>* We have to believe that we are headed in the right direction... Wherever it may lead. *****Meanwhile... Malisa was in her room reading a highschool novel about two best friends who fell in love with one another, but were unable to confess their feelings to each other as they were afraid of ruining their relationship... They eventually did after lots of drama... But what they didn't realize is that when they got together was when they'd get to fight the toughest battles... Well... It doesn't matter how tough the battle turns out... As long as they are together, right? Malisa had just arrived at one of the most interesting parts of the story when her cell phone rang... She wanted to ignore it at first, but changed her mind as it might be an emergency call... Seeing that, it was an unknown number... She wondered who it could be and why the fellow was calling her.Nevertheless, she answered the call... She intentionally waited for the caller to speak first b
>* Every tick on that clock is another chance to do it again. Do it your way. ***** " So are you done staring? Aiden interrupted his personal assistant from his stupor." I... I am sorry, president. " He bowed his head. " It's okay... " " Here's your lunch, President... " He said, placing the lunch box on the table... " So what did you get? "" Hm... Some steak frites, chicken confit and french onion soup.."" Okay... Thank you... You can leave now... " " Okay, President. " He said before leaving the room. While having his meal, Aiden found himself thinking about Malisa and their tea chat tonight.. It was going to be fun... So fun. He resisted the temptation to go over to meet her as soon as possible... But well... He couldn't just leave his job just because he was the CEO... Could he? He has to follow the rules too! No matter how it is! **** Hours later... Mary and Malisa were both in Malisa's room chatting about their day's activities. " Really? Did the
>* There's nothing as tragic as being alive and not enjoying life. *****" It's... Master! " The butler said quickly... " Master? " This time Mary spoke up... Hearing the word master, she felt a tug in her heart... Her brother was the only man in the house and so it can only be him the butler was talking about... Still she felt the urge to confirm." Yes! Master Aiden! "" What happened to him? "" He was in a fatal accident and has now been rushed to the emergency room... " " What! " Both Malisa and Mary Exclaimed in unison... Mary even dropped her phone out of shock... Her brother in an accident? How? When? What happened? Does this explain why she had been feeling uneasy anytime she thought of her brother today?Is that why she had been missing him all along? " Brother, Brother, brother... " Mary's legs lost their strength as she fell to the ground... In tears... No... It can't be! It can't happen again! Her brother can't be in an accident... It must be a lie...
>* Follow God's north for your life's calling. *****Happy 40 chapters, lovely readers! *After about two hours of waiting, the emergency room light was turned off indicating that the doctor's had completed their primary duty... The trio stood up immediately when the door was opened and waited for the doctor to come out... The doctor in charge gave a faint smile when he saw them... " Doctor, how is he? " Mary inquired quickly... Sighing... The doctor replied, his words were contrary to the one they were expecting and it really broke them to hear it... " We managed to remove the bullets... Luckily they weren't shot at his heart... But he lost a lot of blood and would really need a donor... " " A donor? Haven't you contacted the other blood banks in the country? " The PA said. " We have... Unfortunately, they are all out of stock of his particular blood type. " " Don't tell me his blood type is AB negative... " Mary said in horror. " Unfortunately it is. "
>* Failure can only exist in the minds of those who give it power. *****Slowly but steadily, Aiden opened his eyes... At first his vision was a little blurry but it soon got cleared in some minutes... Seeing the white walls and ceiling, he sighed... He didn't need a priest or prophet to tell him that he was in a hospital... Recalling what Happened earlier, he realized how careless he had been...Despite knowing that he had lots of enemies who were lurking here and there waiting for the perfect moment to strike... He still set out unguarded... At first, he thought he could escape but soon he realized that it would be impossible as he was completely surrounded! And when he was shot on the chest thrice... He saw his life blur out right before his eyes... Just before he dropped unconscious to the ground, he thought about Mary and Malisa... The two women in his life... One was his little sister whom he had sworn to nurture till she could be independent... His baby
>* The compound effect states that we are all where we are in life as a result of our constant habits and actions. *****" Little Maria... " Aiden called out slowly... " Brother? " Despite being annoyed at him, she still raised up her tear-filled eyes to look at him... Aiden raised his hands and used it to wipe out her tears before raising up her chin to look at him... " Do you remember... How you used to take chocolate bars from my bag and I'll still put another one there despite knowing that you are always taking them? " " Yes, Brother... You often scold me for eating too much chocolate... Yet, you would always give in to me whenever I cry for one... " " Hm... Do you recall when you ended up throwing up all over me when you were sick? " " I do, brother... Then I had thought you would scold me to death. Yet you didn't, rather, you simply changed your clothes and took care of me... " Mary's eyes were filled with nostalgia. " And when you fractured your ankles from
>* The real definition of insanity According to Einstein is to do the same thing and expect a different result. *****Malisa had just woken up from her slumber when Aiden and Mary entered the hospital room where she was. " Sis...." Mary ran towards her bed when she saw her eyes opening... " Hey... " Malisa said in a whisper as she tried to regain all her memories from earlier... " I told you I'll be fine, didn't I? " She smiled at Mary." You did... But you were out for almost twelve hours, sis! " Mary said emotionally... " But I am awake now, alright? " " You are... " " Hm, Mali... Aiden interrupted the duo from their mini banter. " Hi... How are you doing now? " " Well... I am good. What about you? "" Same... " Malisa sighed. " I am happy to see you fine now, Mary was so scared earlier... It was a feat trying to comfort her... " " Am sorry you had to go through that... "" It was nothing really... " " Hm... I really don't know how to tell you how grateful I am f
>* You'll never know if you are hitting the mark, if you have nothing to aim at. *****" Aren't you supposed to still be on bed rest? " Malisa completed her words as she took a bite of the apples... " Well... " " Don't mind him, sis... He's always acting like a Superman who doesn't need to rest well even after a surgery... " " That's a mean thing to say to your brother, Mary... " " Oh... " Mary paused before turning to face her brother. " So sorry about that, Bro... "" It's okay... " " You know sometimes, I wonder if you too are really siblings or father and daughter. " Malisa commented... " Well... Lots of people say that too, I guess it's due to the 16yrs age gap between us... " " Yeah... Nevertheless, it's still very cool... " " I guess... " " You too don't have to worry so much about me, I am fine... I also did a full body check up earlier and the doctor assured me that I was fine... The only thing I need to take care of is the bullet wound... " " Oh... " " By t
Author's note. * Don't let the world run over you. You have to fight! * **** Hello dearest readers... How are you all? You know, I feel so overwhelmed right now... I still can't believe that Persistence is finally over... As I said before, it's dedicated to all females and most importantly to the dreamers... Guys! Please don't give up on your dreams! Keep Pursuing it till the end! You can do it! So well, Malisa and Aiden's story hasn't ended yet as there would be a part two... I'll inform you guys about it when it's out... In the meantime, you guys can check out my other books. The Better Place : A very emotional story about decisions and how they affect our future. It's dedicated to my deceased friend, Jemmy.... ( Book is completed with 180 chapters . Available on, Goodnovel and Web Novel. ) Depressed ( love yourself ) : A unique book on learning to love oneself and building a strong self esteem... Also a book on Self discovery. ( Book is completed and is
Epilogue. * People who don't chase their dreams never get to live them. *****Five months later... It was February 14 known all over the globe to be a day of love... And it's grandly celebrated in Paris which is known to be the city of love... Due to this, all the students in the music department in the college including, Malisa and Franchine were in school recording a love song for the day... The song was titled, Summer love... Since Malisa had a very beautiful and Angelic voice, she was in charge of singing the stanzas while the others sang the chorus with her.... They did this for some hours before they were dismissed when the music instructor was finally satisfied with the piece... They had produced. As their car was parked outside the campus, Malisa and Franchine had to walk through the campus. Due to this they were able to watch the grand valentine day ceremony in their college... Students from all departments participated in the celebration... Singers fr
>* Sometimes you get a good card and sometimes you get a bad one. You just have to deal with it accordingly. ****** Happy 70 chapters! * Days later... Malisa and Franchine were discussing at the school canteen during free periods." So you began your training in the military at age 15? " Malisa asked, '' Franchine who was munching on some chips in front of her... " No... 14. I graduated highschool at age fourteen so I enrolled into the military that year too.. " " Wow. Really? " " Yep. So I served there for like 7 years before then traveling to Beijing where I practiced martial arts for 3 years before coming back earlier this year. " " Oh my! So you are 24? " Malisa inquired with a shocked expression." Yep... Do I look that young? " She smiled... " Of course you do. I thought you were nineteen or twenty... " Malisa said truthfully... " Well... I guess I have got a nice body build then... " " Yeah... So what's your plan now? " " Nothing much... Just studying music
>* When you have a goal. You stick to it. You never lose focus. *****The rest of the day went okay till it was time to head home... Aiden had lots of work to do. Franchine was responsible for driving Malisa home. The two young ladies were on their way to the car when their road was blocked all of a sudden by some ladies and men. Malisa was indeed surprised at this... She somehow had expected a confrontation but not on the first day... Like today! At least they should be allowed to breathe freely before confronting them... Malisa and Franchine both paused in their steps simultaneously as they awaited the other party's reaction. The other party consisted of three ladies and a man all dressed alike.It goes without saying that there were cult members. And, Malisa wondered what they have got to do with them. Since they never showed signs of being interested in the cult in the first place.So why...Franchine on the other hand wasn't a bit surprised at their confro
>* God will do for you what you cannot do for yourself. *****The first day at college was nothing like, Malisa had probably expected it to be like....Contrary to what she had been expecting, there were many black students too... Just like her. Those she recognized as black Americans. There were also many Indians and Chinese.There were practically people from different continents...So she didn't feel any awkwardness as she had expected she would feel. Wait, could it be possible that Aiden knew about this fact and that's why he chose this college especially for her and also assured her that she'll be fine. Malisa couldn't help smiling at this thought... She often wondered how caring and loving he could be to her... While all the new students sat in the registration hall waiting for the vice Chancellor of the school to address them...Malisa felt a presence beside her, looking up she saw a young looking lady around her age or above. " Good day, Madame. " The lad
>* Don't stay stuck living someone else's dreams and not finding your own. * ***** Minutes later, the awards ceremony finally took place... " On behalf of AGT I present this golden award to you... " The head Judge said as he presented the golden award to Malisa... Malisa accepted the award with shaky hands but the moment she received the award... She became confident once again and lifted the awards up in the air. " I did it! " Only those who knew of her story would be able to understand the deeper meaning behind her words... Though some other people could feel the intense emotions in those three lettered words too... " Congratulations, Miss Bree... " Another Judge congratulated her too with a smile... " Thanks... " Malisa replied with a bow... Later, after all the formalities had been done and Malisa and she received her cheque too... She headed backstage where Mary and Aiden were waiting for her... Surprisingly she also found Gabriella there...Jus
>* You do what makes you happy. If you don't know what that is. You're gonna have to find it. *****Malisa wrote her entrance examinations a week after with ease. While waiting for the results the family of three went on a vacation to New York as Malisa also prepared for the singing competition she was to participate in..****The night before the competition, Malisa couldn't sleep as she just kept tossing and turning... Mary, who was in the room with her, got very worried and went out to the other room to talk to her brother about what's going on... Aiden was just preparing to sleep when he heard the knock at the door... After finding out that the one at the door was Mary, he gave her the permission to enter .. and she did. " Wassup, Little Mary? " Aiden inquired sitting up on the bed... Mary didn't reply to him Immediately as she walked towards his bed side and sat at his side.... " Have you ever been very nervous about something before? " She asked instead of repl
>* You just need to keep trying till you win. *****The car soon arrived at a fair... Malisa was surprised, she didn't hear of a fair going on... So how is it possible that there's one going on without her knowledge?Well... I guess she had forgotten that she can only know about something that Aiden wanted her to. If he didn't want her to know then there's no way she would. " So what do you think of my surprise? " Aiden's voice Interrupted her from her thoughts. " It's not bad. " She smiled... " I'll take that as a compliment then... " He said parking the car in the parking lot. Just before Malisa could open the door on her side, he had already turned over and helped her to... " Let me. " He said, opening the door and then holding out his hand towards her..Malisa smiled, taking his hand. " Merci. " " You are welcome. " The fair was filled with people from different races who came to celebrate. " So what's fair about? " Malisa asked Aiden as they walked towards the c
>* What I have come to realize is that God's plan takes time. *****The ground was a little wet as it had just finished drizzling...Nevertheless, the weather still looked very good and perfect for an outing... Malisa, who was wearing a simple flare gown and sandals, walked ahead of Aiden to the car.Unlike other days, Aiden was putting on something more casual... Just a simple Chelsea shirt and pants... His hair was combed very nicely making him look very young and dashing... He didn't look like the usual way he does today.Rather he looked like a college student who was going out on a date. Though the aura of the Presidency was still there... Well... It's not like he could let go of it just because he wanted to anyways... The duo stopped in front of a blue Jeep... Aiden had decided that he was going to take it out that day as it's been a while since he last took the vehicle out for a ride... " The car looks very new Indeed. " Malisa couldn't help but comment, stari