Sweet Hatred Chapter 355: Warmth

The streets felt smaller than I rembered. The peeling paint on the old apartnt complex, the uneven steps, the faint chatter of neighbors drifting out of open windows... it all pressed on at once. Nostalgia, contrast, loneliness.

It was ridiculous, really, how foreign my own building felt after weeks in Kael’s world of villas and private jets, staff bowing whenever I passed. Here, there was no grand staircase, no chandelier, no bodyguards lurking at the corners. Just a flickering hallway light and the musty scent of laundry detergent that reminded of late nights with Olivia and mom.

By the ti I reached my flat, my chest was tight. My fingers hovered over the key in my bag—but before I could slip it into the lock, I froze.

Muffled voices. A soft coo. A familiar cadence I hadn’t heard in so long.

My heart stumbled. I knocked.

The door swung open, and there she was... Olivia, my baby sister, with Lily perched on her hip. Lily cooed sweetly, one tiny hand grabbing at her mother’s hair.

"Aria?" Olivia gasped, her eyes wide, her voice trembling.

"Liv..." My own breath caught.

She nearly dropped Lily in her rush to set her down safely and throw herself into my arms. The impact made stagger back against the doorway, both of us clinging like the world might shatter if we let go.

"You’re here—oh my goodness—you’re actually here," Olivia cried, already tearing up.

I pulled back just enough to search her face, my own eyes stinging. "When did you co back? Why didn’t you tell ?"

She sniffed, brushing at her cheeks. "Ash told ... told you’d been sick. That you collapsed, that you were admitted. And then—then your boss ca and whisked you away to God-knows-where." She tried to smile through her tears. "I didn’t want to bother you. I thought maybe if I stayed quiet, you’d have the space to get better."

I couldn’t help it—I reached out, cupping her cheeks like she was still the little sister I used to protect. "Oh, Liv. My baby..."

Her pout deepened, watery eyes narrowing. "I’m mad at you, you know."

"What? Why?"

"Because Ash told you told her not to say anything to ."

The words sliced straight through . Panic flared in my chest. My mind shot to the miscarriage—the one thing I wasn’t ready to talk about, not with her, not yet. Did Ash—?

But then Olivia continued quickly, almost pouting. "She said you collapsed from exhaustion. You should have said sothing or told yourself!"

Relief made dizzy, my knees almost giving way beneath . I forced a shaky smile. "You’re right. I should have. I’m sorry."

Before either of us could say more, a high-pitched scream split the air.

"Aunty Ariaaaaaa!"

I barely had ti to turn before a small body launched at from the parlor, arms wide and unstoppable. Kaleb—my Kaleb—slamd into with all the reckless joy of an eight-year-old, his head smacking my chest as his little arms locked around .

"Kaleb!" My voice cracked as I scooped him up, hugging him tight, pressing my face into his ssy hair.

"I missed you so much!" he shouted into my ear, clutching like I’d been gone for years instead of weeks.

And just like that, the ache, the secrets, the exhaustion—all of it—blurred under the weight of his tiny arms.

Kaleb clung to like a koala, his arms wrapped stubbornly around my neck as if letting go would an I’d vanish again. I carried him toward the couch where Olivia had settled with Lily, who was fussing in her lap, her tiny fists waving at the air.

"So," I started, brushing Kaleb’s curls back from his sweaty forehead. "Tell everything. How was your little vacation in Italy? And don’t spare the details, Olivia."

My sister rolled her eyes with a half-smile. "It was more magical than I imagined. I didn’t even know we could afford that. It was definitely necessary." She adjusted Lily’s blanket and then let out a breath. "And... I finally threw Michael out."

My brows shot up, a spark of satisfaction rushing through . "Finally. About damn ti."

Olivia gave a look but her lips twitched. "Don’t act like you didn’t think about saying that every day since we got married."

"I didn’t think it," I said smugly, "I prayed for it. You should’ve done it years ago, Liv."

She sighed, stroking Lily’s back. "Well... I sort of told him he could co back... but only if he got a job. No excuses this ti."

I snorted, shaking my head. "Then it makes sense why he’s vanished. The man probably wouldn’t recognize a job application if it smacked him in the face."

Kaleb suddenly wriggled, pulling back just enough to grin up at . "That’s not true! Dad has a job now. He’s really cool."

I blinked, caught between amusent and disbelief. "...Your dad? Cool?"

Kaleb nodded vigorously, excitent bubbling out of him. "Yeah! Auntie Ash gave him one. He works with Grandpa’s security team now. He wears a uniform, and he showed his badge and everything!" He scrambled down from my lap only to imdiately dig through his little backpack, pulling out trinkets and a wrinkled paper badge drawing. "And look, Aunty Aria, I got souvenirs too!"

I listened, smiling at his babble, my chest aching with how much I’d missed his little voice.

Olivia explained softly, "Ash thought it would... help him. She pulled strings with her father’s company and had him hired onto the security departnt." She gave a small, tired shrug. "And to my surprise, he’s actually showing up. Every morning. Every shift. So far, no excuses."

I arched a brow, folding my arms. "Ash does have a talent for putting people to good use. God knows Michael needed it."

Kaleb returned to my side with a souvenir bracelet he insisted I wear imdiately, looping it clumsily around my wrist. I kissed his forehead as he bead, refusing to budge from my side, while Lily squird and let out a tiny squeal that made Olivia laugh.

The living room was warm... so warm I thought my bones might lt. Olivia’s tired but happy smile. Kaleb’s chatter. Lily’s sweet fussing. It should have been enough to make forget everything else.

But even as I smiled, even as I soaked it in, Kael’s face lingered in the back of my mind... his voice on the phone, the way he looked when he told about his father collapsing.

And behind that... the weight of the secret I still carried.

I looked at Olivia, my throat tight. She was laughing now at sothing Kaleb said, her whole expression softer, freer without Michael dragging her down. She looked... safe. Open. My little sister who trusted with everything.

I wanted to tell her. The words sat on the edge of my tongue—I lost a baby, Liv. I lost Kael’s baby.

But my lips didn’t move. I really tried. But it felt like I had an invisible hand over my mouth.

Because saying it would make it real again. Saying it would an watching that horror paint her face, the sa one I’d seen on the doctor’s, the nurses’. And I didn’t think I could survive it. Not yet.

So instead, I smiled at Kaleb’s bracelet, kissed Lily’s tiny hand when Olivia handed her over, and tucked the guilt deeper inside where no one could see.