Rita’s POV:
“How dare you stop me?!” I bellowed while glaring at Richard. My blood was boiling in anger, but I tried
my best to suppress it.
“That’s my child too. If you’re going to have an abortion, I have the right to stop you! ” Richard argued
while looking at me firmly.
“Shut up! Now that Charles knows that the baby is yours, there’s no need for me to keep it!” I turned
around to leave, but Richard grabbed my arm tightly.
“Let me go!” I struggled to get out of his grasp but to no avail.
“That’s my child. You can’t abort it without my consent!” Richard insisted while looking at me coldly. It
was as if he was giving an order that I could not disobey.
But I remained unfazed. I took a deep breath and, all of a sudden, kicked his crotch while he was
distracted. Richard let go of me and stumbled back in pain. But by the time he let go of me, his grip had
already left a bruise on my arm.
“What do you think Charles will do if he finds out that you’ve recovered?” Richard asked, half squatting
on the ground. His voice trembled in pain, but the gravity of his words turned me by degrees.
I was just about to smash a vase onto his head, but his words had me frozen in the spot.
It was then that I got a hold of myself. I must admit, what Richard had said scared the shit out of me.
Charles’s attitude towards me had completely changed. Had he found out about my condition? At the
thought of this, I grabbed Richard’s arm and begged, “Richard, you have to help me.”
Instead of getting angry for what I had done, Richard looked at me with a sneer. Judging from the look
on his face, he would not help me. With that, I pushed him away and began to think of a plan.
“I saved Charles’s life. Yes, I saved Charles’ life.” I kept repeating this sentence.
Not long after, my flustered heart finally calmed down, and a sneer tugged at the corners of my mouth.
Richard must have sensed what I was thinking as he bellowed, “Shame on you! Scarlett is innocent.
She is the one who suffers from this mess you create!”
I was taken aback by this. Richard was supposed to be my ally, not Scarlett’s. What he had said
infuriated me and made me hate her even more.
“How dare you speak for that bitch? Do you like her too?”
She had taken Charles away from me. And now, even Richard thought highly of her. If only she had
died when she was abroad, things would not have turned out this way.
“Don’t think everyone is as disgusting as you are.” Richard limped away as soon as he finished
speaking.
Anger surged in my heart as I watched him walk away.
‘‘Scarlett, since you like stealing what’s mine, don’t blame me for being rude!’’
Scarlett’s POV:
I was heading to the restaurant for breakfast. While I was waiting for the traffic light at the intersection
to go green, my phone suddenly rang. It was a call from Charles.
I was surprised to see his name on the screen. It should be midnight at home. Why was he calling me
at this time?
Nevertheless, I decided to answer the call.
“What’s up?” I asked indifferently.
“Are you okay?” Charles asked back, a hint of panic in his voice.
“I’m fine.” My voice softened when I felt his concern. But I must admit, I was confused as to why he
called out of the blue.
Charles breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I just had a nightmare, so I called to check up on you.”
For some reason, something felt off. I could sense the lingering fear in his tone. He seldom talked to
me like this.
“I’m fine. Don’t worry,” I said lightly.
Charles did not speak anymore. I did not say anything more either. As neither of us spoke for a long
time, he finally hung up the call. My phone screen went off as the call ended. But I just stood there,
dazed and confused.
Charles sounded flustered and anxious. Was he worried about me?
My mouth twisted into a bitter smile. Charles did not even want to talk to me in the first place. How
could he care about me?
But then, why did he call all of a sudden? I racked my brain to figure out the answer, but I could not.
While I was in deep thought, a car sped in my direction. My life flashed before my eyes.
Fortunately, I jumped out of the way in time. I would have been seriously injured if I was not quick to
my feet.
At that moment, the car hit the protective railing at the side of the road and stalled. I fell to the ground
and grazed my palms and knees. My wounds kinda hurt, but it was better than being dead.
I looked at the car, wide-eyed. The driver did not even get off to check on me, much less apologize. He
just started the engine and drove away. Just then, Spencer and Nina rushed to me.
“Oh, my God! Scarlett, are you okay?” Nina rushed to my aid and helped me to my feet.
I gave her a reassuring smile, not wanting her to worry about me. Although my hands and knees hurt,
my injuries were not that serious.
“I’m fine,” I said in a low voice.
Nina breathed a sigh of relief. She held my hand and led me to the restaurant opposite the street. The
two of us sat at the round table.
Spencer ran after the car that almost hit me and only joined us after a long while.
“There’s something fishy about what happened just now,” Spencer said to Nina and me in a serious
tone.
The truth was, I had a feeling that the car had targeted me. But for what it was worth, there was no
point in making my friends worry about me.
“Maybe it’s just a coincidence,” I reasoned out.
“I remember the plate number and the direction he left. Excuse me. I’ll have to make a phone call.”
Spencer stood up with his phone in his hand.
Nina looked at Spencer, who was about to go out of the restaurant, and then turned to me. “He must be
calling Charles.”
I sighed. “Let him be.”
“Do you really think what happened just now was a coincidence?” Nina queried with a serious look on
her face.
“I’m new here. I don’t think anyone knows me here in the first place,” I joked with a relaxed smile.
“You’re right. Maybe I’m just overthinking.” It was only then was Nina reassured. I patted her on the
shoulder comfortingly.
“Yes, I’m alright. Don’t worry.”
******
The next day, Spencer called me early in the morning.
“I’m ready to go home. Take good care of yourself here. Tell me when you’re going back home. I’ll pick
you up at the airport,” Spencer offered earnestly.
I nodded in agreement. “I will. You too. Be careful on your way home.”
Three days later, I came back home for work.
Many recognized me at the airport, and my fans even greeted me warmly. I took a group photo and
video with them. They asked for my permission if they could upload the video online, to which I agreed
without a second thought.
After work, Abner came to my workstation.
“You’re Internet’s darling now. Your video has gone viral,” he said teasingly.
But then, he put on a straight face and solemnly asked, “Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?
You came and left in a hurry last time. I didn’t have the chance to ask you out after that.”
“I’m sorry. I promised Grandma I’d have dinner with them tonight. Maybe next time.” I refused Abner’s
invitation politely.
“It’s okay. The elders are more important. Go home now. Let’s just have dinner next time.” Abner waved
goodbye at me and then turned around to leave.
As soon as I stepped out of the company, I saw the driver waiting for me at the side of the road.
I got into the car, and the driver sped away at once. With nothing to do, I looked outside the window
and gazed at the receding scenery.
“Was everything okay when you were abroad?” the driver asked when he saw that I was bored.
“Everything was fine. By the way, are Grandpa and Grandma all right?”
It had been several days since I last called Grandma. I knew them like the back of my hand. They
would not call, even if they were not feeling well.
“They’re all fine. It’s Mr. Moore who doesn’t seem to be doing well.”
The driver looked at me through the rearview mirror. He opened his mouth to say more but stopped on
second thought.
“What’s wrong with Charles?” I casually asked, but I was a little worried about him.
“Well, Mr. Moore often goes to the bar and gets himself drunk these past few days. He has also lost a
lot of weight,” the driver answered with a heavy sigh.
“Is he under too much pressure at work?” I asked, bewildered.
I had been with Charles long enough to know that he was not an alcoholic. Why did he suddenly feel
an urge to drink?
“It’s because you were away from him. He couldn’t stand it, so he drowned his sorrows in alcohol,” the
driver explained with a helpless sigh.
“How could he be like that because of me? It must be because of work,” I argued while looking in the
distance.
The driver looked as though he wanted to say something more. However, he decided not to when he
saw that I did not want to talk about Charles anymore..
We arrived at the destination not long after. Just as I was about to enter the house, a sports car
stopped in front of me. I could not help but take a step back at the sight of it.
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