Tyler's lashes fluttered. "What am I afraid of?""You're afraid of being close to someone. You're afraid of caring. Why else would you turn all bitter and mean?"His lips curled into a sneer. "Maybe that's just who I am."Vicky stared into his eyes and said, "You're not."He paused."I know that's not who you are. You just want to get rid of me.""Don't speak like you know me," he said coldly."If you're that reluctant to see me, cooperate with your treatment and get better. That way, I won't have to show up in front of you every day."The sneer on Tyler's face faded as he fell into silence....Three days later, Tyler had a full recovery and was discharged from the hospital.He did not have any friends, so Vicky was the only one who helped with everything.Ever since the fight they had, Vicky stopped speaking to Tyler and did not smile as much as she did, but she continued to care for Tyler at her best effort nonetheless.After all the paperwork was filed, Vicky started p
She and Tyler would never see each other again.While Vicky was absorbed in her hectic schedule, rumors about her escalated.One day, Vicky realized that she had forgotten about her keys as soon as she stepped out of the dorm and went back.When she reached the door of her flat, she heard her roommates talking about her."Hey, have you heard of the rumors about Vicky?"Vicky's roommates were three foreign students, and Vicky paused when she heard her name being mentioned."Are you talking about the rumor that says she's been messing around?""I heard that, too. I heard that she asks for quite a lot of money in return. As long as the man can pay, she can do anything!""She hasn't been back to the dorm for the past few days. Do you think...she was out with a man?""There's no doubt that's the case! There's this handsome young man who came by the academy to see her some time ago. She sure has a lot of fish in her pond...""She'd never agree to go to parties, and here I thought s
Gloria jolted in shock. "What did you just say?"She had heard of Jonathan as well. His fame was not accumulated by his talent or accomplishment but by his womanizer's way instead.He was notoriously known as a playboy who would not let any woman he was interested in escape, and he would occasionally sink into more forceful ways to get the women he wanted."Gloria, there are a lot of girls here who are jealous of Vicky," the blonde woman whispered. "The rumors...are probably spread by those girls. Judging from what I overheard, I think someone in our academy is going to help Jonathan with his scheme."If Jonathan did not have any help, Vicky might not fall into his trap as she was an extremely guarded woman. However, if someone from the academy was helping Jonathan, there was a high chance Vicky might be in danger.Gloria's expression darkened. "Do you know where Vicky is right now?"The blonde woman shot her a look. "Gloria, maybe you should stay out of it... You know who Jonath
"Yeah, Vicky is my cousin," Gloria said with a smile. "Why are you looking for Vicky?"Tyler remained quiet for a moment and said, "Nothing important."Ever since he bid farewell to Vicky outside the hospital, he had not reached out to her and did not intend to do so again.However, work had been hectic, and he was suddenly overwhelmed by the urge to listen to the piano.He came when he heard that there was an orchestra performance, and when he spotted a familiar figure in the garden, he could not help but walk over.It was not until Gloria asked why he was looking for Vicky that he realized he did not have an answer to the question.Tyler was about to leave when Gloria called out, "Sir, if you're a friend of Vicky, can you please help? Vicky..." She gritted her teeth and continued, "May be in danger.""What kind of danger?" He narrowed his eyes darkly."I just heard that..." Gloria explained what she heard briefly.Tyler tensed. "Take me to her."Gloria was slightly stunned.
At the same time, Vicky raised her arm and smashed the rock she picked up earlier at Jonathan's head.Baam! A sharp pain pierced through Jonathan's head, and blood scrolled down his face.Over the years, Jonathan had abused his power with impunity and had never suffered such humiliation; being battered by a woman and left wounded was an intolerable disgrace for him.Jonathan flew into a rage, raising his arm and slapping Vicky hard across the face.Smack!Vicky was knocked down to the ground by the blow, and her cheek immediately swelled up. Rendered powerless by the drug in the water handed to her by Aileen, she had used all her remaining strength in her last attack on Jonathan and she was already at her wit's end."You're just a wh*re. How dare you play hard to get with me?!" Furious, Jonathan proceeded to slap her a few more times.The two young men who came with Jonathan said, "Jonathan, don't overdo it. If old George finds out, we'll all be in trouble."Vicky was no ordina
"Who are you?"Since the man was standing against the light and his height was towering, half of his face was shrouded in shadow, and his expression could not be seen clearly.The man turned, and his gaze fell on Vicky.Jonathan's expression darkened, and he instinctively stood in front of Vicky. "Out of the way. We're busy.""Let her go," the man said coldly.Jonathan sneered. "You're the one who should leave. How is it any of your business that we're leaving with a friend?!"A woman's voice echoed in the air. "You're not Vicky's friends!"Gloria stepped out from behind Tyler and glared at the three men coldly. "I've never seen her in contact with any of you. Besides, Vicky is about to go on stage. Where are you taking her?"Jonathan's expression darkened at the sight of Gloria.Gloria and Vicky were both talented beauties who had made their names known in the academy, so Jonathan recognized Gloria right away.He rolled his eyes and soon came up with an excuse. "Miss Shaw, h
Tyler did not so much as honor them with a look and was about to leave with Vicky.After all, they had plotted to trap Vicky, Jonathan and the others were reluctant to let her go and stood before Tyler in unison."Let Vicky go, or face the consequences!" Jonathan narrowed his eyes sharply.Tyler glanced at him contemptuously and said, "Scram."The feeling of being taken lightly shattered the three men's pride.The three of them had spent most of their time causing trouble and had been in a lot of fights outside of school, so they had no fear for the man before them."You should learn your place before coming here to play hero! How dare you try to take our woman from us?"One of the men pulled out a knife and thrust it toward Tyler with great force. The sharp blade glinted in the moonlight, reflecting a cold gleam.However, Tyler remained calm and composed, showing no signs of panic as he wrapped one arm around Vicky's waist and took a few steps back, evading the sharp edge of t
"Now, kneel!"Tyler shot him an odd look, and Jonathan repeated viciously, "Did you not hear me? I said, kneel!""And if I don't?" Tyler asked.The fact that Tyler let go of Vicky gave Jonathan the illusion that he had full control over Tyler and was furious at Tyler's question. "I'll shoot you if you don't!""Go on, then," Tyler said calmly.Everyone was stunned, and even Gloria looked at Tyler in confusion.While she was distracted, Tyler reached to grab the gun in Jonathan's hand.Jonathan wanted to take it back but was hardly a match for Tyler. At the very last moment, he pulled the trigger out of desperation.Bang!The gunshot was followed by a few more.Gloria had never been in such a situation before, so all she could do was tremble and watch as her mind went blank.By the time she snapped out of it, Tyler had picked Vicky up from the ground, and it was at that moment that Gloria realized Tyler was not scared of Jonathan's threat and merely accepted Jonathan's command