Either way, Xavia made sure to stick by Zivon’s side throughout his rehabilitation period, and both she and her man found their gloominess quickly melting away… However, as time went on, she couldn’t help but notice some rather… odd things. For one, why were the Frankstons living in Zivon’s villa? What’s more, none of her family members seemed to be working… What was up with that? When she finally took the chance to ask, she was startled by what she heard! To think that Thomas’s fiasco, alongside the fact that Jenna was still alive, forced her family to resign from their positions… Naturally, Jenna still felt guilty about that, and after shedding a few tears, she was prompted to mutter, “…I’m sorry for bringing so much trouble to the family…” Shaking her head, Xavia replied, “Hey, you can’t just shoulder all the blame… Had I not been comatose, Von wouldn’t have brought you to that event, and Thomas would’ve never had that chance to call us out like that… So if anyone’s to be bl
...So that was why she had been out for so long? Aside from being surprised, Zivon simultaneously felt touched by her words. After all, that meant that even though she had another chance to be with someone else, she had remained true to him… Gazing lovingly at her, Zivon eventually asked, “…Care to share the details…? Specifically, on how much the other me desired you…” Gulping slightly, Xavia replied, “Well… It’ll be weird if I just start there, so I’ll fill in some blanks first… Let’s see… At the start, I avoided you as I said earlier, and once I had the chance, I immediately did my best to meet up with Ian so that I could prove to him who I was. Once I got past that, I began doing everything I could to prevent any future dangers from entering your life… and with that done, I decided to settle the rest of my life with Yulia…” “Alas, you were as sharp as always, and you eventually managed to trace everything back to me… Naturally, I remembered you as the man you were before, and
Noticing the confusion in Zivon’s eyes, Xavia quickly explained, “So, I frequently had dreams about you kissing and having your way with me in the dead of night… To think that that was actually you… Couldn’t you hold yourself back?” Gently pinching her nose, Zivon replied, “Do you really think I took things that far?” …She honestly didn’t… With that, she was just about to apologize when she heard him add, “Regardless, I won’t deny that I missed you dearly… I found kissing you to regain a bit of my sanity reasonable, but when I considered entering you… I forced myself to stop. It was difficult, of course. After all, the woman of my life was being completely unresponsive to my advances… But that was fine. You were just sick, and with enough effort, I knew that you’d wake up again.” “I won’t pretend that it felt more like a self-lie back then just to retain my sanity, but… I’m really glad that I kept on believing in you,” concluded Zivon as he hugged her tightly. Though it was a l
Zivon headed off to meet up with Zayne as per usual… and thankfully, the check-up results showed that the poison was almost completely flushed out of Zivon’s system. “From the looks of things, the poison should be completely treated within the next three days… Xavia herself seems to be doing fine too, and really, with how quickly you two are recovering, I’m starting to wonder if the world of medicine should focus a bit more on psychology…” Chuckling in response, Zivon replied, “As they say, everything starts from the mind…” …He had only been kidding, but alright. Shaking his head, Zivon then asked, “Anyway, have you identified why Xav and Jenna’s blood were so different?” Raising a slight brow, Zayne took a while to reply, “…In all honesty, their blood wasn’t all that different at all. At the end of the day, as much as I hate to admit it, it was all your mentality at play… If you’re imagining that Jenna’s blood will one day lose its potency, don’t be. Her blood will continue
Startled by that response, the anxious Xavia was quick to ask, “W-what’s wrong? Does it taste that bad?! I-I made sure to taste test it first but it seems that I failed…! Quick, spit it out-” Before she could complete her sentence, Zivon pulled her into his arms with a chuckle before saying, “Hey, I was just messing with you… Your cooking is still the best in the world…” …This man…! After tasting the sandwich as well and realizing that he really was just making a fool of her, Xavia couldn’t help but grumble, “…Don’t scare me like that… I was really worried, you know?” Hugging her closely, the smiling Zivon replied, “Yes, yes, I was wrong… Sorry, Honey…” “…Humph! I’ll only forgive you if you feed me too…” “I thought you’d never ask…” Watching as the two resumed acting all lovey-dovey, Zayne couldn’t help but rub his temples. He had already seen enough for one day… It didn’t help that Dolly hadn’t taken the initiative to contact him again… It was shortly after when Xavia fi
Since the duo had already searched all of Aplos’s local seas and found nothing, they finally decided to set sail for the high seas. Alas, they were attacked by pirates shortly after, and this forced them to retreat… “We’ve yet to find any traces of the kids even after scouring most of our local waters… And if Sophia really cared about the kids, she wouldn’t be hiding in dangerous waters, right?” “Indeed. With that said… Do you really think we should continue trusting Sophia’s final words…?” Now that he knew what had happened, Ian couldn’t help but rub his temples before asking, “…Before that, how are your injuries looking?” “James got shot in the abdomen, though the shot was far from lethal… I wouldn’t worry too much.” “…Even if you say that… No matter. Withdraw for now and we can continue discussing this once James has made a full recovery.” “Roger that.” After Ian hung up, he met up with Lana and said, “Jacob and James got attacked during their search, so I want you to
