Across the street, near the school entrance, a black Audi was parked. Yvonne sat in the passenger seat, feeling angry as she watched what was happening."I can't believe Madelyn would do this behind Ethan's back. She's befriending that bastard! I need to so something..."Yvonne snapped some photos with her phone, thinking to use them as evidence."They're leaving. Drive after them, Mr. Jardin. I want to see what else they're up to!"Zach found it hard to refuse Yvonne's requests, maybe because of his own thoughts about Madelyn. He slowly followed Forrest and Madelyn.But when they turned into a narrow alley, the car couldn't go through.Yvonne exclaimed in frustration, "My brother treats her so well. How could she be with Forrest? No wonder she defended him last time; they must have a thing!"She added, "Mr. Jardin, she's your sister. She's dating someone while still in high school. Shouldn't you do something?"The moment she looked at Zach, she felt an unsettling aura from him
About an hour and a half later, Forrest shook Madelyn's foot. "Hey, wake up, it's time to go," he whispered to himself, 'She's sleeping so soundly.'Startled, Madelyn roused from her slumber and realized that Forrest's IV drip had been completed. She saw a cotton swab taped to the back of his hand.Checking her phone, Madelyn saw that it was nearly one o'clock. She yawned and asked, "Did you remember what I told you?""Thinking about that now, at this hour? Let's discuss it tomorrow," Forrest replied, slinging his bag over his shoulder and making his way to the counter to settle the bill and collect his medications.The doctor gave Forrest a stern look. "Kid, take your kidney health seriously. I wasn't joking. If it worsens, you might not have children in the future."Rolling his eyes, Forrest retorted, "Alright, enough with the lecture, old man."Madelyn chimed in, "Forrest, show some respect to the doctor." Then she turned to the doctor and assured, "Don't worry, I'll make sure
Madelyn woke up naturally and got out of bed. It was now seven o'clock, and she had half an hour before she needed to leave. That was more than enough time for her.She tied her hair into a ponytail and used a headband to keep it in place before opening the door and stepping out. She glanced at the couch and saw that the blankets and bedsheet were neatly folded and placed on it.She thought to herself, 'Forrest must have left already. 'Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and there stood Forrest, wearing a black bomber jacket with a hat on his head. Snowflakes had settled on his shoulders, and he brushed them off before coming inside."Hey, Madelyn. You're awake."Madelyn asked, "Where did you go?"Forrest held up two bags of food for her to see. "Breakfast, bought downstairs for you."He added, "Hot cocoa and cinnamon rolls."Madelyn replied, "But I'm running out of time.""Oh, then I'll toss it." He said indifferently."You're really wasting food. I'll go brush my teeth and
Madelyn stopped in her tracks when she realized it was George calling her. She wondered, 'Why is Ethan at the school at this time?'However, she had no choice but to get into Ethan's car, taking the passenger seat.The car was warm, thanks to the air conditioning.Sitting in the car, Ethan appeared pale and weak. He had his hand pressed against his mouth, coughing a few times. His breathing was labored, as if he was feeling uncomfortable.Neither of them spoke. After a while, Madelyn broke the silence, "Why are you here today? You're not feeling well. Do you need to go to the hospital?" she said with concern."It's just a common cold, nothing serious," Ethan replied.Madelyn nodded in response.Ethan's voice was soft as he asked, "Yesterday, Yvonne mentioned that Mr. Jardin couldn't find you when he was here to pick you up after school. Where did you go?""He was here to pick me up?" Madelyn responded, a bit puzzled. She wondered, 'Wasn't he here for Yvonne?'Ethan nodded, "Yv
Yvonne's performance was pretty impressive. She rarely did her homework, and she occasionally skipped classes. It seemed like she could perform well academically effortlessly.Today, Yvonne had once again skipped the Math Olympiad training class. Albert seemed unfazed and began teaching at the blackboard.In the final period, the homeroom teacher, Hailey, made an announcement. There would be a parent-teacher meeting this Saturday, and every parent was expected to attend. Additionally, there was a camp during the upcoming break, and if anyone wanted to participate, they needed to sign up. The camp was organized by Ventrocloud High School and was open to the entire school.Madelyn stashed the camp participation form into her drawer.She didn't need to think twice about the parent-teacher meeting. Hayson had never attended any of her parent-teacher meetings before. In the past, she had convinced Zach to attend as her parent.But this time, it seemed unlikely that anyone would show up
Forrest asked, "Satisfied?""I didn't mean it that way," Madelyn replied, looking at the generous portion of chicken. She knew she wouldn't be able to finish it all."And you're not even happy when I give it to you? Geez, you're really hard to please," Forrest remarked.In reality, Madelyn had only wanted to express her frustration.After finishing their meal and heading back, Forrest unexpectedly asked her to tutor him. Madelyn thought, 'Normally at this time, he should be at the bar hanging out with some pretty girls. Now he's voluntarily asking to study.'It was six o'clock, and the sky was already dark.They walked to the classroom building.Madelyn said, "Let's do so tomorrow instead. You're not fully recovered yet; take a day to rest.""If you're not down in ten minutes, I'll come up there myself," Forrest responded.Madelyn believed he would follow through with his threat. So, in the end, she compromised.As Madelyn packed her belongings and prepared to leave, Yvonne s
Yvonne continued, "Are you trying to keep Ethan hanging on while also being with Forrest, Madelyn? I'm curious, what's your true intention? Why not just be honest?"As Madelyn pondered the situation, she thought, 'Is this how Yvonne see it? Did Ethan feel the same way when he learned about Forrest and me last night?'Meeting Yvonne's gaze directly, Madelyn maintained her composure and responded, "Let me clarify a few things."She began to explain, "Who I spend time with and what I choose to do is my personal business. Ethan has been supportive before, and I'm grateful for that. However, it doesn't mean I'll simply go along with his feelings for me. If you all believe I should distance myself from him, I'm willing to do so." She added, "This is a matter concerning your family, and it's unrelated to me. If you insist on pressuring me to make a choice, I'll stand by the decision I've made now."Furthermore, Madelyn recognized her own responsibility toward Forrest. Yet, even if she did
Inside the library, Madelyn brought out a math paper she had created herself and handed it over to Forrest. The paper had simple problems and was just half a page long.Usually, finishing it would take around thirty minutes, which was just enough time for her to also commit the Etlinish words to memory and even tackle the Etlinish reading comprehension.Not wanting to make Forrest feel pressured, Madelyn refrained from hovering around to observe him work.After the passing of thirty minutes, whether he completed the paper or not, she would collect it.Giving the paper a quick look, Madelyn noticed that he hadn't written down a few of the most basic math formulas.Ultimately, he achieved a score of twenty points. She noted this in the upper right corner of the paper. Those twenty points were granted for his effort in attempting each problem.Madelyn sighed one after another, pondering, "Forrest, what on earth have you been doing these past two years?"Forrest cast his pen aside,
Liam was standing in the rain, and though it hadn't been long, he was thoroughly drenched.Blake quickly pulled him close, her voice laced with concern. "Are you crazy? It's pouring rain! What if you catch a cold?"Liam's look was subdued, his face showing signs of fatigue. "I'm okay. This is for you; I didn't want you to have to come out in this weather."As Blake took in his forlorn appearance, her heart softened suddenly. 'Am I losing my mind?' she thought."Now you'll have to pay more attention to me, Blake... I was just so scared of losing you. I've put everything I have into getting you to agree to marry me; the idea of you walking away is unbearable."Overwhelmed with emotion, Blake locked eyes with him. "Did she teach you to say that too?" she asked, her hand moving on its own to brush away the raindrops from his hair.A maid nearby, observing the scene, rushed over with a blanket and an umbrella. However, Grace, fully grasping the gravity of the moment, halted her. Ackno
Cecilia said, "It's fine. Let's give them a week. Rearrange the flight and all the plans for the trip. This is Blake's first time getting married and going abroad for honeymoon. I want to make sure she has a good time."Susan nodded. "Okay, Ms. Samford."Not long after Cecilia left, three editors who used to work for Olivia's company entered her office. All of them spoke in panic, "Ms. Blue, what should we do? Ms. Samford already knows everything. If the legal department finds out about it, will we go to jail?"Olivia remained calm as she said, "Don't panic. Just focus on your work.""But we got into this company through you. What if they say we got into this company through the back door and then fired us?"Olivia sat at her desk, supporting her forehead with her hands. She was obviously panicking. "Don't worry, I'll handle this."You guys can leave now."Olivia did not expect this matter to be exposed so soon. She wondered how Cecilia found out about it. 'Could it be that she'
StartReading Literary was the last place Cecilia wanted to be. But she made an exception this time.Olivia had just finalized a cooperative copyright deal with another website company. Several editors from her own company were there at StartReading Literary. As she entered the office, she saw all the editors from StartReading Literary sitting upright, not daring to make a sound.She also saw her office door was wide open. She frowned as she walked into her office and was surprised to see an unexpected gust.Olivia put down the documents in her hand. "Ms. Samford, what brings you here?"With her legs crossed and Susan standing behind her, Cecilia stared at Olivia, who was in front of her.Cecilia sneered and stood up. She ran her fingers along the desk. "StartReading is actually the last place I want to be. I came here because I found out that you enjoy meddling in other people's affairs. Otherwise, you wouldn't even qualify to see me."Olivia instantly looked wary. She remained s
