“Hales, you look lost!” Lincoln’s voice brings Halsey out of her reverie. She’s startled and gapes at him. They’re at the library where Lincoln was talking but Halsey is barely paying attention. “The captaincy is gonna be announced today!” He exclaims. “Aren’t you excited for me?” “Oh, yes!” Halsey smiles. “I’m really happy for you.” She’s sincere with her words. Seeing Lincoln happy makes her happy as well but Nathan’s actions are still bothering her. Ever since he admitted his withdrawal to her, she can’t help thinking if she’s responsible for his decision. She tried to ask him during their date last night but he avoided the topic. “It’s gonna feel so good to see the smirk being wiped off of Jacobs’ face!” Lincoln claims. “I know how badly he wants this but the rest of the team isn’t happy with him, especially after he got himself kicked out before the interstate championship. They blame him for the loss.” “But he wasn’t even there,” Halsey frowns. “Doesn’t matter. He was su
The ball bounces on the ground, breaking the silence. A lone figure is dribbling the ball furiously and throws it towards the hoop. It bounces off, missing the target.“F*CK!” Lincoln curses. Sweat is rolling down his skin. He’s glistening under the dim light, his face contorted in an unimaginable fury. His head feels as if it’s burning as the rage within courses through his veins. He picks up the ball and throws it hard against the wall. “Lincoln?”Halsey’s voice reaches his ear but he doesn’t turn around. She’s standing behind him, worried. He got what he wanted but why is he so upset?“Lincoln, what happened?” She asks him. “You became the captain of the team! You should be happy!”Happy? She thinks he’s happy with what happened?“Where were you?” He asks quietly. “I was looking for you.”“Me? I was at the library for some urgent work.”Halsey hates lying but there’s nothing else to do. If Lincoln finds out that she’s dating Nathan, it’ll make him very angry. For some reason, her
The players are scattered all over the basketball court. Nathan is dribbling the ball all the way towards the opposite end but one of the opponents blocks his way. He swerves around to dodge the player and aims for the hoop. Taking a position, he shoots.Lincoln jumps forward and furiously slaps the ball away. It’s a regular practice match and the Eagles have been divided into two teams where Nathan is leading one team while Lincoln is leading the other. Another opponent jumps forward to take the ball but Nathan manages to snatch it and passes it to his teammate. The player dribbles the ball forward and passes it to another teammate but Lincoln suddenly appears, elbowing the player hard. The player falls to the ground while Lincoln takes the ball to dribble.“Foul!” Nathan calls. Nelson also notices the foul and blows on his whistle. “Penalty shot!” Nelson announces. Lincoln looks furious and glares at Nathan. The latter ignores him and takes the penalty shot. The other players gath
Charlotte turns off the lights at the Lounge and steps outside. She locks the door behind her and turns around only to stop in her tracks.Daniel is standing there, waiting for her. He smiles at her widely but she doesn’t return the gesture.“What the hell are you doing here?” She demands. “I thought I made it clear to you that you and I are over!”She’s glaring at the man who played with her emotions but Daniel is unfazed.“Charlotte, both of us know that my marriage to Debra was a mistake,” he claims. “I’ve loved you-”“You’re a liar and a cheater!” Charlotte hisses. “I can’t trust you. Not only did you lie to me but you also hurt your wife! You can claim whatever you want but it’s the truth. Debra was naive but I’m not. I’m not gonna fall for your tricks again!”She’s about to turn away but Daniel grabs her hand.“Let me-” she begins but Daniel stops her.“I wanna meet my son,” he says.“You already have a son,” she points out. “Your son is Nathan and he’s at home, waiting for you.
