got annoyed. Grabbing my ankle, he yanked me down with him. I rolled over and crashed right into Carter’s chest. It was rock hard. My face flushed hot. Above me, I heard him ask, “Haven’t felt enough yet?” I bit the bullet and shot back, “More like you haven’t felt enough.” I underestimated Carter’s shamelessness. He grabbed my hand, pulled me back down, and stared at me lazily like a dozing lion. “Wanna feel some more?” Feel your ass! Unable to win against him, I scrambled up, wanting to bolt out the door, but he caught my wrist. He gave me a look. “Stay here. Don’t run around.” He opened the door, and I heard the sounds of his frat brothers teasing him in the hall. “Morning, Carter. Rough night?” “Who’s in there, man? Why won’t you let us see?” “Fuck off.” A breeze swept in, followed by the slam of the door. The noise died down. Once it was completely quiet, I sneaked back to my own dorm room. Chloe was already awake, standing by the door. She asked, “Riley, where did you go?” I clutched my stomach. “The toilet in our suite broke. I had to use the one downstairs.” “Are you… sure about that?” It wasn’t until I reached the bathroom mirror that I realized what a mess I was. My clothes were wrinkled, my hair was a bird’s nest, and my lipstick was smeared all over my face. I looked exactly like someone who had just done something very bad. Chloe pulled up a chair, sat me down, and said, “Confess and you get leniency; resist and face the consequences. Did you stay out all night fooling around with that dog of an ex?” Just kill me now. 04 On the campus shuttle, I bumped into Carter again. You could tell everyone was buzzing. Even Chloe whispered, “Doesn’t he drive? Why is he squeezing onto the campus shuttle with us?” I didn’t know. I found a seat as far away from him as possible and sat down. I pulled out my sleep mask, just wanting to nap, when he walked over, tapped my shoulder, and handed me a box of motion sickness pills. I was stunned. At that exact moment, Ethan, a senior I knew from my journalism club, also walked over and handed me a box of motion sickness pills. I genuinely didn’t know which one to take. In that moment, I deeply understood the awkwardness of a female protagonist in a rom-com. Carter let out an incredibly low, icy scoff. He grabbed my hand, shoved his pills into my palm, and I shot Ethan an apologetic look. Carter blocked my line of sight to Ethan, pinched my cheek, and said, “You broke up with me to find a guy like this?” “Riley, you need to get your eyes checked.” Why the personal attack? Wait, did he just out our relationship? After dropping that bomb, Carter walked away, looking cool as hell, leaving me completely windblown and panicked. Ethan handed me his pills and gave a bitter smile. “I didn’t realize you two were involved. No wonder you kept rejecting me.” Rejecting you? When did you ever even ask me out? He walked away looking depressed, and I became a human target. Suddenly, I was entangled with two campus heartthrobs, and there was no explaining my way out of it. Chloe snapped out of her shock and asked, “So last night… you slept with Carter?” I’m cooked. I covered her mouth and offered an awkward smile to the rest of the bus. “Don’t believe the rumors, don’t spread the rumors.” Too late. I saw someone already typing furiously on the college Confession Page. Help. I’m going to get assassinated by his fangirls. 05 Do modern college students really have this much free time? We hadn’t even gotten back to campus yet, and my phone was blowing up with people asking me about it. So this is what being a celebrity feels like. I posted on my Instagram Story: “Thanks for asking. Loved him once.” Carter replied instantly: “? That’s not what you were saying in bed last night.” Lord, save me. I could jump into the ocean and still not wash myself clean of this. That screenshot of my Story, along with a candid photo from the bus, ended up on the campus Barstool page. Great. The comments were incredibly unified. They were all calling me ugly. Turning my grief into anger, I texted Carter: “Square up. What exactly do you want?” “Get back together, or keep getting hated on. You pick.” “Lmao, you say that as if I won’t get hated on if we get back together.” “Fair point.” “But at least you’ll have a handsome guy keeping you company while you get hated on. It’s a win for you.” Absolute idiot! I blocked him! 06 The reason I didn’t delete his contact entirely… Was because I couldn’t bear to lose our chat history. Even though there wasn’t much of it. Carter preferred calling. Back then, I used to hide on my balcony and stay on the phone with him all night. Everyone knew I was dating someone, they just didn’t know it was Carter. They thought I was in an online relationship, or being scammed by some creep. Carter wasn’t a creep, but he was a player. We broke up because of how he treated me. Even though he constantly argued that he didn’t do anything, I didn’t believe him. I saw it with my own eyes. That girl texted him: “Baby, hop on CoD?” When I broke up with him, he didn’t even try to make me stay. He just asked, “Are you sure?” “I am absolutely, one hundred percent sure.” He never said another word to me after that. Originally, I thought that if he just coaxed me a little, if he just explained himself, maybe I would forgive him. But I forgot. He was Carter. The golden boy. Why would he ever lower his pride to coax anyone? 100 days. It took me 100 days to finally crawl out of my misery, and now he was messing with me again. He was the worst. 07 I went to sleep as soon as I got back to the dorm. I dreamed of Carter again. That toxic ex. He was holding hands with another girl, and she was yelling at me: “Ugly freak!” “You’re the ugly freak!” I wanted to scream back, but I couldn’t open my mouth. The sound of my ringtone woke me up. I was drenched in sweat. It was Carter calling. “What?” “Come downstairs.” “No.” I was about to hang up when I heard him threaten me: “Then I’ll just yell from right here. I’ll yell until you come down.” Who’s afraid of who? “Yell all you want. As long as you’re not afraid of the RA screaming at you.” I hung up. I strained my ears. I actually heard Carter yelling my name from the courtyard. No way. He’s actually playing this game? 08 I threw on a jacket and went downstairs. Seeing me, he stopped yelling. It was late, and he had already caused a minor commotion. I grabbed his arm and dragged him into the trees near the quad, accidentally bumping into a couple making out. He chuckled low in his throat, lightly scratching my palm with his thumb. “Dropping hints?” I dragged him right back out. Carter let me pull him along, his temper surprisingly good, until we reached an empty clearing. He glanced around. “You want to do it here? I mean, it’s not impossible.” “Fuck off.” I let go of his hand and crossed my arms. “Spit it out.” He dropped the smirk, handing me the paper bag he was holding. “Mango Frappuccino.” In the past, whenever I got motion sickness, I always craved a Mango Frappuccino. He would always run out off-campus to buy me one. Pathetic, right? A single Mango Frappuccino could make me this happy. I didn’t take it. I looked at him. “Carter, what exactly do you want?” “Get back together. That’s your only option.” “Is playing with my feelings fun?” He stopped talking. He just looked at me. It was hard to believe that even now, I could still be moved by how incredibly handsome he was. Hot guys are truly terrifying. He saw right through my fake tough exterior. He smiled. “Afraid to look at me?” “Don’t flatter yourself. If you don’t have anything real to say, I’m going back upstairs.” Carter grabbed my wrist and shoved the bag toward me, forcing it into my hand just like he did with the pills. I refused. We pushed and shoved. The bag dropped to the ground, ripped open, and the drink spilled everywhere. We both froze. He crouched down, a self-deprecating smile forming on his lips. “Is it really… completely impossible?” 09 For the first time ever, Carter looked vulnerable in front of me. My heart gave a sharp, painful twinge. “Get up first.” “Promise me first.” “…” “Then you can stay squatting.” He grabbed my wrist, stood up, and hugged me tightly from behind, resting his chin in the crook of my neck. “Riley, I’m miserable.” My heart was pounding. My throat tightened. I tried to ignore his body heat and struggled. “Stop acting pitiful.” “I really am miserable.” I couldn’t break free. He was too strong. “Then what do you want?” “A kiss will fix it.” “…Fuck off.” He reached into my jacket pocket, pulled out my phone, and said, “Or, take me off your blocked list.” Damn it. He unlocked my phone. He probably didn’t expect it himself. He froze for a split second. In that tiny window, I shoved him off. Yeah, I was pathetic. Even though we broke up, I couldn’t bear to delete his Face ID from my phone. I snatched my phone back. “I’m going inside.” Carter chased after me, not saying a word, following me the whole way. After I got upstairs, I ran to the balcony. I saw him still standing down there, staring blankly at his phone. 10 “Ry, Ry, wake up! Carter posted on the Confession Page! He said he likes you!” I woke up instantly, thinking I was still dreaming. Chloe tossed her phone onto my bed. “Look for yourself.” [This is Carter. Not hiding anonymously. Confessing to Riley from the Journalism program. I like you. I really like you.] [Will you give me a chance to pursue you?] There were blessings, people eating up the drama, and some passive-aggressive comments saying the campus golden boy had mediocre taste and that I was just ‘average’. He replied directly to that person: “Better than you.” All his frat brothers flooded the comments. “Better than you.” “Better than you.” “Better than you.” … That comment got pushed to the very top. I couldn’t hold back. I replied to it too: “Better than you.” 11 I unblocked Carter again. I had barely typed a few letters before he texted: “Awake?” He sent a screenshot. It showed the chat box with me currently typing. “Were you waiting for me?” “Yeah. Didn’t sleep all night. Just waited for you to come find me.” “Why did you go say all that weird stuff on the page?” “The Confession Page? Isn’t it used for confessing? You blocked me, so this was my only way.” “You couldn’t use iMessage?” I said the wrong thing. I quickly unsent it. “Saw it.” “Next time I’ll use iMessage. But this was good too. Let everyone know you’re mine. I want to see who dares to flirt with you now.” “You’re overthinking it. No one flirts with me.” “They’re blind. Good thing I’m not blind.” I didn’t want to humor him. I asked him, “If you like me, why did you break up with me?” “You’re the one who brought up breaking up.” “I brought it up because…” I stopped halfway. I couldn’t type the rest. What if Carter really did have someone else? What would I do? Could I handle it? It was better to just leave it like this. A clean break, keeping whatever dignity I had left. I quietly deleted the text and sent: “Whatever.” 12 Actually, when Carter and I first got together, I was the one who made the first move. Obviously, right? He was the most popular guy on campus. If I hadn’t made the first move, he never would have noticed me. It was love at first sight for me. I manufactured all sorts of encounters just to get close to him, just to make him notice me. One night, I texted him: “The moon looks beautiful tonight.” After I hit send, I threw my phone across the bed, buried my head under the covers, and didn’t dare to look. Ten minutes passed. No, maybe it was only five. I peeked out, quietly grabbed my phone. He hadn’t replied. My subtle flirting failed. He definitely wasn’t interested in me. I wanted to cry. The disappointment was suffocating. I tossed the phone away again. Ten minutes later, refusing to give up, I checked it again. A notification! He replied! “Come downstairs.” My hands shook. “What?” He sent a photo. He was standing right outside my dorm building. “You came over?” “Yeah. The moon is really beautiful. Come down, I’ll take you to see it.” 13 Back then, just to chase Carter, I registered for the same elective class as him. Now, karma had come for me. When I got to the lecture hall, there weren’t many empty seats left. I found an empty spot in the back row. As soon as I sat down, a backpack was tossed onto the desk, and Carter hooked the chair with his foot and sat down. There were clearly other empty seats. Why did he have to sit next to me? I stood up, wanting to change seats. As soon as I walked over to one, his buddy sat down in it. “Seat’s taken.” I walked to another empty seat. Another one of his friends sat down, placing his backpack on the chair next to him. “Taken too.” I couldn’t hold back. I asked the guy, “Are you even registered for this class?” The guy just put his head on the desk and pretended to be asleep. I turned around. Carter was resting his chin on his hand, watching me. Looking completely smug. “Did you literally pay half your frat to come take up seats for you?” “More than that.” He smiled, the corners of his mouth lifting in a devilish arc. “I even Venmo’d strangers to hold seats.” He pointed a finger, randomly gesturing to a few people, clearly making it up on the spot. “Him, him, him, him, him. I paid all of them.” “What a shame. I guess you have to sit next to me.”

