❣️LOVE IN THE ELITES’ WORLD❣️
🌏🌏Her new world 🌎 🌏
📖📖CHAPTER FIFTY.5️⃣0️⃣
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❣️❣️Steven’s story❣️❣️
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HOLLAD HIGH^^^
^
Students started arriving at school, and were welcomed with r the mid-semester examination timetable. The school already sent the timetable to them, but they still put it up in all notice boards.
👤*Gosh, seems like the exam is really happening,” the students grumbled.
*
Paulina exhaled heavily at the sight of the students gathered talking about the timetable before she find her way to class.
She looked at the MASS seats and sent Micheal a message. She didn’t see either of them at school yesterday, she even went to their suite but it was empty. Their misunderstanding collide with Micheal’s unfinished announcement already started a rumor that the friends are splitting up—Steven is gone, and now the others are not attending school again. She tried to talk to Micheal on the phone, and he assured that he would return to school beside the mid-semester exam, that he needed time to reset.
“Why are they all being hard on theirselves?” She thought, and exhaled heavily.
**
Austin went to the poolside to revise what he studied with Rae the other day, she had threatened to ask him questions, and stop studying with him if he fails. Studying with her so kinda hard, he wish he never started it, but he refused to stop like a dumb loser.
“I see you are here already,” she said, and he chuckled.
“You told me you were going to come during recess, you are quite early,”
“Let’s say I decide to start recess now. Music glass is really not my cup of tea,”
“I would say no classes are,” he said, and she chuckled.
“Let me guess… you didn’t attend classes today, neither did Mike, nor Stan, even Steven. What’s really going on with you guys? Are you really going to split up?”
“Honestly, Steve has been out of reach, we also don’t know where he is, and Mike… he is probably gathering his thoughts together, while Stan is somewhere blaming himself everything, and my pride won’t make me reach out first. We are all messed up friends!”
“It happens,” she said, and he nodded.
“Do you think meeting here few hours after school is enough to study till the mid semester exam? The timetable is out,”
“If you were this worried then you should have taken your studies seriously from the start,” she teased, and he let out a sigh.
“I heard you can study in the library for as long as you want, that’s the only place where the security won’t throw a fuss,”
“Never! I hate libraries. It gives me creeps,”
“But I think all smart people love the library?”
“Go say that to Stan. Have you ever seen him study before?” She blurted, and he shook his head.
“Stan is a genius,”
“I believe everyone follows what work for them. I agreed to study with you despite not being comfortable with group study, and you are still making choices,”
“I have a goal you know. If I end up losing after all these, I might really loose my mind,”
“Then think of other options, the library is not just it,”
“Then shouod we do offsite?”
“Where?”
“My father has guesthouses around, we ca…”
“NO! Never! Why would I be alone with you in a guesthouse?”
“Then what do you want? You don’t want to use the ku tarn neither the guesthouses,”
“I just hates the library,”
“Then let’s do the guesthouse, we can even do at my private suite. Nobody comes there, it’s a conducive environment to study, and I’m sure we would study well together there,” he said, and she swallowed hard, avoiding eye contact with him.
“Let’s just revise first,” she muttered, and he nodded.
**
**
MR. ETHAN’S WAREHOUSE ^^^
^
Mr. Ethan drove into the warehouse when he received news that Charlotte was there, he only detailed men to guard her, he never expected them to bring her to the warehouse.
He entered the warehouse, and saw hwr chattering with the men there. She has always been generous to his workers even when she was younger, she considered them all her uncles and never regard them as an underlining. At times, he wondered how he managed to raise her that way.
“Miss Charlotte,” Don called surprised to see her, and that drew her attention to them.
“Boss!” The men chorused, and stood up immediately.
“Uncle… Don,” she shuddered, and Don smiled cheerfully.
“Miss Charlotte, I’m glad that you are safe. I was very frightened when I heard the news year ago,”
“No, you weren’t. Dad… dad told me. No, I mean… but why are you here with dad?” She said, and Don’s jaw dropped as he realized what she was getting at.
“Charlotte, you shouldn’t be here,” Mr. Ethan said.
*
They both went in to talk properly, and he gave her a brief on his achievements so far.
“You are really going to prosecute him legally?”
“I’ll bring out the bomb after a time. A prosecutor is willing to work for me after I offered him a fortune,”
“Dad, I finally recovered the memory of that accident, but it didn’t really point at anyone. I was almost abducted, but I don’t know who omitted it,”
“It’s the Packard’s, it can only be them,”
“It’s not Grace, it can’t be her. She can’t try to klll me and take my daughter to Paul unharmed,”
“I didn’t say it was the daughter, it’s the father and that why you have to be careful. I am trying to act as discreet as ever. That’s why you shouldn’t be here. That man can figure me out at anytime, the moment he discovered that I’m linked to Paulina, she might be in danger,
“I just ask them to bring me here, I’m not planning to live here. Dad… but about Don, he betrayed you once…-“
“And he might do it again, that’s why this is dangerous,”
“Dad… you are putting everything on the line?”
“It’s either I fall while dragging the Packard along, or they fall. That’s the two options. So just be safe with that doctor, ask him not to do anything, tell him I’ll do everything. Getting the Packard’s legally and all, I’ll do it all before the election so just be rest assured,”
“How can I be when you aren’t worried about yourself. Dad, I want all of this to be over on time, so we can all live happily together. Me, you, and Paulina,”
“Ok,”
“Just ok?”
“I understand,”
“That’s not what I want to hear dad, you’ve to promise me that you will be careful,”
“I can’t,”
“Why can’t you?”
“Because I failed you once. So I don’t want to fail again. I can’t make any promises,” he said, and she sniffed in “Don!” He shouted, and Don rushed in.
“Get the men assigned to watch over Charlotte, and ensure they drive her back safely. I don’t want her here ever again,”
“Yes, boss,”
“Dad…” she called in tears.
“Miss Charlotte, please come out when you are ready,” Don said.
**
**
HOLLAND HIGH^^^
^
Sophie joined Sage at the rooftop, and he welcomed her with a smile.
“I’m glad you came. You’ve been really distant lately that I was scared that you might end up cutting ties with me,” she whined.
“I’m glad that you didn’t invite Lina,”
“How long is it going to be this way? Won’t you ever get over the rejection?”
“I don’t know. It’s seeming hard. Lina is the only reason why I’m here, and being here now just seems meaningless,”
“My only reason for enrolling in this school, why my parents made huge donations, and paid a fortune for my tuition is for me to associate with high class students, they want to use me to build connections, but everything change after I met you and Lina, my initial goal and all, I realized a new purpose and embraced our friendship. Doesn’t it work that way for you?”
“I don’t quite get,”
“Lina might be the reason you came here, but saying that it’s all meaningless when I thought we are friends, is quite upsetting, no, it’s extremely upsetting!”
“I’m really sorry, Sophie, I don’t mean it that way,”
I don’t care! As far as I am concerned, throwing away our friendship just because Lina rejected you is really immature!”
“Just because? It’s that easy for you to say Sophie, but I’m sorry. I was avoiding you because I was mad at myself. Even after getting rejected awfully, I still think about Lina, and being around you will make me miss her more, and I’m not ready to face all those again. I value our friendship and wish we could become the trio we once were, but I also need time to get over this heartache,” he said touching his chest, and she held his hand.
“It must’ve really hurt,”
“Yes, it did. And it still hurts,”
“I really hope that Lina could accept you,”
“She has her reasons, so just until I could accept it, and understand her, just until then…”
“It’s fine, Sage. Let’s take a break for a while, I won’t nag you and complain about our friendship anymore, but I’ll always be here when you need a friend,”
“Thank you, Sophie. I’ll make sure to arrange those blind dates for you once the exams are over,”
“Why are you thinking about that now?”
“What? Isn’t that what you always wanted?”
“Yeah… that’s what I always wanted, but how could you think about that now that you got rejected? The pressure of the upcoming exams is hard enough, and Lina had to add hers to it. That girl, I really wish I could drag her ears!” She shouted, and he chuckled.
“You are more offended than I’m,”
“What? Do you think I’m offended this way? Do you really want to see me offended?” She yelled, and he shook his head unable to control his laughters.
“No, please don’t. I don’t want to see you angry,” he said, still laughing.
“Look at you laughing. I’m glad that I could cheer you up, cheer up Sage, this is an inevitable phase in a teenager’s life, so it’s normal. It doesn’t mean that you aren’t good enough, it’s just normal,” she said, and he smiled.
“Why did you always sound like my mum,”
“Gosh, I don’t know if I should be angry or honored to hear that,”
“You should be honored, because to me, my mum is the wisest woman,”
“I know. She is a judge, so she should,”
“Thank you, Sophie “ he muttered, and embraced her.
**
**
School dismissed later, and Paulina was walking through the hallway when she saw Sophie.
She wanted to call out to her, when Sage joined, they both hold hands leaving together.
“What? Did they just left me out?” She thought sadly.
She instantly realized that it was best for her not to be there after rejecting Sage that way.
“I think it’s best this way. He needs Sophie, and I… I would figure out myself,” she muttered.
She continued on her way and saw Austin heading to the parking lot.
“Hey, Austin,” she called out, and he turned to her with a glare. “Wrong timing,” she thought.
*
They entered his car, and the ride to the bus station was in silence until she broke the silence.
“I didn’t know you were at school today. Neither of you were in class, and the suite was also empty,”
“What do you take me for? I’m not a good friend who could over look things like that. Mike and Stan kept a secret from me, and you… who are you? Why would he share something he hid from me with you? You were simply friends with us because of his urge to get back at Ava, but what? He even shared it with you and left me out. Well… it all makes sense, you are slightly alike. You are both illegitimate, with different backgrounds,”
“Wow. Now I understand why Mike kept it all from you, you are very unreasonable. Stip the car, I’ll find my way from here,”
“We aren’t at the bus station yet,”
“Do I look blind to you? I might be an illegitimate, but that doesn’t mean I have no pride. Stop the car!” She blurted, and he stopped it immediately. “While you are angry at Mike and Stan, you should also take your time to think if you appear like a friend that he could freely share his shortcomings with,” with that she alighted from his car.
Austin hit the steering in anger. He couldn’t believe he said all those.
“Goodness man, get it all together!” He screamed , before he drove off.
*
Paulina board a taxi to the bus station, and find herself alighting at the station closet to the noodles shop. She stopped a taxi hoping they are back in business or Steven was back working there, although she knows it’s impossible. She think about him at times, and the thought of his being a murder baffles her a lot. He claimed to be on the run, and if those guys were really murders, the thoughts of what they might have done to him was unthinkable.
She got to the noddles shop, thankfully they are back on business but they are closed for a short break.
“Oh, miss, I’m glad you come again,” the owner welcomed her, and she smiled before in.
“I’m glad to see that you are back in business,”
“We reopened three days ago, and to our surprise, our customers seem to be waiting. We have too much orders that I had to put that sign outside to attend to the orders first before attending to more customers,”
“Why don’t you get a help?”
“Yeah, I should. But getting a part time worker is not really easy these days, and I am still wondering if Steven could return,”
“He never returned?”
“He didn’t. He didn’t after he left, I wonder if he is doing well. Since you attend same school, and you are friends, you should be able to answer that more,”
“He didn’t return to school either. It’s like he disappeared from the face of the earth,”
“Do you think he travelled abroad?”
“I would be glad if that was the case,” she muttered.
“Wait for a while, I’ll get your orders ready,”
“But you said you have a lot of orders,”
“Come on, you are like a family to me now. You weren’t just a regular here, but you also assist Steven with the deliveries whenever you stop by. So I can’t keep you waiting,”
“More reasons why you should. If you have orders, you should attend to them, and if you need a hand, then I should assist you,” she said, and his eyes widened.
“No, you don’t have to,”
“I won’t persuade you,”
“Then allow me be trouble you, just this once,” he said, and she laughed.
*
She assisted him at the restaurant, while he went to send out orders before she placed her own order when everything dled down.
“Since you refused to get paid for today, then allow I’ll pack some noodles for you,”
“No, sir. You really don’t have to. You have done more than enough by giving me this for free. I’m full, and won’t be able to eat those,”
“You can share them with your family at home,”
“Family?”
“I’ll be right back,” with that he left before she could protest.
She begun to pick on her food wondering if she had a family, she once did, and that was her mother. Her father might be paying title attention to her now but he was always too busy with work. She was engrossed in her thoughts, and missing her mother when she saw someone peeped into the restaurant, but the moment she caught the sight, the person ran off.
“What? Who could that be?” She thought and went out.
She searched around for the person, and saw the familiar back climbing on a motorcycle.
“Steven?” she called and he turned to look at her before driving off. “Wait! Steven!” She called out, but he retreat.
She stopped a taxi passing by to go after him, and they drove for minutes before he stopped at a big shopping mall.
“Wow, he must be fine seeing that he is here to shop,” she thought.
“This must be the infamous big shopping mall in this area,” the taxi driver said, getting her attention.
“Sorry, sir, but what made it infamous?”
“People always tried to commit suicide here. It’s a really tall building…-“
“Suicide? Sir, I’ll pay with this,” she said, and paid with her card before hurrying in.
“Come on, Lina, he has no reason to commit suicide. I mean… why would he?”
“But he is on the run, he is being chased by murders,”
“No, he said he is a murder,”
Different thoughts ran through her mind as she entered the elevator, heading to the rooftop and upon arriving there, her heart slipped a beat to see him standing by the tip of the rooftop.
“STEVEN… NOOOO…..” she screamed, and he turned to look at her.
She doesn’t care if she was exaggerating like the first day she saw him at the cafeteria rooftop, but she really think she need to stop him either he was just enjoying the view or attempting suicide.
“Don’t interfere this time Lina, stay away!” He shouted, and her eyes widened.
“This time? If you said this time, does that mean you really attempted suicide that day at school?” She shuddered.
“I told you to stop interfering, Lina, why won’t you listen? Because of you, all of this is happening because of you, it’s all your fault!”
“How is it my fault? Is it my fault that we are friends? What are you talking about? Why are you on the run and why is it my fault?”
“You shouldn’t have interfered back then, you shouldn’t have stopped me. Then all of these would have ended a long time ago. It’s all your fault, Lina, I’m suffering this way because of your nosiness, and all of that had to happen to Mr. Joe because of me,” he said, and she wondered why he mentioned the noddles restaurant owner.
“Mr. Joe? What happened to him because of you?”
“Just let me be, Lina, pretend like this day never happened,”
“Wait. If you are going to end it anyways, why don’t you just share it. That thing that hurt you so much, what kept bothering you, and all,”
“You’re right, I should share it since I’ll end it all,” he muttered.
“I’m all ears, Steven,”
She took her phone and sent a message to Michael, but he didn’t respond. She thought of who else she could send a message to, and went to their after school club group and sent the message there hoping they show up and stop him.
“Steven, I’m listening,” she shuddered, with hopes that she could buy some time with that till someone show up.
“You must be curious about those guys and why I’m on the run, as I said, they are murderers, and their boss is my father, he murdered my mother,” he muttered in tears, and her eyes widened.
“What?” She muttered.
“And it was all my fault, she dled because of me, it was all my fault, I kllled her…” he cried.
*
*
FLASHBACK***
*
Five-year-old Steven was in tears as he watched his mother packed, after packing, she went to embrace him. His father wasn’t home, so she drugged the few guards around to be able to leave.
“Steven, I wish I could take you with me but your father will come after us if I do. I promise to come back for you, I’m going to file for a divorce, and ensure I take you with me,”
“Mummy…. Don’t go…” he cried, grabbing her dress.
“Steven, just hold on to the pendant, it’s a heirloom pendant and it’s very important to me so I have to come back for it. Hold on to it, son, and keep it safe for me,” she said, and kept the pendant in his pocket.
“Mummy… don’t go…” he cried, and she freed his little hands from her before leaving.
He ran after her but she shut the door behind him, and he broke down in tears. He sat on floor in tears and heard the doorbell opened back and his mother came in.
“How could I leave without you,” she cried, and he embraced her.
“Mummy….”
“Let’s go, baby. I’ll ensure to protect you from him, I’ll ensure you don’t have to live like him. Let’s go, before he returns,” she said, and carried him.
They heard a car drove and she froze in fear.
“We have to hurry,” she shivered, and started thinking of a way to escape him when his yelling echoed in the air.
“SELENA, I don’t care if you leave, but don’t dare take my son with you!”
“Steven, what do we do? We already got caught,” she shuddered in fear. “Come here, we have to make him think we left,” he said, and they both hid somewhere.
“Seven, Steven!” He shouted, and burst into the room.
“Boss, we already checked the CCTV, they are still in,”
“CCTV,” Selena thought, and covered her mouth in fear, before covering Steven’s mouth.
“Search the entire building, I don’t care about that woman, find my son!”
“Yes, boss!”
“Steven, daddy is here, daddy is with Santa clause,” he said, and popped something.
Steven grumbled, on hearing ‘santa clause’ and his mother shook her head.
Steven’s father chuckled, and traced it to where they hide.
“Gotcha!” He winked, and Selena started shivering in fear. “Steven, Santa clause is outside for you,”
“Really? Santa clause?” Steven said in excitement, and his father nodded.
“Yayyy…” Steven jumped joyfully, and ran out.
“What do you think you are doing? I told you to leave if you wanted to, I told you to leave but never take my son or think of divorce, so what do you think you are doing?” He shouted, and dragged her by pulling her hair.
“Arghhh… stop it, Lucas you are hurting me…”
“Why don’t you just leave?”
“I can’t let you ruin my son. I can’t let my son become like you!”
“It’s too late. He is my son, so he must follow my step because that’s what makes him my son,”
*
Steven searched everywhere but couldn’t find Santa clause, so he frowned already upset.
“Little boss, I can become Santa clause for you,” one of the men said, and started dancing cheerfully which made Steven cry.
“Stop it, you are scaring the kid,” another cautioned.
Steven ran back to the room in tears to tell his father that he couldn’t find Santa clause, but he didn’t see anyone in the room.
“Daddy… I couldn’t find Santa clause…” he cried.
He looked around in tears and wanted to go to his father’s room when he heard noises from the balcony, he went there, and saw his father pushed his mother down the balcony.
“Mummy…” he screamed, and his father turned to him.
“Steven, mummy is learning how to fly…” his father said.
Steven looked at him in fear, and saw traces of blo0d stain in his hand. He shook his head, and counted few steps away.
“You… you… my…. Mummy…” he shuddered in tears.
“Come with me Steven, I’ll take you to Santa clause,” he said, and the kid shook his head in tears.
Each step he took forward, the kid took backward and he widened his eyes in disappointment. That was the first time that Steven was ever scared of him.
His father fabricated a suicide note, and the police closed the case immediately as suicide. Steven in the other hand couldn’t take the memory of what happened that day out of his mind, and he became even scared of his father until he grew up.
“What could have happened if mum actually left that day?”
“What if I didn’t stop her with my tears that day?”
“What could have happened if she didn’t return for me?”
“What could have changed if I didn’t grumbled for dad to make dad find our hiding place?”
A lot of thoughts disturbed him, but he couldn’t find any answer to it. His mother returned to get him, and dled because of him.
*
As he grew older, he started to understand what his father truly was. His father was an infamous mafia boss that is anonymous to many. His father murders people like their lives was nothing, and he was never held accountable for his actions. When Steven grew older, his father started to put him through in his business, and he realized that he would have to live like him. He doesn’t know how best he wanted to live, but at least he doesn’t want to live like his father. His mother dled because she doesn’t want him ti live like his father, so he refused to be a m0nster like his father, with that determination, he betrayed his father. He sold his father to a prosecutor and flee.
Getting to school, he couldn’t stop hating himself for what he did to his father, he couldn’t share it with anyone and it didn’t stop hurting either. He brought out his pendant, and decide to go to his mother. He might not remember all the memories he shared with her, but he remembered that day vividly — she returned to take him with her, which lead to her d€ath.
He went to the rooftop and intend to jump off when Paulina showed up, and dragged him away. At that point, he realized that ending his life might not be the end of it, if his mother dled because she wanted him to have a better life, then he should try and live well.
When school dismissed, he couldn’t return home, he was so lost that he just drive off heading to nowhere when his car broke down. He went to check it already frustrated. He started getting hungry, so he checked the restaurants around to eat, and ended up at the noodle’s restaurant. He applied to be a part timer there after seeing their signboard, and he pleaded with them to allow his live there for the time being.
Working at the noddles shop made him felt more alive, and he eventually became friends with Paulina and he started feeling more like ever other person—he realized that might be what his mother actually wanted for him.
Everything was going fine until his father found him at the noodles restaurant, he promised to forgive all his mistakes, and asked him to return home but he couldn’t believe his promises. He didn’t know how he escaped being imprisoned, but he refuse to believe his promises. His father men comes by every now and then to threaten him to return, until his father showed up himself the day Paulina interfered. The threats didn’t stop, until they burn down the noodles restaurant, and he started running about. He cut ties with Paulina because he was scared of what his father might do to her, he couldn’t go to school because they could find him there, but they caught him eventually. His father ordered him locked up, and he recently managed to escape. His father planned to send him off abroad to learn his business, but instead of living that way, he decided its best to end it all. He drove to the noddles restaurant and smiled at ease to see that it was doing well, and he was even more fulfilled to see Paulina as well for the last time.
*
*
FLASHBACK ENDS***
*
Steven finished his long story, and Paulina gasped.
“I feel more at ease now after sharing these with you, you were a friend after all. Thank you for everything,”
“Wait!” She shouted, and he looked at her.
“What else?”
“Come on, Steven, I’m sure your mother doesn’t want you to end this way,” she said, hoping it’s convincing enough. Message keeps beeping into her phone, but her trembling hand made it fall off and she couldn’t bend down to pick it. “Please, please, somebody come and stop him,” she almost cried.
“You are right,” he said, and she nodded all smiles. “But I can’t live the way she wants either. Thank you for everything, Lina,”
“Wait! I’ve something to say too, since you are determined to Juno off, then allow me say this,@ she shouted, thinking of what to say.
“What?” He asked.
“Steven, you can’t do this,”
“I already thanked you for everything, so just take that and leave,”
“What about me?” They heard someone screamed, and Paulina heart calmed down a little when she saw Micheal running to them.
“Mike….” Steven shuddered.
“If you were going to dle anyways, you should have done that years ago, and not live like a coward among the MASS!”
“Mike, what are you saying?”
“I’m sorry for everything,” Steven muttered.
“STEVEN!” They heard Austin shouted, panting heavily as he ran to them.
“Steven, just take my hands, the same way you took it years ago, and let’s talk this out. I don’t know what you are going through, but we will find m a way together, as friends, let’s be real friends this time,” Michael said, extending his hand to him, and Steven shook her head.
“Listen to Mike, Steve, we were so worried when you were away, Stanley tried to find you. You might not be talking, but we considered you as our friend, and we wished you could talk to us someday,” Austin said, and Steven broke down in tears.
“It’s already late,” Steven muttered, and looked down.
“It’s not late, Steve, it’s not late to give our friendship another chance,” Micheal said.
“Come on, Steve, Mike promised to help you, and he would. Listen to him, he will help you live the way your mother wanted,” Paulina said, finally convincing him with that.
“Really?” He muttered, and Micheal nodded.
“Yes, man, we will help you,” Micheal said.
“Accept Mike’s hand, man, it’s hanging,” Austin said, and Steven smiled.
He wanted to grab Micheal’s hand, but he slipped, and fell.
“STEVEN!” They all shouted.
He landed on the foam, and gasped when he opened his eyes.
“You are safe, man,” Stanley said, and he looked at Stanley who smiled.
.
TO BE CONTINUED…
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