Chapter 4
O
Leo’s brows furrowed deeply once again.
He stared at me for a good while.
Until Jade Kingsley called again.
His tone softened: “Wait for me, I’ll be right there.”
I took one last serious look at him.
He paid no attention to my gaze, nor did he care to conclude today’s argument.
Before leaving, Leo coldly tossed out three words.
“Suit yourself.”
I smiled slightly.
“Alright, goodbye.”
“Luna, I thought you were joking.”
The car window rolled down, and Tori Justice looked at me with a complicated expression.
I smirked: “Leo Sterling probably thought I was joking too.”
T.J. got out of the car to help me put my luggage in the trunk.
I noticed her hesitating to speak several times, which made my heart ache a little.
“I’m fine, it’s just a ten–year relationship after all.”
She turned and hugged me, patting my back in a silent gesture of comfort.
This day felt particularly long, both today and ten years ago.
After packing up, I instinctively reached for that red cloth bundle, only to grasp at empty air.
That’s when I remembered I had left it with Leo, since it was Grandma’s ring after all.
The small town in my memories was always stuffy, humid, and sticky.
Our first encounter was far from beautiful, even somewhat miserable.
Just like our ending.
Families with only daughters were extremely rare in South Bay, yet mine happened to be one.
It wasn’t that they didn’t want more children, but that they couldn’t.
Because of this, Mom had high expectations for me and was extremely strict.
I spent every minute studying.
During the high school entrance exam, I happened to be on my period and performed poorly due to the pain.
I couldn’t get into the advanced class and had to settle for the regular one.
After the results came out, Mom made me stand in the July sun holding textbooks for all subjects until I got heatstroke. When school started, I was the only one who went to register alone, looking quite disheveled with all my bags.
Leo Sterling, whom I didn’t know at the time, passed by and lent a hand.
A nosy acquaintance took a photo and sent it to my mom.
In the phone call from Mom, a torrent of abuse came rushing at me.
“Luna! How can you be so useless?
“I knew you didn’t do well because you never took studying seriously!
“Always thinking about seducing boys, no wonder your grades are terrible!”
I thought Mom would just yell at me to vent her anger.
Who knew she would track down Leo Sterling.
And drag me over there too.
In front of so many parents and classmates.
Mom, like a shrew, pointed at Leo and cursed:
“No one to raise you, no family education!
“Drunk for a father, gambler for a mother, and a crippled grandmother, must be because of all the bad deeds they’ve done!
“Raising such a delinquent boy! Disgusting!”
Chapter 4
I was mortified, but I couldn’t pull her back or stop her no matter how hard I tried.
Leo’s face grew colder and colder, but he just stared at my mom without saying a word.
Finally, I broke free from my mom’s grip with all my strength.
I shouted: “Shut up!”
My mom looked at me in shock.
She then slapped me to the ground.
“You dare yell at me? Think you’re all grown up now, huh!”
HS
His Arranged Fiancée
Anne Adefesobi
In order to clear the huge amount of money, the Davis’s owns the Brown’s. Kayla Davis, an eighteen–year–old girl, was arranged to marry Alex Brown, a young, handsome guy who was the heir to his father’s mega–billion companies, but a careless night with an unknown stranger might ruin everything for her