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He was my late best friend’s younger brother. I’m no saint, and I certainly didn’t have some grand maternal instinct. I took him in on a whim because he looked like a kicked puppy at the funeral, and I had the space to feed him. I never expected that the skinny kid I dragged home would grow up to be such a wolf. A wolf who currently has me marked as his target. 01 I posted on my Instagram Story: “Thanks for asking. Loved him once.” He replied to my story the very next second: “? That’s not what you were saying in bed last night.” 02 Let’s back up. I was drunk. Friends were egging Caleb on at the bar, telling him to pick his “type” out of the crowd. He lazily peeled his eyes open, pointed a finger dead at me, and said, “Her.” That day marked exactly one hundred days since we broke up. 03 In a blurry, drunken haze, Caleb and I ended up sleeping together. When I woke up the next morning, I let out a scream that could wake the dead. “What are you yelling for?” he mumbled, rolling over lazily. “It’s not like we haven’t done this before.” I kicked out with my leg and shoved him right off the bed. 04 He got pissed. Grabbing my ankle, he yanked me down with him. I rolled over and crashed right into Caleb’s chest. It was rock hard. My face flushed hot. Above me, I heard him ask, “Haven’t felt enough yet?” I bit the bullet and shot back, “More like you haven’t felt enough.” I underestimated Caleb’s shamelessness. He grabbed my hand, pulled me back down, and stared at me lazily like a dozing lion. “Wanna feel some more?” Feel your ass! Unable to win against him, I scrambled up, wanting to bolt out the door, but he caught my wrist. He gave me a look. “Stay here. Don’t run around.” He opened the door, and I heard the sounds of his friends teasing him in the hall. “Morning, alpha. Rough night?” “Who’s in there, man? Why won’t you let us see?” “Screw off.” A breeze swept in, followed by the slam of the door. The noise died down. Once it was completely quiet, I sneaked back to my own room. Maya was already awake, standing by the door. She asked, “Chloe, where did you go?” I clutched my stomach. “The toilet in our suite broke. I had to use the one downstairs.” “Are you… sure about that?” It wasn’t until I reached the bathroom mirror that I realized what a mess I was. My clothes were wrinkled, my hair was a bird’s nest, and my lipstick was smeared all over my face. I looked exactly like someone who had just done something very, very bad. Maya pulled up a chair, sat me down, and said, “Confess and you get leniency; resist and face the consequences. Did you stay out all night fooling around with that dog of an ex?” Just kill me now. 05 On the campus shuttle, I bumped into Caleb again. You could tell everyone was buzzing. Even Maya whispered, “Doesn’t he drive a Beemer? Why is he squeezing onto the campus shuttle with us?” I didn’t know. I found a seat as far away from him as possible and sat down. I pulled out my sleep mask, just wanting to nap, when he walked over, tapped my shoulder, and handed me a box of motion sickness pills. I was stunned. At that exact moment, Brandon, a guy I knew from my marketing class, also walked over and handed me a box of motion sickness pills. I genuinely didn’t know which one to take. In that moment, I deeply understood the awkwardness of a female protagonist in a rom-com. Caleb let out an incredibly low, icy scoff. He grabbed my hand, shoved his pills into my palm, and I shot Brandon an apologetic look. Caleb blocked my line of sight to Brandon, pinched my cheek, and said, “You broke up with me to find a guy like this?” “Chloe, you need to get your eyes checked.” Why the personal attack? Wait, did he just out our relationship? After dropping that bomb, Caleb walked away, looking cool as hell, leaving me completely windblown and panicked. Brandon handed me his pills and gave a bitter smile. “I didn’t realize you two were involved. No wonder you kept rejecting me.” Rejecting you? When did you ever even ask me out? He walked away looking depressed, and I became a human target. Suddenly, I was entangled with two campus heartthrobs, and there was no explaining my way out of it. Maya snapped out of her shock and asked, “So last night… you slept with Caleb?” I’m cooked. I covered her mouth and offered an awkward smile to the rest of the bus. “Don’t believe the rumors, don’t spread the rumors.” Too late. I saw someone already typing furiously on the college Confession Page. Help. I’m going to get assassinated by his fangirls. 06 Do modern college students really have this much free time? We hadn’t even gotten back to campus yet, and my phone was blowing up with people asking me about it. So this is what being a celebrity feels like. I posted on my Instagram Story: “Thanks for asking. Loved him once.” Caleb replied instantly: “? That’s not what you were saying in bed last night.” Lord, save me. I could jump into the ocean and still not wash myself clean of this. That screenshot of my Story, along with a candid photo from the bus, ended up on the campus Barstool page. Great. The comments were incredibly unified. They were all calling me ugly. Turning my grief into anger, I texted Caleb: “Square up. What exactly do you want?” “Get back together, or keep getting hated on. You pick.” “Lmao, you say that as if I won’t get hated on if we get back together.” “Fair point.” “But at least you’ll have a handsome guy keeping you company while you get hated on. It’s a win for you.” Absolute idiot! I blocked him! 07 The reason I didn’t delete his contact entirely… Was because I couldn’t bear to lose our chat history. Even though there wasn’t much of it. Caleb preferred calling. Back then, I used to hide on my balcony and stay on the phone with him all night. Everyone knew I was dating someone, they just didn’t know it was Caleb. They thought I was in an online relationship, or being scammed by some creep. Caleb wasn’t a creep, but he was a player. We broke up because of how he treated me. Even though he constantly argued that he didn’t do anything, I didn’t believe him. I saw it with my own eyes. That girl texted him: “Baby, hop on CoD?” When I broke up with him, he didn’t even try to make me stay. He just asked, “Are you sure?” “I am absolutely, one hundred percent sure.” He never said another word to me after that. Originally, I thought that if he just coaxed me a little, if he just explained himself, maybe I would forgive him. But I forgot. He was Caleb. The golden boy. Why would he ever lower his pride to coax anyone? 100 days. It took me 100 days to finally crawl out of my misery, and now he was messing with me again. He was the worst. 08 I went to sleep as soon as I got back to the dorm. I dreamed of Caleb again. That toxic ex. He was holding hands with another girl, and she was yelling at me: “Ugly freak!” “You’re the ugly freak!” I wanted to scream back, but I couldn’t open my mouth. The sound of my ringtone woke me up. I was drenched in sweat. It was Caleb calling. “What?” “Come downstairs.” “No.” I was about to hang up when I heard him threaten me: “Then I’ll just yell from right here. I’ll yell until you come down.” Who’s afraid of who? “Yell all you want. As long as you’re not afraid of the RA screaming at you.” I hung up. I strained my ears. I actually heard Caleb yelling my name from the courtyard. No way. He’s actually playing this game? 09 I threw on a jacket and went downstairs. Seeing me, he stopped yelling. It was late, and he had already caused a minor commotion. I grabbed his arm and dragged him into the trees near the quad, accidentally bumping into a couple making out. He chuckled low in his throat, lightly scratching my palm with his thumb. “Dropping hints?” I dragged him right back out. Caleb let me pull him along, his temper surprisingly good, until we reached an empty clearing. He glanced around. “You want to do it here? I mean, it’s not impossible.” “Fuck off.” I let go of his hand and crossed my arms. “Spit it out.” He dropped the smirk, handing me the paper bag he was holding. “Mango Frappuccino.” In the past, whenever I got motion sickness, I always craved a Mango Frappuccino. He would always run out off-campus to buy me one. Pathetic, right? A single Mango Frappuccino could make me this happy. I didn’t take it. I looked at him. “Caleb, what exactly do you want?” “Get back together. That’s your only option.” “Is playing with my feelings fun?” He stopped talking. He just looked at me. It was hard to believe that even now, I could still be moved by how incredibly handsome he was. Hot guys are truly terrifying. He saw right through my fake tough exterior. He smiled. “Afraid to look at me?” “Don’t flatter yourself. If you don’t have anything real to say, I’m going back upstairs.” Caleb grabbed my wrist and shoved the bag toward me, forcing it into my hand just like he did with the pills. I refused. We pushed and shoved. The bag dropped to the ground, ripped open, and the drink spilled everywhere. We both froze. He crouched down, a self-deprecating smile forming on his lips. “Is it really… completely impossible?” 10 For the first time ever, Caleb looked vulnerable in front of me. My heart gave a sharp, painful twinge. “Get up first.” “Promise me first.” “…” “Then you can stay squatting.” He grabbed my wrist, stood up, and hugged me tightly from behind, resting his chin in the crook of my neck. “Chloe, I’m miserable.” My heart was pounding. My throat tightened. I tried to ignore his body heat and struggled. “Stop acting pitiful.” “I really am miserable.” I couldn’t break free. He was too strong. “Then what do you want?” “A kiss will fix it.” “…Fuck off.” He reached into my jacket pocket, pulled out my phone, and said, “Or, take me off your blocked list.” Damn it. He unlocked my phone. He probably didn’t expect it himself. He froze for a split second. In that tiny window, I shoved him off. Yeah, I was pathetic. Even though we broke up, I couldn’t bear to delete his Face ID from my phone. I snatched my phone back. “I’m going inside.” Caleb chased after me, not saying a word, following me the whole way. After I got upstairs, I ran to the balcony. I saw him still standing down there, staring blankly at his phone.

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The power went out on the very first night I was alone with my arranged live-in fiancé. In the pitch black, I kicked him. “I want to take a bath.” After he drew the bathwater, I lazily tugged on his sleeve: “…Don’t leave. I’m afraid of the dark.” 1 I woke up and realized I was eighteen again. My future husband-of-convenience was helping me grade my practice SATs. Staring at the page full of red Xs, he frowned deeply. “…You really think you’re going to get into Stanford like this?” Ignoring the Stanford comment, I tilted my head, leaned in close, and asked curiously, “Mason, do you have a crush on me?” Scratch— His pen drew a long, harsh line across the paper. Mason stared at me, a mix of shock and embarrassment tumbling in his eyes. After a long moment, he scoffed, “And what if I do?” Tsk. Nineteen-year-old Mason was still too young to hide his emotions properly. I let out a soft “Oh,” buried my head back in my scratch paper, and pretended nothing had happened. As I absentmindedly counted my wrong answers, Mason’s low, strained voice sounded next to my ear, like he had been holding it in for ages. “Stella.” He gritted his teeth, his eyes fierce. “…Stop messing with me.” Hearing this, I turned to look at him, my expression unusually serious. “Mason—” He gripped his pen tightly. Me: “I’m hungry.” Mason stood up abruptly, shot me an icy glare, and then—marched into the kitchen. I couldn’t hold it in; I laughed out loud. 2 The year my dad brought him home, Mason was only fourteen. He was scrawny, wearing a faded, oversized button-down and dirty sneakers. He stood in our living room, pressing his lips together, trying desperately to hide the awkward anxiety in his eyes. I stood at the top of the stairs. We stared at each other for a few seconds before he was the first to look away. Gloomy, sensitive, fiercely proud yet deeply insecure. That was my first impression of him. When it came to his arrival, I wasn’t exactly welcoming, but I didn’t reject him either. As long as he wasn’t my dad’s illegitimate son, everything was fine. Mason was only a year older than me. He should have already started college, but because of me, he held back and repeated his senior year. After we got married, Mason became a man of few words, always busy with work, but incredible in bed. Aside from the lack of romance, you could say we had the perfect marriage. In the tenth year of our marriage of convenience… I accidentally discovered that he had been secretly in love with me for a very, very long time. The day after I found out, I woke up and found myself back in the summer after my high school graduation. So what now? Looking at Mason carrying a slice of cake over to me—standing tall, his profile sharp and handsome—I decided I didn’t want a different husband. I kicked off my slippers and used my toes to hook around his waist. “I’m so tired.” I lounged back in my chair, opening my mouth. “…Feed it to me.” Mason’s eyes were ice cold. We stared at each other for a long time, and he was the first to concede. Halfway through feeding me the cake, Mason jolted, grabbing my wandering foot. His voice was fierce and cold, laced with a heavy warning. “Stella. You better behave.” Fine. I shrugged and pulled my foot back. Mason took a moment to compose himself, then with a stony face, continued feeding me the cake. I pushed his hand away and tilted my head at him. “You eat some too.” Mason paused. His long, strong fingers gripped the fork as he took a bite of the remaining cake. His Adam’s apple bobbed, and a tiny dab of frosting stuck to the corner of his mouth. Looks delicious. And I wasn’t talking about the cake. Smiling wickedly, I looked at him with feigned curiosity. “Mason, you just used my fork… Does that count as an indirect kiss?” Mason gripped the handle of the fork, his face full of restraint. “Stella.” I didn’t let him finish, continuing on my own. “No, it doesn’t.” I leaned over, licked the frosting right off the corner of his mouth, and nodded in satisfaction. “…That is an indirect kiss.” Mason’s spine went completely rigid. A flash of intense embarrassment crossed his handsome face. His self-control was truly impressive. Even after all that, his eyes just got fiercer, but he didn’t react physically. Oh, wait. Actually, there was a reaction. I decided to rein it in a bit, switching to verbal teasing instead of physical. “You’re so mean, Mason.” “You clearly liked it, didn’t you?” Mason’s jaw clenched tightly. “…Is this how you treat me?” “Stella.” His expression looked pained. “I am not your toy.” Tsk. Nineteen-year-old Mason was so fun to tease. I just couldn’t help myself. “Of course you aren’t a toy.” I dropped the playful smile and looked at him seriously. “You’re… my live-in fiancé, obviously.” Perfect. That successfully pissed him off enough to make him storm out. Watching his slightly stiff, awkward gait as he walked away, I finally felt a little better. Honestly, I was still mad. He loved me, yet he never told me. Watching his retreating back, I let out a cold scoff. Fine. Keep holding it in, then. 3 Actually, Mason didn’t need to worry. My SAT scores weren’t as low as he expected; I could absolutely get into Stanford. Having lived through this once, I didn’t change my major either. In my past life, he stubbornly insisted on going to Stanford with me to prove his worth to my parents. But now, I suddenly understood. Maybe he just purely wanted to keep me by his side? On the third day after submitting our college applications, Mason planned to return to his hometown. After all, he had been away for five years and it was time for a visit. Our memories overlapped. But what was different this time was that he had a plus-one. We crossed the country, and I shamelessly tagged along with him to a place called Oakhaven. It was an old, rustic little town. It didn’t have the neon lights or the glitz and glamour of the city. It just had a few narrow roads and dim streetlights. Mason grabbed his luggage and stopped in front of an old house. The house was old but spacious. I knew it belonged to his late grandmother. Because his closest relatives had passed away too early, he was kicked around like a soccer ball when he was little, begging for scraps at other people’s houses. That