Chapter 6

After I finished the food and the IV drip was done, Sera took me to a hotel so I could shower.

She even bought a brand-new set of clothes for me.

I didn't refuse.

After all, my parents had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars sponsoring her when we were young.

Eating a meal and wearing some clothes paid for by her now was nothing.

Besides, I wanted to use this opportunity to have a final talk with her.

I carefully washed my body, trying not to touch my fresh wounds. I didn’t wash my hair, fearing the hotel shampoo would irritate the deep scar on my skull.

When I stepped out of the bathroom, she was sitting on the sofa, her face cold.

"Why didn't you wash your hair? Doesn't having that filthy nest on your head disgust you?"

Her icy tone made me instinctively bow my head.

I didn't plan on telling her about the metal fragment in my skull.

Just as I opened my mouth to speak, her phone rang. It was Julian.

"Babe, someone said they saw you checking into a hotel with a beggar. What's going on?"

Sera glanced at me, her eyes softening slightly as she stepped out onto the balcony to take the call.

Seeing this, my self-esteem shattered again. A familiar pain gripped my heart.

The questions I wanted to ask died in my throat.

What was the point of asking anyway?

My parents are dead. I am dying.

And she has a brand-new, glamorous life.

From the very beginning, the person she loved was never me.

I took a long, hard look at her back.

I quietly grabbed the free hotel toiletries and bottles of water, planning to slip away.

These free items, worthless to her, were precious commodities for a beggar like me.

But just as I stepped into the elevator, Sera rushed over and blocked the doors.

"Ethan Gray! Are you going to run away without a word again, just like you did five years ago?"

She grabbed my arm and yanked me out of the elevator.

I tripped over my own clumsy feet and fell hard onto the carpet.

All the stolen toiletries and water bottles tumbled out of my pockets, rolling across the floor.

Silence fell over the hallway. I quietly sat there, gathering the items one by one.

I kept my head down. "You must think I’m incredibly pathetic, don't you?"

She didn't answer. The silence was suffocating.

I clutched the cheap items to my chest, reaching out to press the elevator button again.

But she grabbed my hand, her eyes red and filled with tears.

"I just think you are as incredibly selfish and stubborn as always."

I remained silent.

Suddenly, she threw her arms around me, pulling me into a tight embrace.

Her fingers ran through my messy hair, accidentally brushing against the painful scar on my skull.

With a sob in her voice, she whispered, "Ethan, this time, let me save you, okay?"

My body went completely stiff. But after a second, I gently but firmly pushed her away.

"Sera, my parents were ruined and died because of the Sterlings. While they are flying high, and you are climbing up their corporate ladder... doesn't your conscience ever hurt?"