Anthony fumbled in his trouser pocket and took out a cigarette. He needed to calm his chaotic mind with nicotine, so he would stop thinking of evil schemes in his mind.
“How many times do I have to say that smoking is not good for your health?”
Anthony turned his head and blew white smoke into the air one last time before crushing the cigarette butt with his shoe.
“Everything in this world is not good for health. What is her condition?”
Doctor Evan shrugged his shoulders slowly. "She is fine. There were no internal injuries or anything fatal. I had covered the wound on her forehead with gauze. She was still responsive when I shined a flashlight in her eyes. There was no concussion or any head problems.”
"If she's fine, why were you so long?"
“I need to do some tests. The woman is pregnant.”
"What? You must be joking, right, doc?”
“No. I'm serious. That's why I told you I had
“I divorced her. I kicked her out of my life.”“Then? Do you regret it?”"I don't know. That's why I came here. Something in my mind has been bothering me for the past three days.”“Yeah, but I doubt it came from your head.”For the first time, since Anthony knocked on Doctor Jarvis' door for a therapy session at seven in the morning, he looked at Doctor Jarvis's face, which radiated warmth. Anthony used to think it was part of his job as a psychologist. Doctor Jarvis must have an aura of warmth and calm on his face. But, it turned out it wasn't like that. The shade and warmth in him was something natural. Maybe it was a blessing from God that was given to him so that he could help other people with the warmth and shade that radiated from within him.“So, where do you think that something came from, doc?”"From your heart."Anthony chuckled skeptically. “Doc, I'm a rational p
Shanon had just come out of the library when suddenly she got a rotten tomato thrown on her clothes. Her palm flew to her mouth in shock, she looked up to see a group of women standing in front of her, carrying several rotten tomatoes and eggs in their hands."What is this?"“You cheap bitch.”One of them threw rotten eggs at Shanon. It landed on her shoulder hard. She winced at the pain that spread around her collarbone.“You hypocrite.”Another tomato flew towards her face. Shanon was very angry and sad about what those evil women did to her. Tears started to form on her eyelids as tomatoes and eggs flew towards her and made her whole body smell like shit.“How much do you charge for a night, bitch?”“Shut up all of you. I don't know what your problem is with me."“Look at the bulletin board. You look fucking ugly in your club waitress uniform.”Shanon gaped. She pu
“Wow, who is this super sexy woman?”“Tsk, don't tease me, Tom. I'm not in a good mood tonight.”Shanon leaned her elbows on the bar counter. Her eyes scanned all corners of the club, which was always busy and packed with visitors. People were dancing wildly on the dance floor. They had their moments. Meanwhile, on the second floor, VIP guests enjoyed their own party in a closed room. With a quieter, more private atmosphere, and with a table full of expensive liquor.“Why? You've been on holiday for three days. Why did you come to work in a bad mood?”“Someone messed with me.”“You owe me an explanation, by the way. You suddenly disappeared after throwing out the trash three days ago. Are you okay? I had Sharon check on you in the alley. She said you weren't anywhere.”“Yeah, about that I'm sorry. I came home after a drunk man ambushed me and almost raped me in that dark alley
“Nice game.”Jordyn was celebrating his win with his team on the sidelines. Suddenly, a voice interrupted his euphoria with his friends. Jordyn looked back. He was stunned to find Anthony clapping while walking towards him.“It's no surprise that you are the pride of the campus basketball team. You played well.”"Thanks."Jordyn glanced at his friends. They would go to the locker room to clean up, then they would go to Oakland's most famous burger joint to celebrate their victory.“Guys, I think you can go first. I'll follow.”Stevan patted Jordyn's shoulder lightly before leading his friends off of the basketball court.Anthony led the way to sit on one of the benches at the edge of the basketball court. The place was empty. Everyone started to leave the basketball court, while the cleaning crew started to enter the court to clean up the rubbish that was scattered around the stands.“S
“Are you serious that Yvone is in prison now?”"I don't know. That's why I want to take you to prison now."Avery still showed a stunned face in front of Shanon. She didn't believe it was real yet. Someone was finally able to stop all of Yvone's crimes all this time."Who did it? You did it without my knowledge?"“Nope. Anthony did.”“Tsk, why did that arrogant guy have to do it?” The joy on Avery's face faded as soon as she heard Anthony's name mentioned.“I don't like him. I can't possibly forget all the things he did to you."“Me too,” Shanon sighed softly.She put hand moisturizer, lip balm, charger and cell phone into a sling bag. She looked ready to go in jeans and a long-sleeved sweater. Thankfully, she had not yet experienced a baby bump. Shanon hadn't thought about her clothes and all the changes that would happen to her in the next three months when her baby bump s