was why he looked so ragged the first time we met. Mason bustled around, cleaning the old house until it was spotless. I lay on a wicker chair, rocking back and forth, staring at the wooden carvings on the ceiling beams. I, Stella Sterling, had never done a day of hard labor in my life. But Mason was the epitome of a kid who had to grow up too fast. The old house hadn’t been lived in for a long time, which I expected. What I didn’t expect was that the power would go out on the very first night we were alone together. In the pitch black, I couldn’t help but kick him. “I want to take a bath.” Mason knew my habits. I bathed every single day, and a power outage wasn’t going to stop me. He found some candles, lit them, and silently went to heat up water for me. After he prepared the bathwater, he turned to leave. I lazily tugged on his sleeve: “…Don’t leave. I’m afraid of the dark.” Mason’s back, illuminated by the candle he was holding, went stiff. It was incredibly quiet, and faintly, I could hear the sound of him grinding his teeth. “…Stella, do you have any idea what you’re saying?” “I do.” I slipped off my pleated skirt and casually tossed it into the wooden hamper nearby. “…I said I’m afraid of the dark.” The sound of fabric brushing against skin echoed softly. Mason’s breathing noticeably quickened. When he spoke again, his voice carried a heavy warning. “Stella!” Tsk. I hear you, I hear you. Both ears work fine. Yelling so fiercely, yet standing there with his back to me, not daring to move an inch. I gathered my hair up, paying him no mind. I scooped up some water and poured it over my shoulders. Setting everything else aside, Mason was incredibly good at getting the bathwater to the perfect temperature. But hearing the splashing water, he was probably going crazy. Hehe. He probably never expected me to actually go through with it. 4 I admit, I had been bullying Mason quite frequently these past few days. He seemed to be angry every single day. But I was used to it. After dealing with him for so many years, Mason had never smiled at me. Whether it was before or after we got married, he always called me by my full name, “Stella Sterling.” It was genuinely irritating. In the backyard, Mason was sitting by the oak tree, washing clothes by hand. The muscles in his arms were defined but not overly bulky. The soapy suds sticking to his skin inexplicably gave off a domestic, husband-material vibe. He looked healthy, his skin slightly tanned, radiating youthful energy, yet his eyes remained fierce and brooding. The Mason from ten years in the future? I definitely couldn’t outplay him. But the Mason right in front of me was only nineteen. Fresh, green, and radiating awkward youth. He was as stubborn as a wild mustang, and aside from bucking, he didn’t know what else to do. If I were actually the eighteen-year-old Stella, I really wouldn’t have known how to handle him. But I wasn’t. Taking my time, I strolled toward the oak tree. I stopped right behind him and then shamelessly hopped onto his back. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I couldn’t help but complain in his ear: “…Mason, I really, really hate it when you call me by my full name.” I looked distressed. “Why don’t you call me ‘Babe’? Or ‘Sweetheart’? That works too.” Mason’s back was as rigid as a steel board. His right hand tightly gripped a wad of fabric, the veins bulging on the back of his hand. Taking a deep breath, he stood up. “Stella!” Here we go again. I ignored it, dangling off his back and swaying. Nuzzling his cheek, I kept teasing him: “…Mason, call me ‘Honey,’ please? I’ll buy you candy.” Mason didn’t dare touch my legs; he only dared to issue verbal warnings. “Stella, don’t push it!” Stella, stop messing with me. Stella, you better behave. Stella, don’t push it. Those were the only three phrases he ever used with me, recycled over and over again. But I always turned a deaf ear. Hugging his neck, I was relentless. “Mason, you’re not allowed to be so mean to me! I don’t like it!” Mason didn’t respond. See? He was mad again. Mason didn’t even reach back to support me; he just let me dangle there as he marched straight into the house. He pried my hands off with one hand and tossed me onto the bed. Zero chivalry. Dissatisfied, I rolled around on the bed twice. I hooked my finger through the strap of a flimsy piece of fabric on the edge of the bed and tossed it at his chest, my tone entirely entitled. “…Wash this too.” Mason instinctively caught it. Looking at the fabric in his hands, his face turned a chaotic mix of red and pale green. I looked the picture of innocence. “I can’t touch cold water, you know that.” He held it in, and held it in again. Finally, he turned around and obediently walked back out to the yard. “Mason.” I picked up a book from the nightstand and called out to him. Flipping to the page I had dog-eared last night, I didn’t forget to remind him: “…That thing in your left hand. Don’t wash it with my clothes.” I crinkled my nose, looking incredibly serious. “Ugh… the smell of your ‘alone time’ is way too strong. I hate it.” “Stella!” Mason spun around in shock, his neck flushing bright red as he looked at me in disbelief. “Do you have absolutely no shame?!” Oh? Is he embarrassed and angry now? I tilted my head, looking at the bundle of light blue fabric in his left hand. “Actually— “I prefer you in tight briefs.” Even though that style would probably be a bit uncomfortable for him. But what did that have to do with me… right? 5 Mason had been ignoring me for three days. Even though he still acted like a devoted caretaker, willingly bringing me food and water, the moment I opened my mouth, he would turn and walk away. Standing in the yard, he looked as rigid as a small pine tree. After having so many deep, intimate conversations with him in the future, I obviously knew that briefs were definitely uncomfortable for him. Thinking about it, I licked my lips. I was kind of craving him. So I called out, “Mason.” Mason turned and walked away. This time, he walked straight out the front gate. I pouted, slowly walked to the door, and took a look outside. He was nowhere to be seen. I didn’t turn back. Instead, I headed to the yard next door. The little girl with pigtails was doing her homework on a stool. When she looked up and saw me, her eyes instantly lit up. “Stella!” Mason definitely wouldn’t have guessed that if he wouldn’t play with me, I could find someone else. In the few short days he refused to acknowledge me, I had built a deep friendship with the little girl next door. Daisy was adorable, and she loved coming over to play with me. Of course. Only when Mason wasn’t around. It was scorching hot lately, but Oakhaven was near the water and densely wooded, making it much cooler than the city. Daisy was almost done with her homework. She had made plans with her friends to go catching frogs and picking wild blackberries by the creek that afternoon. Seeing that I was bored, she loyally invited me along. Catching frogs? Sounded fun. I accepted the invitation and happily tagged along. I spent the entire afternoon with the kids. We flipped over every rock in the shallows, caught a whole bucket of tadpoles, and picked a massive basket of blackberries, having the time of our lives. When I got home at dusk, I was met with Mason’s wrath. He stood in the doorway, his face ashen, looking like he wanted to eat me alive. “Stella!” Holding two lotus flowers I had picked, I brushed past him, letting my skirt intentionally graze his calf. I carefully placed the flowers in a water basin, my tone careless. “…What?” Mason’s expression instantly darkened even more, but his tone leveled out. “Why did you run off without saying anything? Do you know I’ve been looking for you all afternoon?” Why didn’t I say anything? Because you ran away! If you run, I run. I gave a dismissive “Oh” and kept arranging my flowers. Mason suddenly exploded. Before I could even put the last flower in the water, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me into the house. Stumbling into the bedroom, I was thrown onto the bed. Looking at Mason’s face, my eye twitched, and I didn’t hesitate to scramble toward the corner of the bed. But Mason was faster. He reached out, grabbed my ankle, and pulled me back. Pinning both my wrists with one hand and pressing his knee against my legs, his voice was thick with fury. “…Stella, do you know how high and deep the mountains are out here? Do you know what happens if you get taken by human traffickers?! Do you want to be chained up in a basement and turned into an incubator?!” I squirmed, realizing I was completely pinned and couldn’t break free. I was going to reasonably explain, “I’m an adult, I have my own judgment,” but what actually came out of my mouth was, “None of your business.” Mason let out an exasperated laugh, nodding continuously. “…Stella, you’re really something.” My vision was forcefully spun around. Mason aggressively flipped me onto my stomach before I could even react. Smack— A sharp sting radiated from my backside straight to my brain. One after another. This was the first time in my life I had ever been spanked. I never expected the person to do it would be Mason. He was too strong; I couldn’t break free. I clamped my mouth shut, stubbornly refusing to beg for mercy. His hand was fast and ruthless, refusing to stop. Until finally, it hurt too much to bear, and I cried out his name: “Mason… it really hurts.” My voice was already breaking with tears. I didn’t actually want to cry. But it hurt so much, I couldn’t help it. Mason’s hand stopped. His grip loosened, and I could finally move again. My backside was burning. With my eyes closed, I slowly reached back, my trembling fingers brushing against it. A wave of intense pain shot straight to my brain. Tears dripped steadily onto the bedsheets. Mason didn’t say a word. Furious and terrified, I pulled the blanket over myself, refusing to look at him. “…Get out. I don’t want to see you right now!” My voice was muffled and completely lacked any threat. But Mason actually left. He walked out without saying a single word. An overwhelming wave of grievance washed over me, and I cried even harder. Once I started sobbing out loud, I finally felt a little better. I hadn’t eaten dinner tonight. But I was so exhausted that, crying as I was, I didn’t even realize when I fell asleep. 6 When I woke up the next day, it was broad daylight. I sniffed myself—a faint smell of sweat mixed with a heavy scent of medicinal ointment. I smelled terrible. Frowning in disgust, I grabbed my clothes and headed to the rustic bathroom. Mason wasn’t there, but the bathwater was already prepared. I didn’t refuse. After all, in his eyes, I, Stella Sterling, would never mistreat myself for anyone’s sake. And I couldn’t deny it; it was the truth. The pain was still stubbornly there. I managed to finish my bath with a grimace, finally feeling much better. As I stepped out drying my hair, breakfast was already laid out on the table, but Mason was still nowhere to be seen. I let out a cold laugh. Tsk. Trying to play the silent, devoted house-elf? If Mason thought he could get my forgiveness this easily, he was dead wrong. My parents were business people; they were master calculators. I was their flesh and blood. Did he think I’d take a loss? While I was showering, I had thought it through. Yes, I had taken the joke too far yesterday, but Mason hitting me was crossing a line, and he had to pay for it. Thinking about it, a surge of resentment welled up inside me. How dare Mason spank me—and in such a humiliating spot, too! Continuing to dry my hair, pretending I hadn’t seen the food, I marched angrily into my room and slammed the door shut. Here was my strategy: refusing to eat his food was my declaration of war. For the next two days, I used the bathwater he prepared and wore the clothes he washed, but I absolutely refused to eat the food he cooked, and I refused to speak to him. This wasn’t just throwing a tantrum. This was psychological warfare. Dealing with someone like Mason required extreme measures. Push him into a corner so he had nowhere to run, then give him the cold shoulder, giving him a taste of his own medicine. It was a battle of wills. My confidence stemmed from the fact that Mason cared about me. Sure, my stomach would suffer a bit, but obviously, the results would be highly effective. Mason was the first to break. On the evening of the second day of my hunger strike, he finally appeared before me. “Stella.” He stood there holding a bowl of porridge, suppressing his anger. “…Are you trying to starve yourself to death?” I turned my back to him, lying on my side on the bed, treating his words like wind passing my ears. The room fell silent, leaving only the sound of our breathing—one steady, one erratic. After a long time, Mason’s voice broke the silence again. “Stella.” His voice was very soft, and I heard him say, “…You win, Stella.” I rolled over and lay flat on my back. I gave him a response, but not much of one. Seeing my attitude, Mason simply gave up struggling. He asked in defeat, “Stella, what exactly do you want?” I hid my secret delight, my expression flat. “…Will you give me whatever I want?” After a moment of silence, Mason gave a difficult nod. “Yes. Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you.” I rolled over again, leaning over the edge of the bed, my tone fierce: “Apologize to me!” Mason: “…I’m sorry.” I was somewhat satisfied. My shoulders instantly slumped, my voice weak. “Hurry up and feed me. I don’t even have the strength to hold the bowl.” This was completely different from the scenario I had envisioned. I originally wanted to string him along a bit more and negotiate terms, but I was just too hungry to maintain the aloof facade. No choice. Food is life. Starving for two whole days was already my absolute limit. Mason pressed his lips together tightly, holding back his temper as he fed me. “…Didn’t you even know how to sneak into the kitchen for a snack?!” “I would never!” I swallowed a large mouthful of porridge, my tone aggrieved yet defiant. “Even if I starved to death, I, Stella Sterling, would never bow down for a bowl of rice!” Thinking about the brutal beating I had endured, seeing Mason made me angry all over again. “…I’m still mad, Mason. How could you be so mean to me!” “You were the one not listening first.” Mason wiped my mouth for me. “And your attitude wasn’t right either.” “Then you still shouldn’t have spanked me!” I emphasized repeatedly, my tone firm. “I am an adult. No one is allowed to treat me like that, and neither are you!” Thinking for a moment, I added, “…Of course, if it’s a little kink while we’re sleeping together, that’s fine, but to be fair, I get to hit you back.” “Stella!” Mason was embarrassed and furious once again. “Shut up!” So boring. I was just making a joke. Mason has absolutely zero sense of humor. Full and satisfied, Mason went to wash the dishes. His movements were fast. By the time I finished showering and came out, he had already cleaned up. At this point, I had regained my usual calm rationality. Lying on my stomach on the bed, I called out without hesitation: “Mason!” He walked over, his tone unhappy: “What?” “Oh, nothing.” I casually lifted the hem of my nightgown, bossing him around with complete entitlement. “Hurry up and apply my ointment.” Mason snapped his eyes shut with lightning speed, veins popping on his forehead. “Stel-la, Ster-ling!” He gritted out my name through clenched teeth, his voice full of anger and warning. Tsk, playing the prude. He didn’t even know how many times he had touched me over the last two days, yet here he was acting all innocent. But I decided not to push him any further. After all, he was only nineteen. Getting mad all the time is bad for your health. “Okay, okay, no ointment then.” Adjusting my dress, I sat up straight, looking as proper as could be. “…Could my man please dry my hair for me?” Mason finally lowered his hands. Perhaps because the title was a bit embarrassing, he looked a little flushed with frustration. “Stella.” He grabbed the hairdryer and walked over to me, plugging it in while muttering, “You need to dial it back!” I just said “Oh” and wrapped my arms around his waist. “Stella!”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “411845”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