A long silence ensues. Halsey is nervous while Lincoln tries to process her revelation. Charlotte approaches her son. “I’m sorry you had to find out this way,” she says gently. “But Halsey is really happy and she didn’t want to hurt you either. So she was waiting for the right time to tell you-” “You knew?” Lincoln whispers. “You knew about this?” Charlotte purses her lips. Halsey isn’t sure why but her hands are shaking and she recalls how Lincoln hit her with the ball when he was angry. Then she shrugs the thought away. That was an accident, she tells herself. He won’t hurt any of us. Lincoln doesn’t say anything for a while. For a moment, Charlotte and Halsey are relieved but in the next second, he picks up a glass and smashes it against a wall. Both the women are shocked and startled. Lincoln’s eyes are filled with a fury which they’ve never seen before. Even Charlotte is scared of her son’s reaction and she instinctively reaches out for Halsey as if shielding her. “You two
Nathan pulls up in front of the abandoned basketball court. An hour ago, he received a very strange message from the person he least expected it from. Frowning, he makes his way towards a tall figure which is aimlessly dribbling a basketball. “Why did you call me here?” he asks coldly. The figure stops and turns around. It’s Lincoln. Nathan raises an eyebrow. Lincoln is glaring at him but his anger is now deeper. His eyes are burning with hatred which transcends their usual banter. “You know, I’ve always wondered why I hate you so much,” Lincoln muses. He throws the ball towards Nathan who easily catches it. “You have it all,” Lincoln goes on. “Money, popularity, a proper name. No one calls you a b*stard. You get away with everything! I’m sure you’ll get away with murder too.” “Why did you call me here?” Nathan demands. “You have everything,” Lincoln says, ignoring him. “I wanted it all but never tried to hold on to my grudge. I always wondered what would’ve happened if our liv
*A few days later* Charlotte pours herself a hot cup of coffee and takes a sip as she reads the newspaper. Halsey is sitting right next to her, having cereal. It’s a sunny Saturday morning, a typical day at the Wrights’ household. “There’s a three day break coming up,” Charlotte notes. “Hales, all of us can go on a nice trip. What do you say?” “Sounds like a good idea,” Halsey agrees. “We can all drive to that mountain inn where we stayed last summer!” “I was hoping we’d go to the festival up in Boston,” Charlotte suggests. “You can ask Nathan to come as well.” She winks at Halsey who blushes hard. THUMP! Both of them jump in surprise when Lincoln slams his bag against the kitchen counter. He pours himself some juice and gulps it down in one go. Charlotte and Halsey nervously glance at each other. “Linc, we’re thinking of going on a trip during the long weekend,” Charlotte tells him. “Why don’t you-” Lincoln doesn’t even look at her. Instead, he ignores her, picks up his bag a
“UGHHHH!” Lydia screams and throws her phone to the ground in fury. She’s at Harry’s house with Daisy and Harry. Mike also joined them for the evening but he barely cares about their drama. He’s sitting on a couch, simply shaking his head.“I can’t believe that he chose that f*cking sl*t over me!” Lydia rages. “How could he do this to me? WE WERE PERFECT TOGETHER!”“That girl must be great in the sack,” Harry mutters. “I don’t see any other explanation.”“She walks around as if she’s Mother Mary!” Daisy scoffs. “That b*tch! She always manages to humiliate us.”“If you guys just stop bullying her and let it go, you won’t be humiliated any further,” Mike points out. “Why are you obsessed with Nathan, anyway? Just let it go!”“I won’t!” Lydia claims. “Why should I? Nathan is my life! I love him-”“You didn’t love him enough,” Mike states. “As far as I know, you cheated on him.”Lydia looks as if someone slapped her while Daisy speaks up in her defense.“It was a mistake!” Daisy lies. “No
