While in the middle of the city.
Stella nearly jumped out of her seat when her phone vibrated on the dashboard. She didn’t even need to look. She already knew who it was.
Her mother.
Again.
The glowing na "Mommy" flashed like an alarm siren.
Stella sighed.
This wasn’t the first ti her mother had called today. Or the second. Or even the fifth. Since five in the afternoon, her mother had been calling her every thirty minutes.
Yes, every thirty minutes.
She had told her she was handling an ergency patient and wouldn’t be ho until around ten.
And now, with only five minutes left to ten, her mother was calling again... as if she was on the verge of being kidnapped, murdered, or swallowed whole by a dical textbook.
She pressed the answer button and turned on the speakerphone.
However, before Stella could even say hello, Alicia’s panicked voice bood through the car.
"Stella, where are you? Are you alright?"
Stella stared at the road in disbelief. "Mom, I’m fine. Why do you sound like I’m trapped in a burning building?"
"Oh. So you are fine."
"Yes, thank you, Mommy, for your attention," Stella said, injecting extra sunshine into her voice in hopes of calming her worried mother.
But of course it failed.
"Where are you now? Still at the hospital?"
"I’m driving ho now. I’ll arrive in five minutes."
"Alright, I will heat your dinner. Take care."
The call ended instantly.
Stella exhaled a long, exhausted sigh. She loved her mother. Deeply. But sotis... her mother had enough nervous energy to power a small city.
Finally, she turned into the parking lot of the Pearl Garden Apartnts.
Her eyes lit up when she saw a free slot right near the entrance.
Stella pulled in quickly, grabbed her bag, and practically sprinted toward the building, heading to the elevator.
Footsteps echoed behind her.
She ignored them at first. Probably another tenant. But when the steps ca closer, curiosity forced her to glance over her shoulder.
Her eyes widened.
’Dylan?’
He had been mid-step and paused, just as surprised to see her. For a mont, Stella wondered if she was hallucinating from exhaustion. She blinked.
Still Dylan.
She blinked again.
Still Dylan. Still handso. Still calm. Still breathing the sa air.
’Why is he here?’ she murmured under her breath. Then another thought hit her. ’Wait. Is he here to see ?’
Dylan approached, stopping beside her with a soft smile.
"Hi, Stella."
"Hi..." She stared at him, mildly suspicious. "Why... are you here? Are you following ? And how did you get through the main door?"
His eyebrows shot up. He laughed. "Following you? No. Relax. I live here."
She froze.
"You. Live. Here?" she repeated dumbly.
He nodded. "Yes."
Her mind scrambled. Did he move in after learning she lived here? Did he sohow track her down?
No. That sounded ridiculous.
Right?
Still, she had to ask. "Since when did you live here?"
Dylan frowned slightly as if calculating. "Almost five years, I think."
She felt her soul leave her body.
"So... you were living here first. Long before us."
"Yes. I moved in when the building was just completed."
A sound escaped her... half laugh, half wheeze. "Ah. So I was the one who unknowingly moved into your building."
He chuckled. "Seems so."
"Which floor do you live on?"
"The top."
Stella swallowed hard. The penthouse. The entire top floor, with its private elevator, private balcony, and private everything.
She rembered her mother ntioning that the penthouse was a single, massive unit.
anwhile, she lived on the tenth floor with excellent lighting but entirely normal floor space.
’This man... my brother-in-law’s secretary is living like a king.’
She quickly pressed the elevator button before her brain could embarrass her further.
"How about you?" Dylan asked.
"Tenth," she answered sheepishly.
He nodded in acknowledgnt. "Alright. Talk to you later, Stella."
He walked toward the VIP elevator, swiping his card for access.
She watched him go, clutching her bag like a protective shield.
Her mind replayed their last eting. The night thugs had almost kidnapped her, and Dylan had literally appeared from the shadows like so action movie hero.
She rembered hugging him tightly afterward, emotional and shaky, her face buried in his chest.
Stella’s face burned at the mory.
And the way Dylan had smiled at her just now... gentle, warm, a hint of sothing else.
No. She was imagining it, right?
Right!
She shook her head frantically and stepped into her elevator.
...
When Stella reached her apartnt and opened the door, she nearly scread.
Her mother stood directly in front of her.
In the dim light.
With an expression that could make demons flee.
"M-mommy?" Stella squeaked, pressing a hand to her thudding chest. "Why... Why are you scaring like that? What are you doing standing there? And what’s with that face? I thought I saw a demon."
Alicia didn’t answer. She grabbed Stella’s wrist and dragged her toward the dining table like a general hauling a soldier to interrogation.
"Go wash your hands and co sit here quick," Alicia ordered.
Stella obeyed.
Fast.
Then, she sat down slowly.
The silence was suffocating.
"Mom? Can you say sothing?" she asks, eyeing her mother with worry. "Your silence is giving goosebumps. Did I make a mistake?" She asked before she started eating her late dinner.
Alicia finally spoke, her tone trembling with betrayal and anger. "Tell . Why did you hide the kidnapping incident from ? Why did you not tell it was YOU?"
Stella froze, mid-chew.
Her spoon clattered onto her plate.
"M-Mom... H-how do you know?"
Alicia glared. "Your father has only two daughters. You and Evelyn. Of course I know!"
"That was my sister—"
"Don’t lie to , Stella Walters! I t your sister today. She told everything."
Stella gasped.
Her jaw dropped.
One thought blasted through her head like an explosion. ’Geez, sister Eve, you traitor!’
Her mother wasn’t done.
"Do you know how I felt? Hearing from soone else that criminals almost abducted my daughter?" Alicia took a deep sigh before she continued, "So, Dylan had to save you? And you kept it a secret from your own mother?"
Stella swallowed hard.
"Mom... I didn’t want you to worry. You faint easily."
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