Clutching her phone, Erin could not come up with a reply. She had wanted to ask if he sent the wrong text, but on second thought, that sounded quite insulting.The silence from the other end suggested that he was waiting for a reply. She looked at her feet and finally confessed, "I didn't know what to reply."The prolonged silence made her a little anxious. For some reason, she couldn't make herself say "I miss you too" back to him. A few seconds later, he suddenly hung up, leaving her sighing at the dark phone screen. She put it away and went back to frowning at the generous reader on her laptop screen. She had the urge to return the money to AsaelPapa. The sheer amount of money weighed on her conscience. She was grateful enough to her readers for reading her work.Five minutes later, the door to Asa's room flung open. Erin looked up with excitement, thinking that Asa was home, but to her surprise, she found Chandler at the door. He stared at her with a complicated look in his eyes
Erin lowered her head, afraid to look at him. She felt annoyed that she found it hard to resist him whenever she saw that expression of his. Right then, her mind was filled with memories of the past, causing her heart to be in chaos.Recalling Alana's warning to her a few days ago, Erin calmed herself and said seriously, "Asa's dad, I hope you can keep your distance from me. You're a married man, after all—"Chandler was angry at how Erin was avoiding him. "What are you talking about? Who's my wife? Are you talking about Alana?"Erin raised her head to look at him. "Isn't she your wife? She warned me to know my place as an art teacher and not harbor any improper intentions toward you."Hearing that, Chandler was quite surprised. Since when did Alana start to meddle in his affairs like this?With a cold expression, he said, "I hate it when people doubt me. But since it's you, I'll explain it to you one more time. I told you at the hospital the other day that Alana is just my good f
Chandler's negativity shook Erin. Seeing him like this, she was immensely panicked. She grabbed a towel and rushed over to him. Looking at the shards of glass embedded into the back of his hand, she was angry and heartbroken. She started to feel regretful about what she'd said earlier; she'd been too harsh and hurt him too badly.Her tears flowed down uncontrollably. She choked, "Hold on now. I'll remove the larger shards first. It's going to hurt."Before she could reach his hand, Chandler backed away. With a pale smile, he said, "Just let me be, Erin. I deceived you once, so I deserve to die. A scumbag like me should just go to hell!"Chandler bypassed her and left; his blood leaving a trail as he trudged away. Looking at the terrifying trail of crimson, Erin felt like she could even taste the metallic scent of the blood right on the tip of her tongue. She was completely at a loss seeing Chandler give up on himself in earnest. With tears streaming down her face, she shouted, "St
Erin ignored Chandler's mischievous message. Nevertheless, a sweet sensation and a feeling of happiness engulfed her heart completely. The man she loved deeply turned out to love her the same despite her absence of seven years. This was no doubt her biggest reward upon returning.Love wasn't something that was completely necessary in life. If there was love in one's life, it would no doubt make life better; but if love didn't come to an individual, life would still go on.Suddenly, Erin realized she shouldn't keep holding on to the past. She'd heard a lot about Chandler's misery during the past seven years from Paulo and Cherry. If she kept holding him accountable for all the misfortunes that befell her, it would only torment him on top of tormenting herself. Why should she let those scoundrels, Tessa and Jack, continue to affect her psychologically? They were both dead now. Everything they did should also be buried in the past following their deaths.Chandler had waited for her f
Alana saw Erin's message in the middle of the night. Out of habit, she would check her phone when she got up to go the bathroom. Noticing the unfamiliar phone number, she tapped on the message to open it.Five minutes later, Alana stood still right where she was, her face considerably paler. Her mind went blank after she read through the contents.Her lips parted as she muttered to herself, "How can this be? P-Pamela is … Erin? How is this possible?"Feeling weak, she plopped back onto her bed in a sitting position, unable to move for a very long time. Thinking back to how Chandler and Pamela hugged each other yesterday, Alana felt upset and panicked."Does Chandler know Pamela is Erin? Oh my God … Erin is back! She's really back!" Alana screamed inwardly.With a jolt, she reached for her phone and called her sister.The moment the call connected, Alana almost burst into tears as she said urgently, "Angela, listen to me! There's a high possibility that Pamela is Erin!"Angela sa
Erin was shocked at Asa calling her "Mommy." She asked disbelievingly, "Asa … W-What did you call me just now?"A charming smile appeared on Asa's handsome little face. He beckoned Erin forward with an index finger. Instinctively, Erin lowered her head to get close to him. She thought Asa was going to whisper something into her ear, but in the next moment, he cupped her cheeks with his little hands and kissed her.When Erin felt it on her cheek, her mind went blank instantaneously. Next, she thought she saw countless rays of light burst forth from her surroundings before her eyes. Warmth engulfed her heart; the heat was so intense Erin felt her heart was about to explode. She still couldn't quite believe that Asa had just called her "Mommy" again!Tears streamed down Erin's face as she asked, "Did you just call me 'Mommy'?"Asa's eyes reddened in response. "I'm sorry, Mommy! I was too dumb and didn't understand the stories you were telling me … Daddy told me all about them yesterda
While Chandler and Asa continued with their conversation in the bedroom, Erin was already on her way to meet Holly, as the latter insisted on seeing her. Needless to say, she had the shock of her life when she read Erin's message the previous night.Nervously, Erin went to meet her. Besides Chandler, Asa, and Cherry, Holly was the person that she cared about the most. Erin felt very guilty for keeping her whereabouts a secret from her best friend for the past seven years. Nevertheless, she couldn't muster up her courage to see Holly when her face was ruined back then.Holly asked her to meet at a cafe near her magazine company. She booked a private room just for the two of them.…About an hour later, Erin walked into the cafe with a bouquet of white roses she bought from a florist on the way there. A woman passed by Erin as she entered, and she turned to look at Erin. It was Matthew's ex-girlfriend, Claire. She'd become even more attractive over the years. She quit the entertain
In the private room of the cafe, Erin told Holly about everything that had happened to her in the past seven years. Holly had already used up three packets of tissues. Her eyes were all swollen, yet she couldn't stop crying. Erin tried to comfort her several times but to no avail."Just let me cry, Erin. Do you know why I booked a private room? I knew I would cry my heart out. I actually started crying last night after receiving your message. You know, I wanted to see you last night, but your phone was turned off."Handing her another tissue, Erin said apologetically, "I had too much to drink last night. After sending out the message, I knew some of you might have a strong reaction. I wasn't ready to face any of you yet, so I switched off my phone."Holly continued to hold her hand. Their palms were sweaty, but she refused to let go."When I saw your message last night, I thought I wasn't worthy of being your friend because you never reached out to me. I was overwhelmed and called