*Eight months later in New York*Halsey is crying hard while Nathan looks guilty while Jo is quiet. “How could you do this to me?” Halsey wails. “This…this is…this is such a betrayal!”“Hales, I didn’t mean it!” Nathan exclaims. “It was an accident!”“Dad, this really isn’t right,” Jo adds, shaking her head. “I’m disappointed in you! How could you do this to mom?”Nathan gapes at his daughter. “It was an accident!” He claims. “I swear it was! I didn’t do it on purpose, babe! I-I was seduced!”“SEDUCED?” Halsey shouts at him. “SEDUCED?”She’s now angry and she throws a pillow at him. “SEDUCED? HERE I AM CARRYING A LITTER AND YOU…YOU…”Stopping in between her tirade, she takes several deep breaths. Nathan is ashamed and sad by what he did.“YOU…YOU ATE THE LAST PIECE OF CHOCOLATE?” Halsey shrieks and throws another pillow at him. “YOU KNOW I NEED CHOCOLATES IN THIS STATE!”Nathan is truly ashamed but the chocolate was too delicious to ignore. He thought no one would find out but Jo cau
Lincoln was being carried away by Damien’s men. He’s completely catatonic, his mind in severe shock. They took him to the psychiatric hospital where the doctors checked up on him. For many days, they’ve tried to figure out what’s wrong with him but to no avail.His encephalitis has reached the advanced stage in a short period of time. The doctors have no hope now.“He’s in a sort of a self-induced coma,” the psychiatrist tells Halsey one day. “He can’t comprehend anything. His eyes are open but his mind is shut. It’s as if he had a severe shock which he couldn’t overcome.”“Can he stand trial?” Halsey asks. “There must be something you can do to make him sane again. We can’t just let him off the hook like this!”“We’re trying but in a way, his punishment is this,” the doctor concludes. “He won’t be able to stand trial but he’ll not recover from this.”Halsey glances inside the ward where Lincoln had been kept. He’s staring at the wall, unmoving for hours. His once luscious hair has fa
*Present*“They must’ve found us!” Hastings exclaims. “How? You just said it’s a safe place?“I don’t know!” Lincoln yells. “They’ll kill us. Let’s just kill the kid and-”“ARE YOU INSANE?” Hastings screams. “She’s our only bet! If we take her, we can negotiate with them and leave this place alive!”As soon as he says that, several of Damien’s guards barge out of the elevator. Without any word, Hastings enters the room and grabs Jo before escaping through the fire escape. Lincoln runs off to hide.Downstairs, Nathan, Halsey, Damien and Daniel, are scavenging the floors. Hastings’ guards are being captured by their men, leaving their way clear. “Jo!” Halsey cries. “Jo, where are you?” “Jo?” Nathan shouts. The rooms are empty and they start to ascend the stairs. Daniel breaks off from the group, heading east to find Jo. In the chaos, no one notices him leaving.Halsey is beside herself with fear. Nathan keeps a firm grip on her while Damien instructs his men to spread out. “We’ll loo
Jo is glaring at Lincoln. She’s not crying nor looking scared but rather apprehensive of the man. The guards who were supposed to watch over her that day, had knocked out Jason and kidnapped her while she was on the way to school. They lied to Nathan that she was safe so that he wouldn’t come after them.Now, hours later, she’s tied up in an empty building. They’re on the fifth floor where Lincoln and Hastings are hiding. Lincoln is glaring at the little girl and he wants to push her off the window but she’s his only leverage to get Halsey.“In a few hours, your mother will come to me and we’ll leave this place,” he grins. “And you’ll be dead.”He steps forward, a manic glee in his eyes. “Once Halsey is here, I’ll kill you and take her with me.”“My dad will beat you!” Jo sneers. “Remember what he did to the other guy when he kidnapped me? I’m not scared of you!”WHACK!Lincoln slaps the insolent child. Jo feels immense pain on her cheek and even though her eyes are stinging with tear
Halsey is feeling a little squirmish. Things have been hectic for the past few days and it has taken a toll on her health. Just that morning, she threw up everything she ate. Nathan was alarmed by her condition and insisted that she went to the hospital for a checkup. He’s sitting with her, holding her palm. They’re outside the doctor’s office. Halsey was asked to undergo some tests and now, the doctor is reading the results.“Nate, I’m fine,” she assures him. “There’s nothing to worry about. Go to work.”“No, I won’t stop worrying until I see the reports!” Nathan insists. “I want to stay here.”Halsey smiles and shakes her head. He’s so persistent in every little thing related to her health. Nathan can’t help it. He lost her once and he can’t lose her again. The moment she started to show signs of being ill, he was overcome with paranoia. He’s thinking about the worst case scenarios and his heart is filled with fear. “Is Jo at school?” Halsey asks.“The guard texted me that she’s s