A viral TikTok asked, “How much damage can a guy’s ‘first love’ actually do?” I saw my boyfriend’s comment: “My current girlfriend was just diagnosed with a terminal illness. All I can think is: thank God she’s just a lookalike, and not her.” Clutching my diagnosis report, I cried until I started to laugh. 1 The first thing I did after leaving the hospital was pack my bags. Sean noticed me packing before he noticed my bloodshot eyes. He frowned and asked, “What are you packing for?” I looked up at him and grinned widely. “I’m packing up to go die.” But Sean didn’t laugh. His frown only deepened. I knew he only liked it when I offered a demure, close-lipped smile; he only liked me when I was gentle and quiet. But now that I was dying, I only wanted to do what made me happy. Right then, his phone rang. The room was so quiet I could hear his friend’s loud voice through the receiver: “Sean! She’s back! Are you coming to pick her up from the airport or what?” Sean’s grip on his phone tightened instantly. He gave a quick, soft “Yeah” and hung up. Probably out of guilt, I could feel his displeasure vanish, replaced by a kind of apologetic affection. “Baby…” he started, but I cut him off with a smile: “If you have something to do, go do it! Don’t worry about me.” Sean was in such a hurry he didn’t even notice my suitcase was already fully packed. He hastily ruffled my hair, grabbed his coat, and walked out the door. The moment he left, I rolled my suitcase straight to a salon and chopped off the long hair I’d grown out for five years. Snip. Five years, gone in an instant. 2 Sean had barely reunited with his long-lost first love at the airport when I showed up, dragging my suitcase behind me. Wearing sunglasses and holding a compact mirror, I looked at the woman beside him, then at myself in the mirror. I suddenly had the urge to get a DNA test. Seeing me, Sean’s brow furrowed so deeply it could have crushed a fly. “Chloe? What are you doing here?” See? In front of his first love, he resorted to using my actual name instead of his usual pet names. I took off my sunglasses and walked over confidently to say hi. “What a coincidence.” The woman was momentarily startled to see me, but she quickly recovered, offering an elegant, close-lipped smile and looking at Sean questioningly. Sean’s annoyance eased slightly at her smile. He introduced us simply: “This is Audrey, we grew up together. And this is Chloe, my… friend.” He said the word “friend” so quickly and quietly, it was as if adding “girl” in front of it made no difference. A sudden look back, and there she is, in the dim, fading light… Ah. I smiled and extended my hand. “Hi there, I’m Chloe. I’m a ghost, a phantom, someone who shouldn’t exist. And of course, I’m Sean’s ‘friend’.” “Hello,” Audrey replied, taking my hand. Every movement and smile radiated the ease and confidence of someone who knows they are favored. Sean looked inexplicably uncomfortable. He gently urged her, “Audrey, you still need to get over your jet lag. I’ll drive you home first. Chloe, you…” I smiled and cut him off again: “If you have something to do, go do it! Don’t worry about me.” This time, Sean finally noticed something was wrong. As if just realizing my short hair and the suitcase, his tone suddenly became anxious. “Why did you cut your hair? Where are you going with that suitcase?” I laughed. “Sean, you’re so funny. Where else would I be going with a suitcase at the airport but on a trip?” Sean’s pupils constricted. “You’re leaving me?” “Oh look, my flight’s boarding soon.” I checked my watch and waved at them. “Audrey, I’m leaving my friend in your hands. See you around.” With that, I turned to leave, but Sean grabbed my wrist and yelled, “Chloe, what the hell is wrong with you?!” I flinched at his yell, turning my head. The smile was still on my lips, but tears were falling pathetically down my face. “Sean, there is something wrong with me. I’m sick.” As I said this, my peripheral vision was entirely focused on her. She was so beautiful, so confident; even the sunlight seemed to favor her. “Sean, let me guess. Right now, are you thinking… thank God I’m the one who’s sick, and not her?” 3 I insisted on boarding my flight; Sean insisted I couldn’t. We ended up causing such a scene at the airport that even Audrey got dragged to the airport police station for questioning. Coming out of the station after giving our statements, I was still mourning the cost of my plane ticket. Sean tried to drag me home by the hand. I shook him off and took two steps back. “That’s not my home.” “Chloe, haven’t you made enough of a scene?” Sean had completely lost his patience. He said coldly, “Our engagement party is the day after tomorrow. I’ve already sent out the invitations. Who are you throwing this tantrum for?” “Oh, so you do remember we have an engagement party the day after tomorrow.” I let out a bitter laugh, turning my gaze to Audrey. I didn’t even need to speak; the sarcasm was practically overflowing. Hearing the words “engagement party,” Audrey also looked up at Sean, a fleeting look of loneliness crossing her face. “Sean, you’re… congratulations.” The moment his eyes met Audrey’s, Sean’s expression looked exactly like heartbreak. They say when the ex cries, the current girlfriend loses. Well, here I was—the ex didn’t even shed a tear, and I had still lost completely. Whatever. I’m done playing this game. I hailed a cab, leaving my suitcase behind, and told the driver to go. I saw Sean subconsciously take two steps after me, his face dark. But in the end, he turned and went to drive Audrey home, leaving my suitcase abandoned on the curb. Nobody wanted it. I pulled my gaze away, my nose burning with the urge to cry. “Miss, fighting with your boyfriend?” The driver glanced in the rearview mirror and gossiped, “Men, you know, they’re bound to have wandering eyes. As long as he has you in his heart, that’s what matters. You can’t push a man too hard, it just drives him further away. You just need to coax him a little and it’ll be fine.” I rubbed my nose. “Sir, please don’t try to talk me out of it. I’m taking a cab home to get an axe. If you talk me out of chopping him up, I’ll have to chop you up instead.” “…” The driver immediately shut his mouth, and the car finally fell silent. As we reached a downtown mall, I suddenly asked him to pull over. The driver dropped me off, muttered a curse, and sped away. I looked up, took a deep breath of the bustling city air, and decided to go on a wild shopping spree. However, once inside the mall, I lost interest and just sat blankly on a bench. Suddenly, I snapped out of my daze, my eyes locking onto Sean’s dark ones. Of course, he hadn’t come looking for me. He was there accompanying Audrey on a shopping trip. Beside Audrey was an older couple. The four of them were laughing and chatting together, looking like a picture-perfect family from an advertisement. That was something I had never had in my entire life. Seeing me as well, Sean’s face clearly displayed a look of blame, as if to say, ‘Are you haunting me?’ But before he could speak, the older woman beside Audrey suddenly became agitated: “Sparky? Sparky?” Tears streamed from the woman’s eyes as she practically threw herself at me, trembling. “Is it you, Sparky? Sparky, my Sparky!” “It’s really… it’s really Sparky…” The woman’s husband also recovered from his shock, his wrinkled, red eyes brimming with emotion. Audrey, meanwhile, was stunned. She looked at her parents, then at me, her chest suddenly heaving violently. “S-sister?” Sean was frozen, and I stood rooted to the spot. What kind of plot twist was this? I took a step back to avoid Audrey’s mother. “I’m sorry, ma’am, you have the wrong person. I know Audrey and I look very much alike, but I grew up in an orphanage…” I paused mid-sentence. “My poor Sparky…” Audrey’s mother cried so hard she couldn’t stand. Audrey’s father barely managed to support her, his graying temples seemingly drooping with exhaustion. “Do you remember the carnival when we were little?” Audrey wiped her tears furiously. “The carnival Mom took us to. Because we were throwing a tantrum, Mom bought us each a…” “A little hamster in a red bamboo basket.” “A little hamster in a red basket.” I instinctively finished the sentence, speaking almost simultaneously with Audrey. Audrey’s mother cried out “My Sparky,” clutching her chest tightly, practically fainting on the spot. Memories that had been forcefully sealed away for years suddenly burst open, and my entire consciousness blurred. “I remember… I remember that carnival. Because the little hamster ran away, I let go of someone’s hand to chase it. Then someone picked me up… I think I slept for a while, and was taken to a lot of places… and then my last memory is being in the orphanage…” My eyes glazed over, as if I were dreaming. “Are you… are you really my family?” Audrey grabbed my hand and nodded frantically, crying so hard she couldn’t even speak. All that elegance and composure vanished in an instant. As I slowly pulled my hand back, I realized I was already crying. I looked at Sean, then at Audrey, and finally at Audrey’s parents. Suddenly, I broke into a wide grin. “But why did it take you until now to find me? Did you know…” “I’m about to die.” 4 From as early as I can remember, I lived in an orphanage—a cage filled with gloom and bitterness. Fortunately, I met a wonderful teacher in elementary school who guided me onto the right path, teaching me optimism and cheerfulness. I liked to laugh out loud, I liked to play harmless jokes, and I liked to joke around while laughing out loud. Until I met Sean. It was at the freshman orientation gala. Sean was the student representative and the host, wearing a dark blue suit, standing tall and straight, his eyes bright as stars. It’s no exaggeration to say that just standing there, he was the brightest boy, the most heart-stopping moonlight. In that moment, I felt like my soul had been stolen by him. Of course, I wasn’t the only freshman whose soul was stolen by Sean that night. The girls swarmed him, but off-stage, Sean was like a block of ice—a block of ice with a bad temper. So you can imagine, when that block of ice melted only for you, it wouldn’t be surprising if you went a little crazy. Sean rejected every girl who asked for his WeChat, walked straight toward me through the crowd, and quietly asked if we could exchange numbers. I almost lost my mind on the spot. Back then, I thought that encounter was because of love, because of fate, or maybe even a connection from a past life. Now the answer was revealed: it was because of bloodlines. Because I was biological sisters with his first love. There was no more perfect “stand-in” for her in this world than me. Sean really was life’s favorite. If he couldn’t have the younger sister, life handed him the older one. That day at the mall, when I publicly announced my impending death, Audrey’s mother fainted immediately, her father wept bitter tears, and Audrey slumped to her knees, unable to accept it. Even the look Sean gave me was one I had never seen before… Shock? Unease? Panic? Heartache? A single word couldn’t describe that look. “Affection that comes too late is cheaper than dirt.” Audrey held my hand, her eyes swollen like peaches. She had been like this for the past two days: red-eyed, clinging to me. “Affection that comes too late is cheaper than dirt, sis,” Audrey repeated. “Don’t look back. He’s not worth it.” I smiled. “I thought you really liked him? Weren’t you looking pretty lonely outside the airport when you heard he was getting engaged?” “I’m sorry, sis, I’m so sorry…” Audrey’s tears started falling again. “I know I was acting like a total bitch back then. I clearly didn’t like Sean, but because he was always chasing after me, suddenly hearing he was marrying someone else made me feel like something of mine was being stolen. I thought I’d just flirt with him a little to disgust you on purpose… I really didn’t know it was you back then!” “I saw you and thought you looked really familiar, but I just assumed Sean had deliberately found a ‘stand-in.’ So it made sense that your features were similar to mine. I even thought to myself, Sean is really good at playing the devoted lover if he could find someone who looked so much like me. I even felt a sense of contempt and superiority deep down. I… I was wrong, I was so wrong, sis!” Audrey cried as she tried to explain, gripping my hand tightly, terrified I would pull away again. But I could understand what she was saying. It’s like a spoiled kitten—sometimes they just have to knock over a water glass with childish behavior to prove their place in a human’s heart. Because she didn’t know it was me, Audrey naturally felt entitled to enjoy being favored. She subconsciously wanted to show off her superiority as the “first love.” But once she knew it was me, she could no longer feel a shred of superiority, only overwhelming guilt. Human double standards have always been like this. Bzzzt, bzzzt, bzzzt… The phone on the table was vibrating like crazy. I clicked it open and saw it was all messages from Sean. Sean said he had already booked the best doctor for me, that my illness could definitely be cured. He said he wouldn’t break up with me because of this, and that he would still marry me. I watched the messages roll in one after another. Audrey watched me nervously, terrified I would soften. I just found it fascinating. Turns out Sean had such a passionate, proactive side to him too. In the past, I’d send him dozens of messages and he’d reply to one, and I’d carefully save every single reply, grinning like an idiot over them when I had nothing else to do. Honestly, I hadn’t planned on telling Sean about my illness this early. I wanted to leave quietly, die quietly, so that one day when Sean realized he could never find me again, he would stumble upon my gravestone, engraved with the joke: “Surprise! She’s already dead!” His expression at that moment would surely be priceless. Bzzzt, bzzzt. The phone showed an incoming call again. I pushed the phone toward Audrey, and she simply put it on speaker: “Hello.” Hearing Audrey’s voice, Sean clearly paused. “Audrey, give the phone back to Chlo… give it back to your sister. I need to talk to her.” But Audrey asked her own question: “Sean, do you like me? Do you want to be with me?” The other end of the line fell silent. The living first love versus the dying memory—choosing between them must be really tough for him, right? “Stop messing around, Audrey.” Sean’s voice was full of exasperation, not blame, as if dealing with a spoiled little girl. “This isn’t the time for this. Where’s your sister? She’s still throwing a tantrum at me. I’ll come find her in a bit.” I suddenly leaned close to the phone and repeated, word for word: “How much damage can a guy’s ‘first love’ actually do? My current girlfriend was just diagnosed with a terminal illness. All I can think is: thank God she’s just a lookalike, and not her.” “…” Beep. After a moment of silence on the other end, Sean hung up the phone. “Scumbag!” Audrey immediately blocked his number, trembling with anger. “Why didn’t I realize he was such a bastard before!” Because humans are the most selfish animals. Before their own interests are threatened, everyone is a “good person.” I smiled indifferently and turned the phone off completely. The living first love versus the dying memory. Which one to choose? He must be in quite a dilemma right now, huh? But he doesn’t need to worry. Because no matter which one… Neither of us will choose him. 5 Surprisingly, the ones who found me faster than Sean were Audrey’s parents. Or rather, my biological parents. Maybe there really is some sort of connection between blood relatives. They didn’t even ask me to take a DNA test; they recognized me as their lost daughter with just one look. But to me, blood is just blood; it doesn’t equate to family. Family bonds can only be built on time and companionship. They are irreplaceable. And without that bond, they were no different from strangers to me. However, when those two people, both over fifty, knelt before me, begging me not to give up on treatment, begging me to try other options… my heart still ached. I tried to pull them up, my tear ducts losing control. I couldn’t get them to stand, so I could only kneel down with them, tears blurring my vision. How was I supposed to explain to these two elderly people, who had just found their lost child, that they were about to face the pain of losing her all over again? When my life expectancy was down to just three months, I didn’t want to waste that