It was a photo of Charmine! Guy quickly backed out from the gallery and turned off the phone. Luckily, Yvonne did not notice what he did and said, “Guy, Grandma asked you to go up the mountain with us.” Her voice was clear and crisp, so much so that she woke up Nial who had just fallen asleep. He rubbed his eyes in a blur and turned to look… Was that a woman? “Sh*t!” Nial cursed under his breath and covered his naked top. “How can you simply walk into the men’s room?” “What are you covering up for?” sassed Yvonne. “It’s not like I haven’t seen it!” “You...!” Nial was agitated. “How shameless of you!” “You’re shameless!” Yvonne rolled her eyes at him and turned to Guy. “So, are you coming?” Guy did not mind going to the mountain, but Charmine had not had her migraine yet. If he left and Charmine had a migraine, what would she do? She had to practice, and that meant she could not go with them. “Ms. Yvonne, please go with Grandma,” said Guy, “I won’t be able to.”
Stumbling over her thoughts, Faye lied, “Oh, I made the medicine and forgot the time.” Faye was trying to help, thus Frank did not put much thought into it. “Okay, I’ll come now.” Frank turned to Charmine and said, “Charmine, you may continue to practice or take a rest.” “Got it. Go ahead, Frank.” Frank thus left with Faye following after him secretly, taking away his clothes when he entered the shower. Following that, she walked out of the forest as if nothing happened. Charmine did not bother with Faye leaving, but it was not long until the forest felt eerily quiet for her. The silence made her even more anxious. Anthony had not come back since morning; he was nowhere to be found. She felt just like Frank had said—rather heavy and unable to focus. Charmine did not want to see Anthony being with Faye, and she wanted to master the skill as soon as possible. However, the more anxious she was, the less successful she was. The number of butterflies she attracted was
Charmine knew she was the only other person left in the forest, and she could not let Frank catch a cold. That would worsen his eye pain. “Wait for me, Frank,” assured Charmine, “I’ll get you some clothes.” “You don’t have to, Charmine,” Frank refused. “Wait for Faye to come back. Don’t mind me,” insisted Charmine and left. Meanwhile…Faye and Anthony walked out of the living room. Anthony felt the chills when Faye ran up to him abruptly and cried out, “Brother Anthony, it’s Charmine! She…” Thinking it was her migraine, he did not bother asking as he sprinted. When he went back to the forest, Faye told him, “Brother Anthony, Charmine followed Brother to the back secretly. I wonder what they’re doing.” He looked at the pavilion, and the two of them were not around. His wariness grew as he went to the backyard with Faye to find out what Charmine was doing. When they got to the backyard, he saw Charmine bringing clothes into the shower room. His expression grew storm
Faye understood what Charmine was mouthing. ‘Idiot.’ Her face turned pale as she enviously glared at Charmine with Anthony with clenched fists. Charmine did this on purpose! She wanted to show off their affection to her! Cursed that Charmine! She would pay dearly for that! Faye bit her lip tightly as she kicked the stone with force. The shower room opened at that moment as Frank came out after putting clothes on. When he heard the movement, he asked, “Faye, did Anthony misunderstand?” “No, he didn’t!” Faye answered. She wished he did, but no! She could only say, “Don’t work yourself up, Frank, they’ve gone back already. Get some rest early.” “Alright.” Frank let out a breath of relief. Judging by Anthony’s voice, he did not seem that angry. Furthermore, since he had said to Anthony that he had no feelings for Charmine, Anthony would believe him. Recalling what happened, however, his clear eyes looked in the direction of Faye. “Faye, why was my robe not there?” “Hu
Anthony merely said, “Get some rest.” With that, he turned and left, much to Charmine’s bewilderment. He had changed. This was not the same Anthony she knew! Charmine felt so dejected that she did not want to eat. Both Guy and Frank came and asked her to eat. Only Anthony did not. She sat on the bamboo chair as she read, though distracted as she kept looking at the door. She looked away furiously when Anthony remained absent. At the dining table... Frank looked at Faye. “Faye, bring some dishes to Charmine.” “Me?” Faye pointed a finger at herself. Why did she have to bring dishes for her? How she wanted her to starve to death! “Take more broccoli and carrots,” Frank simply added, “she likes them.” Faye did not move; she continued to eat. “Brother, didn’t she say she didn’t want to eat?” “She didn’t mean that,” clipped Frank. “Go.” Faye bit her lip. Since everyone was around, she had no choice but to take a bowl and fill it with food before she walked to
As a streak of hatred flashed in Faye’s eyes, it then left as her small face instantly turned pitiable and terrified. “Charmine, why did you do this to me? I just bought you dinner—you didn’t have to smash the bowl. My brother asked me to bring it to you.” Charmine looked at her face, and her red lips twisted into a smirk. “It’s such a waste you didn’t get into acting.” The door opened as Anthony, Frank, Guy, and Nial walked in. Faye instantly went on her knees before Charmine and wailed, “I’m sorry, Charmine! Please, let me go…!” Charmine looked up at the group of men and her gaze remained on Anthony’s figure, thinking none of them would buy the lie.Much to her dismay, their gazes turned judgemental and disappointed... Her heart turned cold. It seemed that Faye was indeed an innocent and kind lady to them. Who would believe that she tried to kill her from the back? Frank asked, “Faye, what happened?” Faye was on her knees beside Charmine. She did not move and whi
