Semua Bab Ninety-Nine Times Does It: Bab 1 - Bab 9

As I placed the cooked shrimp on the dining table, I glanced toward the living room. The atmosphere there was warm and joyful. My father, Zachary Hoffman, who was usually so busy with work, suddenly didn't seem busy at all. He sat there, patiently listening to his youngest daughter as she recounted her exciting experiences abroad. My mother, Nancy Patton, held Nina in her arms, her eyes filled with affection, as she fussed over how much weight the latter had lost and how hard it must have been for her abroad.Adrian sat beside them, fully focused on shelling pecans for Nina. I didn't say a word. I just watched the heartwarming scene quietly. The living room and dining area felt like two separate worlds. One was filled with warmth and laughter, and the other with emptiness. "Sadie, why are you standing over there instead of joining us? Is it because you're still mad at me for ruining your wedding?" Nina suddenly said pitifully. It was only then that the people in the living

I packed my few belongings into my suitcase. I had originally requested time off school for my wedding, but that wasn't needed now. I was just about to call my professor to let him know I was returning to the lab tomorrow when my phone suddenly rang. It was a call from Brandon. I assumed he was calling to figure out what to do about the wedding. I never imagined he would lash out at me the moment I answered. "Sadie, what did you do to Nina? Why is she hospitalized?"This was a man who was usually calm and poised, yet he had lost his composure twice in the same day. The first was when he heard Nina was returning to the country; this was the second.The funniest part was that he was supposed to be my fiancé. "She had an allergic reaction.""It was your fault, wasn't it? How could you do that to your own sister?" Brandon sounded very angry. "Sadie, I always thought you had a kind heart. I can't believe you put Nina in the hospital for something so trivial. Are you even human?"

This time, no one stopped me from leaving. "Why aren't you making a fuss this time?" Adrian asked before I left, but I didn't even take it to heart. Once I arrived back at campus, I switched my phone to airplane mode and locked myself away in the lab for 13 whole days. It wasn't until the day before I was to leave the country that I finally finished my experiment and stepped out of the lab. The moment I turned my phone back on, a flood of notifications from various people poured in. I had received messages from my family, Brandon, and several of my friends. I opened my friend's messages first. She must have been very angry because I had nearly 80 texts from her, all of them cursing out Brandon and Nina. I glanced at a photo she had sent. It was a screenshot of a family picture Nina had posted on social media.My parents, Adrian, Nina, and even Brandon were all in it. Brandon stood right next to Nina, gazing at her lovingly. He looked like her knight in shining armor. Nin

I thought my rejection that day was clear enough, but one day, as I left the lab after finishing an experiment, I saw a group of people I had no desire to see standing outside my apartment building. It was Mom, Dad, Adrian, and Brandon. The moment they saw me, they all looked somewhat emotional. "Sadie, you're finally back!"Adrian was about to step forward when Brandon shoved past him and stood right in front of me. "Sadie, it's been a while."He looked haggard, and his eyes were red. It looked like he hadn't rested in a long while. If this had happened in the past, I might have pitied him. But now, I was just annoyed. "We broke up. Why are you here?"Brandon's eyes reddened even more. "I never agreed to break up! We just fought.""I don't need your permission to break up," I said calmly.I then turned to my family, who were standing to the side helplessly. "I heard what you said that day."Mom, Dad, and Adrian instantly paled, and Brandon's eyes widened as if he real