time in sterile hospital rooms, enduring endless, agonizing chemotherapy, just to gamble on a one-in-a-ten-thousand chance of survival. How was I supposed to explain to myself why, looking back on my past, I realized I had wasted my entire twenty-something years? It’ll be better after midterms… it’ll be better after graduation… it’ll be better once I find a job… it’ll be better once I get married and have kids… My time was spent either surviving or waiting, as if my life would only become happy and fulfilling after passing some arbitrary milestone. It wasn’t until death was at my doorstep that I suddenly realized I had never done a single thing for myself in this lifetime. Even the love I fought so hard for was just me being a placeholder for someone else. As the song of my life dwindled down to its final three movements, I finally gathered the courage to take the conductor’s baton for myself. So, I wasn’t seeking death; I was seeking life. For my last three months, I wanted to truly live for myself… But could I? I cried like a mess, my words jumbled and incoherent. I originally thought my parents would firmly object, using their status as the ones who brought me into this world to forbid me from acting so recklessly. But instead, they said “Okay.” Even though they were crying a river of tears, even though they seemed to age ten years in the blink of an eye, they still said “Okay.” They said, “No matter what you choose, we will always love you.” I froze, and then, I sobbed uncontrollably. It turns out, I actually had really wonderful parents. It turns out, my life could have been really happy. Once everyone had calmed down, my mom held my hand tightly and showed me photos from when I was little. In the pictures, her younger self was holding two chubby little bundles, smiling radiantly. She pointed at an old photo and laughed, “Look at this one, Sparky. Your dad was trying to change your diaper for the first time, but he couldn’t tell the front from the back, and you ended up smearing poop all over his face…” As she laughed, her emotions broke down again. She cried, her mouth wide open but no sound coming out. Yet I could tell she was screaming, “My Sparky.” How was she supposed to accept this kind of ending? She’s a mother… she’s a mother! Having to watch her own child march toward death—how could she bear it? My dad held my devastated mom, his cloudy eyes suppressing tears. He smiled kindly and waved me off. “Go on. Go do what you want to do. Audrey, spend more time with your sister. All these years… she’s had it hard, all alone.” This sudden outpouring of care made me want to run away. My heart felt like a towel being wrung out, throbbing with pain. Audrey followed closely behind me. Her hands and feet were weak, but she still managed to look up at me and smile. “Sis, where are we going?” I took a few deep breaths to calm the throbbing pain. After thinking for a moment, I still asked the question: “If they love me so much, why didn’t they ever come looking for me?” Audrey’s eyelashes fluttered, and she told me the story of what happened back then. It turned out that when I got lost at the carnival, my mom immediately started looking for me and called the police. Witnesses said they saw me being carried away, and the police managed to track down the license plate of the kidnappers’ car. However, by the time they found the car, it had been involved in a major accident out of state. The gas tank exploded. All that was left in the wreckage was the charred body of an adult in the driver’s seat… and the charred body of a toddler in the trunk, burned beyond recognition. All the evidence pointed to me being kidnapped and then dying in the car crash. But my parents always firmly believed I was still alive. My mom quit her job and put up missing person posters everywhere. My previously healthy dad developed all sorts of illnesses practically overnight. If it weren’t for their younger daughter, Audrey, being there, the couple wouldn’t have survived until today. I tried desperately to recall my past. I did remember being placed in the passenger seat. After that, I slept for a long time. Maybe because I wasn’t crying or making a fuss, the person got out of the car midway and left me alone. Not long after, another person got into the car. Seeing me, he seemed very surprised. He carried me out of the car, put me in a small corner, and my last memory was of the back of a car driving away. Thinking about it now, it’s very likely the kidnappers ran into a car thief. The car thief threw me out of the passenger seat, but didn’t notice there was another kidnapped child in the trunk. In the end, the car thief got into an accident, and because of that, I escaped being trafficked and ended up in an orphanage instead. I really did experience all the coincidences in the world. And with a life like this, was I lucky, or unlucky? I couldn’t figure it out, and I didn’t have the time to try. At least for the days I had left, I wanted to be happy. I pulled out a crumpled piece of loose-leaf paper and unfolded it. The top prominently read four big words: “Bucket List” Audrey looked over, and I explained, “I wrote this back when I was 18. I had just watched the movie The Bucket List and thought it was fun, so I copied the idea and wrote one too. Who knew I’d actually need to use it someday? Good thing I didn’t throw it away.” Saying that, I pulled out a lipstick and crossed out the first three items on the paper: Live to be 100. Travel the whole world. Marry the person I love most. I put the lipstick away and smiled at Audrey. “Not bad. A good start is half the battle. I’ve already crossed three wishes off the list so fast.” Audrey covered her mouth tightly, her thick sobs making her words come out squeaky. “Sorry… Sis, I need to go to the bathroom.” I watched Audrey stumble away, the smile on my lips slowly fading. Was it because I hadn’t joked around in so long that my skills were rusty? Why did my jokes only make people cry now? “Chloe.” I was lost in thought when I heard the voice behind me—the voice I used to long for even in my dreams. I turned around and looked at Sean. He was wearing a black trench coat. His tall, lean figure standing there was a sight to behold. Seeing my bloodshot eyes, Sean reached out to take my hand, his voice gentle enough to melt ice. “Baby, let’s go to the hospital. Be a good girl.” I pulled my hand back and stepped away. “Piss off.” Sean stiffened but still tried to coax me. “Baby, I was wrong before. I apologize. That comment was just a joke. I didn’t know you were really… I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to curse you. I had a little to drink that day, and I don’t even know where I copy-pasted that sentence from. I didn’t mean it. Can you forgive me, baby?” I stuck with my original statement: “Piss off.” Sean’s face finally darkened. “Chloe, I understand you’re in a bad mood because you’re sick, but can you stop throwing childish tantrums? I heard from Mr. Davis that you’re planning to refuse treatment. Taking it out on your own body just to spite me—is that really worth it? Is that fair to Mr. Davis and your mom?” More guilt-tripping? I grinned. “Life is as short as a fart. As long as I’m enjoying myself, that’s all that matters.” Sean froze, then frowned, clearly displeased with my “vulgar language.” “Chloe, can you stop acting so neurotic all the time? Look at Audrey. A refined lady like her is much more likable.” I dropped my smile. “Sean, did you know? I actually heard the name ‘Audrey’ a long time ago.” Sean stiffened. “That day, you had a little to drink too. You were drunk, holding me, and kept mumbling ‘Audrey’, ‘Audrey’. But the funny part is, I actually thought you were reciting poetry. A sudden look back, and there she is, in the dim, fading light… Ah.” I stared at him, without a trace of a smile. “When you looked back, who did you actually see? The fading light, or Audrey?” Sean’s face turned pale. He murmured, “Chloe,” his hand hovering mid-air, trying to reach for me. Even though he was within arm’s reach, it felt like we were separated by life and death. “Sean, tell me the truth. Did you ever love me? Just me, pure and simple, not as a replacement for anyone else?” I looked at him pleadingly. “You don’t want me to take your lies to the grave, do you? I just want the truth.” Sean lowered his eyes and turned his head. He was silent for a moment. When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse. “You… are more suitable for marriage.” I let out a soft “Ah.” The silence in my chest was terrifying. It turns out that when a person is about to die, the first thing to go is the heart. And right at that moment, Audrey came sprinting over, her eyes red, and planted a kick square in Sean’s back— “Go fuck yourself! Stay away from my sister!” Sean stumbled forward from the kick. When he turned around and saw it was Audrey, his face was a picture of shock. “Audrey?” And Audrey, the “refined lady” he just praised, was shielding me with one hand and pointing right at Sean’s nose with the other, screaming at him: “You disgusting piece of trash, stop pretending to be so devoted! You want your cake and to eat it too. White rose, backup plan—you’re just playing games and you actually got addicted to it. You really think you’re some great romantic, don’t you?!” “Audrey, stop.” I reached out to stop the enraged Audrey. Seeing this, Sean looked slightly surprised, and even a little touched, as if he was seeing me for the first time. But Audrey was anxious. “Sis, you can’t be soft on him! He’s just an empty shell of a scumbag! He can’t stand being lonely, but he wants to act like a devoted lover. He…” “Audrey, don’t do that.” I cut her off, shaking my head gently. “Don’t just use your words without using your hands.” Audrey stared blankly. Sean looked even more incredulous. I took out my lipstick and crossed out the fourth item on the list: 4. Beat up a jerk. I gave Sean a radiant smile. “Sean, I will take my disgust for you to the grave.” Then, I kicked him hard.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “411844”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

Five years ago, I stayed in Europe to study medicine just for him. He said he would wait for me, that he wouldn’t marry anyone else in this lifetime. Five years later, when I returned home with a treatment plan I had painstakingly researched, he was eating a rich cheese pastry fed to him by another woman. 1 Rowan Hayes had always been a quiet, aloof person. Partly because he was naturally introverted, and partly because he had suffered from a chronic illness since childhood, meaning intense emotional fluctuations were dangerous for him. Having grown up with him, I knew this better than anyone. So, when I saw the smile reaching his eyes as he looked at Lily Evans, a deep sense of unease settled in my chest. I hadn’t changed my flight to come home early just to watch this scene unfold. Rowan and Lily were sitting on a bench in the courtyard of his villa. Lily was holding a piece of cheese pastry right up to Rowan’s lips, looking eager. Though Rowan was frowning slightly, his body language showed no sign of pulling away. In fact, a faint smile was creeping onto his lips as he watched her playful, impulsive behavior. “Rowan.” I called out softly. One second he was opening his mouth to take a bite, and the next, he whipped his head around, staring at me in disbelief. His eyes overflowed with confusion, joy, shock, and a sliver of panic. “Harper!” Before I could even react, Rowan had crossed the distance and pulled me into a tight embrace. He leaned down, holding me tighter and tighter. I could feel his emotions rushing toward me like a flood. For five years, his embrace was what I had missed the most. The joy of our reunion momentarily took over, making me briefly forget the uncomfortable scene I had just witnessed. “Harper, it’s been five years. You’re finally back…” “I missed you so much I thought I’d go crazy!” Rowan’s voice was hoarse. Though his face rarely showed much emotion, the burning intensity in his eyes made me blush. He rarely got this worked up, but right now, the hands gripping my shoulders were trembling violently. “Yeah, I’m back.” Afraid he might lose control, I reached out and stroked the back of his hand to soothe him. I had to admit, I loved it when Rowan showed emotion because of me. Whenever he did, his love for me spilled over without reservation. But mild emotional fluctuations were fine; anything too intense, and I worried it would trigger his illness. As Rowan and I gazed deeply at each other, lost in the moment, I finally noticed Lily. She had stood up from the bench and walked over to stand beside him. I was instantly reminded of their intimate interaction just moments ago. “Rowan, who is this?” It was only when I asked the question that I realized the woman standing in front of me looked incredibly similar to me. So similar, in fact, that even I might have mistaken her for my own sister at first glance. It clicked instantly. During the five years I was gone, Rowan had found a knockoff to keep him company. The atmosphere instantly dropped below freezing. Rowan seemed to realize that letting me see Lily wasn’t a good thing. He shot me a panicked look but still opened his mouth to explain. “Harper, her name is Lily Evans. She’s a pre-med student at State University. A student I sponsored three years ago.” Three years ago? Now that he mentioned it, I had a vague memory of it. He had brought it up in passing during a FaceTime call back then. But he never mentioned that this Lily Evans looked so much like me. “You sponsor a student, and now she’s sponsored all the way into your house?” My tone was entirely flat, but a heavy stone was definitely lodging itself in my chest. “It’s not like that, Harper…” Rowan was visibly panicking. He grabbed my hand to explain, “She just came to drop something off today.” I glanced at the open box on the patio table. Several individually wrapped pastries were scattered around it. “Yes… because my paper won an award, my professor gave them to me. Please don’t misunderstand.” Lily kept her head down, seemingly afraid to look at me, but she still stammered out an explanation. “I’ve never had this kind of pastry before, and I figured Mr. Hayes probably hadn’t either, so I brought them over as a small thank-you gift…” Her voice got quieter and quieter until I couldn’t hear the rest. Rowan was the CEO of a publicly traded company. Who in their right mind would think there was an expensive pastry out there he hadn’t seen before? “Harper, it’s true. I wouldn’t lie to you.” Rowan lowered his eyes. Paired with his sharp, aristocratic nose, he really was handsome. Sweat was pooling in his palms as he held my hand; I could tell he was incredibly tense. I didn’t want to put too much strain on his heart. “Alright, I believe you.” I forced a relaxed smile. “But Rowan, you should avoid eating high-cholesterol foods like cheese pastries. Your condition has finally stabilized a bit these past few years. I don’t want you getting sick again.” Seeing that I wasn’t angry, the tension between Rowan’s brows finally smoothed out. He turned to look at Lily. A complex emotion flashed through his eyes, but he quickly returned to normal, using the cold tone he reserved for outsiders. “It’s getting late. You can go back now.” Lily’s head snapped up. She looked at him in disbelief, her expression slowly shifting to crushing disappointment. “But the pastries…” “Miss Evans, what’s your specialty at the medical university?” Hearing my random question, both of them looked at me in confusion. Lily pressed her lips together and whispered, “Cardiology.” “Then you should know that patients with IPAH shouldn’t consume foods high in cholesterol, right?” Lily stared at me blankly for a moment before something seemed to click. Looking utterly defeated, she turned back to pack up the pastries on the table, putting them in her bag one by one. “I’m sorry… I’ll take my leave now.” As she brushed past me, I noticed her lift a hand to wipe away tears. Winning an award for a paper, yet not even knowing that IPAH patients can’t eat high-cholesterol foods? The academic standards at State University really seemed to be slipping. “Rowan, since I’m back this time…” I was just about to tell him that I had fully graduated and didn’t need to leave again. But when I looked up, I saw him staring blankly in the direction Lily had gone. My heart sank. I didn’t finish my sentence. I grabbed