Chapter 2

When I froze in the doorway, Calvin looked at me with an expression that said, "I knew it."

Even so, he rubbed his hands together, pretending to be all nervous. "Too bad I'm broke. A whole day of delivering takeout only gets me, like, 80 bucks. Are you going to look down on me for only being able to treat you to boxed meals like this, Tessa?"

I snapped out of it, and my stomach growled in hunger.

"Of course not. I was adopted, and my adoptive parents stopped supporting me once I got into college," I said.

"I worked part-time to save up for tuition. To save money, I usually bought cheap bread and paired it with free soup from the cafeteria. For me, these buffet-style boxed meals are already luxurious enough."

I told Calvin the truth openly, without a trace of diffidence or embarrassment in my eyes. Once I finished, I couldn't wait any longer and hurried inside the restaurant, making a beeline for one of the metal food trays.

If it had been Yvonne in my place, she probably would've slammed the tray over Calvin's head and told him to get lost. But my eyes were practically shining as I moved down the line, piling food onto my tray.

"Sweet and sour pork? I love that. Mashed potatoes? I love that. Shakshuka? I love that. Bread rolls? I love that…"

Calvin followed me. When he saw my tray piled high with food and the way I dug in with such gusto, a trace of tenderness flickered in his eyes.

"So you really do love this stuff. You weren't just saying that to fool me."

I was too busy stuffing my face to hear a word he said.

Compared to a glutton like me, Calvin clearly wasn't a fan of these greasy dishes. After forcing down a few bites, he put his cutlery down. Everything he couldn't finish ended up in my stomach.

When I finally polished it all off, I patted my round, full belly and thanked him profusely. "Thanks for this. This was the most satisfying meal I've had all year."

"Don't be so easy to please. Once I start making real money, I'll take you out for something way better," Calvin said. His gaze darkened faintly, and the corners of his lips lifted in the hint of a smile.

When he offered to walk me home, I waved him off. "I'm never going back there. I'm planning to stay in a cheap hostel for a few days while I look for a job."

I remembered that, in the chat logs, Calvin had always been curious about what Yvonne's real life looked like. Even though she'd gone missing as a kid, she hadn't suffered a day in her life—some kind stranger had picked her up.

She couldn't make up a tragic backstory, so every time Calvin asked, she just turned on the charm and dodged the question.

So now, when he probed about my situation, I spoke freely and without guilt.

"I was adopted from an orphanage. A few days after they brought me home, my adoptive parents' biological daughter, who'd gone missing, was sent home by the stranger who found her.

"From then on, I became a thorn in her side. She came up with all sorts of ways to bully me. My adoptive parents knew about it; they just couldn't be bothered to step in. But they did at least give me food and a roof over my head, and they paid for my schooling. I'm still truly grateful to them."

As Calvin listened, his hands slowly balled into fists. He asked, "So you just put up with it? You let that real daughter walk all over you?"

I nodded and tugged up my sleeve, showing him the old scars on my arms. Some were from where Yvonne had burned me with matches, and some were from where she'd scratched me with nails. There was even one from when she'd egged a dog on to bite me.

"It's fine. I've already graduated from college, so I can rely on myself from now on. Once I've saved up enough money, I'll pay my adoptive parents back for everything and officially cut ties with them," I said.

"Tessa… when we started talking online, I honestly thought you were just pretending to be pitiful to scam me."

Now that Calvin had seen everything for himself, he no longer suspected that I was lying to him. After some thought, he looked steadily into my eyes. "If you could make one wish right now, what would you want?"