The decision had been made. He had to end the charade and move on to his next plan. Things are getting crazier and more out of control. Anthony increasingly deviated from his original plan to save his and Shanon's careers.“What are you doing here, Miley?”Miley jumped to her feet quickly. The flash of tension on her face turned into a saccharine smile that was too sweet for Anthony.“Hi, where have you been, Anthony?”“Oakland. Didn't I tell you that I would see a basketball tournament there?”"I didn't know if you were a fan of basketball."“I went there to support the college basketball team.”“As I recall, you had sentiments towards the basketball captain.”“I put aside those sentiments for the good of the university.”Miley put her arms around Anthony's neck. She cursed under her breath because Anthony almost caught her rummaging through his des
“Hey, Shanon. Are you busy?”“I'll never be busy for you, Tom,” Shanon threw a wink at Tom, who was busy preparing a cocktail.”“Please take this to the table over there.”“Just a beer?”“He just ordered that. If you can get him to spend his money on our expensive drinks, the boss will really like it.”“Ok, I'll try.”Shanon picked up the tray and walked to the table Tom had pointed to. She was so excited that night. It was like her life had just restarted, and she would start from scratch. In everything. New beginning, new life, new passion, and maybe a new love.“You?”A few drops of beer spilled on the tray as Shanon slammed it on the table. All her enthusiasm disappeared instantly just by seeing Anthony, sitting alone at a table with his favorite cigarette.“Trying to be a bad boy, huh?”“The truth is I'
“Whoa, finally....”“Thanks for coming to help us move in, Sarah.”“Hey, don't hesitate to ask for help.”“But we had just moved into Jordyn's parents' house, and suddenly we were moving into our house again. You helped us unpack and rearrange our things.”“We are best friends,” Sarah hugged Shanon's shoulders tightly.“Don't hesitate to ask for help. I will be angry if you don't ask for my help at all.”“Aw, that's so sweet.”Shanon wiped the sweat dripping down her forehead. The cold air outside couldn't cool her body, which was hot and covered in sweat from working cleaning the house since morning. She and Avery finally decided to return to their house after occupying Jordyn's parents' house for a month. Jordyn turned down the rent she was paying. Shanon had been forcing him, but Jordyn was adamant that he didn't want to take the money, and neither
Her marriage was in turmoil. Shanon almost believed her wedding was canceled because Anthony couldn't come to his own wedding. Isn't that crazy? The main character couldn't attend his own wedding!Shanon was stressed about handling all the wedding preparations alone while Anthony was in Singapore to attend a damn conference which he said was very important to him. Anthony delegated all his responsibilities to Shanon and only gave a few short confirmations via telephone every time Shanon called to ask about several things related to their wedding. Anthony then asked Ben to do things that Shanon couldn't do herself because she was pregnant. Anthony promised to arrive in Boston the day before their wedding, and he asked Shanon to calm down.But, the day before their wedding, Anthony didn't show up at the airport at all. Shanon, who had been haunted by worry for weeks, tried to call Anthony to ask for clarity about his return. To her surprise, Anthony gave her some very ba
"Turn right."“No. We still have to walk straight over there.”“But I want to see the baby crib here.”"There is a baby shop that makes the best quality baby cribs there."Shanon folded her arms across her chest. Her eyes narrowed at Anthony.“Well, I keep forgetting the fact that I'm going to marry a man who bathes in a thousand dollar soap. You obviously couldn't possibly buy a baby crib at Ikea.”“Don't be so skeptical about my life, Shanon. I just want the best for my son.”“I know, I know. I'm just not used to your very wow lifestyle."“I don't like you commenting skeptically on my lifestyle. Like it or not, you have to get used to it from now on. You will live under me.”“Oh, really, Anthony. I want equality. What century do you think we live in, huh?”The two of them stood in front of the Ikea entrance and glanced at each other sa
“Deal.”“Nice doing business with you, Mr. Maddock.”Avery held out her hand to shake Tim Maddock's hand. They ended the meeting with satisfied smiles on each of their faces because they managed to reach an agreement on their next project. Tim Maddock then walked away, leaving Avery who still remained in the restaurant to pack up her things.“Avery? What a coincidence, huh?”Avery looked up. She just gathered the documents and put them in the briefcase. Her face lit up when she saw who had just greeted her.“Jordyn. Hey, what are you doing here?”“Umm... Lunch. Actually, it's not really lunch. I only ordered coffee because I was trying to build a good image in front of people I had just met.”“So, do you want to have lunch with me? I haven't eaten anything since just now.”"That is a good idea. You saved me from starvation. Thanks, Ave.”&ldquo