the handle of my suitcase and walked straight into the house. When Rowan snapped out of it and realized I was already walking ahead, he recognized his slip-up. Looking guilty, he rushed forward and grabbed my suitcase. “Harper, let me get that!” I didn’t fight him for it. The suitcase wasn’t that heavy anyway. We walked into the house in silence, right up until the housekeeper, Maria, greeted us at the door with a beaming smile. She didn’t know what had just transpired outside in those few short minutes, but she could probably guess who it was about. Because there was no way I believed Lily had only come to the Hayes estate today. Today’s little drama was quite the “surprise” to come home to. 2 “Harper, what happened today wasn’t what you thought.” During dinner that evening, Rowan was the first to break the silence. “She really is just a student I sponsored. That’s all.” Rowan looked up at me, his eyes pleading. “Please don’t be angry because of her, okay?” “What’s with her face?” I asked. “I leave home for five years, and when I come back, I find you two acting intimately, sharing food. And it was food I explicitly warned you not to eat. Do you expect me not to be mad?” My tone was harsh. It was then that Rowan realized I wasn’t just throwing a petty tantrum. Panic seized him, and after a long moment, he leaned over and grasped my wrist. “Harper, I admit, I sponsored her through college because she looks so much like you. I didn’t tell you because I was afraid you’d overthink it. But there is absolutely nothing going on between Lily and me.” “Rowan, let me ask you something. If I hadn’t spoken up to stop you today, would you have eaten that pastry from her hand?” I stared stubbornly into his eyes. His eyes were as dark as ink; anyone looking into them would be involuntarily drawn in. But looking at them now, I just wanted to cry. Hearing my voice crack, Rowan’s expression finally broke. His eyes filled with heartache as he pulled me into his arms. “I’m so sorry, Harper. I was wrong. Please don’t cry, okay…” “You’re unbelievable, Rowan. Who do you think I went to Europe for? Who do you think I went to medical school for? Do you know how hard med school is? And what’s the first thing I see when I get back! I see you eating some cheap pastry she gave you…” He coaxed me softly in my ear, but I was like a broken dam. The tears wouldn’t stop flowing. It was as if I wanted to pour out all the grievances of the last five years at once. Rowan clumsily tried to kiss me, but I pushed him away. He resorted to gently wiping my tears with his thumbs. This was the tenderness he never showed anyone else, a tenderness that belonged only to me. I don’t know how long I cried. I cried until I was dizzy, and Rowan carried me to the bathroom to wash my face, then laid me down on the soft bed. “Harper…” Rowan propped himself up to kiss me. I caught the faint scent of cedarwood on him. It was intoxicating. “Rowan…” I pushed against his chest as he leaned in. “Are you thinking about something you shouldn’t be?” “…” Rowan’s ears instantly turned bright red, and he turned his head away, too embarrassed to look at me. But that put my mind at ease. He was still the same Rowan. The Rowan who looked cold and arrogant to the world, but turned into a blushing mess whenever it came to me. I looped my arms around his neck and kissed him gently. What I got in return was a deep kiss that was anything but hesitant. It had been five years. We had both waited too long for this day. After that, we didn’t bring up Lily Evans again. We settled into the Hayes estate, picking up the life we had planned five years ago. Unfortunately, the peaceful days didn’t last long. Not long after I started my residency at the city hospital, Rowan’s old symptoms suddenly flared up. Shortness of breath, tachycardia. He collapsed in the underground parking lot of his company. When he was rushed to the hospital, I was in the middle of a heated debate at a medical conference with a senior professor. By the time the conference ended in the afternoon, I finally heard that an emergency patient had been brought in that morning. However, the first person I saw wasn’t Rowan in his hospital bed, but Lily Evans, pacing anxiously outside his room. Hearing my footsteps, she looked over joyfully, but when she realized it was me, the light in her eyes died. I had to admit, seeing her face was still jarring. It was like looking into a blurred mirror. But I didn’t have time to deal with her right now. I walked past her straight into the room. Nurse Sarah was monitoring Rowan’s blood pressure. “Dr. Brooks…” “How is the patient? Has he regained consciousness since he was brought in this morning?” I asked. “Not yet. But after putting him on oxygen, his blood pressure and oxygen saturation have returned to normal.” Looking at Rowan lying in the hospital bed with an oxygen mask, my heart ached terribly. “He’s stable for now. You can go back to your duties, Sarah. I’ll take care of him here.” I gave her a faint smile. Sarah nodded, but before leaving, she hesitated and glanced at me. “Is there a problem?” Was there another symptom they hadn’t told me about? “Dr. Brooks, I know it’s not my place, but that girl at the door has been standing there for a long time. Is she your sister?” I subconsciously looked toward the door. Sure enough, Lily was still standing there. Who exactly was keeping her from coming in? I smiled bitterly and shook my head. Sarah didn’t ask any more questions and left. Rowan lay on the bed. Even though his vitals were stable, he just wouldn’t wake up. It reminded me of a rainy night six years ago when Rowan had collapsed without warning just like this. That was when I first learned about Idiopathic Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (IPAH). There was no absolute cure for it, which was why I made the firm decision to go to Switzerland, where some of the most advanced research on the disease was happening. “Didn’t I tell you to leave? Why are you still standing here like a pole?” “Mr. Miller, please just let me go in and see him. I’m really worried about him…” “Worried my ass. Who do you think you are? Get lost, go on, shoo! You’re blocking the doorway!” “Mr. Miller…” “Stop yelling! This is a hospital ward. Take it outside…” Hearing the commotion, I walked over and saw Lily arguing with a man holding a bouquet and a fruit basket. “Harper Brooks?” The man’s shocked voice made me turn to look at him. Thick eyebrows, big eyes, dyed blonde hair, wearing a black jacket covered in straps and chains. That flashy, avant-garde style, combined with that face… “Chase… Chase Miller?” “Ha! You remember! Five years and I thought you forgot about me! When did you get back? I bumped into Rowan passed out in the parking lot this morning and brought him in. Anyway, how is he? Is he awake?” His rapid-fire questions almost transported me back to our exhausting high school days. I smiled helplessly and stepped aside to let him in. “Go see for yourself…” I said. “Miss Brooks, please let me in too. Just one look at Mr. Hayes, just one… I’m so worried…” Before Chase could respond, Lily grabbed my arm. Her eyes were filled with tears as she begged, drawing the attention of passing patients and nurses. Lily was pretty (I mean, not to be narcissistic). Even though we looked alike, she possessed a pitiful, fragile aura that I completely lacked. Crying like that, it made it look as though I was the cold-hearted villain bullying her. “Tsk, what is wrong with you?” Chase said. “You’re not family, you’re not a friend. Why should we let you visit? Besides, aren’t you a student? Rowan pays for your tuition, and you skip a whole day of classes on his dime? Get out of here. If you hang around any longer, it’ll be dark, your dorm will be locked, and you won’t even be able to get back!” Chase’s rapid-fire delivery and sharp tongue made me wonder if he shouldn’t have majored in debate instead of art. Lily’s face turned beet red. Faced with his humiliation, she fought hard to keep her tears from falling. Chase shot me a triumphant smirk. I shook my head helplessly. “Har… Harper…” Rowan’s weak voice came from the hospital room. I immediately rushed back inside. Rowan was awake. He looked around in confusion until he saw me, then realized what had happened. “Did I have another episode?” A bitter smile touched his lips. My heart throbbed with pain. I lowered my eyes, trying to hide the tears welling up. “It’s okay. You’ll be fine,” I comforted him, though I was also comforting myself. “Alright, he’s awake. You can stop worrying now. Hurry up and leave, do you have zero situational awareness?” Chase’s voice drifted in from the hallway, followed by the sound of Lily walking away, sobbing. “What’s going on outside?” Rowan asked. “It’s Chase. He’s the one who brought you to the hospital,” I paused. “And Lily Evans.” Rowan didn’t say anything else, but the fleeting look of emotion in his eyes still stung me. It seemed this matter was far from over. 3 “How is Rowan doing? Why did he suddenly have an episode?” Shortly after waking up, Rowan fell back asleep. Chase pulled me out into the hallway and asked quietly. “There’s still no case of his disease being completely cured,” I sighed. “With current medical technology, we can only rely on medication to stabilize his condition… When you found him, was there anyone else with him?” Chase hesitated, looking at me as if he wanted to say something but couldn’t. “Lily Evans?” He nodded. I knew it. “Uh, but don’t overthink it. She’s been staking out his office building for a long time. She just happened to catch him today.” “You’re really good at making excuses for your bro,” I complained, feigning anger. Chase panicked. “Tsk, I’m definitely on your side! Didn’t you see me roast that Lily girl until she was speechless just now?” The image of Chase arguing with our high school principal suddenly popped into my head. I laughed. “Alright, seriously though, thank you so much for today. I owe you a dinner.” Chase grinned, scratching his head awkwardly. “It was nothing… but since you’re offering, I won’t say no!” I waved at him helplessly as he left. However, just as I saw Chase off and turned to head back to the room, I saw Lily standing pitifully off to the side. Didn’t she leave? She really pulled a fast one on me. “Do you need something?” I asked her expressionlessly. “Miss Brooks…” Lily’s eyes were red, like a rabbit’s. “I’m sorry.” “Sorry for what?” “I…” Like someone who had been holding back grievances for a long time and finally snapped, Lily suddenly covered her face and burst into loud sobs. “It’s all my fault. I said things that upset Mr. Hayes. I made him sick. If it weren’t for me… if it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t have collapsed… It’s all my fault…” My mind went completely blank. “What did you say to him?” I tried my best to suppress my emotions, not wanting her to notice anything off about me. Lily rubbed her red eyes. “I came today to say goodbye to Mr. Hayes. I wanted to go back to my hometown. My relatives found a pretty good match for me to marry, and then… he got so angry he yelled at me, and then he collapsed from the stress…” I didn’t know what to say for a moment. In my memory, Rowan rarely got sick because of emotional fluctuations. “Miss Evans, you don’t need to cry.” I smiled faintly. “Rowan probably had an episode because he inhaled fumes. It was an underground parking garage, after all. There’s a lot of exhaust. “But Miss Evans, what you said is infuriating. Rowan sponsored your education for so many years, and you want to drop out to go back and get married? Isn’t that making all his efforts a waste? You should focus on your studies and not let us down.” Probably not expecting such a calm reaction from me, Lily looked up, staring at me in shock. I put on a look of concern. “Is it your relatives forcing you to go back and get married? Do you need me to introduce you to a lawyer?” Lily froze for a moment, then forced a smile. “No, no need.” I didn’t say anything more to her and turned back into the hospital room. Rowan was still sleeping, his breathing even. But I felt like I was suffocating. I had never doubted Rowan’s feelings for me. After all, we had known each other for twenty-two years. We were childhood sweethearts, having met when we were four. In my memory, before he turned seventeen, Rowan didn’t like smiling at others, and he never smiled at me. I figured back then, to him, I was probably just the daughter of his father’s friend. Even though we had been in the same classes since elementary school, we rarely actually spoke. When Rowan was seventeen, disaster struck his family. His father was reported for financial fraud. Shareholders pulled their investments overnight, the company was shut down and investigated, and his business partners absconded with the funds. The Hayes Corporation became the target of public outrage. Added to the cash flow problems, the Hayes family went bankrupt. At the time, Rowan’s mother had already been in the hospital for over a year due to health issues. Neither father nor son told her what happened. In the end, his father sold their house at a heavy discount just to scrape together enough money for her surgery. But when you’re at your lowest, tragedies tend to pile on. Rowan’s mother made it off the operating table safely, but died of sudden cardiac arrest shortly after. It was a common surgical risk; no one was to blame for the tragedy. But the sorrow didn’t end there. The night his mother died, another body appeared below the Hayes Corporation building. His father had jumped. By the time my family rushed over, Rowan was standing in the morgue, staring blankly at the bodies of his parents. My father stepped forward and held him tightly; my mother pulled me close, crying uncontrollably. At the funeral, Rowan didn’t cry. Like always, he was just silent, watching the friends and relatives who came to pay their respects with no joy and no sorrow. The few friends his father had when he was alive didn’t show up. Although they claimed they were tied up with business, I knew they were just afraid of getting involved in the mess. Despite the large number of relatives, not a single one offered to take in a seventeen-year-old Rowan. We couldn’t bear to let him go back to that shabby rented apartment. Rowan was in a daze, like a walking corpse. He slept quietly in our guest room that night. My father said, if they won’t raise Rowan, I will. And just like that, Rowan stayed at our house. He still went to school and came home like usual. His grades were always at the top of the class, and he had an ever-growing list of admirers. He was as normal as could be, but I always felt that the more normal he acted, the more he was suppressing his true emotions. I figured our house wasn’t where Rowan truly wanted to be. My father seemed to notice this too. One day, he suddenly placed the keys to the Hayes family villa in front of Rowan. A flicker of emotion finally crossed his deadened face. He nodded, said thank you, took the keys, and left our house. I knew my father was good to Rowan mostly to repay the debt of gratitude he owed Rowan’s father for giving him his start. But now, he truly cared for the boy from the bottom of his heart. After Rowan moved back into the Hayes house, he stopped going to school. He locked himself inside all day. Even when I went to drop off food, I could only leave it at the door. But days passed, and the food at the door remained untouched. I suspected he was having suicidal thoughts. “Rowan! Rowan!” After losing count of how many times I failed to see him, I had no choice but to bang loudly on the floor-to-ceiling windows of the balcony. No one answered. Finally, I smashed a hole in the glass with a rock, stuck my arm in, unlocked the door, and went inside. Probably hearing the noise, Rowan finally came downstairs. He was wearing dirty clothes, enveloped in a cloud of gloom. He was much thinner than the last time I saw him, and a fine stubble covered his chin. Although it was a false alarm, I was still furious. But before I could blow up, he grabbed me and dragged me toward the bedroom. “What are you doing! I’m going to scream!” I struggled in terror, but Rowan was tall and strong, and he literally dragged me all the way into the bedroom. It’s over, I thought. Rowan’s suppressed his feelings for too long, he’s finally lost his mind. However, what awaited me wasn’t the horrifying scene I had imagined, but a shallow stinging sensation on the back of my hand. Only then did I realize that the back of my hand had been cut by the glass at some point. Rowan carefully disinfected my wound with a cotton swab. His clumsy yet gentle demeanor was as if he were handling a fragile, precious treasure. It was right then that I realized I had a bit of a crush on him. Later, I talked to him a lot. I told him he could stay home alone, and he didn’t have to go to school, but he absolutely had to eat properly. I also told him that as long as he said he was sad, I would come over and stay with him until he was ready to face the world again. That was the first time I saw Rowan smile, and also the first time I saw him cry like a child. Later, when the investigation into his father’s case concluded, it was proven that the rumors were malicious lies. The rumor mongers were arrested, but Rowan’s parents were never coming back. It was also that day I learned Rowan had IPAH. He was rushed to the ER, and I was so terrified he would go in and never come out, just like his mother. Thankfully, he was okay. It was also from then on that I secretly changed my college major. It was precisely because we had been through so much together that I had absolute confidence in our relationship. I never imagined another woman appearing by Rowan’s side, much less that he would care excessively about any woman other than me. But these five years seemed to have changed too much. I was beginning to doubt. A man I was afraid to even argue with because of his health had actually been hospitalized out of anger over another woman. 