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Chapter 9: When Everyone Is Watching
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2026-01-02 08:17:23By morning, the town knew.
Not the truth.
Not the whole story.
But rumors don’t need truth—they feed on curiosity.
Amara felt it the moment she stepped outside. Conversations paused mid-sentence. A woman across the street pretended to water plants that didn’t need watering. Someone whispered Crystal’s name like it was fragile glass.
Crystal noticed too.
She always did.
“Why is everyone looking at me?” Crystal asked, clutching Amara’s hand tighter than usual.
Amara forced calm into her voice. “They’re just excited about the new project.”
Crystal frowned. “That’s not excitement.”
Amara had no answer for that.
At the school gate, things went from uncomfortable to ugly.
A woman Amara barely knew stepped forward, arms crossed. “Children need stability,” she said loudly, not bothering to lower her voice. “Not confusion.”
Amara stiffened. “Excuse me?”
The woman shrugged. “I’m just saying what everyone’s thinking.”
Crystal’s fingers trembled in Amara’s hand.
That was it.
Amara leaned in, her voice sharp and controlled. “If you have something to say about my child, you say it to me—not where she can hear you.”
The woman scoffed but stepped back.
Crystal didn’t look at anyone. She walked into school without saying goodbye.
Amara stood there long after the gate closed.
Ethan heard about it an hour later.
His assistant hesitated before speaking. “People are…talking. About you. About the child.”
Ethan’s jaw tightened. “Who’s starting it?”
“No one specific,” she said carefully. “That’s the problem.”
He stood up. “Cancel my afternoon meetings.”
“Sir—”
“I said cancel.”
At recess, things exploded.
A boy blocked Crystal’s path. “So which one is your dad?” he asked. “The dead one or the rich one?”
The words hit like a slap.
Crystal shoved him.
Teachers intervened. Parents were called.
By the time Amara arrived, Crystal was shaking with anger and shame.
“They said I don’t belong anywhere,” Crystal cried. “They said you lied to me.”
Amara pulled her into her arms, fury burning behind her ribs.
Enough.
That evening, Amara marched into Ethan’s place unannounced.
“This stops now,” she said, slamming the door behind her. “Your presence is tearing her apart.”
Ethan didn’t raise his voice. That scared her more.
“I didn’t choose this,” he said. “But I’m not running from it.”
“You’re a storm,” she snapped. “You show up and everything breaks.”
He stepped closer. “And you think pretending I don’t exist will fix it?”
“Don’t turn this on me!”
“I’m turning it toward the truth,” he said firmly. “Crystal deserves more than whispers.”
Before Amara could respond—
A small voice spoke from the hallway.
“I heard everything.”
Crystal stood there, eyes glossy, hands clenched.
“So it’s real,” she said softly. “He really is my dad.”
Silence crashed into the room.
Amara felt like the ground vanished beneath her.
Crystal ran.
Out the door. Into the dark.
Ethan reacted instantly, grabbing his keys. “Which way?”
Amara was already moving. “The old bridge.”
They found her standing there, staring at the river below.
“I didn’t ask for this,” Crystal said without turning. “Everyone keeps deciding things for me.”
Ethan approached slowly. “You’re right. And I’m sorry.”
She looked at him then. Really looked.
“You stayed away on purpose, didn’t you?”
His answer was honest. “I didn’t know you existed.”
Her breath hitched.
Amara closed her eyes.
Nothing would ever be the same again.
Later that night, after Crystal finally slept, Ethan sat alone, the necklace heavy in his palm.
Ten years of longing.
Ten years of searching.
Ten years of being too late.
No more half-steps.
He made a decision.
One that would force the town—and Amara—to face the truth head-on.
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