“Even if they did get a little injured, I’m sure they’ll recover. Just look at me. I literally survived a stab to the heart, so if it runs in their blood, I’m sure the kids will be survivors too… Oh, and have you forgotten how brilliant Maison is…? I’m sure the only reason he hasn’t contacted us yet is because that place has been blocked off all signals… With all that said, please have a bit more faith in our kids, alright…?” Though Xavia was still anxious, hearing all that calmed her down considerably… and in an attempt to calm herself down, she was prompted to mutter, “…Yeah… Maison is smart, and… I’m sure they’ll be fine… They’re fine…” Stroking her hair, Zivon replied, “Just give me a few more days to recover… Once I’m back in shape, I’ll join the search as well.” Sure, he looked calm about all this, but the truth was, he was just as worried as Xavia was… and the sooner they found their kids again, the better. Following that conversation, Xavia continued taking care of Zivo
Fast forward to the next day, Zivon, Xavia, Ian, Nathan, and Jovan headed off to look for the kids, whereas Xavia’s parents and Tiffany remained at home… Though Xavia really didn’t want Ian to come along after all that he had done for them, Ian kept insisting until she gave in. He knew that she meant well, but at the same time, he also felt guilty about failing to protect his sister so much. Tiffany herself was fine with his decision. After all, she understood how much this meant to Xavia, and she was in a comfortable spot in her relationship with Ian anyway… Little did the couple know what was going to be in store for them… It was about three hours later when the plane finally landed in Ashville, and the group of five quickly made their way to the hospital where James was in… “Feeling any better…?” asked the worried Xavia. Smiling in response, James then slowly sat up before replying, “You don’t have to worry about me, I’m fine…” Though it was true that the wound didn’t lo
Staring in shock at the kneeling man, Yulia mustered her remaining sanity as she replied, “B-but you’re younger-” “Even if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean that I’m much more ‘capable’ than your older pursuers…?” …Why were his words so suggestive all of a sudden?! Forcing herself to calm down, she took a deep breath before saying, “…Elliot, I’m not sure what spurred this decision, but… I’m not the one for you. Please find someone your age. I’m sorry.” After saying that, she strode straight for the car… but before she could start the engine, she couldn’t help but notice how desolate he looked standing under the pouring rain… Clenching her fists, it took her a while to finally sigh and walk back to him… “…Are you really sure about this?” asked Yulia, much to Elliot’s delight. “I am! Please! Give me a chance! You won’t regret it!” …When he put it that way, all Yulia could do was help him up before finally deciding to return his kiss… Sure, things had taken a sudden, unex
She stared in horror as he removed his shirt right there and then! “W-what are you doing?!” yelped the startled woman as she quickly looked the other way. “…Huh? I mean, I’m drenched, so…” “E-even so, you shouldn’t change right in front of me!” “…Yulia, we bathed together as children… It’s not like you haven’t seen everything already…” “Y-you can’t compare that to this situation…!” “Fine, fine, I… Um… Go cook, I guess… I’ll go get a change upstairs first…” muttered Elliot as he headed upstairs. Yulia herself had to try her best to calm down! After all, Elliot had been plaguing her mind in the past few days, and… she even had dreams where he had… …No! She couldn’t be thinking about such things! She needed to cook! Maybe that would help get her mind out of the gutter! Once that was done, she’d leave and finally start devising a plan to get rid of him…! As Yulia scurried off, Elliot himself was currently staring at an old photo that showed him eating some candy in Yulia’
Just as she had arrived at her car, the president of the Halls Group suddenly walked up to her, a bouquet in hand! The Halls Group had collaborated several times with the Burtons before, and because of that, she was well acquainted with the man. Sadly, he had also proposed to her on multiple occasions… and though she kept rejecting him, he never seemed to get the hint! “There you are, Miss Burton… Since you’re off work, I was wondering if you’d join me for dinner tonight…” asked the charming man. Feeling awkward, she was just about to come up with an excuse when Elliot suddenly grabbed her by the waist and said, “Oh? Another one of your admirers, Yulia…? Sorry, but she already has a boyfriend, my man. If that doesn’t deter you enough, then you should know that she prefers her partners younger. Now please leave.” Startled to hear that, the man glanced at Yulia, his eyes begging for an explanation… Yulia herself was eager to just escape this embarrassing situation, but before s