4 Rowan slept until early the next morning. I had a nurse arrange some tests for him. As long as there were no major issues, he could be discharged. I sat on a stool watching Rowan. He stared out the window, his brows furrowed slightly, lost in thought. “Rowan, after you fell asleep yesterday, Lily Evans came by.” Actually, she had never left. Rowan shot me a quick glance, then asked calmly, “Did she say anything?” “She said thank you for all your help, and that she’s going home to get married.” “Cough, cough…” Rowan clutched his chest and started coughing. Normally, I would rush forward to coddle him, but now, I figured a few coughs wouldn’t kill him. After all, he’d already passed out for her. “How is that possible…” Rowan muttered to himself. “Why wouldn’t it be possible?” I fired back instantly: “Do you know her that well?” “Harper…” Rowan looked at me, his face pale. “Do you really want to talk about this right now?” “Fine, we won’t talk about it. You’re sick, after all.” I didn’t want to bother with him anymore. I pulled off the pulse oximeter and turned to leave. For whatever reason, Rowan grabbed my hand. “Ever since she left the house that time, she’s been coming to the company a lot. Every time, I’ve had my assistant turn her away. I just didn’t expect her to follow me to the parking lot yesterday, and even say she wanted to…” He didn’t finish the sentence. I turned to look at him, and he looked back at me, lost. “She said she wanted to get married, and you were so furious you passed out.” I couldn’t help but find it funny. “Rowan, just admit it. “In the three years you’ve known her, you wavered.” I shook off his hand and ignored his calls, told the nurses outside to keep an eye on him, and went back to my office. Before returning to the States, I never imagined that I’d come home to face Rowan’s infidelity. Those five years of sleepless nights and relentless studying felt like a complete joke. I moved out of the Hayes estate. At first, he stood outside my door saying a lot of sweet things, bringing up all our memories from high school. Listening to him, apart from sadness, I just felt a heavy weight on my heart. He knew our best memories were from back then. But the more he made me reminisce, the more lost I felt. Later, when he realized I wasn’t just throwing a tantrum, he panicked. He started apologizing constantly, promising he would cut all ties with Lily, that he would never let her appear in front of me again, let alone near our lives. My parents thought that since Rowan had admitted his mistake, and since nothing physical had actually happened with Lily, I should forgive him for the sake of our twenty years of history. But how many times had I woken up in the middle of the night, the image of Rowan smiling tenderly at Lily flashing in my mind? His smile was no longer exclusively mine, and his heart was slowly shifting away. I really did love him hopelessly. Being able to endure five years in a foreign country was entirely because of him. But now, I was starting to doubt. I was doubting if it was all worth it. “Harper, today is your birthday. Can we please just see each other?” After many days, Rowan’s voice had grown hoarse. He knocked on the door outside, but I ignored him. “Okay… if you ever want to see me, just call. I have something I want to tell you too…” Rowan’s desolate voice drifted in, followed by the sound of his heavy, retreating footsteps. I wiped away the dried tear tracks on my face, ready to pull myself together, when I received a text. It was from Chase. Ever since I went abroad, I hadn’t had much contact with my old high school friend. Even when I did get news, it was through Rowan telling me how Chase was doing. That familiar chat box blinked on my screen. “Happy Birthday, Miss Brooks!” Followed immediately by another text. “When are you cashing in on that dinner you owe me? I’ve already picked out a super expensive restaurant ι(｀?-?′)/” His use of emoticons was so spot-on it gave me intense déjà vu. I replied: “Let’s do today then. Are you free?” Chase replied instantly: “? For real?” Me: “For real, but if you’re too slow, this lady won’t wait around.” This time, he didn’t reply for a long time. By the time I got another message, he had already parked his car outside my door. Still rocking that eye-catching blonde hair and edgy, loud clothes. Seeing me, Chase lowered his sunglasses and gave me a cocky eyebrow raise: “Get in. I’m taking you out for a good time!” “Humph.” I sniffled slightly, opened the door, and got in. The car smelled faintly of paint. “I think I’m taking you out for a good time, okay?” “Alright, alright, Miss Brooks. You’re the boss. Where to?” Chase tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, seemingly in a great mood. For some reason, seeing Chase like this made me feel incredibly at ease. So much had changed in the last five years, but Chase was still the same carefree guy he had always been. “Pfft—” “What are you laughing at?” Chase looked at me laughing uncontrollably, completely bewildered. “Nothing… let’s go eat.” I said excitedly. “Let’s go somewhere with a huge menu!” “A huge menu?”

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I decided to go all out and hide my pregnancy to join a reality dating show. I thought I could just openly flirt with some cute, younger guys on the show. But I never expected a certain someone to follow me there, corner me, and look at me with red eyes: “Whose child is it?” 1 Ethan and I got together because of an arranged marriage between our families. He was a famous, A-list actor in the entertainment industry, while I was just a D-list “flower vase” – someone with a pretty face but no acting skills, constantly plagued by scandals. Because of my looks, many actresses in the industry were jealous of me and secretly (and sometimes not-so-secretly) boycotted me. As a result, my reputation in the industry was never great. Ethan and I had a secret marriage. We kept things polite and respectful after tying the knot, but an unexpected accident led to us sleeping together once. And it was that very accident that somehow got me pregnant. Staring at the ultrasound report in my hand, I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. Was this guy’s aim really that good?! My hand rested on my stomach. Even though it was only a month along, knowing there was a baby inside me triggered a strange, wonderful shift in my mindset. I pulled out my phone, ready to share the news with Ethan, only to be bombarded by a massive wave of entertainment news notifications. #A-List Actress Audrey Hayes Returns, A-List Actor Ethan Carter Personally Picks Her Up From the Airport# #What a Perfect Match! Actor Ethan Carter and Actress Audrey Hayes Look So Good Together!# I clicked on the article and saw a photo of my husband, Ethan, walking side-by-side with a young woman. The woman was beautiful, with long hair cascading down her back and a gentle smile on her fair, delicate face. Countless netizens were commenting on how perfectly they matched and begging them to get together! I knew about Audrey Hayes. She and Ethan went to the same acting school, and many fans shipped them as a couple. Seeing this photo and the comments seriously pissed me off. I remembered Ethan’s public schedule. A business trip? So his so-called business trip was actually going to pick up another woman? Even though our relationship was mostly formal, that didn’t give him a free pass to betray me. Anger flared up inside me. Suddenly, my phone rang, pulling me out of my thoughts. “Hey? Sierra, there’s a small reality dating show, do you want to do it? I know it’s not a major production, but given our current situation, we can’t really afford to be picky…” My manager, Valerie, sounded like she was preparing for a long, arduous persuasion, afraid I’d refuse. But before she could finish, I cut in: “I’ll do it.” “Huh?” Valerie was stunned for a second. I repeated, “I’ll take it. A dating show sounds great, why wouldn’t I do it?” A smile crept onto my face, but it didn’t reach my eyes. I swiped away the tabloid news about Ethan on my screen and shoved the ultrasound report into my bag. 2 Valerie told me the dating show was scheduled to film for two weeks. I packed a few things and flew out to the production set with her. I heard there were going to be six cast members in total: three men and three women, and the whole thing would be live-streamed. To build hype, the production team hadn’t released the official cast list beforehand, meaning we wouldn’t know who else was on the show until we arrived on set. To make a good first impression, I arrived super early, thinking I’d be the first one there. Who knew that as soon as I showed up, a camera would be pointed right at me, followed by the director’s voice: “Let’s welcome our final cast member, Sierra!” Me: “…” I was inwardly sweating dropping, but outwardly, I raised my hand and gave a fake, overly-sweet wave to everyone. “Sierra’s face is literally everything! I love her!” “Ugh, so gross. She’s just a flower vase. What does she have besides a pretty face? Why did the show invite someone like her!” I have excellent eyesight, and I caught the live comments flying across the screen instantly. But my expression didn’t change. I was in the entertainment industry to build character, anyway. I walked into the small house the production team had prepared. There were six chairs, and five were already occupied. B-list heartthrob Liam Davis, whom I had acted with in a drama once, had that classic “golden retriever” boy-next-door look and two cute dimples when he smiled. Sweetheart idol Chloe Miller, who debuted from a survival show, was wearing a pink dress and a messy bun, looking incredibly sweet and approachable. Seeing these two, my expression remained neutral. But when I saw the three people sitting behind them, my eyes widened in shock. Top idol Noah Sterling was winking at me. Beside him was A-list actor Ethan Carter, and A-list actress Audrey Hayes. Wasn’t this supposed to be a small, B-tier dating show? What were these three doing here?! The moment I looked toward Ethan, I met a pair of dark, deep eyes filled with an unreadable emotion. Before I could examine his expression, a figure in white blocked my view. “Since everyone is here, let’s get started.” Audrey casually positioned herself right between Ethan and me. A gentle smile played on her lips. “Audrey is so beautiful! Her smile just melts my heart!” “If we’re talking about looks, I still think Sierra is a level above.” “Sierra is just a flower vase. Please don’t compare her to our Audrey, OK?!” I pulled my gaze away from Ethan and suppressed my shock. I still couldn’t understand why a top-tier actor like him would come on a small show like this. But then it hit me: Ethan was a married man, and he was on a dating show! With Audrey, no less! Were these two trying to date in plain sight?! My face darkened. 3 The grouping began, using a random draw. Noah ended up next to me. I heard him lower his voice and ask, “How have things been lately?” Although his voice wasn’t picked up by his mic, his actions were caught on camera. “Ahhh! What is Noah doing! Why is he talking to Sierra!” “That little bitch! I knew she was a master manipulator!” “Noah, stay away from that woman!” As a top idol, Noah had a massive fanbase of obsessive fangirls. The moment he approached me, the live chat exploded. “Why are you on this show?” I whispered back. “I saw you were doing it, so I tagged along. Sis, your husband sure knows how to play the game. Trying to get paid to date on national TV?” Noah winked at me exaggeratedly. I forgot to mention, my real name is Sierra Sterling, and Sierra is just my stage name. I rolled my eyes at Noah. That was obviously impossible. Ethan might have come on the show to date, but the person he wanted to date definitely wasn’t me. The draw started, and I prayed inwardly that I wouldn’t be paired with Ethan. But they say the more you try to avoid something, the more likely it is to happen. Liam and Chloe were paired up. Noah and Audrey were paired up. And Ethan and I… were paired together. “WTF! How is Ethan not paired with Audrey! I refuse to accept this draw!” “Oh my god, Ethan got paired with that flower vase Sierra? She must be thrilled to death!” I was standing closest to the monitor and saw the comments instantly. I already had this inexplicable anger pent up inside me, probably made worse by the pregnancy hormones. I couldn’t hold it back and snapped directly at the camera: “What do you mean I’d be thrilled to death to be paired with Ethan? Why don’t you say he would be thrilled to death to be paired with me?” As soon as I said that, not only the set but the entire live chat went dead silent. But a second later, an even more intense wave of comments flooded the screen. “Oh my god, is this woman telling a joke? Is she possessed?” “Sierra, do you even know the meaning of the word ‘shameless’?” “Being paired with you, Ethan is probably thinking he has the worst luck in the world. How could he possibly be thrilled?” “…” Just a quick glance at the screen showed a massive wave of insults directed at me. In the past, worried about my reputation, I would act carefully on camera, swallowing a lot of grievances. But now, after clapping back, I felt so much better. Whatever! I don’t rely on the entertainment industry to eat anyway. I’m just here for fun. If I can’t handle it anymore, I’ll just go home and inherit the family fortune! Besides, I’m pregnant now. Holding onto anger is terrible for pregnant women! Once I figured that out, I stopped caring entirely. But to my utter shock, a deep voice echoed my words: “Yes, I’m thrilled to death.” Not only was I stunned, but even the smile on Audrey’s face stiffened. I saw Ethan’s dark, deep eyes staring intently at me, a flicker of an unidentifiable emotion dancing within them. What the hell is this man doing! Before I could recover, I heard a soft, gentle whisper near my ear: “Ethan is still the same as always, stepping in to help people out of awkward situations.” I frowned. Audrey’s overly familiar use of his first name grated on my nerves. Who needs Ethan’s help! 4 After the draw, the directors started assigning tasks. To help the pairs build chemistry and bond, our housing and food would depend on completing tasks. The directors brought us to the edge of a wooded area. The first task was to collect firewood in the woods. The pair that collected the most firewood would get first pick of the houses. The time limit was one hour. When the timer started, I rushed into the woods. Ethan followed behind me at a leisurely pace. I didn’t want to talk to him, so I bent down and started gathering wood. However, mindful of my pregnancy, I didn’t dare move too vigorously or carry too much at once. “You go sit and rest. I’ll get it. It’s dirty out here.” As I was focusing on gathering wood, Ethan’s voice sounded right next to my ear. I