There was a hazy kind of beauty to the island at dawn the next day. Leia had a habit of going on morning runs, and tended to wake up when everyone was still asleep. She ran around a hill surrounded by the sea for almost two kilometers, feeling good after sweating. She stood at the observation deck on the hillside and stared at the sea as she caught her breath. As she was stretching, Leia suddenly heard a voice behind her."Morning!"Leia turned around in surprise and saw Santiago. "Mr. Dalton? What a coincidence! Did you come for a morning run too?" Leia waved at Santiago. Inexplicably, Santiago's fervent confession last night flashed in her mind, and her cheeks turned red. Leia pursed her lips and looked away, unsure of how to face him."It's no coincidence..." Santiago looked charming with his white shirt, jeans, and messy hair. He rested his hands on the railing and tilted his head to look at Leia, his intense gaze bewitching her. "I learned the other day that you have a habit
Leia scratched her head, not knowing what to do next."There's no rush, we have time. I know you wanted to mediate the conflict between Xavier and I when you chose Skylar last night, but I hope you'll follow your heart and pick the one you want tonight." Santiago didn't want to pressure Leia, but he didn't like the vague relationship they had right now. He wanted to be with her in the open, and he also didn't know if Leia could withstand Xavier's flirtatiousness for much longer. "Okay." Leia nodded firmly. "I'll follow my heart tonight and won't waver again." After spending this time with Santiago, she was more certain of her feelings. She wanted a relationship that was safe and peaceful, not an unstable roller-coaster ride.Xavier was already awake when Leia and Santiago came down from the hill. Currently, he had the most points, and had chosen to exchange his house with Leia. He had already moved his luggage to Leia's large villa, which came with two floors and four bedrooms faci
They went to a clear area near the island for snorkeling based on their agreement last night. As they arrived at the island, Billy explained, "This island is called Heart Island because it's heart-shaped, and thanks to its crystal-clear water, a lot of coral reefs and tropical fish are visible while snorkeling. It's a breathtaking view, and if you're lucky, you might even find the special moonstone of this island. Yes... it's the kind of moonstone that lights up at night that we thought only existed in movies.""Is there really a moonstone here?" Leia became excited when she heard that, and couldn't wait to go snorkeling. She'd heard that Heart Island housed oysters that made beautiful pearls that could be sold for sky-high prices, but the moonstone Billy talked about had always been just a legend. According to the tales, people who found the moonstone on Heart Island would live a smooth and happy life, and if it was true, Leia wanted to find it and give it to Renee."Of course! An i
Naturally, Xavier wouldn't lose such an important position."I want Skylar to be my diving partner," Santiago ignored Xavier and said to the coach calmly. His words shocked both Xavier and Leia, Xavier even more so."What the hell are you doing? You're trying to advance by retreating? What kind of strategy is that?" Xavier glared at Santiago and demanded, "Why did you pick Skylar? We've finally got a chance to fight each other head-on, so why are you backing out now?"Santiago glanced at Xavier in disdain and murmured, "I'll leave Lei in your hands for now, but you have to make sure she's safe." Puzzled, Xavier watched as Santiago dove into the sea with Skylar after they had changed into their diving suits. "He's mad!" Xavier scoffed, peeved that he was the only one on this metaphorical battlefield. Santiago didn't even want to fight against him. He sighed and walked over to a dazed Leia, then said casually, "Let's get going then, dive buddy." "I must be very unlucky to be paire
When Leia saw the moonstone, she quickly dived deeper. "Slow down!" Worried, Xavier swam after her. The coral reefs were beautiful, but they were also sharp, and some were dangerous to touch. However, Leia was behaving like an irrational child, excitedly pushing aside the corals like she had found a fun new toy. In her eagerness to find the moonstone for Renee to ensure her friend's peaceful life, she failed to see the silver creature lurking in the crevice above the moonstone. Just as Leia was about to touch the moonstone, the creature emerged from its hole and bit the back of her hand. Leia shrieked and pulled her hand away quickly."It's a snake! It's a sea krait!" Xavier's mind went blank when he saw the sea snake bite Leia and swim away. He immediately swam to her and grabbed her hand. Leia pointed at the moonstone excitedly, thinking it was just an insect that bit her. Not realizing the seriousness of the situation, she waved the moonstone at Xavier proudly, showing off he