With that tale done, it was now time to return to Yulia’s story… Ever since she was a child, she had undergone countless hardships with her mother… and even after she was able to reunite with her father, things didn’t go much easier from there. To make matters worse, Fabiola ended up getting kidnapped for the longest time, resulting in Frank ending up the way he was today… Because of all that, it only made sense that she’d mature much sooner than others her age, and unlike the naïve girl she used to be, she was an extremely competent woman today. Alas, because of how used she became with working, she soon lost the urge to find herself a romantic interest… Things continued that way until… Well, that time that Elliot… …Wait, what was she thinking?! He was younger than her, for heaven’s sake! Quickly shaking her head, she attempted to force herself to concentrate on work again… But before long, a knock was heard on the door. After being allowed in, the department manager entered t
Knowing that there was no point in keeping things a secret anymore, Rea took a deep breath before saying, “…Alright, so… The truth is, I’ve always been highly competent, but… I’ve been pretending to be useless just so that you’d eventually marry me… The trip my parents are taking… That was my suggestion too…” Feeling speechless, it took Frank a long while to reply, “…So you weren’t really drunk when you did all that last night?” Pursing her lips, Rea awkwardly muttered, “…I wasn’t… Luna suggested it, and since it sounded like a good idea to accelerate things…” …Fucking hell, to think that he had fallen straight into her trap without even putting up a fight! Watching as he glowered at her, Rea gulped before adding, “A-anyway, now that we’re married and there’s potentially a baby in my belly, you won’t divorce me, right…?” “…Oh, believe me when I say that divorce is the easy way out! From today onward, I’m making you pay for your actions for the rest of your life!” Fast forwa
Fast forward to the next morning, Rea awoke with a yawn… What a nice sleep… Wait. Why was she naked? And why was Frank…?! Her following scream immediately woke the icy man up… and upon looking at her, he was immediately reminded of what had transpired last night! Essentially, Rea ended up clinging to him, and though he initially wanted to just carry her to bed to let her rest… Damn it! Had she really been that sensual?! How had he lost control so easily?! His train of thought was cut short when he realized that Rea was bawling her eyes out… and after rubbing his temples, he was prompted to say, “…Why are you crying when you’re the one who initiated this? I’ll have you know that I never forced you-” “I-I know, but…! I’ve just…! This is my first time…!” whimpered the quivering woman, prompting Frank to purse his lips. As if he wasn’t in the same situation… “…You’re not alone there.” “It’s not the same! Men are free to sleep with whoever they want but when it comes to women, I’l
“Say, wouldn’t you agree that the food smells delicious…? Why don’t I teach you how to grill, Rea…? Oh, but make sure to take your clothes off first before we start! Wouldn’t want them to get dirty…” With how drunk Rea was, she wasn’t able to fully register his words… and just as he was about to touch her clothes, an icy voice roared, “Stop right there…!” Instantly feeling a shiver run down his spine, the man turned around… and to his horror, it was Frank! Young Master Burton’s perpetually icy son…! Why the hell was he here?! Before the frightened intern could think of how to even react, Frank walked up to him and growled, “Leave now before I chop your hands off…! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Nodding in terror, the man frantically bolted off… and once he was out of sight, Frank glared at the tipsy Rea before adding, “This is what you meant by learning how to be more responsible…?!” “Huh…? But the food really did smell super good… I want to learn…” mumbled the drunk woman.
After leaving his office, he headed off to look for Rea. She had said that she wanted to use the bathroom, but… It had already been half an hour since she disappeared. What trouble had that idiot gotten herself into this time? Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he found her laughing along with some of his interns… When the interns saw him, they were quick to bow and say, “Good morning, Mr. Burton.” Barely even glancing at them, Frank looked at Rea and said, “It’s time to head home.” “I… Won’t be following you back…” “…And why is that? Are your parents back?” “No, it’s just… These are my good friends back from school, and they’ve been staying together to learn to be more independent… With that said… I think that staying with them will be a good start for me to learn more about how the world works. Thank you for taking care of me up till this point, Frank… I won’t bother you anymore.” Raising a slight brow, Frank then looked at the interns for a while before saying, “…Are you
Regardless, after leaving her in the room, Frank returned to the shower to cool himself off… but no matter what he did, he simply remained irked. It got to the point where he couldn’t relax at all, and after wrapping a towel around his waist, he grabbed his phone to send his father a text. ‘Was there really nobody else who could’ve taken care of Rea?’ ‘What? Can’t even care for a woman properly.’ ‘I’m a busy man.’ ‘I trust in your time management skills.’ …Though he really wanted to tell Zivon that he had misplaced his trust in him, he didn’t want to disappoint his father either. With that, all he could do was clench his fists before giving Rea’s parents a call… “Hello? Frank? Why are you calling at this time of night?” “…When are you and Uncle Saltman returning, Aunt?” asked Frank who wanted them to take back their idiot already! “…Huh? What was that? Sorry, the line isn’t very good… I hope Rea isn’t giving you too hard a time! Don’t worry, we’ll be back after about a