Over the next few days, Daniel is kept under close observation. Hastings and Lincoln are still missing, something which is looming over everyone’s heads. Nathan is trying to find them but to no avail. He and Halsey are trying to maintain normalcy at home so that Jo doesn’t suspect anything.One night, Nathan arrives home late to find Halsey is still awake. She’s curled up on the couch, reading. When she hears the door open, she looks up and smiles.“Any luck finding them?” she asks when he plops on the seat next to her. “None,” Nathan admits. “I can’t find them. It’s like they’ve vanished.”Halsey is now troubled. Where could they be? Nathan puts his arm around her shoulder. “We’ll find them,” he assures her. “They can’t hide for long.”“I hope so,” she murmurs and hugs him.Meanwhile, miles away from Bayers’ Coast, Lincoln is feeling frustrated. He’s angry and annoyed at being locked up in the house all day. Hastings told him that they’ll be implementing their plan soon but he’s lo
CRASH!The vase breaks into thousands of tiny pieces. Standing above the broken ceramic is Lincoln, with wild red eyes. He’s in a murderous rage and he breaks everything in his vicinity. Hastings is on a couch, bored of the man-child’s drama but Lincoln is on a warpath.“I’LL KILL THEM ALL!” Lincoln shouts. “THEY’VE BETRAYED ME-”“You were stupid enough to trust a stranger,” Hastings yawns. “You should’ve come to me instead. Just like your dad did. Your stupidity cost us the hospital. If you had your shares, we’d have been unbeatable today.”Lincoln shoots him a glare but Hastings doesn’t care. They’re at Lincoln’s farmhouse, a property he had purchased a few months back in secret. Lincoln can’t fathom his loss. Jamie and Damien double crossed him but he’s more shocked by Salvez.“My father is a fool! He only wants his business to be safe but I don’t care about all that!” Lincoln yells. “I just want Halsey!”“And I want revenge against Nathan Michell,” Hastings says. “The best way to
Daniel and Lincoln stand up, shocked. They gape at Nathan who’s grinning. “What’s the meaning of this?” Daniel snarls at Salvez. “Why are you withdrawing your support? And isn’t he the head of the Michell family? He’s your enemy!”“My father is merely supporting me,” Damien calmly says. Daniel rounds on him.“Did you forget that I saved you all those years ago? I gave you a new heart!”“By killing the woman I love,” Damien quietly says. This makes Daniel even more furious. Lincoln is glaring at Jamie but she’s smug. Nathan takes charge.“Fifty five percent of the shares have been transferred to me,” he tells his father. “You’re not the chairperson of this hospital anymore. I am. It’s over for you, dad.”Daniel glares at Nathan while Lincoln is silent. He’s too shocked, too numb to say anything. Once again, he has lost. This can’t be happening, he tells himself. It’s all a bad dream!But it’s not. It’s real and it’s happening. Nathan has taken over the hospital and effectively, Linco
Nathan is sitting on the couch, thinking hard. It’s past three o’clock in the morning and he’s not sleepy. On the contrary, he’s feeling agitated about what’s going to happen in a few hours. Even if everything seems to go according to his plan, he’s still nervous. What if something goes wrong? Even one misstep can ruin years of hard work.Halsey stirs in her sleep and rolls over to the side to hug Nathan only to find the spot to be empty. She slowly opens her eyes to find him on the couch, drinking alone. He looks worried and this in turn, worries her.“What’s wrong?” she asks as she approaches him. “Why are you awake at this hour?”“Can’t sleep,” Nathan mutters as he takes a sip from his drink. Halsey sighs and sits next to him. She pours a glass of whiskey for herself. Nathan is slightly surprised.“When did you start drinking whiskey?” He asks.“I don’t drink it,” she admits. “I just wanna give you company right now, that’s all. Why? You don’t like it when I drink?”“It’s up to yo