After a satisfying meal, Zac guided Helen to the car. Settling into the passenger seat, Helen felt the post-lunch drowsiness kick in. The warm afternoon sun and her full stomach made her eyelids grow heavy. Her head bobbed slightly as she dozed off, trusting Zac to handle picking up Alex. After all, she didn’t need to drive, so she let herself relax completely. Seeing her fast asleep, Zac quietly drove to a nearby hotel. After booking a room on his phone, he carried her inside. Sleepiness must be contagious because Zac was starting to feel it too. After taking off her shoes and settling her on the bed, he sent a quick message to Justin. “I’ll pick up Alex from you later this afternoon.”With that done, he climbed into bed on the other side and wrapped his arms around her before drifting off. *They slept soundly until late in the afternoon. In her half-asleep state, Helen thought the warmth beside her was her plushie. She turned over and snuggled against it, rubbing he
In the afternoon, Alex woke up on the couch in Justin’s office, rubbing his sleepy little hands over his eyes. Once fully awake, he looked around the empty room—Uncle Justin was nowhere in sight. Slipping on his tiny shoes, Alex hopped off the couch and padded over to the door. Pushing it open, he called out, “Uncle Justin?” As he wandered through the executive suite, he passed a flurry of activity where busy assistants worked at their desks. One of the secretaries kindly pointed him in the right direction, and Alex followed the hallway until he reached the conference room. Inside, Justin had just wrapped up a meeting. Spotting Alex at the door, he immediately walked over and crouched down to scoop him up. “Awake?” Justin asked, his voice uncharacteristically soft. The executive director standing behind Justin was stunned. The resemblance between this boy and both the CEO and the marketing manager, Emma, was uncanny. While it wasn’t as noticeable when the boy was asle
Zac called. “I’m downstairs in front of your building. When are you bringing Alex down?”“Coming now,” Justin replied.Alex’s head drooped, his disappointment obvious. The sadness on his face was plain to see. Happy moments always felt so short, and he knew it was time to go back. The moment he heard Aunt Helen’s voice on Uncle Zac’s call, he had known they were coming to take him home. At least they hadn’t interrupted his lunch. He was already grateful to Uncle Zac for that. Justin felt a twinge of reluctance as well, but after all, Alex wasn’t his child. Instead of letting Alex walk, Justin carried him in his arms as they headed downstairs. William followed behind, holding the bags of items Justin had bought for Alex. The walk down was quiet, with a faint melancholy hanging over them. Outside the building, Zac stood by the flower bed near the main entrance. “Took you long enough,” Zac said, reaching out to take Alex. “Come on, Alex, I will take you home.” But A
Zac glanced at Alex and couldn’t help but agree with what Helen had said. Alex really was a tough little rascal with nerves of steel.No wonder his Aunt Helen was always so short-tempered.When they were in Merika State, Justin had faintly overheard Helen’s voice on the phone. She really did sound like someone who wasn’t in the best of health. “If it’s your aunt, I’ll go to the hospital with you to visit her,” Justin said. It would be a good opportunity to meet Alex’s family. If his aunt was truly unwell and couldn’t manage caring for Alex, Justin wouldn’t mind taking him in for a while.After all, Alex wasn’t a troublesome kid.“No, no need for that,” Zac quickly interjected, reaching out to scoop Alex into his own arms. “You’re a busy CEO. There’s no reason for you to go out of your way to visit the hospital. Besides, patients need rest. If you want to send your regards, I’ll happily pass them along.“Bye now!” Zac hurriedly carried Alex toward the car, moving as though som
“Mr. Yates has a kid? Isn’t he unmarried?” Another colleague joined the group chat. “Who says you have to be married to have a kid? And who even knows if he’s single? Secret marriages are all the rage these days.” “Speculating won’t get us anywhere. We’ve got proof—someone who went to the top floor to report saw him holding the boy and snapped a photo.” The photo showed Justin outside the conference room holding Alex, with Alex’s face clearly visible. “Wow, this kid looks…” “You think he looks like Mr. Yates and Emma too, right?” The colleague silently nodded. It wasn’t just a resemblance—it was as if the boy was their child. “If Miss Xander already had a kid with Mr. Yates, why is she still stuck in the marketing department? Shouldn’t she have been promoted to a core department by now?” “Who knows? Maybe his family doesn’t approve, so she’s been stuck waiting to marry him. Otherwise, why wouldn’t they go public or hold a wedding?” The group nodded in agre