straightened up and looked around. Liam and Chloe were working hard nearby. Noah’s team was just Noah working alone. Audrey was sitting on a rock admiring the scenery, showing no intention of getting her hands dirty. “Why isn’t Audrey helping? Why is she just sitting there?” “Gathering firewood is dirty work. Why should our Audrey have to do it?” “Didn’t our Audrey already say she wasn’t feeling well? What’s wrong with resting for a bit?” “The other two actresses are doing it, why can’t Audrey? Just watching Noah do all the work? So high-maintenance.” “If you’re going to participate, then participate. If you can’t, then leave.” I glanced at the live chat. Noah’s fans and Audrey’s fans were tearing each other apart. I glanced at Ethan and scoffed: “What? Want me to draw the fire away from Audrey?” This man was unbelievable! I never realized he was this awful before! Ethan: “?” I turned around, refusing to look at him, and went back to gathering wood. The outer edges of the woods were pretty picked over, so I gradually went deeper in. A rustling sound came from a bush ahead, and I instantly went on high alert. They say there are often wild animals in the woods… could it be a wolf or a bear or something? I looked around. I was the only one in this area. Ugh, I’m scared… Just as I was about to turn and run, a figure burst out of the bushes. “Sis!” Hearing that familiar voice, I jumped, then immediately let out a sigh of relief. I was about to speak when I saw Noah point at the microphone clipped to my shirt. I understood and turned it off. “Sis, here, take all of this.” Noah walked over and shoved all the firewood he had collected into my arms. “Huh? If you give it all to me, what are you going to do?” He was the only one working on his team. “I’ll be fine, sis. I can sleep anywhere. But my sister can’t rough it.” As Noah spoke, he winked at me and blew a kiss. His exaggerated expressions made him look incredibly campy. Knowing that the persona he maintained for his fans was that of a cool, aloof guy, seeing him act like this in front of me was too much. I couldn’t take it and just punched him in the arm: “Talk normally.” Noah howled and dropped the act. But he still insisted on giving me the firewood. Thinking about my brother working so hard while Audrey just sat there watching, I felt a surge of resentment. I didn’t try to give it back and accepted it. Time was almost up, so I headed back to base camp. The massive pile of wood in my arms drew everyone’s attention. The director gave me a close-up shot, and I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my sleeve. “Wow, I didn’t expect Sierra to be such a hard worker! With all that wood, she’s definitely getting first place!” “I thought Sierra was just a delicate flower vase, but it turns out… the real delicate flower is someone else.” “Hey, the commenter above me, we already said Audrey isn’t feeling well.” “I didn’t even mention your Audrey. Why are you getting so defensive?” “…” Noah also collected some wood on his way back, but not much. Audrey looked at me, then at him, her face looking a little displeased. She subconsciously asked, “Why did you only get this much?” That complaining tone instantly set off Noah’s fans in the live chat. “Does Audrey have no shame?! Complaining that our Noah didn’t get enough?” “Hahaha! She did absolutely nothing, and she has the nerve to complain about our Noah? Is Audrey a bitch or what?” The moment Audrey said it, she realized her mistake. She quickly tried to backpedal: “Noah, I didn’t mean it like that. I don’t mind what kind of house we stay in…” I rolled my eyes as I listened from the side. I looked around for Ethan and realized that at some point, he had also gathered a massive pile. I had what Noah gave me, but his was all gathered by himself, and it was more than Noah and mine combined. Unsurprisingly, our team took first place. Liam and Chloe took second, and Noah and Audrey took third. There were three types of houses. A nice little two-story house, a single-story ranch, and a small, rustic cabin. Since I was first, I got to choose the best one, so I picked the two-story house. Liam and Chloe chose the ranch. Noah and Audrey had no choice but to take the rustic cabin. That cabin had absolutely nothing inside except a single bed. In contrast, my two-story house had two beds. I naturally wasn’t going to let my brother sleep in the same bed as that woman. Just as I was about to tell Noah to come over tonight, I saw Audrey walk over to Ethan, her eyes brimming with tears. “Ethan, could you guys share a room with me tonight? I haven’t been feeling well lately, and that house is drafty. I’m afraid I’ll catch a cold.” Audrey coughed a few times as she spoke. My expression instantly turned icy when I heard Audrey’s words. If Ethan dared to agree today, I’d pack him up and throw him out! 5 “Sorry, I don’t have the authority to decide.” I was slightly surprised. Ethan actually refused? When I looked over at him, Ethan was already looking at me. I heard him say: “You can ask my partner.” Ethan actually told Audrey to ask me? I was stunned. Audrey’s hands, hanging by her sides, involuntarily clenched into fists. Her face went from pale to green. The public always said she and Ethan had a great relationship, and there were even rumors they were dating. Only Audrey knew that she and Ethan had no special relationship at all. Those rumors were just PR stunts she orchestrated herself. But she and Ethan went to the same acting school, and he had never publicly rejected her or embarrassed her. Now, he was blatantly slapping her in the face. Audrey adjusted her emotions, and I saw her walking toward me. Before she could speak, I quickly called out to Noah: “Noah, do you want to come stay in the two-story house with us tonight?” “Sure thing,” Noah agreed immediately. Audrey froze in her tracks. “Does Sierra have no shame! What is she trying to pull!” “Wow, what a move! Is she trying to keep Audrey from staying there?” “What’s wrong with Sierra? I think she’s great. This is a reward they earned. She can invite whoever she wants.” “Exactly, exactly. Inviting our Noah shows she has great taste. Some people do absolutely nothing and just want a free ride.” In the live chat, Audrey’s fans tried to attack me, but Noah’s fans completely shut them down. “I admit I was a little harsh on Sierra earlier, but looking at it now, she has great taste and knows how to choose.” Audrey’s manager had been monitoring the live chat the whole time. Seeing so many people attacking Audrey, he glared at her, shooting her a warning look. The situation was set. Audrey had no choice but to sleep in the rustic cabin by herself tonight. The next task was to obtain food. Having learned her lesson, Audrey knew she couldn’t just sit around anymore. Otherwise, she’d get roasted even worse. She had originally wanted to portray a delicate, untouchable, pampered persona, but she failed miserably, and her persona completely collapsed. Now, a lot of Noah’s fans were starting to hate Audrey. Noah was a top-tier idol at the peak of his career; he had a massive fanbase. 6 The production team was somewhat generous. The food-gathering task wasn’t too difficult, and we finished it quickly. Maybe it was because of the pregnancy and the exercise, but I was starving. After getting my food, I sat in a corner and started eating. A strong wave of perfume hit me, and Audrey sat down next to me. “Sierra,” she called my name. I couldn’t help it; I sneezed loudly. Audrey: “…” “What’s up?” I moved over a bit, putting some distance between me and Audrey. The smell was too strong; I couldn’t handle it. Audrey glanced at the microphone clipped to my shirt. Seeing it was turned off, she felt safe to speak: “Sierra, do you know what kind of family background Noah comes from?” Me: “?” “He’s the second son of the Sterling Group in New York,” Audrey said, her expression flat. “You should know the Sterling Group. Top-tier conglomerate in the city.” “Oh.” I didn’t understand what Audrey was getting at, but I nodded cluelessly. “Noah and Ethan. Neither of them is someone you can ever match. Be smart and stay far away from them from now on.” Me: “…???” I found Audrey’s words hilarious. This girl was really something else! “I hope you look out for yourself,” Audrey said, then stood up and walked away. Idiot. I rolled my eyes, ignored her, and went back to gnawing on my chicken drumstick. Night quietly fell. Noah got one room, which meant I’d be sleeping in the same room as Ethan tonight. The production team confiscated our phones, but they gave us one hour of phone time every day. After washing up, I lay in bed and started googling “precautions for pregnant women.” “What are you looking at?” Just as I was deeply engrossed in reading, a voice suddenly sounded from above my head. I jumped, frantically locking my phone screen. “You scared the crap out of me! Don’t you make any noise when you walk?” I patted my chest to calm my racing heart. I didn’t want to tell Ethan about the pregnancy just yet. Ethan produced a glass of milk from who knows where and handed it to me: “Drink this.” “Where did you get this?” Even though I ate quite a bit at dinner, I was starting to feel hungry again. Thinking about the baby in my stomach, I took the milk. After I finished it, Ethan handed me a tissue. “A villager gave it to us.” I nodded and went to brush my teeth before bed. Lying in bed, the camera in the room was covered by Ethan. I was originally feeling sleepy, but with Ethan lying next to me, my sleepiness suddenly vanished. My mind replayed the events of the day. Audrey had tried to get close to Ethan multiple times, but I saw Ethan completely ignore her every time. What was going on? Wasn’t Audrey Ethan’s “first love”? He literally lied about going on a business trip just to pick her up from the airport! Could it be that because I was here, Ethan felt awkward? That made sense. I suddenly let out a cold chuckle. Even if Ethan didn’t care about my feelings, he had to consider the reputation of our two families. “What are you laughing about in the middle of the night?” I heard Ethan’s voice suddenly cut through the darkness. “Mind your own business.” I rolled over, turning my back to Ethan, closed my eyes, and went to sleep. 7 Early the next morning. I slowly woke up, and as soon as I opened my eyes, I found myself staring at a smooth, fair chin. My eyes widened, and I let out a scream, accidentally headbutting Ethan right under his jaw. A muffled groan followed. I sat up and saw a look of pain on Ethan’s face. “Y-you shameless creep!” I pointed a finger at Ethan. “You’re taking advantage of me! Who told you to hold me while sleeping!” Ethan sat up too. I have to admit, to become a top-tier star, his looks really were undeniable. His messy bangs fell over his brow, and his dark, deep eyes stared at me. He rubbed his chin and said: “Are you sure I was holding you?” I frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then a look of sheer embarrassment spread across my face. Earlier… it seemed I was the one pinning Ethan down. I’ve always been a restless sleeper. Normally, Ethan was busy, and sometimes he wasn’t home. But even when he was home, we slept in separate beds. I scratched my head and replied: “We’re an old married couple anyway. So what if I squished you a little?” I’ve never been one to lose an argument. After saying that, I didn’t dare look at Ethan’s expression and quickly scrambled out of bed. The production team had prepared breakfast. After we finished eating, they announced the task. Helping the villagers clean fish. Hearing the words “clean fish,” a vivid image flashed in my mind. Normally, I probably wouldn’t have thought much of it. But now that I was pregnant, just thinking about that scene made me want to gag. Ethan was the first to notice my reaction. He walked behind me and patted my back. “What’s wrong?” I was about to answer when I saw the director’s crew bring out the fish. The smell of raw fish hit my nostrils, cutting my words short as I doubled over, dry heaving again. The viewers in the live chat saw this and immediately started speculating. “What’s wrong with Sierra? That looks exactly like morning sickness.” “Is Sierra pregnant? Why else would the smell of fish make her throw up?” I saw Ethan narrowing his eyes at me. My heart skipped a beat. Just as I was trying to figure out how to explain, Audrey also started dry heaving nearby. “Ethan, ugh…” Audrey’s reaction was clearly much more dramatic than mine, the actually pregnant person. “Ethan, this smell is awful. I caught a chill last night, and the smell today is making my stomach turn.” Audrey, eyes red and brimming with tears, looked at Ethan, clearly waiting for him to come over and comfort her. But Ethan didn’t even spare her a glance. However, Audrey’s words gave me the perfect excuse. “I think I caught a chill last night too. My stomach is feeling really upset today.” “I’ll ask the production team for an extra blanket tonight.” Ethan suddenly reached out and felt my forehead. “Good thing you don’t have a fever.” I was startled by Ethan’s sudden touch. The live chat also went silent for a moment, and then the screen was flooded with comments. “Ahhhh! What did I just see! The Ice King just touched Sierra’s forehead!” “Isn’t this a dating show? Touching a forehead is normal interaction, right?” “Why didn’t Ethan touch Audrey’s forehead? Audrey said she wasn’t feeling well and he didn’t care, but he cared about Sierra.” “Commenter above, what’s your logic? The Ice King’s current partner is Sierra. Isn’t it completely normal for him to care about his own partner? Why should he care about Audrey?” “Aren’t the Ice King and Audrey universally acknowledged as a couple?” “??? When did the Ice King ever say he and Audrey were a couple? Please stop trying to force them together, thanks!” The live chat was going crazy, and it took me a moment to snap out of it. I saw Audrey looking at me like she wanted to eat me alive. I frowned, feeling annoyed. Ethan is clearly my husband. What the hell does that look mean? I let out a soft scoff, purposely putting on a delicate, whiny voice for Ethan: “Ethan, my stomach hurts so much. I don’t think I can clean fish later.” I threw Ethan a “you-know-what-I-mean” look. Honestly, I was a little nervous. I wasn’t sure if Ethan would reject me. But if he actually dared to reject me, he was dead meat. I heard Ethan give a soft “Mhm”: “I’ll do it. You rest on the side.” I let out a “hehe” and smiled. For Liam and Chloe’s team, Chloe also didn’t want to clean fish, and Liam told her to go rest on the side. When it came to Noah and Audrey, right before Audrey could speak, Noah’s voice carried over: “Audrey, the smell of this fish is making me feel sick too. You clean them.” With that, Noah shoved a large knife into Audrey’s hands and walked over to the side, crossing his legs casually. This move left not only Audrey dumbfounded, but the entire live chat as well. “Hahahaha! Oh my god! Noah’s move has me dying! Audrey is frozen.” “Is Noah being ungentlemanly? Why make Audrey clean the fish?” “What do you mean ungentlemanly? During the first task, your Audrey wasn’t feeling well and rested on the side while our Noah gathered all the firewood himself. Now our Noah isn’t feeling well and wants to rest. Why can’t your Audrey clean the fish?” “Audrey needs to stop being so high-maintenance.” Audrey’s fans were definitely no match for Noah’s obsessive fanbase. In no time, the entire live chat was spammed with “Audrey needs to stop being so high-maintenance,” making Audrey’s manager’s face turn darker than coal. Audrey was screaming internally, but Noah clearly wasn’t going to help. If Audrey didn’t do it, they probably really wouldn’t have any lunch. She had no choice but to resign herself to her fate, pick up the knife, and start cleaning fish. Audrey was wearing a white dress today, and in no time, it was stained with bright red blood. I have to say, I was reveling in her misery. I didn’t like her to begin with, so of course, I was going to enjoy this. I looked over at Ethan. He was wearing black clothes and had thrown a leather apron over himself. His sleeves were rolled up to his forearms, displaying his muscular arms as he expertly chopped the fish without a hint of hesitation. As I watched, I let out a light cough. I was almost blinded by how hot this man looked.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “411842”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel