The day I left the Sterling estate, Liam leaned against the doorframe. He watched me pack my luggage with a half-smile. "What's this?" "Did you finally realize the kid has no intention of forcing me to marry you?" "So you think he's useless now, and you aren't planning to take him with you?" Before I could even open my mouth, Leo, who had been eavesdropping by the door for a while, walked in. He carefully dumped the money from his piggy bank into my hands. "Mom, you need to take good care of yourself." "Also, please promise me you will never, ever come back." "Chloe said she'll only be my mom if you leave for good." 1 After six-year-old Leo finished speaking. His dark, shiny eyes blinked at me, overflowing with anticipation. Liam lowered his voice, carrying a hidden warning. "Leo." "Is that how they teach you to speak to your mother at school?" Leo lowered his head and pouted. "But last time Chloe asked Dad if he still liked Mom, he said he didn't." "And I don't really like her either..." "If Mom wants to leave, just let her leave..." I had long stopped feeling sad over his words. A week ago, it was his sixth birthday. He threw a tantrum, insisting on celebrating with Liam and Chloe. I suddenly felt as if I had nothing left to lose. I didn't have the slightest urge to stop him. Even when I walked past that restaurant that evening. And heard him introducing Chloe to the violinist as his mother, my heart remained completely still. 2 Because I was packing, I was crouching down. My line of sight was exactly level with little Leo. I accepted his money and gave a slight nod. "Okay, I promise you." I stopped referring to myself as his mom and said quietly: "I will never come back to this house." "And I won't be your mom anymore. Leo, you're free." He didn't seem to expect me to agree so easily. He stared at me for two seconds. Then he smiled and cheered, "Yay!" "Chloe is going to be my mom from now on!!" He ran out, shouting that he was going to call Chloe to tell her the good news. I packed my last piece of clothing. I zipped up my suitcase and stood up. Liam had been silent this whole time. But as I brushed past him, he grabbed my arm. His eyes were half-closed, hiding his emotions. "Tara, not liking you doesn't mean I hate you." "Over the years, I've gotten used to you." "Why are you throwing this tantrum and insisting on leaving?" By the end, his voice was tinged with a faint irritation. I wanted to say something, but it felt redundant and overly dramatic. So I just pulled my arm free and left him with one sentence: "Take good care of Leo." I dragged my suitcase out of the Sterling estate. Leaving the upscale neighborhood required a long walk. The weather wasn't great. The cold wind whipped dead leaves against my body. It was the kind of day that made it easy to look miserable. But I kept walking. Not once did I look back. 3 I had rented an apartment in advance and found a job. Using my degree, I applied to be an art teacher at a children's extracurricular center. On my first day of work. I walked into the office and saw several female teachers crouching around a little girl. "Mia, sweetie, does your uncle like desserts?" "Also, also! What kind of girls does he like?" "Right, Mia honey, is he picking you up tonight?" The girl remained expressionless. "Teachers, you called me over. If there's a problem with my drawing style, shouldn't you be talking about that?" The teachers exchanged awkward glances. "Since there are no problems, I'll go back to the classroom." The girl turned around and saw me. She gave a flat greeting, "Hello, teacher." Then she walked away without looking back. 4 The other teachers were very friendly to me, the newcomer. After explaining the workflow, they started gossiping about the girl again. "You probably don't know, but that kid's uncle is Harrison Cole." "He and Liam Sterling are known as the city's most eligible billionaire bachelors." "Oh, not anymore. I heard Liam Sterling is already back together with his first love, Chloe Davis." "Now Harrison Cole is the only one left." Hearing Liam's name again, I felt as calm as if I didn't know him. But Harrison Cole... I sighed silently. He was Liam's arch-rival. In the past, he couldn't stand the sight of me. Every time we crossed paths, I inevitably endured his sarcasm. "You're pathetic. Photos of Liam and Chloe kissing are trending online, and you don't even dare to make a peep." "What do you actually get by following Liam around? A title, or status?" "Tara, why the hell don't you look at other men?" I decided I should stay far away from the girl named Mia. If Harrison found out I was here, he might use his connections to get me fired. 5 Liam called me while I was squeezing onto the subway after work. "Hello?" The noisy background on my end made him pause. After a few seconds, he asked, "Where are you?" "On the subway." He let out a barely audible chuckle. "Squeezing onto the subway?" "Tara, you brought this on yourself." I held onto the handrail and simply asked, "Do you need something?" The sound of the man's footsteps was steady and measured, even through the static of the phone. Just like the man himself. I could even picture him walking from his desk to the floor-to-ceiling windows. "Leo has a fever." He said, "Tell me your address. I'll pick you up." "No need." I lowered my eyes. "Take good care of him at home." "He doesn't need me." Liam's voice darkened. "Are you really going to ignore him?" "Tara." He sounded as if he found the whole thing absurd. "Just because he said he liked Chloe more?" Liam seemed to have never understood my feelings for Leo. Even though I had explained it countless times. He still didn't believe I took emergency contraceptives after that accidental night years ago. Because I had loved him for years. He always assumed I purposely got pregnant with Leo to force him into marriage. In his eyes, my bond with Leo wasn't that deep. He thought of him as my tool, or a bargaining chip. So he didn't know that out of fear that Leo would grow to like Chloe more and more... I had endured countless days and nights of breakdowns and anxiety. The subway arrived at a transfer station. The car instantly emptied out. "It's not about that, Liam." I found a seat, giving my aching legs temporary relief. I said softly: "It's because he really does like Chloe more." "And I don't want to force myself to try so hard to please him anymore." Liam wanted to say something else. The next second, Leo's voice came through the receiver, proving my point. "Dad! My fever is gone!" "Can I go play with Chloe tomorrow?!" Liam's Adam's apple bobbed. "Tara, listen to me..." I hung up. I got off at the next stop. And pushed that phone call out of my mind. 6 When Leo heard his mother's name, he paused. He stopped insisting on Chloe for a moment. He tugged at Liam's pant leg and asked: "Dad, did Mom call?" Liam gave a slight nod. "Oh, did you tell her I was sick so she would come back to see me?" Liam met those cute, round eyes. Eventually, he murmured a "yes." Leo had fully expected Tara to worry about him and rush home. "Then I'll go put on a mask so I don't get Mom sick." "I'll go play with Chloe later." They hadn't seen each other in a week. He didn't seem quite as resistant to seeing his mom anymore. Liam pressed his lips tightly together. "Mom is working overtime." "I didn't ask her to come back." Leo still had a cooling patch on his forehead. He blinked at those words. "Then, then I guess I can just go find Chloe first..." He didn't look disappointed. After all, his mom was definitely going to come back to see him. Ever since he was little, his mom was always the most anxious whenever he got sick. He was just a little surprised. Because in the past, even if his mom was out of state, she would fly back overnight if she heard he was sick. 7 After a week of work, I was basically used to the routine. Even though Harrison hadn't shown up once. Just in case, whenever parents came to pick up their kids at the front door, I preferred to hide in the office and grade drawings. Only once, when Mia missed a class. I followed a colleague outside to see the students off. Normally, I tried to treat all the students equally. But she still noticed a difference. 8 That day, Mia was visibly down. During the break in the hallway, she rested her chin on her hands, staring out the window. A few boys were chasing each other and accidentally knocked her over. They ran off without apologizing. I immediately went over and crouched in front of her. "Are you okay, Mia?" "Are you hurt? Let me see." The girl covered her knee, refusing to let me look, and turned her head away. "I don't want to bother you." "I'll go ask another teacher for a band-aid." I paused, then said gently, "Ms. Carter has some too." "I don't want yours." The back of her round head radiated stubbornness. "I know you don't like me. You don't have to pretend to be nice." I was taken aback. "I don't dislike you at all." "You're well-behaved, polite, and very talented at drawing." "How could I not like you?" Mia shot me a quick glance. Then turned her head back and hummed quietly. "The other day, when Ms. Lee asked you to see me off, you heard it was me and refused." "And a few days ago, at lunch, I didn't want to eat with those other teachers, so I took my bowl and sat next to you. But you finished your food in one bite and ran away." Saying this seemed to remind her of that scene. Her cheeks puffed out in anger as she turned to accuse me: "No one has ever hated me this much!" "If you don't like me, I don't want to like you either." I felt incredibly awkward... That day in the cafeteria, I thought I had been very subtle. Mia had sat down right across from me with her tray. She didn't look at me, just mumbled: "They're too loud, they keep asking about my uncle." I moved my tray to make room for her. But less than half a minute later, her smartwatch rang. It was Harrison calling. My guilty conscience flared up, I shoveled the rest of my food down, and bolted. I couldn't explain this to her, so I just looked at her earnestly. And said word by word: "Then I was wrong. From now on, I'll eat with you every time, and, and I'll walk you out after class..." "But I really, truly do not dislike you, Mia." The girl turned half her face toward me. Her chubby profile looked a bit like a cartoon character. "Really?" Princess Mia asked with a touch of arrogance. "Really," I promised. She reached out both arms toward me, keeping a straight face. "Then hug me..." "My knee hurts." The scrape on her knee was exposed. I picked her up and carried her to the office to disinfect it and apply medicine. When we returned to the classroom, I made the boy who knocked her down apologize. Mia blinked at me, her lips pressing into a tiny smile. It was a signal that she was willing to make peace. 9 During the lunch break, I flipped through Mia's file again. My eyes suddenly locked onto her date of birth. Today... was her birthday. Her gloominess today probably had a lot to do with this. I remembered the little bunny pattern on her pencil case and the bunny keychain on her backpack. Before class ended, I rushed to crochet a mini lop-eared bunny plushie. It even wore a little dress similar to what Mia was wearing today. She finished her drawing ten minutes earlier than the other students. I called her over and gave her the plushie. "Mia, happy birthday." She stared blankly for two seconds. "Is this bunny me?" I smiled and nodded. "Just as cute as you." "Thank you, Ms. Carter. I love it." The little girl accepted it primly, though she tried not to show too much emotion on her face. "You're welcome. Go back to your seat." She took two steps, then turned back around. "Crouch down." She waved me over. I did as she asked. "What's wrong? Did you want to tell me something?" The next second, the girl's soft, warm lips pressed against my cheek. "This is the first gift I got today." "And it's my favorite." She clung to my side, her eyes shining brightly. "Ms. Carter, do you think my uncle is handsome?" "I can give you his phone number as a thank you for the bunny!" The warmth rising in my heart instantly froze. "...No, no thank you." 10 After finding out Harrison wasn't picking her up tonight. I kept my promise to walk Mia out after class. But when we reached the front doors and I saw the man leaning against the Maybach, I felt like I'd been struck by lightning. "Uncle Harrison, why are you picking me up today?" The man's gaze slowly shifted from my face. He glanced down at Mia. "To celebrate your birthday, kiddo." "Yay!" The girl hopped up and down. I braced myself and spoke up. "Hello, Mr. Cole. I..." "What a surprise." He cut me off, smiling faintly. "Liam is really harsh on his women, making you come out here to work." To prevent him from mentioning me to Liam next time they met and causing a misunderstanding. I proactively explained: "I've already left the Sterling family." "My job here has nothing to do with him." Harrison's eyes narrowed slightly. "Because of Chloe?" "Did they bully you?" I didn't want to talk about this with Harrison, so I pretended I didn't hear him. "Mr. Cole, if you don't have any questions about Mia's classes, I'll head back to the office." Mia innocently waved her little hand. "Goodbye, teacher." I waved back. "Goodbye." I turned and walked away, but I could feel an intense, unignorable gaze burning into my back the entire time.
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