Chapter 2

"I need to use the restroom."

After telling her that, I pushed open the door and walked out.

When I came back with the medicine, I heard Alice and Vivian talking inside the private room.

"You don't even want to be here. Why are you forcing yourself?"

"Because he wanted to come, so I had no choice but to come with him. But I promised Frost that I'd only sing for him from now on, so I'll need you to cover for me today."

The hand resting on the doorknob instantly froze.

My face turned pale in an instant.

Frost was the name of the conqueror.

I still hadn't figured out what expression I should wear when facing Vivian, who was pretending to be sick.

While I was hesitating, she answered a phone call.

"What? Coco is missing? We're coming back right now!"

Coco was Frost's cat.

Vivian suddenly yanked the door open and immediately ran into me standing outside.

The atmosphere became awkward beyond words.

I awkwardly explained, "I bought some stomach medicine for you..."

Alice reacted quickly. She snatched the medicine from my hand and supported Vivian, looking extremely anxious.

"Vivian's stomach condition is serious. I need to take her to the hospital. You can come home later by yourself."

They rushed toward the end of the hallway before I even had a chance to respond.

I watched their retreating figures with a bitter smile.

...

The moment I opened the front door, I saw Sophia crying sadly while holding a kitten.

"Frost, I misses you so much..."

Her voice trembled as she gently stroked the cat.

When she heard my footsteps, she quickly wiped away her tears and turned to smile at me.

"Maverick, you're finally back."

I smiled back and linked my arm through hers the way I used to five years ago.

But as I passed the coffee table, I accidentally knocked over a vase sitting on the edge.

The vase crashed to the floor and shattered into pieces.

Sophia suddenly shoved me to the ground before throwing herself toward the broken vase.

"That vase was something Frost left behind... You..."

Arthur rushed over when he heard the noise.

The moment he saw the shattered pieces, he pushed me aside as well. His face looked terrible.

I felt wronged. I wanted to cry.

A shard of porcelain had cut my palm, and blood slowly seeped from the wound.

But Arthur and Sophia, who used to love me the most, didn't even seem to notice.

Instead, they carefully continued picking up the broken pieces of the vase.

Charlotte came downstairs after hearing the commotion and saw me sitting on the floor, clutching my injured hand.

I thought she was coming over because she was worried about me.

Instead, she suddenly grabbed my wrist and roughly ripped off the bracelet I was wearing.

"You can't wear the bracelet I gave Frost!"

The blood from my wound smeared all over her hand.

She frowned in disgust and hurried to the bathroom to wash it off.

I knew no one cared about me at that moment.

Holding back my sadness and loneliness, I struggled to my feet and treated my wound myself.

After bandaging it, I went into the kitchen.

Arthur and Sophia had always praised my cooking before, so I decided to make some tacos for them.

Even though I hadn't stepped into a kitchen in years, I still managed to finish making them.

Filled with hope, I carried a plate of tacos out of the kitchen, hoping to remind my family of the feelings they once had for me.

By then, Arthur and Sophia had carefully glued the shattered vase back together.

When they saw me, they forced smiles onto their faces and then called Alice and the others over for dinner.