Upon seeing the sadness exuding from Hayden and Hayden’s reddened eyes, Craig’s brows furrowed, and he pressed his lips in a line, completely filled with astonishment. "Why are you doing this?"It seemed Hayden really had a fondness for masochism. Hayden clearly missed Zenos, yet he was the one who ran away when Zenos came to pick him up. Would it kill Hayden to give Zenos attention and talk things out?They really couldn’t understand what was going on since Hayden didn’t tell them anything.Earlier, they had thought the fault lay with Zenos when Hayden bellowed his sadness after the issue with Nougat. However, seeing Hayden’s stubbornness and Zenos’s usual actions made them want to rethink. Could it be…"Hmph!” Hayden harrumphed fiercely and blinked the tears away. He turned to Craig, glared at him fiercely, and retorted, “What am I doing?"Hayden sulked and crossed his arms childishly, clearly pretending not to know what Craig was talking about—or refusing to admit his actions.Maso
Jack’s eyes glinted with an evil light, and a wicked smirk appeared on his face. He leaned back against the chair, completely relaxed, and uttered, “His men will be transporting some illegal stuff through the water by next week. The security will be strict, but I have a plan on how to breach it.” Just thinking about the plans made his eyes shine with a mischievous glint. Ah. This type of fun life—it had been a while since he experienced it last.Zenos’s eyes fell on his wristwatch before shifting his gaze back to the document he was holding. He threw the document on the table and impatiently pronounced, "Anything else?"Before Zenos left the mansion that morning, he had written a note and placed it on the bedstand for the boy, because that would be easier for the boy to see.Zenos hoped Hayden had read it and that his anger had reduced toward Zenos before he left for school that morning. Also, knowing the little thinker he had, the boy wouldn’t misunderstand.Jack eagerly leaned forwa
“Zen,” Hayden muttered, rolled, and extended his hand as if to roll into Zenos’s embrace and hugged him tight—all his actions subconscious. Unfortunately, what Hayden was rewarded with was a cold bed and no presence of Zenos.Hayden’s brows suddenly knitted, but in the next moment, his eyes flew wide open and landed on the empty bed. Hayden’s heart turned cold immediately.Waking up to an empty and cold bed was something Hayden hadn’t envisioned that early morning. Even though Hayden had been the one to tell Zenos to leave the room last night in a fit of anger, Hayden never expected that Zenos would do as he ordered.Hayden had believed that even if Zenos left in his presence, Zenos would sneak back into the room and do his beastly thing so that Hayden would know that he was in the room, like he had always done in the past—examples were those nights that Zenos was banned from entering the room. But this time—Judging by the cold and clean bed, Zenos didn’t spend the night here, not to
Zenos's car slowly came to a pause, and he immediately alighted from the car. Zenos strode into the mansion in long and fast strides.Unlike earlier in the afternoon when Zenos’s eyes were red and bloodshot, this time his eyes had regained their calm, and his whole person was more composed. Taking a look at the clock, one would see that it was past 11:00 p.m."Boss,” one of the guards took a step forward and bowed respectfully toward Zenos.Zenos didn’t glance or pause to listen to the guard’s words. Instead, he strolled towards their bedroom—his and Hayden's bedroom—in order to check on the boy.Zenos’s eyes landed on the boy as soon as he stepped into the room.Hayden was currently curled up in a pitiful fetal position, clinging onto the bedsheet and whimpering in his sleep.Considering how the boy didn’t cover himself with a blanket, Zenos knew the boy must have unintentionally fallen asleep.Before Zenos could blink or regain control over himself, he had already strode toward Hayd
“No. No. Please. No. Don't. Don’t leave. Please, don't leave. Don’t leave me alone. No. I need you. I... I’m begging you. It's dark here. Please…”Zenos’ jaw clenched, and his face was slightly pale, his eyes shut tight, his forehead creased; his hand extended forward as if to reach out for something. His voice was shaky, laced with fear and earnest pleading.It was very evident that Zenos was having a nightmare, and the nightmare seemed to have a hold on him in not just a little bit.Hayden’s lips curved up, and he leisurely made his way toward Zenos’ study, his hand tucked in his pocket and his excitement very visible. He called, “Darling Zen... Zenos, I'm back!”The distant yet familiar voice seemed to drift into Zenos’s ears because the creases on his forehead decreased slightly."Hay... Hayde... Hayden!” Zenos gently began to pronounce that name as if trying to recollect something. Soon, Zenos regained his rationality.Zenos’s eyes flew wide open, and he was able to take in the v
Justin eyed Nougat as the person alighted from the car. Looking at this person’s nonchalant behavior, Justin still found it hard to believe that Nougat was the one who said such a thing to June, Justin’s mom, the day before.Justin picked up his bag and alighted from the car. Immediately, he took a step forward and casually pronounced, "Let's go together.”Nougat paused in his tracks and turned to Justin, filled with disbelief at the words he had just heard. Justin was the one who said they shouldn't relate. Now… "Are you serious?"A trace of awkwardness overwhelmed Justin, but still, he tried to shrug it off by faking nonchalance. "Yeah."Nougat tucked his hand into his pocket and stared at Justin with amusement. Without hesitation, he ruthlessly rejected, "Not interested."Upon being blatantly rejected, Justin’s expression changed. He hadn’t expected that Nougat would reject him just like that. He was so stunned that he couldn't regain his composure for a second. He retorted, "What?