Alana, unable to resist, said, "You've probably had a tough time these past two years too, haven't you?"I was taken aback. "How did you know?""I guessed." She smiled helplessly, appearing like a thoughtful older sister. "Although we haven't interacted much, I can tell you're not the kind of woman who plays both sides.""Giving up on him back then must have been unavoidable, right?" It was a question, but her tone was certain.I wasn't surprised that she could guess this.Alana was the type who, despite seeming carefree, was actually very perceptive and attentive to details. In short, the Smith family seemed to be quite perceptive people.I had no reason to lie to her, so I nodded and admitted, "Yes, Frank's father came to find me. And then, Ryan… also promised that if I went back with him, he would help Frank.""You've had a hard time."Alana sounded a bit rueful, "It's a pity that Luke used such dirty tactics, almost causing Frank to suffer a setback. Actually, he did suff
She softened her gaze and asked, "And you? How is your depression…""I'm off medication now." I smiled. "I found a psychologist in Frankes through a friend, and I've been receiving treatment there for the past two years. The results have been quite good."At least, even when I recall past events or see people from back then, I no longer panic, tremble, or have suicidal thoughts.After returning to Jelaston, the night I unexpectedly saw Ryan at the hotel, my sleep had still been fairly good."That's great." Alana sighed in relief, glanced at the time, and said, "I should head to the airport now. I'll find a chance to explain things to him and give him a psychological preparation."She stood up, pointed to the room where Danny was, and said helplessly, "As for my son, you might need to take care of him a bit more during this time. Frank doesn't have the patience for him.""It's fine. I like kids too." I smiled as I walked her to the door. "Since Danny is still at home, I won't see
I was surprised. "So soon? When did you arrive in Jelaston?""This afternoon." Jack laughed. "Do you want to go out for dinner or eat at home? Do you need me to bring anything?""Hold on a moment." I moved the phone away, asked Danny quietly, "Sweetie, do you want to eat at home or go out tonight?""I want to eat the food made by Charlotte!" Danny answered instinctively, but then seemed to think of something and quickly added, "Hmm, never mind. I don’t want to go out, so can we just order takeaway? I can still treat you to dinner!"I brought the phone back to my ear and smiled. "Jack, you don't need to bring anything. Just come over."Jack nodded.After hanging up, I pinched Danny's soft cheek and asked, "You just said you want to taste my cooking, right? Why don't you want to now?""Uncle warned me.""Warned you about what?""Uncle said…" The little one mumbled, "Not to cause you any trouble. If you gets tired, he will go and defeat Superman!""Defeat Superman?""Yeah!"Da
Danny looked up at me. "Charloote, how do you spell 'Uncle'?""U-N-C-L-E, got it?""Yeah."After a moment, he looked up again. "How do you spell 'home'?""H-O-M-E."Just as I finished speaking, the doorbell rang.I got up to answer the door and, looking outside, was both surprised and delighted, "Dilan!""Woof woof woof!"A white Samoyed jumped onto me, rubbing against me enthusiastically.I was overjoyed and turned to Jack, "Jack, I was just thinking about when to have Dilan shipped back to the country, and you've brought him over for me.""You're used to him. Having him around is good for you.""Thank you!" I looked at him gratefully. "Without you, my recovery wouldn't have been so quick."He teased, "Aren't you going to invite me in?""Please, come in!"I stepped back, and Dilan stayed close to me, showing his affection.As I led Jack to the living room, I noticed that Danny was no longer on the sofa.I looked around and finally stopped at the bathroom door, where I
Danny was the first to react, sliding off the sofa with agility and running to open the door, "Un... Thank you, sir!"The takeaway I ordered had arrived.I went over to take it, closed the door again, and patted Danny's little head. "Do you miss your uncle?""Uh… No." Danny shook his head. "I don't miss him. I just want to be with you. Charlotte, can I sleep with you tonight?""Only if your uncle agrees." I took his hand and led him to the dining area, then turned to Jack. "Jack, I ordered from a local restaurant in Jelaston. Come and try it.""Alright." Jack was not picky and would eat anything.As he moved to sit next to me, Danny climbed onto a chair from behind him, patted his waist, and said cutely, "Sir, can you sit on the other side? I want to sit next to Charlotte."Jack looked down at him, pinched his cheek, and said, "Okay."The meal, consisted of five dishes and the atmosphere was quite relaxed.Danny was very well-behaved. Given a spoon, he could manage his small p
Frank was quite unreasonable.I looked at him and said, "Stop making a fuss."As Jack mentioned, whether it was during college or two years ago, he was the one who helped me through it. If he hadn't saved me two years ago, gone to great lengths to find me a doctor, and introduced me to teachers, helping me achieve a sense of accomplishment in my career, I wouldn't have recovered from depression so quickly.I couldn't repay him in terms of feelings, but I should remember his kindness. Moreover, Jack had specially brought Dilan over for me today.Frank seemed to ignore what I said, not loosening his grip at all. I felt helpless and heard Jack say, "It's okay. You stay and have dinner with them."With that, he changed his shoes, turned, and left.As the door closed, I felt a pang of guilt. I suddenly pulled away from Frank's hand and said, "Are you satisfied now?""Pretty satisfied." Frank scrutinized me, his meaning unclear. "Are you angry?"Considering Danny was present and his