Santiago felt like Xavier was the most opinionated and arrogant man he had ever met. "Have you ever asked Lei what she wants? Who is the outsider here, you or me?" He approached Xavier angrily, wanting to take Leia from him.At that moment, Leia was feeling weak, and her lips were pale. She looked at them and groaned, "Can you two stop fighting? I'm dying here! Hurry up... and get me to the hospital!" Too weak to hold on, she blacked out and lost consciousness. When Leia woke up, she found herself lying on a hospital bed. Both Xavier and Santiago were sitting in front of her bed, and she could feel that the atmosphere between them was tense. However, the most important thing was that she was alive."Lei, you're awake! Are you thirsty? I'll get you some water." When Santiago saw Leia open her eyes, his eyes lit up."Of course she's thirsty, she's been in a coma for two days! If you didn't talk so much, she'd be drinking water by now," Xavier snapped as he handed Leia a cup of warm
"In two to three hours," Santiago replied. "The doctor said they'll put you under anesthesia to clear out the venom in your body, and you can't drink any more water after this until the surgery is done.""Well, there's still time left..." Leia looked around. "Where's my phone? I want to tell Ren I'm okay." However, Xavier gently pushed her back down onto the bed and said, "Don't worry about her, she'll be taken care of.""By whom? Don't tell me it's your scumbag buddy, Stefan!" Leia retorted rudely. "I'll be more worried about her if he's around!"Her words made Xavier snort. "Why do you hate Stefan so much? They're a match made in heaven, but they just have a lot of obstacles to face along the way. It's not fair to label Stefan as a scumbag, is it?""He obviously is!" Leia burst out furiously. "He cheated on Ren while they were still married to each other and got another woman pregnant! In the end, when he finally won Ren back, he got engaged to someone else. Isn't he a scumbag?
Santiago handed Leia her phone, effectively interrupting Xavier and Leia's argument."Thank you, Mr. Dalton. You're the best!" Leia stopped arguing with Xavier and beamed, then used her left hand to call Renee."If you really think so, stop calling me Mr. Dalton..." Santiago muttered unhappily, then said, "You can call me Santiago or even Santi.""Ah, I..." Leia could tell that Santiago was upset, and she didn't know how to respond."Mr. Dalton is how my fans address me, but you're not my fan anymore, so can you call me Santi from now on?" Although Santiago was asking Leia, his firm tone made it clear that he wouldn't take no for an answer."Okay... Santi." Leia turned beet red as she said it. Shyness overwhelmed her, and she felt like she was in a TV drama. Calling Santiago 'Mr. Dalton' was normal, but calling him 'Santi' suddenly seemed incredibly intimate.Xavier frowned and scoffed enviously, "Did you guys forget I'm here? And Santi... How disgusting! Don't tell me this is so
They danced for around ten minutes. Renee danced to the song heartily. Her initial gloomy mood also improved.Renee drank some water and took a few deep breaths. Then, she sincerely praised Leia, "Alright. Your welcome ceremony is bizarre, but it helped relieve my stress. I like it very much!"She could tell that Leia had painstakingly prepared that gift for her. After all, it was not easy to ask the Zambawi people from primitive tribes to sing an English song. "I'm glad you like it. I did this because I wanted you to relax and stop taking things seriously. You need to stop being so hard on yourself and get rid of all the pressure!" Leia said honestly. The Zambawi hand-drum dance came with the charms of a primitive dance. Its goal was to set people free. Of course, it was suitable for Renee to relieve her stress."Yeah, your stress is relieved. From now on, you'll start afresh. This is for you. I'm sure it'll be one of your happy memories." Liam handed the previous Polaroid to
