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Chapter 7
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Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 10
I used part of the money from the sale to rent a small street-facing shop. It was not large. The front served as a workspace, and the back was a model exhibition room.I repaired Dad's steam locomotive collection myself. The broken joint could not be restored to the way it once was, so I left the mark as it was.On opening day, I placed a photograph of Dad in front of the display.When I was little, he used to tell me, "A house is just a place to keep your things. It only becomes a home when someone truly wants you to come back to it."I did not understand that back then. I thought that as long as I bought a big enough apartment and planned the future carefully enough, I could build a home again.I learned later that some people could live in your house, use your things, and hold permanent access to your front door, and still never think of you as family.Six months after the shop opened, Alec came by once. He stood outside for a long time, watching. I was inside with a few fello
Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 9
Before the handover, I went back one last time.Everything belonging to the four of them had been cleared out. Where the oversized group photo once hung, the wall showed a visible patch of discoloration. The four pairs of slippers were gone from the entryway, and the live stream backdrop in the study had been torn down.The entire apartment felt empty and unfamiliar.Alec stood in the middle of the living room, holding the original design draft."I found this."He unrolled the plans. The earliest version included a study that was truly meant for me. The terrace featured a display case for Dad's model collection. The master bedroom wall had a sketch of a photo of the two of us together.Yet all of it had been removed over the course of revision after revision."I can restore everything back to the first version," he said. "Mallory, give me one more chance."I did not take the plans from him. "Why was the first version changed?"He lowered his head. "Hannah needed a livestream r
Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 8
The apartment found a buyer quickly. The buyer was willing to pay in full but required the unit to be vacated within 10 days.I delivered formal move-out notices to all four of them.Hannah panicked first. Her live stream equipment, product samples, and inventory were all stored there. Renting a new space would not only mean paying rent but also going through the entire business verification process again.She went to Alec and demanded he fix it."You told us we could use this place for as long as we wanted. Now that Mallory's selling, who's going to cover my losses?"Alec sounded exhausted. "I've been trying to talk to her.""You've been talking this whole time, and what's come of it?"Nicole started complaining too. "I still don't have anywhere to put my studio furniture."Tori went a step further and told Alec outright that he should compensate them for the cost of relocating.On the living room security feed, the four of them argued with increasing hostility.Hannah slamm
Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 7
Not long after, Tori reached out to me on her own. She said she wanted to talk privately.At the coffee shop, she slid an old phone across the table toward me. "This is the group chat between the four of us. The business registration was Hannah's idea. Nicole and I just used the apartment a few times."She was in a hurry to distance herself.I did not call her out on it. I just opened the chat history.The group was named Family of Four Forever. The earliest message was sent before the renovations even began.Hannah: [Is Mallory really willing to spend that much on renovations?]Alec: [Her dad left her all alone. The money's just sitting there doing nothing. We're getting married eventually, so the apartment's going to be mine to handle sooner or later.]Nicole sent a laughing emoji. [Then save a room for each of us.]Alec: [Don't worry. I'm designing it around the four of us. Mallory works overtime a lot. She's barely home.]Further down was a discussion about the smart lock
Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 6
That night, Hannah started a live stream.She did not name anyone directly. She simply said she had recently dealt with a 'friend who was extremely controlling'."Just because I'm close with a few old friends, she accused us of taking advantage of her. She even got so jealous that she tried to kick out the people she was supposed to be building something with."The chat quickly rallied to her side.[Didn't you all renovate the place together?][She's probably just jealous of how close you are to the designer.][Living there that long and then suddenly kicking people out? That's so petty.]Hannah sighed. "Some people get a property deed and think that gives them the right to control everyone around them."In the background, Alec brought over a cup of coffee. He did not appear on camera, but it was enough for every follower to recognize the setting as the 'home for four' from his competition entry.It did not take long before someone dug up my workplace and my name. My inbox was
Locked Out of My Own Home Chapter 5
Alec was silent for a long time before he finally spoke. "Designers take channel fees all the time. It's normal.""What about the duplicate reimbursements?""That was my assistant's mistake.""And the furniture the brands sponsored for free? Why did I still have to pay for it?"He pressed his lips together. "The studio's just getting started. I was short on cash. It was just temporary, and you're not exactly hurting for money."I looked at him.This apartment had cost nearly everything Dad left me. It was not that I had money to spare. I had simply never thought I needed to guard myself against the man I was planning to marry.When I did not respond, Alec reached for my hand. "Once I win the prize money, I'll pay it all back. If you sell the apartment now, you're not just destroying my work. Hannah's live stream business will take a hit too."I pulled my hand away. "Your careers have nothing to do with me."He stared, caught off guard.In his mind, I was probably supposed to
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