Scarlett’s POVHis sorrowful tone digs up all the memories I bury deep -- all the moments where he would stare at me with pure hatred in his eyes, only to try to cover it up when he notices me, and failed to no less. In the end, he would just avoid looking at me with his tone getting colder and colder.I just thought it was because I was adopted, but now I understand.“Does...does your wife know about it?” I ask, not able to say the word “mom” even though I tried to. In my memory, she tried to love me, or at least, she tried to act as if she does.“She only knew I found an orphan with the same blood type in a hospital,” He shakes his head quickly, “She loves you, you know that. Everything Ava has she wants you to have, too.”No, quite the opposite. Everything I had, she wanted Ava to have, including Sebastian. Every “reward” she got me for donating blood, she got Ava; and when Ava got something just for being their lovely daughter, it was always kept unique for her.“I didn’t know you
Scarlett’s POVSebastian is in the shower.My mind was a mess in the car. I couldn’t even begin to think about Jack Fuller’s confession, Damian Vanderbilt’s questions, or even just Sebastian’s offer. In the end, the easiest decision was:He needed to get out of the wet shirt.He took my offer, but he put the hot water in the bathtub with my favorite salt, and he insisted on me taking a hot bath first. It did help a lot. I took my time in there, feeling the warmth of the water softening my stiff muscles. I only came out to see that he didn’t take a shower himself, but waited for me in his wet shirt.In my gentle pajamas and soft slippers, I curl up on the cushions of our bay window, watching the quiet night view outside. I don’t miss this view. This is where I usually sit when I have to wait for my husband over midnight, or when he leaves me alone after yet another fight.But now, this view gives me peace.It comes from his changes, I know. I didn’t dare hope for such a safety from him,
Ava’s POVMom sent me to a hot shower when Dad went to deal with the parasite who pushed me into the lake.I can’t believe it worked so smoothly. I always knew how to get to her, from luring her to escape home to making her push me into the water. She writes all her thoughts on her face. I knew mentioning the necklace would rile her up, and she thought I would physically hurt her. I’m not as stupid as she is! She did exactly what I thought she would: she pushed me into a lake in front of Sebastion.He hates bullies, and this will definitely drive a wedge between them.Ever since she told Sebastian about the misunderstanding ten years ago, he has been putting a distance between us. He wouldn’t come to hang out even if I begged, he wouldn’t return my texts, and he even asked his secretary to answer my phone calls! I never even said I was the girl he saved, I simply confirmed that it was mine when he asked about the yellow skirt.I know he is mad at me, but he is not ghosting me and that
Ava’s POVIs he still the dad who spoils me when I pull little tricks on Scarlett the bitch? “For what?! She stole from ME! She wouldn’t even be able to talk to Sebastian if she didn’t squeeze her head into MY family! Taking her place with the Vanderbilt is just a start of getting back she owes me!”“You are not--!” Dad bursts into a shout, only to halt himself halfway before he changes into a more patient tone, “Do you seriously think that the DNA test could fool anyone? Other methods aside, Scarlett looks exactly the same as her Mom!”“So...what? You published the news with me wearing the necklace!” I look at him in horror, not sure if I heard him right, “Everyone knows that I’m the Vanderbilt’s princess now! And you want to announce that as a mistake, on my BIRTHDAY?! You will ruin me!”“It’s better than letting them find out about it later,” Dad says coldly.His words freeze my heart. Does he even know what “ruin me” means? All that I have worked for in the entertainment business,
Scarlett’s POVSebastian puts his phone between us, on speaker.Quietly, I hug my knees, and curl my toes so they wouldn’t touch his phone. He shoots me a meaningful glance as he answers Ava: “I’ll call Jack before sending a doctor over. Take some rest if you can, or you won’t be able to attend your own birthday party--”Ava burst into crying and I flinch away from the phone.Sebastian takes his phone and puts it on the side away from me. He sits a bit closer to me and puts his warm hand on my shin, kneading slowly with a gentle force. I wrinkle my nose at him, typing on my phone:[You are just doing this for the baby’s sake!]He almost laughs out loud when I show him my screen, and he has to clear his throat to cover the laugh.“Sebastian?” Ava’s wronged murmur comes through, urging when he doesn’t reply in time.“Sorry, what did you say?” Sebastian blinks at his phone, totally absent-minded. I didn’t notice either.“I--” Ava hesitates, her tone unsure with a shred of shock, “Am I on