A month after the graduation party, which was full of drama and showers of congratulations from her friends, Shanon still couldn't come out of her euphoria. She welcomed the day with joy and the promise of a better future. Every morning she woke up and realized the fact that she was Anthony's fiancé. Formally. There was no secret. Everyone knew for sure that she belonged to Anthony, and vice versa. Just imagining it, her life became lighter than before. Negative thoughts disappeared in an instant from her brain."Good morning."“Hi, princess. You look really excited.”Shanon kissed her sister's cheek briefly. Avery had been sitting at the dining table since seven o'clock. She was ready in a formal suit, a black bag sat on the empty chair next to her, and she had a cup of coffee on the table.“I'm always excited. What would you like for breakfast?”“You don't need to bother making me breakfast. You prepared me br
I apologize....Shanon turned off her phone before she read the entire message Anthony had just sent her. Just seeing the word at the opening of the message, she could already guess that the message would end badly. Something like, Anthony couldn't be there on her graduation day and couldn't see her throw her cap in the air.“He sucks,” Shanon muttered under her breath.She squeezed her phone before stuffing it into her bag.She and hundreds of students from various departments were gathering in the main hall of the university to celebrate their graduation. Shanon had worn her best dress along with a black robe and academic cap. Avery put on light make-up and put on soft pink lipstick, which made her look even more stunning. Unfortunately, Anthony couldn't come to complete her happiness today. Though she really hoped that Anthony would come to see her go up on stage and make a speech on behalf of the hun
“Cheers.”“Oh man, is this party necessary?”“Of course it is necessary. Let's have a toast.”Shanon lazily clinked her glass with Sarah's. Hers had apple juice, while Sarah's had beer. Her house was very noisy tonight because Sarah and Jordyn threw a party to celebrate her graduation. Shanon officially completed her master's program and graduated with the best grades. They insisted on celebrating with a party because Shanon deserved the best graduation party. An hour ago, they came to her house with three boxes of pizza, several boxes of Thai food and Chinese food. They also ordered fries and burgers. The living room table had turned into a party table with a variety of food that they couldn't possibly finish that night.“I feel like you guys shouldn't throw me a party.”Shanon looked at Anthony with a frown. Anthony had just arrived after Sarah called him to join them. Anthony didn't need to think t
“This is the time.”Shanon released her hug from Sarah. She wiped the tears dripping down her cheeks.“I'm sure you can, Shanon. Show them who you really are.”“Thank you, Sarah. You're my best friend. I wouldn't have been able to get through all of this without you.”“We love you, Shanon.”Shanonh turned to look at Jordyn. She then snuggled into his warm embrace."Wish me luck."Shanon walked into the hall with extremely impressive calm. The campus council and lecturers had gathered in the hall to test her. They were all there, except Anthony. Shanon was sad because she couldn't see Anthony this morning in the hall. But, an hour ago they had spoken on the phone. Anthony regretted that he couldn't be there for her when the campus council chewed her out. Anthony promised to always support her from afar.“Are you ready, Shanon?”“Yes, Mr. Angelo.”
“Jane Heather.”"Who are you?"Jane frowned in annoyance at finding an uninvited guest suddenly entering her room and locking the door, as if she had given her permission to do so."I'll call security to drag you away from here and report your impoliteness to—""Who? Those damn campus councils? They won't hear you. They are busy crushing Anthony and Shanon.”“Where are your manners? Call him Professor Bruce.”"Not anymore. He was no longer a professor since the rusty campus board fired him. They stripped Anthony of all his titles. Now, he is just an ordinary guy. Without any title.”"You must be kidding."“Do I look like I'm kidding now?”Jane studied the woman's face closely and she suddenly snapped her fingers.“I know who you are. You're from the economics department. You're one of Anthony's students. I see you always stick with the other woman."
After disappearing from civilization for two days, Shanon decided it was time for her to face all the problems she had left hanging in limbo.For two whole days she just holed herself up in her room. She removed her cellphone battery and did not want to be exposed to the outside world in any form. Her mind created all kinds of terrible scenarios about her life and future. Avery had tried to persuade her many times to come out of her room, but she ignored her. She used two full days to think. She wanted to blame Anthony for all the problems that happened to her. Before she got involved with Anthony’s life, everything was normal. Her only misfortune was having a very cruel stepmother like Yvone.But, after she got involved with Anthony, things got out of hand. She experienced a series of events that she had never imagined before. Including the problems she was currently facing. She never thought that she would be in danger of failing to get a master's degree just b