In her panic, Renee stumbled on the soft grass, twisting her ankle. Her phone flew from her hand, sliding down the slope into the artificial lake.She didn't bother retrieving it, quickly hiding instead.Meanwhile, the man, needing to protect Annie, was a step slow in reaching the bushes.A small stray cat jumped out, licking its paw.The man turned, embracing Annie with a look of wanting to continue. "Just a wild cat."But when he leaned in, Annie pushed him away in disgust."Stop it. I really don't feel well."Immediately, the man took off his leather jacket and draped it over Annie's coat.Annie, however, stared intently at the cat licking its paw. She narrowed her eyes, "Something's not right. I feel like someone's here."The man shrugged, "You're too tense. Let me take you home."Ignoring him, Annie shook off his hand and walked to the cat, kicking at it.The agile cat yelped and ran off.Annie stood where the cat had been, scanning the area until she spotted the broke
Renee didn't dare linger. Once she was sure no one was around, she quickly crawled out. As she tried to run, her ankle screamed in pain.Gritting her teeth, she limped to the edge of the artificial lake. She had to stretch her body out precariously to fish her phone from the shallow water.But after being submerged for so long, it wouldn't turn on.She'd need to find a repair shop first.Eager to get her phone fixed, she tried to stand, but the pain in her ankle forced her back down.Rolling up her pant leg, Renee saw her ankle had swollen considerably. The awkward crouching in the bushes had worsened the sprain.But she couldn't stay here.Fighting through the pain, she limped out of the hospital through a side exit to avoid running into Annie.Instead of rushing to a repair shop, she went straight to the nearest phone store and bought an identical model, even putting her old case on it.When she turned it on, it was as she expected.Annie had called her ten times and left o
The driver glanced at his phone. "I can take you through the neighborhood, but even if we skip a few traffic lights, I still can't guarantee we'll make it in half an hour.""Let's give it a try." There wasn’t a better option.The driver was quite efficient, managing to drop Renee off at a street near the studio in about half an hour. But as she got out of the car and looked at her swollen ankle, Renee frowned. She couldn’t be sure what Annie might think if she saw her injured ankle, so Renee needed a believable excuse. As she thought about it, her eyes fell on a nearby concrete planter. Gritting her teeth, she rubbed her swollen ankle against the rough surface. The pain was so intense it made her break into a cold sweat as she sat down on the ground.Clenching her fists to endure the pain, she dialed Wendy’s number. Right now, she needed a witness. Wendy would be perfect for that. After all, Wendy had to be the one who had tipped off Annie, so having her as a witness was ideal.
Inside the car, Annie had already spotted Renee and deliberately kissed Carl in front of her. She wanted to make it clear to Renee that just because she’s in bed with Carl, it didn’t mean anything—Annie Simmons was the woman Carl had ultimately chosen.But before Annie's lips could land on Carl’s cheek, he raised his arm and blocked her approach.Annie froze for a few seconds, then looked at him with a hurt expression. "Carl, what's wrong?"Carl calmly pulled out a tissue and wiped the spot on his sleeve where Annie had brushed against. "That lipstick color doesn’t suit you," he said casually.Annie’s face turned pale. She instinctively pressed her lips together, and her hands clenched the fabric of her dress. Carl glanced at her sideways. "Why are you so nervous?"Annie, visibly startled, forced herself to relax. "N-no, I’m fine. I think I just ate too much at afternoon tea—my stomach feels a bit off. But since we’re coworkers, I had to show some courtesy.""Oh? I thought it w
The driver immediately pulled the car over, keeping his eyes straight ahead without looking back.Carl exhaled a puff of smoke, speaking calmly. "I warned you not to push your luck. You've already gotten what you wanted.""Get out. Your driver has been following us the whole time."Carl's words sent Annie into a panic. She had told Carl that her driver had an accident and couldn't make it, which was why Carl came to pick her up. Now that her lie had been exposed, it felt like a slap in the face. Her cheeks burned with humiliation, but the thought of just getting out of the car made her unwilling to give up.She refused to believe that Carl had no feelings for her. Even if there was no love, surely there had to be desire, right? What did Renee have that she didn’t?With that thought, Annie threw herself into Carl’s arms, tears brimming in her eyes. She clung to him, disregarding her image, and tried to press her body against his. "Carl, don’t treat me like this. I love you."Carl’
Renee used her phone to call for a ride, but she’d forgotten that she had set the pickup location at the intersection earlier in the day. By the time she realized, the driver had already accepted the ride. She had no choice but to endure the pain and hobble her way to the intersection.Every step was agony.Just then, Wendy came out of the studio. Renee called out, "Wendy, could you..." Before she could finish asking for help, Wendy cut her off, her eyes fixed on Renee’s injured foot."Sorry, Renee, my mom hurt her back at work this afternoon. I need to rush to the hospital. I really can't help you right now, I have to go," Wendy said, her face showing concern, but the glint of amusement in her eyes betrayed her.She was clearly hoping Renee would trip and fall right there, and if that happened, she’d make sure to record it and upload it to the school's online forums, where everyone could see the “goddess” making a fool of herself.She already had her phone set to camera mode, r
Chris, just like before, spoke with a lively, upbeat tone that made him seem full of energy and optimism. His manner of speaking was almost like a comedian performing a skit. It was hard to believe that this was the same person who had been so wild when he and Annie were all over each other. If Renee hadn’t already seen through his facade, she might have fallen for his charm like everyone else did, believing friendship with Chris would be nothing but fun and laughter. There was a time when she even thought the terrible things Chris did in their previous life were because Carl had forced him. Now she knew better - he’d done it all willingly.When he performed surgery on her daughter Sarah, he never intended for her to survive. Back then, Sarah was the only link between Renee and Carl. Because of the child, Carl couldn't just abandon them. So, while he pitied Annie and her son, who weren’t publicly acknowledged, he secretly worked to get rid of Renee and her daughter. And with Chris
A prescription over a thousand? That couldn’t be possible!When Chris was with Annie, he wore a leather jacket with a professional racing team’s logo on it. Out of curiosity, Renee had even looked it up online. Though she wasn’t entirely sure about the logo, she couldn’t find any racing team associated with Chris. Instead, she found lots of details about professional racers, and one strict requirement stood out—vision. Someone with such severe nearsightedness couldn’t possibly qualify as a professional racer.For a moment, Renee was unsure what to believe. Was this some kind of trick from Chris? She pondered this for a few seconds, then glanced up at him. Chris had turned to examine the X-rays, giving her a clear view of his glasses from the side. Looking through his lenses made Renee feel dizzy—it was obvious the prescription was real. Plus, Carl hadn’t reacted to Chris wearing glasses, which meant this wasn’t surprising to him. Chris really was nearsighted.Chris pointed t