Scarlett’s POV“I’m sorry...” Sebastian grabs the frame of our door, so hard his fingers turn white. “I-- I...”He stutters for long, but no words come out.What COULD he say? Hours. Only a few HOURS after he told her no, he is on his way to see her, in the middle of the night.Because Ava cut her own wrist.“I...I won’t do anything inappropriate with her. I just...” With utter struggle in his eyes, Sebastian explains, to me, or to himself, “I mean, you can come along if you--”I cock my eyebrows and he instantly adds: “I’m sorry! I don’t mean that, I’m not asking you to come and help her! I swear!”I sigh. Only a few hours ago, I thought we could start over. I thought if Sebastian would take my side against Ava, then maybe we do have a chance at holding together a family. I was wrong. So long as Ava exists in his heart, she could drill a hole in our family no matter how generous I be.“I want to believe you, but what would you do if she really is dying of blood loss?” I look at him,
Hey Guys!I finished a batch of modifications today, and sorted out some issues and the pace of the story.The chapters with "[Mod]" mean content in that chapter is changed; Two chapters have "[Add]" in front of them, I moved things around and paced up, cut out two chapters of redundant stuff, and added them. (So no extra charges are needed, and you can see the new content as of now).Hope the modification makes more sense, and hope new readers can enjoy the fixed ride!Nyx
Scarlett’s POVWell, okay if the “soon” is like five minutes!I barely even sat down in bed before he came back. I didn’t even hear the sound of his engine coming closer. I didn’t hear anything until he opened the door. I mean, I didn’t notice if he had driven out at all because I was upset. Maybe he never even left.“I’m still upset, even if you just left for five minutes!” I grumble to myself, counting the seconds after I heard him close the door downstairs.I totally failed to suppress my lips from curving up.I didn’t think he would come back. I mean, it’s Ava’s life at stake. I was surprised enough that he didn’t ask me to go and help her.I don’t know if he would come back if I wasn’t pregnant, but even if he did it mostly for the baby...Maybe we do have a chance at making the marriage work.I didn’t know he cared about the baby so much. After hanging up with Ava, the jerk dragged me for a million questions about the baby. I didn’t know one could be so curious about so plain th
“Alice?” Scar blinks, uncertain of her eyes, “Lilith, did you see Alice coming off? She was on the pony in the last turn…” Saying that, Scar is already running towards the spinning carousel, her breath held, and her eyes darting around frantically as panic grabs her. Alice is gone! She was so certain that Alice took the pink pony, which was now empty as it passed Scar innocently, as if Scar remembered it wrong. “Alice!” Scar shouts, turning around as her whole world spins. Did she just lose Alice? How?! Alice was just in front of her! She didn’t even take her eyes off! The fake wooden pony just goes behind the puller for a few seconds, and such a turn loses a whole person?! “Scar, breathe!” Lilith comes to Scar’s side, her voice stern and swift, “Do not move in case Alice comes back. I’ll find her! Scar!” Scar wants to cry. She wants to melt down and shout and burst out and blow up the whole entertainment park! But she can’t lose it, not right now. Lilith’s daughter is missing, an
“So…you really trust this…Silco?” Lilith asks Scar with her eyes still on Alice, who’s just a few inches away, laughing on the carousel as it runs around. Spent most of her life on a private island, entertainment parks are like miracle lands to Alice. And the bright smile on her chubby little face makes it so hard for Lilith to say no. Not that she wants to anyway: It’s the best chance to get Scar to spend time with Alice. Johnny Vanderbilt wanted to take Alice back to his city after Scar went to prison. Knowing how Scar felt about Damian, Lilith chose to help Sebastian and took Alice to hide on a private island Sebastian got under Granny’s maiden name. At least this way Alice gets to grow up with her father. The plan worked well at first. Sebastian narrows his work days to 2 in the office, moving most of his work online and spending all five days on the island with them. For quite a long time Alice thought Lilith was her mom, and Lilith didn’t put in a real effort to correct her
Driving for 20 minutes in the car, Scar’s eyes are still cold from the outburst earlier. She has loved that man, and hated that man. He is just to painful to keep in her heart. She wants him out of her life, but he just keep coming and stir things up! “So heartless about him, hmm?” Silco breaks the silence tauntingly, “Sure you won’t regret it? I know how much you loved him before.” “That’s none of your business!” Scar snorts coldly, her tone not at all like the sugar baby she shows others.
“Scar!” Scar left when Sebastian was dragged down by the Fullers. By the time he catches up, she’s already by a pure black luxury car waiting right outside of the Fuller’s gate. Scar wasn’t going to wait for him until Sebastian hurried up a few steps and put his fingers between the half-closed door. If he has to be honest, he is surprised that Scar didn’t close the door on his fingers anyway. But Scar turns visibly impatient at his way of stopping her. “You just never settle for what’s yours at the time, do you?” Scar says coldly, standing behind the door when Sebastian feels like the door is the furthest distance in the world. A cold snort lands quietly in the car. Sebastian hears. On the back seat sits that masked man, Silco. That name upsets him. That man is using Scar, if he is not playing her also, he knows. He looked into that guy, and found nothing. Nothing! That’s not normal, and it's not at the level of resources he has. Maybe that man doesn’t exist on papers, meaning a
The phone call changes Scar back to the vengeful fallen angle. For now. “I’ll go after Johnny Vanderbilt for what he did on his part, thanks but that’s none of your business…” Scar curves her lips, her devil like grin has no warmth, sending chills down the spine of her enemies, “I hope your family really have no trouble with your lousy explanation on cheating, Mrs. Fuller. But for now, I want my mom’s necklace.” Anna shakes her head slowly with mercy in her eyes, as if Scar is just a misbehaving child who doesn’t know better. “What happened to you, Scarlett?” Anna insists on calling Scar the name she gave her, ignoring Scar’s words, “Are you seeing anyone for these episodes? It’s not a light thing. If you need help—” “Not from you!” Scar spats with cold anger, “Stop with the hypocritical act of yours! You just don’t know when to stop even after your true color is exposed, do you? I was wondering where Ava got that from.” “How dare you talk to my mom like that!?” Ava shrills, blow
For years Scar has been wondering where Ava got the lying and acting from without a hint. It was right under her nose. It was Anna Fuller, Ava’s mom who is so good at lying that Scar didn’t even notice anything wrong! Anna cost Scar’s mom, and Anna’s daughter took Scar’s baby! Like mother, like daughter! She won’t let them get away this time! She can’t unite with her mom and baby with peace before she gets justice from this pair of snakes! “You need to talk to your father, honey—” Anna Fuller reaches for Scar’s face like the perfect mom she paints herself to be. Sebastian pulls Scar back a step, blocking her with his body as he grunts warningly: “Anna, stop it.” She turned on the manipulating machine again. But Scar heard Anna already. Letting out a cold snort, Scar murmurs slowly: “My father…” The laughter is full of bitterness, anger, hatred and disappointment, everything but what should associated with that word. “Scar…” Sebastian tries to pull her close, but Scar remains wh
“Gabriel,” Scar suddenly turns to the big dumb bear, “There was a time when you bullied me at school and were caught by the teacher. When my teacher asked you to give her mom’s number, you said the wrong number before you quickly changed it. Except it wasn’t a ‘wrong’ number, was it? It was the number you were told to memorize when you were a kid before it was changed to her current one. Why did she use this phone number for twenty years without any trouble when you had to memorize two?” Gabriel opens his mouth like a big mole who digs through its ceiling to the ground by accident. “Mom…?” Gabriel stammers, looking at Anna like a lost boy. He doesn’t know how he could not fall into Scar’s trap. There is no way because it’s not a trap. It’s an endless dark hole in his mom’s past that as much as she’s trying, she’s failing to cover up. “That’s too stretched, don’t you think?” Ava struggles, “Just because of a name and a random mistake—” “Silco pulled the info of the owner who owned
“Oh my poor Scarlett…” Anna Fuller grips her chest with a hand as if her heart pains, her soulful eyes filled with tears glimmering, “You had a few rough years, I know…I wanted to look for you but…” But Jack didn’t let me? But Ava would be heartbroken? Anna said none of those words, but knowing her too well, Scar knew what the indication was. Scar tilts her head, as if seeing Anna for the very first time in her life. In some way, yes. That’s how Anna Fuller talks. Painting herself as the most pitiful person in the world even when you are the real victim, at the same time indicating that someone else is at fault, anyone but her. She might have never told Scar to hate Jack Fuller, but every time when she “comforts” Scar, she paints another layer of hatred over Scar. Like when Jack Fuller ignores Scar, instead of sitting both of them down and talk it out like a proper mom should, Anna would secretly go to Scar when no one else is around, and say things like, “It’s okay, baby, you st
Looking at Gabriel’s steaming head, Scar giggles, waving her hand indifferently. “I came with big money behind me this time, and that’s why your fox of a father and snake of a sister are treating me with a basic manner. They know they can’t push me around but they are not stopping you from pissing me off because they want to see what I can do about your disrespect. Do you know what that means?” “Bullshit!” Gabriel grunts, but he can’t help but glance in his father and sister’s direction either. “I’ll tell you what I will do to you,” Scar stops spinning her phone, putting it in her purse as she stands up, her look bored and cruel, “That little precious company of yours that’s misleading you into thinking that you are not pure valueless trash? It’s going down in exactly three days. I know it doesn’t exactly hurt them,” She nods in Jack Fuller and Ava’s direction, “I mean, how could it when they never cared about you?” “You—” Gabriel wants to shout, but Scar cuts him off— “BUT, I’m