Into the Sunlight

On graduation day, I waited for hours at the school gates. This might be my last chance to see Calvin, and I didn't want to miss it. I yearned to tell him how I felt, even though I was certain he'd reject a girl of my size. Still, speaking my truth was an act of courage I wouldn't regret.As I nervously fidgeted, picking at the last bit of loose skin around my fingernails, Calvin finally emerged from the school building."C-Calvin! Wait up!" I called out nervously.Calvin turned, the evening sun casting a warm glow on his face. His white and blue school uniform accentuated his youthful handsomeness – he was the boy I'd secretly adored for three years."What is it?" His voice was as captivating as ever."I... I know this might seem presumptuous, but I needed to tell you... I like you! I've liked you since the first day I saw you at the start of school! I don't expect anything, I just wanted you to know. I... I hope you'll always be happy!"I summoned all my courage to say this, then tu

Through my sobs, I managed to speak, "How... how did Grandpa die?"Zoe's eyes were red, and she looked at me with hesitation, as if struggling with whether to tell me. After a long pause, she finally spoke."Deborah... last night, are you... are you okay? It’s all my fault. If only I had stopped you, none of this would’ve happened!"I froze. How did Zoe know about last night?"How do you know..." My voice was hoarse.With her eyes brimming with tears, Zoe bit her lip and handed me Grandpa's phone after tapping a few times."Last night, when you weren't answering your phone and didn’t come home, Grandpa got worried and called me. While we were out looking for you, he suddenly received this video. It was when he saw this... that his heart gave out."The explicit content on the screen burned my eyes. The girl in the video... it was me—drugged and helpless—and the ones recording it were Calvin and Jack.I clutched my head in agony, letting out a piercing scream.Seeing my reaction, Zoe

"You said your name is... Deborah Hope?"I furrowed my brows slightly."Yes. Do we know each other? Why are you so worked up?"Seeing that I looked genuinely confused, Zoe slowly exhaled, relieved. It was just a coincidence."No, it’s nothing. I used to have a friend with a name similar to yours."I couldn’t blame Zoe for being surprised. After all, no one would expect that the timid, poor, overweight girl who was supposed to be long gone would be standing before them now, transformed into a beautiful, wealthy young woman.Suspicion began to take root in my mind, and I decided to quietly start investigating Zoe.I chose the same elective class as Calvin, and on the first day, I pretended to be late."Sorry, professor, I'm late! It's my first day, and I got a bit lost. I apologize!"I rushed into the classroom, deliberately flustered. After carefully preparing my appearance, I noticed quite a few audible gasps when I walked in, including one from Calvin himself."She’s pretty stunnin

Jack, already weakened from years of indulgence in alcohol and women, collapsed to the ground the moment I used the stun gun. However, the stun gun’s power was too low, and he was already struggling to get back up.I shouted for help, and the bodyguard, who had been posing as a diner nearby, rushed over and restrained Jack as soon as he caught my signal.I called the police and then phoned Calvin. He arrived quickly, and I pretended to be terrified, throwing myself into his arms and sobbing. Even though the scent of him made my stomach turn, I forced myself to endure it for the sake of my plan."Calvin, I’m so scared... I’m all alone here with no one to rely on, and Jack, he... he tried..."Calvin immediately comforted me, then angrily cursed Jack, acting like he was livid. But I could see the excitement and satisfaction in his eyes.The footage from the security camera captured everything and was handed over to the police as evidence. However, it wasn’t enough to give Jack a seri

As expected, Zoe contacted Calvin the same day, demanding money. She threatened to expose their relationship and show me their private videos if he didn’t comply. Little did she know, I had already uncovered everything and had surveillance software secretly installed on her phone and computer."Give me two hundred million dollars in cash! I also want 30% of your family’s shares, and you need to send me abroad for school."I raised an eyebrow at that. Zoe was really bold, making such outrageous demands—she was asking for a third of the Preston family’s assets without a care that Calvin might snap and retaliate.On the other end of the call, Calvin was silent for a long time before he finally responded with a quiet, “Okay.”---They set a time and place to meet, planning to finalize the deal and sign the contract. For Calvin to agree so easily didn’t seem right. Could he really afford to give up that much?Zoe, however, was completely unsuspecting. After all, in their previous deal