Charmine did not understand it, but it felt rather peculiar as she gazed at the cherry blossom tree in front of Dr. Weir’s house. It seemed to exude a different air, and the bamboo house appeared to be a place with stories. Charmine then began, curiously so, “This is a beautiful home. Did you build this yourself?” “If only I could build such a nice bamboo house! Look at the bamboo house; it’s rather old. And the cherry blossoms are so well-grown, it’d take at least five years to grow them! Someone introduced this place to me, and I’ve only lived here for a year. “I heard a couple lived here in secrecy, but something happened and they left this place to a friend, saying that this place can only be sold to someone worthy of it, and it just so happened that I moved in here. Doesn’t it feel like the air here is incredibly nostalgic somehow?” said Dr. Weir. Charmine nodded; she somehow got the image of an ideal couple residing in this very bamboo house as she gazed at it. She walke
Not long after, Charmine’s phone lit up. [William: Ok, I understand. I know what to do.] Charmine kept her phone. William truly was a gentleman; he would not want to cause her any trouble. … In another corner of the world, William was sitting on the sofa in his white shirt and thin-framed glasses. He had a pair of sky-blue eyes with a clean outlook, much like a prince with a white horse in fairytale books. He exuded an air of a sumptuous and one-of-a-kind prince-like temperament. Despite that, his gentle face appeared rather crestfallen as he held his phone. Ring! Ring! His phone rang. William answered the call and was greeted with Uncle Zul’s enthusiastic voice. “William, William, good news! I've good news for you! Charmine and Anthony are having a rift, and she’s alone now. This is your chance!” “Hmm? What?” William frowned slightly, though his eyes lit up. Uncle Zul continued, “Anthony’s first love came back, and he and Charmine might as well be having a break-
Charmine waited on the same spot, but it did not take long before Dr. Weir came out of his house with a few books in his arms. The books seemed ancient, with dark blue covers and old-styled writings. [Secrets of Weir], [Weir’s Medications], [Notes from Weir]… Charmine’s brows furrowed at the sight of the books. She had heard about them before, and they were the most invaluable books in the medical world. No matter which book it was, in it were recorded methods for curing some diseases unknown to regular people. Someone offered 50 million in the black market to get any of these books, while other descendants and students of the Weir family even fought hard for them, but Dr. Weir safeguarded them all. Who would have thought that Dr. Weir would bring them all out? Dr. Weir placed them on the table nonchalantly. He flipped open one of them and tore it down in front of Charmine. Rip! Charmine’s eyelids twitched. “Uncle Weir, what are you doing? These books are very precious…!
Charmine did not want to, but since Dr. Weir pestered and waited for her to make her wish, she eventually relented as she placed the paper crane on her right palm and prayed to it with her eyes closed. Charmine did not know what to even pray for at that moment. She could fix everything in the company, and the only thing she had no complete control over was the matter between her and Anthony. Still… To pray for love? How would God fix things that were out of her control? Whatever! She would give it a try. Dr. Weir studied Charmine’s face intensely. To a normal person, a face had five features, and a face was just a face. To him, every inch of the skin would give out different signals. Charmine’s eyes moved slightly, her right cheek undulated. The left side of the face was for matters while the right side was for feelings… His little girl was troubled by love! Moreover, her expression was stiff with her brows slightly bent. Her left brow was slightly higher than her right
She felt at peace whenever she was racing. With so many occurrences that had happened this day, Anthony’s handsome face somehow always managed to worm its way into Charmine’s headspace. A man like him would not secretly carve out her name somewhere; he would not love her as much. It was even more unlikely for them to live a secluded life like the bamboo house’s owner, retiring like an ideal couple. Perhaps even the paper crane personally folded by Dr. Weir would not grant her wish... Lost was Charmine in her thoughts that she did not notice the road ahead blocked by a group of people. She had no choice but to stop her motorbike. “What happened?” she asked. “The sweetie Annabel from our Southern Village, she’s got rich!” answered a villager enthusiastically. “She’s found a rich guy! Look at what car they’re driving her in. I heard every car is at least a few million! We’ve never seen such cars in our lives!” Charmine frowned. Annabel? Anthony’s ex-girlfriend, Annabel Smith?
“Waa…! Daddy’s stuck in the traffic on Abbey Road! The tire burst and he’s waiting for assistance, but it’s taking too long…! Waa… I’m scared that Daddy can’t hang on any longer…” Chris’s soft and weak voice was so hoarse that it made one feel hurt and bad. Charmine comforted, “Don’t worry, Momo. Mommy will come over to see Daddy. Mommy promises that Daddy will be fine. Just stay home and be good, okay?” “Waa… Okay…” sobbed Chris in a childlike manner. Hanging up the call, Charmine kept her phone away and raced toward Abbey Road. She had completely forgotten about the matter with Annabel and had only one thought in mind: She had to rush over as quickly as possible to save Anthony! Abbey Road was a secluded road outside the city. True enough, a few excavators had been operating around the area, and no doubt would it be able to crash cars… Charmine raced even faster at the thought.... Charmine spotted a car when she finally arrived at Abbey Road. However… The dark blac
What was that? How odd. If he was innocent, how would he know his tire was ‘acting strange’ without even looking at it? Most importantly, it was what he said in the end. His assistant was busy? Luke was busy with handling Annabel’s matters, was he not? Charmine was in no mood to entertain. “Mr. Bailey has so many men. Can’t you find one to fetch you?” “I’m in a hurry to take care of Momo. Without me around, he wouldn’t have his dinner,” answered Anthony in a matter-of-fact tone. Charmine suddenly felt as if she had lost the argument. Whenever he mentioned Chris, she would go speechless. Had Anthony chose to call his men to fetch him, it would take at least two hours to and fro since it was peak hour. Moreover, as it was already 5pm, Chris must have been waiting alone for him in the mansion… Even though Chris lied to her earlier, she had a soft spot for him. She had no choice but to let Anthony cling to her as she drove away. When they reached the crossroads, Anthony
Anthony’s hand had moved away from her waist and grazed Charmine’s ribs. Her body stiffened. What was he trying to do? He placed his lips right next to her ear as he huskily whispered, “Remember this feeling, Charmine, cause I won’t be as forgiving the next time I hear about this.” His hoarse voice was demanding. It did not help that they were too close to one another, and Charmine's back was basically glued to his chest. Her breathing labored as she hastily answered, “Alright, alright! I get it!” She was a hundred percent certain that whenever someone else sat behind her, she would instantly think of Anthony. This would traumatize her forever! However… It suddenly fell odd to her. Was this all planned, that Anthony sitting behind her was to teach her a lesson? At that moment, Anthony finally took out his hand from her clothes, but his eyes were clouded. He was merely trying to threaten Charmine for fetching another man on her motorbike. He had nothing else in mi
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