Everyone looked over to see a family of three standing outside the door: Derek, Yvette, and Coco.Derek was in his fitting grey suit. He was gentle and handsome-looking, exuding an air of gentleness and elegance.Yvette, on the other hand, donned a luxurious gown and had a luxury-branded bag at hand, looking like a wealthy wife.Lastly, Coco, like a proud member of royalty, was dressed in a gown styled like a princess's, her hair braided into two high ponytails. She even had a pink backpack to boot.The three of them walked into the venue like a happy family of three, and Derek handed the expensive gifts they had brought to Grandma Bailey. "Haven’t seen you in a while, Grandma. How have you been?""Not bad." Grandma Bailey looked at the three of them and said, "Aren’t you all busy? Why did you come?""It’s an important occasion," said Derek, "and we had to come, however busy we may be!"With that said, he turned toward Anthony and gave him a gentle smile. "Bro, what century are
Chris recited a series of names, to which everyone praised him.Chris smiled proudly and said, "Don’t worry about me, Mommy, I can take good care of myself. What you should do now is to make a little sister for me to take care of."Grandma Bailey, upon hearing Chris' remark, visibly eased off of the anger Coco had caused. The elderly's expression shifted into one of affection.Chris was indeed a mature boy.Charmine’s fair face softened shyly. She turned to look at Anthony and sharply caught the unnoticeable hint of awkwardness evident on Anthony’s face.She smoothened Chris’ hair. "Okay, I'll try."When Anthony heard this, his eyes darkened.It seemed that he had to quickly find the right time to explain the truth to her."Yay!" Chris, pleased by this response, cuddled into Charmine's arms, placing his heart and trust onto her.Yvette was dumbfounded at this, however.She looked at Chris and asked, "Dear, your birth mother is here, but why didn’t you greet her at all? What y
Coco did not stop at just this. Seeing that Chris was going to leave, she reached out to push him back. "I'm talking right now; this is the truth! Why do you want me to shut up?"Chris staggered backward due to Coco's push. After regaining his balance, he glared at Coco angrily. "Don’t make me hittouch you!"Coco was not intimidated by Chris' sharp glare. In fact, she was not affected at all and continued to push him multiple times. "What now? I'm just saying facts. You’re worried that your step-mommy is going to leave you? I’m just telling the truth. I want to tell you that she'll leave you one day! She'll punish you and beat you! Hahaha!"She even stuck out her tongue to trigger him further.Slap!Chris reached out and slapped Coco’s hands away from pushing him. He glared at her. "I said, shut up! My Mommy isn't this kind of person!"Coco may insult him, but not his Mommy!Coco, after having been slapped, felt a stinging pain that seared across her arm, rendering her speechles
In the venue…Anthony was standing near the front yard when everything happened. The hall was noisy as he conversed with relatives, but it was due to this that he failed to hear the tumult coming from the back.As he was drinking, he instinctively turned to look for Charmine, only to see her rushing away hastily.Frowning, he placed down his wine glass and excused himself to run after her to the backyard.When he arrived at the backyard, he saw the maids carrying Chris to the ground, pressing his chest, while the boy laid on the ground weakly, seemingly unconscious.Anthony’s heart clenched as he sprinted toward them."Let me do it!"He pushed forward and performed a professional cardiopulmonary resuscitation on Chris.The maids, no longer resuscitating Chris as Anthony took the role, looked around. They then realized in horror that Charmine had not resurfaced from the pond.They were all too caught up about Chris that they did not realize that Charmine had not come back out a
When Nial saw Anthony and Charmine, he quickly went over to feel for Charmine’s pulse. His expression turned grim. "Charmine’s breathing is weak, Bro. We must send her to the hospital as soon as possible!"To this, Anthony lifted Charmine and marched out quickly, followed by a rushing Nial who carried Chris in his arms.Grandma Bailey, Senior Bailey, and the rest were very concerned. The guests no longer concerned them as they all drove toward the hospital as well.…Upon their arrival, Nial went into the emergency room to save Charmine. The light outside the operating room lit up, and everyone waited outside worriedly.Anthony stood before the doorwindow with tightly clenched fists, the veins on his arms protruding due to the sheer force.D*mn it! How could he be so careless?He failed to protect the two most important people in his life!Anthony glared at the blaring light, his eyes filled with worry and guilt.Annabel looked at the operating room, and her palm-sized face
After having Charmine settle in the ward, the nurse placed an oxygen mask on her and set up the electrocardiograms, blood pressure monitors, and medical drips.Charmine laid in bed, unmoving. Her breaths were shallow, and it was a painful sight to watch.Anthony sat by the bedside, and his big hands held onto her cold hands. He looked at her worriedly.Grandma Bailey gazed at Charmine, just as worried and with reddened eyes.She dabbed away the tears pooling in her eyes as she feebly lamented, "It’s not easy for Charmine to finally live with us. Now that this happened, how could her life get so difficult? If she doesn’t wake up…how shall I pass this on to the Jordans?"It only agonized her the more she thought of Charmine's fate, and her tears finally fell."Ms. Charmine will be fine," said Annabel, standing at the side, sounding determined as she spoke. "She'll wake up. She will!"Hearing everyone talking, Anthony frowned and looked at them. "Everyone can go home for now. I'll
Annabel failed to catch Susan's intention and believed in her advice instead. "Alright then, I'll go over there to pray for Ms. Charmine first thing in the morning tomorrow."Susan gave her an approving look. "Remember: Starting from the gate of the church, kneel every three steps that you take. Otherwise, you’re not sincere enough."Annabel nodded. "As long as Ms. Charmine will wake up, I’m willing to kneel from here to the outskirts of the city if I have to!"She would do more than just kneel from the gate of the church.After Susan had left, Annabel went back into Charmine's ward, where Anthony sat by the bed to look after Charmine. His eyes never once left her.Charmine was still breathing weakly, pipes attached to her body. She showed no trace of waking up.Annabel stood by the end of the bed and watched over Charmine, feeling distressed.She could only put her hopes on the church.…That afternoon, Annabel stayed in the hospital to look after Charmine and Anthony.She f
Charmine had yet to wake up, and Anthony's eyes were still wide open.The two of them had been through so much to be together. Why was God so harsh on them?Annabel could not watch this anymore. She bit her pale lip before carefully choosing her words, saying, "President Bailey, I’m going out to get breakfast."Anthony did not seem to hear her. He sat by the bed and held Charmine's hand, his bloodshot gaze never leaving Charmine.Annabel looked away and turned to leave.The sky was dark, and the streets were being cleaned. The smell of all sorts of breakfast dishes being prepared in shops wafted from afar.Annabel stopped a taxi and went straight to the church.Upon arriving, she noted that the ancient church was quiet, and the door up ahead was still shut.She looked around and let out a sigh of relief. She had feared she was not the first to arrive, that she would not be the first to offer her prayers.She went to the gate of the church and thought of what Susan said to her.
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