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CHAPTER 8
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2021-11-30 18:30:34Gary was confident enough to know that Hope would recognize him. She did remember he was the magic man from the hospital. But he was definitely worried if she would trust him. Although Rowena did tell him that she called up the school to let them know someone else would be fetching Hope, he was still anxious about her making a fuss. He didn't have much experience with children. Hope seemed like a sweet and well-behaved girl, but Gary knew enough to know children have their complexities, especially if they were put in an uncomfortable position.
He waited outside with the rest of the parents. He was given a few looks, possibly because he was new. Thankfully, it wasn't a long wait and the children were let out soon enough. Dozens of small boys and girls rushed out toward their parents. Gary eventually spotted Hope, who was walking at the back of the crowd with an adult he could only assume was her teacher.
As soon as Hope saw him, her face lit up in pleasant surprise. She
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False Perfection CHAPTER 8
Gary was confident enough to know that Hope would recognize him. She did remember he was the magic man from the hospital. But he was definitely worried if she would trust him. Although Rowena did tell him that she called up the school to let them know someone else would be fetching Hope, he was still anxious about her making a fuss. He didn't have much experience with children. Hope seemed like a sweet and well-behaved girl, but Gary knew enough to know children have their complexities, especially if they were put in an uncomfortable position.He waited outside with the rest of the parents. He was given a few looks, possibly because he was new. Thankfully, it wasn't a long wait and the children were let out soon enough. Dozens of small boys and girls rushed out toward their parents. Gary eventually spotted Hope, who was walking at the back of the crowd with an adult he could only assume was her teacher.As soon as Hope saw him, her face lit up in pleasant surprise. She
False Perfection CHAPTER 7
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False Perfection CHAPTER 6
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False Perfection CHAPTER 2
5 YEARS LATER The sweat began to drip down from Gary Santiago's forehead. A bead entered into the corner of his eye, making him squint momentarily. He quickly wiped his face with the back of his forearm, leaving an obvious damp mark on the grey workout jacket he wore. Then with one final shook of his head, he returned to making sure he wasn't going to hit anything or anyone as he jogged through the park. It was the end of September, but the coolness of the autumn season still didn't seem to sink in yet. Gary was really working up a sweat. Did he always perspire this much? He wondered if he should get himself checked. Even if he had just wiped his face, he could feel the beads forming yet again, with some starting to drip down already. He quickly checked his watch and saw that it was already a quarter to ten o'clock. He was surprised to know that he had been jogging for almost two hours.
False Perfection CHAPTER 1: PROLOGUE
The buzzing in Rowena Von Dame's ears wouldn't go away. Her head felt like it was underneath a hydraulic press machine. It was only after she swallowed the invisible lump in her throat did she realize she was holding her breath for the past minute. But it had actually been almost ten minutes since she was pressed up against the corner of the relatively small bathroom, between the wooden wall and the door, barely struggling to hold herself up. It was about about a quarter to 3 o'clock in the morning. Silence coated the air as everyone in the beach house had gone to bed early after a long day of parasailing. There was barely any light outside the bathroom window, only a subtle white glow from the full moon.It was the sound of the waves crashing down against the shoreline that made Rowena snap out of her trance. The repetitive splashing and whooshing of the waters against the sands assisted in her attempts to breathe in and out,