The woman left, but Emma sat restlessly in her leather office chair, unable to stop thinking about the child in the photo. Who could have given birth to Justin’s child? Over the past five years, the only place she couldn’t gain access to was Villa One. Everywhere else around Justin, she had planted informants. So how had a son suddenly appeared out of nowhere? Judging by the boy’s age, he had to be four or five years old. Five or six years ago… Could it have been Emily? No, that didn’t make sense—Emily was dead. Was there another woman in Justin’s life back then? Or could it have been a one-night stand she didn’t know about? Irritated by her thoughts, Emma decided to go upstairs to confirm her suspicions. *On the top floor, in the CEO’s office, Emma walked up to Lila.“Lila, where’s the child the boss brought in?” Emma asked with a practiced smile, feigning a warm and familiar demeanor toward the boy. Only she knew how forced that smile was. “Oh, you me
Emma turned, her eyes flashing with hatred as she watched Sam’s figure disappear down the hallway. He was clearly using his position to make things difficult for her. It was just an event proposal, yet he kept finding excuses to reject it. Typical of someone from Emily’s era—none of them deserved to remain. Sooner or later, she would make sure Sam was ousted from his position and removed from Justin’s side. She thought back to the first couple of years after Emily’s death, when she had repeatedly tried to pry information about Justin’s schedule from Sam. Yet every time, he would deflect her questions with vague replies and change the subject. What a loyal, obedient dog!Too bad he always stood in her way. Gripping the file, Emma stormed back to her office. With a loud slam, she threw it onto her desk in frustration. She knew Justin’s prideful nature but hadn’t expected him to have such a soft spot for children. All the way back, her mind had been turning. If sh
Zac parked the car at the spot where Helen had asked to be dropped off. “Are you sure you don’t want me to take you to your doorstep? These bags are pretty heavy,” he offered. Helen shot him a glance, fully aware of his ulterior motive. “No need,” she replied coolly. “I can manage these with Alex’s help.“Right, Alex?” Alex tilted his head, looking at her in confusion. He couldn’t understand why Aunt Helen was pretending. Wouldn’t it be better to let Uncle Zac take the bags inside? Eventually, he would become part of the family.Zac opened the trunk and handed the bags over to Helen, one by one. Alex, however, stood there with his small backpack, completely empty-handed. The books and workbooks Uncle Justin had given him were already stuffed in his backpack. There was no way he could let Aunt Helen find out about them. He would have to get rid of them secretly later. *When they arrived home, Haley had just stepped out of her art studio. She was wearing a white apron,
Haley shook her head quickly, flustered. “No… I mean—no.” Then she realized how that sounded and corrected herself. “Actually, yes. I’m just hot.”Helen blinked in confusion. “Hot? The classroom has air conditioning. Was the sunlight from the window hitting her seat?” Helen wondered.Without missing a beat, she rushed over and tugged the curtains tighter, making sure her bestie didn’t get “sunburned.” She still needed Haley to hold onto that top spot. Otherwise, she would lose her excuse at home for going out to “study” with Zac.The pressure and tension of senior year finally came to a close. On the day of the college entrance exam, when everyone stepped out of the test hall for the last time, their faces lit up with genuine smiles—relaxed, free, and full of relief.Haley tossed aside her textbooks. Her summer break was filled with makeup shopping trips with Helen or third-wheeling her and Zac on their study-dates-turned-real-dates.That routine came to an end the d
Haley’s eyes shifted as she thought quickly. “But… I don’t really like guys who rank higher than me on exams.”She gave a light shrug and continued, “I mean, I think we should be focusing on school right now. Relationships can wait until after we get into college, right? What if we don’t even end up at the same school? Long-distance never works, and after a while, we’d probably drift apart. Don’t you think?”Was that a gentle rejection? It seemed like it. Haley wondered if she had been too blunt. Had she left him any dignity at all?They still had a whole year of high school left together. She didn’t want things to get awkward between them. A harsh rejection would only make everything more uncomfortable.Justin furrowed his brows, thinking for a long moment before giving a single reply. “Okay.”Then he slung his backpack over his shoulder and walked off.Haley stood there, completely confused.“Okay? What did he mean by that?“Did he understand what I was trying to say?