"This is your welcome ceremony. This hand-drum dance is to help eliminate bad luck." Leia held Renee's arm, satisfied with her arrangement. She said happily, "Listen to their song! It's a great song!""Is there a song?" Renee frowned; she felt that Leia was always doing bizarre things. She wondered how Leia could come up with such a preposterous welcome ceremony."Mm, listen carefully! It's English. You can understand it." At that point, Leia said to the Zambawi people, "Put on your microphone. And sing louder."The Zambawi people gave their cooperation. They used their typical Zambawi singing to sing the English song. While listening to the song, Renee found it very familiar. "The flowers will bloom in spring, and the birds are free. I'm still waiting, waiting for my love to come back. Hurry home!""Isn't that Spring Flowers by Curtis Harrett?" Renee finally recalled what song it was. It was a song with a happy beat. It could make people happy. The Zambawi people made th
"I don't know, either. All I ever remember from when I was young is that I led a very painful life. I once tried my best to make the Garcia family accept me. I did all the dirty and tiring jobs. I went out to work at an early age to get money for them. I also did all the house chores. "But my foster parents were never nice to me. They would always beat me up or scold me. My elder foster brother also saw me as an eyesore. He always tried to get me killed…" Quinton calmly described his past. He no longer seemed to be in pain. All that was left in him was numbness, as if he were talking about someone else.However, Renee was always in pain whenever she heard him talk about his past. She felt like she had returned to his past with him and experienced those painful things. It was normal for her to feel that way because they were twins. A lot of their thoughts and feelings were synchronized. "I suddenly recalled that I would inexplicably become gloomy many times when I was young. I
"I'm sorry." When Renee heard that from Quinton, she realized the conflict between him and Stefan had yet to be resolved. It was temporarily put aside because of her. She occasionally saw him and Stefan talk to each other and drink together, but they merely put on a show to ease her mind. Their hatred for each other hadn't been eliminated. Instead, it was growing secretly. If Renee were Quinton, she might never forgive the person who had snatched away her beloved and seized her identity. That person even ruined her face."Why did you say sorry to me? It's the resentment between him and me. It has nothing to do with you. Plus, I didn't know he was my brother-in-law then. If I knew, I wouldn't have fought him." When Quinton recalled those affairs, he realized that people were nothing but the sport of fate. If there had been no resentment between him and Stefan, Renee might not have broken up with Stefan. Their families might even get closer. "Stop bringing up the past. It's
During these days, Renee was under pressure because of her affairs. She had no chance to ask Quinton about it. Now, the long flight gave them a chance to have a deep conversation. They could talk about their woes and seek consolation."Me?" Quinton lowered his head and shook his head helplessly. "I'm still the same old me. Nothing is troubling me. I've been busy with Carmine Pawnshop. I have no time to think about other stuff.""You have no time?" Renee touched her chin and smiled naughtily. "Then, you must have been dwelling on other stuff. Let me guess… Is it the thing between you and Joanne?" "Stop asking so much." Quinton did not deny it but refused to talk much about that. "It looks like I made the right guess. You fell out with Joanne, didn't you?" Renee knew Quinton well. Generally, his work would not affect his mood. The only person who could affect his mood was Joanne, who shared a complicated relationship with him. Before Renee left Beach City, she had created a l
After a long while, Quinton turned around. He looked at Renee, who was across from him, and heaved a long sigh."We're about to go home soon. Why do you look this gloomy? What's wrong…? Are you reluctant to part with this place?" Quinton said. "No, I'm not." Renee poured herself a glass of orange juice and sipped it. She frowned and dwelled on it before she said, "I feel empty inside. I don't know if I made the right choice.""Empty?" Quinton asked curiously."I think I've said goodbye to a steady life since I decided to leave. Maybe I'll keep on wandering from now on," Renee said melancholically. The reason why she chose to give it a try with Justin because she was tired. She was exhausted from leading a wandering life and wanted to settle down with someone. Others could not give her the sense of security like Justin. When she saw him, she inexplicably wanted a home. At that time, she thought she could forget about everything and start a new life with him. Unexpectedly, she
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt