Chapter 101
101:
Christina’s voice, warm and gentle, echoed in Dylan’s mind, her smile still vivid in his memories. “See? There’s something about your smile — it really suits you. I honestly think you look your best when you let yourself smile. You should do it more often.”
Dylan gazed into the mirror. Rigid features stared back at him, eyes sharp and almost unyielding.
A long moment passed before he attempted to coax a smile onto his lips, trying to follow her advice. The result, however, felt anything but natural. Frustration pulled his brows together as the awkward grin quickly faded.
Determined, he made several more attempts, each time the smile softening ever so slightly, though it never quite matched what he hoped for. In contrast, Christina’s laughter always seemed so easy and beautiful—her joy radiated without effort.
Still, Dylan found himself rooted before the mirror, practicing again and again, determined to capture just a hint of that warmth. Anyone familiar with him would have been utterly floored by the sight.
Inside a quiet hospital room, Lauretta, feeling the haze of a few drinks, tapped in the same familiar number again and again, but hesitation stopped her from making the call. Time after time, she would erase the digits, her tired eyes falling to her sleeping child beside her.
Nearly half a decade had passed since she’d made her decision, walking away from her family, burning every bridge as she started over in a distant land.
Over the years, Lauretta had erased every way her family could reach her, maintaining complete silence for half a decade.
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Old memories resurfaced whenever she thought of her father—his stern ways, the strict rules, but also the deep love he’d always shown her. The ache from those recollections was sharp. With hindsight, she wondered if she’d been too unforgiving in her decisions.
Back then, when having fun abroad, she had had a one-night stand with a stranger whose identity remained a mystery to her. Initially, she’d chalked it up to a fleeting encounter, nothing more. But three months later, her world shifted—she discovered she was carrying a child.
Questions from her father had been relentless, but shame silenced her. She had invented a story about a boyfriend, unwilling to admit the truth behind her son’s conception. She’d lied, saying their relationship had ended, stubbornly “protecting” her supposed boyfriend’s identity. Outrage had exploded from her father when he realized her engagement with the Norris family was at risk.
Arranged marriage had always been a cage for Lauretta—she’d fought it for years, pleading with her father to break things off. But he would not yield. Such a move, he insisted, would spark conflict between their families and ruin their reputation.
Things had changed when she became pregnant. Lauretta had seized the chaos, insisting it was time to call off the engagement. Her father, however, stood his ground—he demanded she end the pregnancy.
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