Emma and her little clique of schoolyard mean girls had Justin completely surrounded.“I’ll ask you one more time,” she said, smug and unbothered. “Will you be my boyfriend or not?”“No,” Justin replied coldly, his face unreadable.“Hey!” one of Emma’s loyal followers stepped forward, cracking her knuckles and getting way too close. “Do you even know who our Emma is? She’s the heiress of the Xander Corporation. She’s giving you a chance, and you should be grateful. You better say yes.”“What, you want us to beat you up before you agree?” another girl sneered.Justin didn’t flinch. His icy stare locked onto the girl who spoke, completely unbothered by the threat.Emma waved a hand to hold her crew back, pretending to be generous. Then she turned to Justin again, cocky and bold.“I like you way too much to have anyone rough you up,” she said sweetly. “But I heard you’re trying to get into Altiplano University in the capital. Here’s the deal—if you go out with me, I’ll have my dad
As soon as Justin sat down and pulled out the textbook for the next class, a hand suddenly reached out from beside him.“Hey, I’m Zac White,” Zac said.Justin glanced up with a cold look, then went right back to pulling out his notebook and pen—completely ignoring the extended hand.Zac awkwardly pulled his hand back, speechless.“Man… this guy’s seriously cold. What a show-off,” he thought to himself.The class flew by. When the bell rang, signaling the end of the period, Haley and Helen linked arms and headed off toward the bathroom. Zac immediately trailed after them.“Where are you two going? Take me with you.”“You planning on going into the girls’ bathroom, you perv?” Helen smacked his hand away, not wanting their classmates—or worse, their teacher—to get any ideas about the two of them dating.Zac scratched his nose. “Fine, I won’t go in the girls’ room… but I can go to the guys’ one, can’t I?”“Hmph!” Helen huffed, scrunching her nose playfully.Zac clutched his chest
At a top-ranked high school in Lincourt City, the bell rang.Students still lingering in the hallways or restrooms were urged to hurry back to class.Outside, the summer heat simmered, accompanied by the steady buzz of cicadas. Inside, the air-conditioned classrooms offered a much more comfortable escape.In Class 2–1 of the junior year, students hurried back to their seats. Just as the final chime faded, the homeroom teacher walked in, holding a stack of freshly graded exam papers.“For this round of mock exams,” she announced, loud and clear, “the top score in the entire grade once again goes to our very own Haley!”A wave of murmurs and applause followed. “Let’s all work hard and try to catch up to her next time!”She began handing out the papers in order, from the highest score to the lowest.After Haley got her paper, the next few went to her seatmate, Helen, and the student sitting behind them—Zac.“Work hard and catch up?” Helen muttered as she slid back into her seat, s
But what did it matter, even if she still loved him? The pain he caused her in the past was still there, lingering beneath the surface.They had loved, they had hurt, they had been entangled for years. But not every love story had to end with forgiveness and reconciliation.Haley couldn’t pretend the past hadn’t happened. She couldn’t smile and pick up where they left off, as if nothing had ever gone wrong.She would always remember that street in Merika State, when Justin turned away, picked Emma up in his arms, and left her standing there alone.Even if he had mistaken someone else for her, the pain he caused and the love he failed to give were real.And that wasn’t something she could ever forget.She could make peace with the past, but she could never erase it.Her heart ached, but she didn’t say anything. Instead, she turned and walked away.*Years later, Haley passed away peacefully in her bedroom at the estate.That same day, Justin had gone out to the grocer
It was just a shame that life rarely worked out the way people wanted it to.*Ten years passed in the blink of an eye.Chase and Alex had grown taller and older. Haley’s once-small jewelry brand had not only found its place in the industry—it had grown into a globally recognized luxury label, known for bespoke, high-end pieces.As for Justin, he split his time between Haven State and Merika State. Whenever he wasn’t busy, he would shamelessly camp out at the estate, claiming he was just there to “see the kids.”Eventually, no one even bothered to call him out on it anymore.One day, Haley had a business meeting with a potential partner—a widowed single father. Somehow, Justin caught wind of a rumor that the man had feelings for Haley and was actively pursuing her. Word had it that she was interested too, and they were currently having dinner together at a restaurant.The second Justin heard that, he canceled a company meeting, boarded his private jet, and flew straight to Mer
As soon as Haley stepped into the room, Justin followed right behind her.It was the first time he had ever set foot in Haley’s room—the space where she lived in Merika State.“Get out!” she snapped.“Haley, I just wanted to see you. Please don’t make me leave, okay?”His eyes scanned the room. The walls, the shelves—everything was filled with Haley’s photos. There was even a custom-built glass display case, clearly made with love, housing her pictures from childhood to adulthood. It was something Evelyn had put together just for her, and it overflowed with affection.There were portraits of her alone, family pictures, and right at the top—photos of Chase and Alex.Justin looked at each one carefully, as if he were trying to piece together a life he hadn’t been part of, but desperately wished he had been.Then his gaze landed on a particular photo: Haley in her teens, wearing a soft pink-and-white hoodie with little bunny ears on the hood. Her pale skin, big round eyes, and brig
“Haley…” Justin’s voice was weak. There was so much he wanted to say, but he didn’t even know where to start.“I heard you’re sick?” Haley said.“I… I’m fine. I’m not really sick, I just—”“Take care of yourself. Heart problems aren’t like other illnesses. Just look forward. Let go of the past. Meet someone new. Live your life.”Justin fell silent. His head dropped, and the phone pressed against his ear was clenched so tightly in his hand that his knuckles turned white. He wrestled with the words for a long moment before finally managing to force out.“Okay.”But he knew. He wouldn’t meet someone new. Without Haley, what kind of life could he possibly call “living”?The call ended. Life went back to its quiet rhythm. Justin no longer clung to Haley or tried to find her. After one more day in the hospital, he threw himself back into work and took over the reins of RC Corporation.They had truly managed to part on peaceful terms.After returning to Merika State, Haley d