“Bro, what are you doing?” asked Nial. Anthony did not reply as he made his way to the kitchen, much to Guy’s uneasiness. When Charmine needed comfort the most, he just could not be there for her. The only person who had the right had to comfort her, hurt her instead. … Faye walked with Frank as her figure huddled up, seemingly terrified. Frank frowned and looked at her. “I hope you won’t repeat that, Faye!” Faye widened her eyes in shock. “Brother, what are you talking about?” “You know what I’m talking about!” “No, Brother. She bullied your sister! How can you side with her?” Frank ignored her and walked away with his hands behind him. Under the moonlight, he sighed heavily. … The night had darkened. Charmine stayed by the window as she gazed at the night sky when knocks were heard coming from the door. She frowned. Knowing that Grandma Granger and Yvonne had fallen asleep, she gently walked out to open the door. No one was outside, but there was a perf
Determined to see it through, Charmine was fully focused as she continued to write from afternoon till sunset. The sunset made the sky turn red, and with butterflies fluttering with their wings to the paper, it made a beautiful sight as the gentle breeze blew. It was when the sun had set that Frank said, “Today’s not bad at all. It’s getting dark. Continue tomorrow.” Charmine looked at Frank in shock. “Frank, how do you know it’s getting dark?” Frank smiled faintly. “I guessed it.” Charmine smiled. “You’re well-tuned to your surroundings.” Frank seemed as if he could see her smile when he said, “Charmine, you should be happy every day.” ‘And not feel occupied by different things every day.’ Charmine halted and nodded. “Okay.” She packed up her stuff and helped Frank to get down. As they walked down the hallway, she noticed that the metal door on the way was already closed. Charmine walked forward and pushed it. She frowned. The metal door was locked from the o
There was an unnoticeable glint in Sonia's eyes. She nestled herself further into Harry's arms as she added, "Let’s go to Pares. We'll come back after I give birth to the baby.""Alright."Harry stayed by Sonia's side as he watched over her, cared for her, and talked to her until she finally slept in his care.He stood up tiredly and walked out of the room to sit in the living room.Thuck!Something fell out of his pocket.He narrowed his eyes to the source of sound and spotted a USB.Since when did he have a USB in his pocket?With a small frown on his face, Harry curiously picked it up and noticed the front side of the USB glowing. Something was carved onto its surface, too.[Granger].Was it Dior’s USB? Why was her USB inside his pocket?Harry’s clear fingers held on the USB tightly. He thought for a moment before he took out a laptop, turned it on, and plugged in the USB.A moment later, the screen showed what seemed to be peculiar surveillance footage with a descriptio
Dior was still lost in her storm of thoughts when a shadowy figure zipped past her and ran toward Harry.When she spotted this familiar figure, she reacted quickly and held onto him."Let go of me!" growled Guy. "How dare he slap you and misunderstood you? I have to beat some sense into him!"Harry broke free and chased after Harry.Dior, despite having lost all hope and life in her, mustered the last strand of her will to chase after Guy and reeled him back. "Brother, don't," she muttered, "spare your energy…" Her sorrow clouded her eyes as she mumbled, "He’s the man I love. Even though he hates me, I won’t allow you to hurt him. As for the explanation…"Dior smiled ironically. "Whatever. That slap decimated every beautiful daydream I have about him, anyway."She no longer expected anything from him.He had no trust in her, so what would it matter if she finally got him? He did not even love her, and he did not trust her either.Dior smiled elegantly, but her eyes were fille
Dior looked forward to that new shift.She watched as Harry made his way into the restaurant silently, unable to deter her mind from the daydreams she had of him, of the new chapter of their story they would have.He would apologize to her, trying to redeem himself, and kiss her dearly as he embraced her. Later down the line, they would have a child of their own, too.Harry's long legs walked in strides, his dark gaze trained on Dior.The bright light shone on Dior’s delicately stunning face, and she also wore a red dress.He remembered her wearing this back in Mount Village.He could remember how alluring she looked back then, how they stayed in the same room, how she put down her ego to treat him with so much gentleness.Harry’s cold face mellowed down, but recalling a certain memory, the vague wistfulness in him vanished and he sat in front of her.Dior looked at him fondly, like she always would. "Long time no see."Her eyes burned brightly as if she wanted to drink in his
Dior examined the footage the moment she received it.True enough, it showed Sonia and George talking about their little deal. It also showed how Dior was telling the truth while they both ganged up on her.Dior’s frail heart felt as though it was rejuvenated once more, feeling as though blood was once more pumped into her heart. Her dull eyes devoid of hope regained their lost luster once more.Not thinking twice, she dialed Harry's number with this evidence, though he had to be busy, seeing as he did not pick up even after the phone rang for a long while.Just as she was about to hang up, Harry picked up the phone."What do you want?"On the other end of the call was the voice that she had missed for so long. His low, hoarse voice sounded so cold and emotionless.Hearing his voice brought Dior back to the image of his handsome face, and her heart skipped a beat.She tried her best to restrain her fluttering emotions as she tried to speak calmly, "Do you have time? I’d like to
At Mount Village…Inside the elegant bamboo house was Dior, dressed in a beige dress. She sat in the front yard as she took sips of her wine.The sunlight shone past the leaves and illuminated her, yet she exuded an air of loneliness.She swirled the glass and could not help recalling the moments she spent with Harry.In the beginning, she was attracted by his looks; he looked so gentle and elegant.She gave him money, kept him company, and continuously showed up around him in hopes of conquering him.Alas, she ended up in this state.The time she spent with him in Mount Village was the happiest time she had ever had. They had lived inside the bamboo house together, where he took care of her and claimed her to be his woman.They even laid inside the same room.Everything was so beautiful.Cursed was her luck, however, that it was just an illusion. He had been using her from the start, while he chose to stay with the woman who lied to him and even hurt him!No matter how mu
"Although Susan was unhappy, she should've voiced out her displeasure instead of bottling things. Cheating is wrong, regardless. Furthermore, if she wanted a career, she didn't have to stay home and depend on her husband."Grandma Bailey halted.Was that what Charmine truly thought of?Grandma Bailey thought Charmine would find Susan too aggressive unto herself.Charmine glanced at Susan again and apathetically commented, "She doesn't want to make money on her own, but she wants to be rich while complaining about her man not making time for her and taking care of her? If a woman has no ability of her own and also blames others for her miseries, all she's worth is to sit quietly at home and wait for her husband to come home. She also has no right to cheat! This is how the world works."Charmine patted Grandma Bailey’s shoulder and held Anthony’s hand, her words met with everyone's evidently surprised gazes and their silence.Grandma Bailey was shocked. Sure, Charmine sounded rathe
The colossal cruise started to drift away from the pier.Eric stood on the cruise and let the wind blow at him, loneliness and hatred still oozing from his being.He stared at the blue ocean ahead of him as Charmine's words rang in his mind unceasingly.'Will you really feel good after you've killed them?''You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?'"Forgive them and yourself.'Deliberating everything carefully, his lips curled into a bitter smile.It was true, after all, that Charmine understood him the most.Eric poured himself another drink and downed it with loneliness as he allowed the cruise to bring him wherever it would take him.…Susan was still inside the operating room when Charmine and the rest of the Baileys rushed into the hospital.Darryl stood before the room, his expression blank, his figure lonely and helpless.So many things had happened in half a day.He found out about his wife's inf
"No one's stopping you now. Eat!"Anthony clenched his hands tightly and took another glance at Charmine. He was more determined than before, and he was close to eating the pills in the bottle.Charmine, who was held hostage, gradually opened her eyes at that moment. Her gaze drifted toward Eric before she asked, her tone challenging, "Will you really feel good after you've killed them? You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?"Eric halted, and his eyes darkened.Charmine had just woken up, yet what she said…He cast a cold glance at Charmine. "It's my business, and it has nothing to do with you!"They were his family, and he did not want a family like this!Charmine looked squarely at him. "Eric, I don’t care if you used me or plotted against me all these years; I've treated you like a true friend, nothing more nor less. You were the only person who stayed by my side in the past five years, so I hope that you
Anthony's breath hitched when he saw Charmine.He clenched his fists and, without doubting himself, relented "I can agree to your terms, so let her go right away. This has nothing to do with her; you only hate me after all. As long as you let her go, I'll take the pill. Everything will end right away."Susan shook her head. "We'll die after eating the pill. I’m not taking that!"She had just reunited with Eric, and she did not want to die yet. She looked at Eric and begged, "Please let Anthony be, why don't you? He’s your brother, after all, and he doesn’t even know about your existence. If you’re really angry, just kill Charmine, and I'll make it up to you—"Anthony's expression contorted in sheer fury upon hearing Susan's plea, and he glared at her with murderous intent."This was all your fault, so what right do you have to make Charmine take your blame?!""What on earth are you going on about?" snapped Grandma Bailey. "Charmine has been kidnapped because of you, yet you want