No one responded to Emily’s thoughts. The embryos were still tiny. She registered, scheduled the procedure, and the nurse efficiently completed the arrangements. The procedure was set for 3 p.m., and she was instructed to fast until then. Sean, determined to stay by Emily’s side, decided not to eat either. Seeing there were still a few hours until the appointment and with no food allowed, Sean suggested Emily rest in the car. As they reached the hospital entrance, they ran into Zac, who was walking toward them. “Emily? What a coincidence running into you in Bay City,” Zac greeted her naturally. “Are you feeling unwell?” He glanced at Sean, giving him a polite nod. “Hi, Sean.” “Hello, Zac,” Sean replied with a slight bow of his head. “Just here for work,” Emily replied casually, brushing it off. “I’ve had a bout of gastritis, so I came to get it checked out.” Her pale complexion, worsened by skipping breakfast and the morning’s procedures, made her excuse beli
At the hospital, Emily lay on the operating table, prepped for the procedure as the anesthesia began to take effect. The overhead surgical light beamed down on her face, its glare piercing her eyes. She rarely cried, but now tears slipped silently from the corners of her eyes, soaking into her hair.*On the plane, Justin had just taken his seat. The aircraft hadn’t yet taken off when an unsettling restlessness gnawed at him. His eyelid twitched, and his chest tightened with inexplicable unease, as though something bad was about to happen. He thought back to the night before, pulled out his phone, and sent Emily a text.“Stay away from Sean. If you’re short on money, I can give you some. Stop working.” Immediately after, he transferred one million into her bank account, ensuring it was enough so she wouldn’t refuse out of spite. With that done, he switched his phone to airplane mode, and the plane took off. *In the operating room, Emily closed her eyes as the proce
Justin didn’t see any issue with having two women in his life. After all, in their circles, it was common for CEOs and business owners to have more than one woman by their side. However, his obsession with Emily’s body only deepened his guilt toward Emma. The group exited the VIP terminal and headed straight to the underground parking garage, with Zac and Sam following behind. By the car, Emma clung to Justin, her voice soft and hesitant. “Justin, are you heading back to work again?” Justin, thinking about how he was secretly keeping Emily, couldn’t help but feel another pang of guilt toward Emma. “No, I’ll take you home first,” he replied with a gentle smile. Emma’s mood instantly brightened, and she beamed at him. Zac stood off to the side, watching their overly cozy interaction, and smirked.With a small scoff, he said, “Well, Sam, we’d better head out before we end up as third wheels for your boss.”Emma lowered her head, looking uncomfortable. Justin shot
Justin had already booked Emily’s return flight. Someone would pick her up at the airport, and Villa One was ready for her to move back into. He sent the message, but after a few moments, it failed to deliver. A small notification popped up: Message not delivered.Blocked?Instead of anger, Justin let out a light chuckle. Typical Emily. Switching tactics, he called her using a work phone number. The phone rang only a few times before Emily answered, her voice polite yet distant. “Hello, who’s this?” “I’ve booked your flight. Make sure you come back alone. Don’t—” Justin began, his tone as commanding as ever. He was about to add “don’t come back with Sean. I don’t want to see the two of you together,” but a sweet voice interrupted him. “Justin, dinner’s not ready yet, and I know you didn’t eat on the plane. Here, have some milk. I just warmed it up for you.” Emma appeared with a mug of milk, offering it to Justin with a soft smile. Emily had assumed the call was f
“Hmm, not bad. It’s really good,” Justin praised, taking another bite. “I remember you didn’t like cooking before,” he added, the thought suddenly coming to him. Emma’s voice softened, tinged with a trace of sadness. “Justin, you already said that it was in the past. During those three years in Merika State, when I was living like a drifter. After a while, you learn to do everything yourself.” As she spoke, her voice grew choked, her eyes welling with tears that she struggled to hold back. The mention of her hardships hit Justin hard. He was overwhelmed with guilt, knowing his negligence had led to her disappearance and those three years of suffering. Tenderly, he pulled a few tissues and gently wiped her tears. “Don’t cry. I promise that will never happen again.” Emma turned her head slightly, lowering her gaze as tears slipped down her face.“I trust you, Justin,” she said, her voice filled with hope. Her tone shifted, sounding upbeat again. “Justin, I’ve been f
At the time, Emily had been completely deceived, blissfully unaware of the truth and fully immersed in the sweetness of love. But now, it was all nothing more than an intricately crafted lie. Without the slightest hesitation, she tossed the tie clip into the trash can in the bathroom, just to make sure it was truly out of sight and out of mind. *Knock, knock, knock!* A loud, insistent banging at the door. Emily walked over to open it. “Emily! Why didn’t you pick up your phone? And why was it off? I was so worried you might do something reckless!” Sean stood there, suitcase in hand, his face filled with concern. “What would I possibly do? It’s just a pregnancy.” Emily waved it off as if it were no big deal. “My phone broke. That’s why I didn’t answer. Let’s go buy a new one later.” She locked her suitcase, and Sean immediately took it from her. “Sure thing! How about we get matching phones? Couples’ models?” Sean teased with a grin. Emily gave him a light smac
WX Hotel was a subsidiary of RC Corporation.“Thank you. Could you let Mr. Yates know that I called to report on the hotel’s performance?” the general manager said cautiously, carefully choosing his words.“Sure,” Emma responded and ended the call, her expression contemplative.A hotel manager reporting directly to the CEO?Something about it didn’t sit right.The name Emily suddenly popped into her mind.Unlocking Justin’s phone required a passcode, and Emma decided to try her own birthday. The screen unlocked effortlessly. Navigating to the messaging app, she noticed that Emily’s chat had been pinned to the top. Clicking on it, Emma saw the messages Justin had sent to Emily. Curious, she proceeded to read through their messages.She then saw Justin’s instructions for Emily to break things off with Sean, coupled with a wire transfer of one million dollars. Emma’s breathing quickened, her gaze darkening with malice. “Emily, you’re still clinging to Justin like a ghost t
Emma glanced at Sean with mock annoyance, pretending to be upset. “Are you teasing me again?” “Alright, no more jokes,” Sean said, dialing William’s number. “Bring a change of clothes to Regal Estates.” “Don’t forget to apply the burn cream,” Emma reminded him kindly, her tone full of care. Not long after, William arrived with the clothes. Justin changed into his tailored suit and left Emma’s house. Once inside the car, William asked from the driver’s seat, his face impassive, “Where to, Mr. Yates?” “Back to Villa One,” Justin replied curtly. The car started moving. Justin pulled out his phone and noticed a bank transfer had been rejected. His eyes darkened as he stared at the screen. He immediately called the WX Hotel’s general manager. “Mr. Yates, Miss Yates checked out of Room 1608 at 4 PM today,” the manager reported nervously. “Was she alone?” Justin’s voice turned cold. The manager hesitated for a moment, uncertain whether he should answer. “What’
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