Liam stood up. He watched as Blake, who looked weary, walked away. "Blake, what do you want me to do so you'll like me?"Blake did not stop walking. Instead, she took even bigger steps and left.She went to the Harper residence, which surprised everyone.Grace asked, "Blake? Why did you come back here? Where's Liam? Why didn't he come back with you?"Blake stuttered, unable to find the words. She just made up an excuse, saying, "It's nothing. I just wanted to come back."After Hannah and Yael left the wedding last night, they went back to the research institute.As for Simon, he went to the farm to manage the business.After Blake went to her room, Grace became worried. She followed her and saw her sitting with a blank expression in the room, not knowing what to do.When Blake saw Grace, she quickly adjusted her mood. "Grace, why are you here?""I came to check on you. Blake, what's wrong? Did you have a fight with Liam? You just had your wedding yesterday, and you're already
The pregnancy test report came out fifteen minutes after Blake did the test. She was indeed pregnant. She was even seven weeks pregnant.Blake had indeed been involved with Kevin while in Northern Myanmar over a month ago.She held the medical report while standing bewildered in the cold hospital corridor. Lights shone through the floor-to-ceiling window onto her body, but all Blake felt was the cold, which made her hands and feet numb.She was lost in her thoughts. 'I'm really pregnant. What should I do with this baby? I want it to be born more than anyone else. But now, everything has changed. This child shouldn't come into this world.'She wandered in the corridor. Suddenly, she saw someone coming out of another gynecological room.She thought, 'Some things are just destined by fate. When I long to see him, even catching a glimpse of him in a dream feels like a luxury, an unattainable wish. But now, when I don't want to see him, it seems he appears everywhere I go.'Kevin supp
Blake wondered, 'I'm now pregnant with Kevin's child. What should I do?'She woke up groggily when she felt someone carry her. She opened her heavy eyelids and asked, "What time is it now?"Liam responded, "It's four-thirty in the morning. It's still early; go back to sleep for a while more."Blake said in a hoarse voice, "I've made an appointment for an abortion at eight o'clock. Regardless of whether I'm really pregnant or not, I don't want to keep this child."She had thought about it all night and believed this was the best decision.Kevin was going to get engaged. Blake believed he would get married and Audrey would give birth to his children. There was simply no need for her to complicate things further.She thought, 'If I choose to be selfish and decide to keep this baby, and if people find out about it, my child will be treated as an illegitimate child. I don't even dare to imagine how badly the child will be treated.'If giving birth to the baby will bring it a lifetime
Blake continued, "What about you, Liam? Do you mind?"If you do, you can choose to divorce me. After all, I've wronged you. No one wants to marry a woman who's carrying someone else's child."Liam stepped forward on the shattered cup and hugged her tightly. "I don't mind. Blake, I love you, including everything about you. I don't mind your past. I just want to start over with you. I didn't tell you about the pregnancy because I was selfish; I wanted to keep you by my side."Blake, your child is my child. I want to raise the baby with you."Don't leave me, okay?"Blake did not know why, but she was not surprised by her pregnancy. However, she felt that there were still some things that she could not let go of, though she was unsure what those were.She was not as calm as she had imagined.She thought about her past events. Then, she indifferently said, "Liam, I don't want this child. Since I'm prepared to be with you, I won't keep this child. It wouldn't be fair to you."Liam di
On this romantic night, the moon was obscured by the clouds.Breathing heavily, Blake felt some pain in her abdomen. She asked to stop. "Liam, my stomach hurts. I think I'm going to have my period soon."Liam sobered up instantly. "I'll go get you some medicine."She peeked out from under the blanket as the bedside lamp turned on. She could clearly see Liam's naked upper body. Her face flushed as she averted her gaze. "It's fine. Just help me call the front desk and ask them to bring up a pack of sanitary pads. I'll go to the bathroom to deal with it."Liam replied, "Let's go to the hospital tomorrow for a check-up."Blake picked up her clothes from the floor and went to the bathroom. "It's okay. It's probably just my period."However, judging by the blood flowing out, it did not seem like menstrual blood to Blake. It looked like something else.Blake's voice came from the bathroom again. "I think we should go to the hospital."She sat on the toilet and watched the tall, slende
Blake had no bridesmaids, so she returned to the hotel room alone. As she stepped out of the elevator and was ready to use the room key card in her hand to swipe and enter the room, she suddenly saw a figure appear from the corner of her eye.She stopped her action and looked at the person who had left the wedding earlier.At that moment, Blake felt her breath catch, but it was only fleeting. She then quickly regained her composure and averted her gaze. She asked, "Didn't you leave? Why are you still here?"Kevin replied, "Congratulations."Upon hearing his congratulations, Blake felt a mix of amusement and discomfort. "There's nothing to congratulate. If anything, I should congratulate you. You're soon to be the mayor's son-in-law. In the future, we won't belong in the same social class anymore."I'm tired and came back to rest. You should leave now before Liam comes up and sees you here."Don't look for me again. I don't want him to misunderstand."Kevin responded, "Audrey and