My eyes were slightly misty, and my heart ached. For a moment, I thought about just laying everything bare. If it had any impact on his condition, I would face it with him. It would be better than him constantly pondering and thinking I'm an unfaithful person.I shook my head. "No, Frank, these past two years I…""Forget it." Frank's smile was shallow, with an unmistakable tone of mockery. Yet, the corners of his eyes were red. "Charlotte, I shouldn't have had any expectations from you."His words were too harsh.I widened my eyes, trying to hold back the tears, and forced a semblance of relief. "If you say so."After all, in the past two years, despite my efforts to find out about him, I hadn't received any news.Like a passing shadow, it was as if nothing had ever happened.I didn't need to tell him about everything I had done. In his eyes, I am that indifferent and ungrateful person. As soon as he was rumored to be dead, I immediately moved on and found happiness with someo
"Yes." Alana nodded. "My friend has met Yasmin a couple of times at events and managed to add her on WhatsApp and followed her on Twitter. She mentioned that last year, Yasmin seemed to have posted something on Twitter.""What kind of post?""Yasmin's Tweets are only visible for six months, but the general gist was something like a blessing from heaven. She doesn't remember the exact details, but the photo showed Yasmin with a young woman, looking to be in her 20s.""Blessing?" Frank's gaze focused, and he sent over a photo. "Have your friend check if the girl in the photo is the same person.""Sure." Alana quickly sent the photo to her friend and then reported back to Frank. "Yes, the girl in your photo is the same person on Yasmin's Twitter.""Charlotte!" While I was lost in thought on the sofa, a soft, cute voice brought me back to reality. Danny peeked out, looking a bit shy. "I forgot that I don't have any fresh clothes.""I'll go find some for you."I was now used to him c
It was the habit of someone accustomed to a high position."What’s wrong?" the man asked, his deep voice carrying a clear warmth."Look at you, acting so cheap. If you’re happy, just smile. Why pretend?"Frank, after all, was now happily settled.Seeing others in turmoil, he liked to tease them."No wonder you can’t win your wife back."Westley was rendered speechless.Jordan, not wanting to join the topic, quickly ran off.Frank joked, "See? Your wife just ran off again."Westley clenched his molars tightly.One by one, these happy people were taking turns mocking him."If you’re not going to help, at least don’t make things worse."Frank clicked his tongue and said, "Wow, the resentment is strong."Charlotte, holding Frank’s arm, tried to smooth things over. "That’s enough, Mr. Smith. Stop making fun of others."Westley was rendered speechless.‘Thanks. Appreciate that...’Charlotte added, "And stop mentioning Zachary’s pregnancy symptoms—it’s a sign of love."Frank
“These are all the photos of landscapes and animals you’ve taken over the years?”“Yes, I didn’t have anything else to gift, but I thought the baby could experience these through pictures while young and then go see them in person when older.”“You’re so thoughtful! I’ll thank you on behalf of this little embryo, Auntie.”Jane genuinely liked it. After flipping through the album, she instinctively tried to pass it to someone nearby but then remembered that Zachary had gotten out of the car when Jordan got in. He was now riding in the vehicle behind them.She placed the album into the front passenger seat’s storage compartment and then started chatting with Jordan about her recent experiences.Jordan said, “Not much, really. Things went pretty smoothly overall. I gave all the photos to the media. I hope it can raise awareness and help save more girls. That place was hell on earth for them.”Jane nodded. “You did an amazing job.”After her praise, she asked, “What do you want to e
The Collins family’s expressions all changed.Although Madam Collins had spoken so casually, deep down, she was certainly still displeased about Zachary marrying Jane.She had simply seen the deeper truth. Zachary was resolute about Jane.She also understood that Zachary was no longer someone they could control.But when this was bluntly laid bare, her chest still tightened.“What do you mean by that?” Rebecca pressed.Sean merely replied, “That’s all I can say. And that’s because of the bond we share as former master and servant. After all, now I must follow Mr. Collins’s orders.”The room fell into a prolonged silence.Madam Collins broke it with a soft chuckle.She looked at Rebecca and said, “You said he doesn’t acknowledge you as his mother, yet he could have quietly gone off to register the marriage without us knowing, but instead, he let Sean inform us.”Rebecca didn’t immediately react.Madam Collins clarified, “He specifically instructed Sean to pass the news to you
At the hospital.Rebecca listened to Sean's report.When she heard that Zachary had come to the hospital, she immediately panicked. "I knew that woman was bad luck! Ever since Zachary got together with her, he's been plagued with all sorts of misfortune and illness!"Eric hesitated before speaking. "Zachary went to see the doctor because of morning sickness?""What?"Rebecca couldn't believe her ears. "Do you even hear how ridiculous that sounds?"Sean chimed in, "It’s true."Rebecca was rendered speechless.Sean explained, "I consulted with an expert. This kind of situation is rare but does happen. If a husband deeply loves his wife, seeing her suffer during pregnancy can cause him to experience symptoms like morning sickness."At that moment, Rebecca felt like a beehive had exploded in her ears.All she could hear was a loud buzzing noise.It took her a long moment to recover before she scoffed."He’s such a good husband, isn’t he? I risked my life to give birth to him an
Jane leaned in for a sniff. "Smells so good."Zachary’s worries were unnecessary, she only took a few bites before losing interest.The rest ended up in his stomach.Which then found its way to the toilet, and finally, down the drain.After Zachary rinsed his mouth, Jane peeled an orange for him. "Try this, see if it helps."Zachary ate the orange directly from her hand.It was so sour it made his teeth ache.Still, it seemed to provide some relief.Jane poured him some water."You don’t need to take care of me, I can handle myself.""And I can handle myself too," Jane retorted. "Why are you always doing things for me, then?""It’s different—you’re pregnant."Zachary drank a sip of the water, mostly because she had poured it."I’m just throwing up a little," said Jane.She had experienced it before—constant retching, even with nothing left in her stomach. That kind of discomfort was hard to endure.His voice was hoarse by now, which showed just how bad it had gotten.At
However, the test results showed nothing wrong.Even after being in a coma for those days, his body remained strong thanks to the nutritional IV.As long as he avoided alcohol and irritating foods, his gastritis wouldn't flare up.It certainly wouldn't become severe enough to cause this kind of reaction.Yet Zachary's vomiting was even more intense than her pregnancy nausea.Even though there was nothing left to throw up—not even stomach acid—if he kept going, he might end up vomiting bile.It really didn’t seem like the symptoms of someone perfectly healthy.So Jane contacted Tanner.After hearing her description, Tanner chuckled.Jane felt as though Tanner was gloating."Isn’t this great? He’s throwing up for you, so you can feel a bit better."Jane was taken aback.Over the time she had spent taking Zachary to the doctor, she truly hadn’t felt any discomfort herself.She had thought it was because she hadn’t eaten much, so her symptoms were temporarily subsiding."Dr.
Jane washed her face, took a moment to gather herself, then straightened up and hugged him."Stop reflecting on yourself already, hearing it makes my pregnancy symptoms worse."The tactic worked well, as she didn’t hear any more apologies from him afterward."I feel like eating an orange. Could you peel one for me?"Zachary immediately carried her to the sofa, tucked a blanket over her, and sat beside her to peel the orange.He meticulously removed every single white thread from the orange segments.Resting her chin on her hand, Jane watched him and teased, "You’re treating me even better now that I’m pregnant. Do you love the baby more than me?"Without hesitation, Zachary replied, "It’s because pregnancy is hard on you. If you hadn’t agreed to have the baby, I wouldn’t have kept—"Before he could finish, Jane kicked him, silencing him.He handed her the peeled orange.Jane couldn’t taste her mood anymore, so she focused on eating the orange.Zachary felt his teeth ache jus
"I envy his fiancee so much!""You women are so shallow. Just because he’s buying some raviolis, you think he’s humbled himself for love. Why don’t you think about this—he’s the son of an affluent family. If he hadn’t picked someone from such a poor background, why would he come to this rundown place to buy these commoner foods?"As soon as the man finished speaking, he felt a sharp, cold gaze land on him.The people who had been enthusiastically discussing with him moments earlier suddenly avoided looking at him.But Zachary merely glanced at him.His raviolis were already packed, and he was eager to bring them back for Jane.He didn’t linger long, nor did he feel the need to waste his words on clueless fools like these.Besides, even if he explained, they probably wouldn’t understand—or even care.Meanwhile, Jane had been leaning against the car window, watching Zachary the whole time. When she saw him walking back, she opened the car door for him.“Hurry, get in.”Zachary
They were heading back to their cozy little nest.On the way, her phone rang. When she saw the caller ID, she slapped Zachary’s thigh.“Oh no!”Zachary looked confused.“I forgot about Jordan!”Jordan had mentioned that she would be filming, and Westley had been by her side the entire time to protect her.Jane, preoccupied with her own matters, had assumed that with Westley around, nothing would go wrong.Her return to the country had been a last-minute decision, and she had left in a hurry.She was also dealing with the discomfort of her pregnancy.All the emotions and tasks piling up caused her to completely forget.Sure enough, when she answered the call, Jordan’s voice was full of grievance.“Aren’t we good friends?”“Yes, yes, we are,” Jane replied with an awkward cough. “Something urgent came up, so... I’m sorry.”Jordan, however, was gracious. “I understand your situation is special. Just treat me to a meal to make up for it. I’ll be flying to Jeswood soon.”“Alrig