Lahat ng Kabanata ng No Longer A Substitute : Kabanata 61 - Kabanata 70

STELLA POV I crouched beside Andrew. “I know my son can be a little rowdy, but…” I grabbed Andrew by his shoulders, "Andrew, are you sure you didn’t hit him?”Early in the afternoon, I got a call asking me to come to the principal's office to pick up my son because he got into a fight. Now that is nothing like him. Is the Alzheimer's disease doing this? The kid he got into a fight with stood beside his huffing and puffing mother, staring daggers at me and Andrew. He has a visible injury on his forehead. Andrew shook his head quickly. “I didn’t. He said his mom told him I’m a bad kid… that I only have a mom. I just wanted to play with his robot.”The boy’s mother scoffed. “See? He’s lying. He already admitted he wanted my son’s toy because my son refused to share. Your unruly child pushed him.”I turned to her, “And how are you so sure, you weren't there?”“My son told me everything,” the woman replied simply.“And my son says otherwise,” Stella said calmly. “It's your son's words

DEVON POV Jonathan took a sip of his coffee. “This place is nice and peaceful in the morning. I come here from time to time. So, why don’t you tell me in detail how your talk with Dr. Miller went?”I frowned. Was he actually following her bullshit instructions? “Her name is Stella. Stella King. You should call her Mrs. King.”Jonathan sighed. “Oh, brother. You two need to decide what you are already!”I leaned back. “I asked her to come with me to the auction, and she refused. She’s still upset about the kidnapping stunt I pulled. It was supposed to be romantic. Why can’t she see I’m doing all this because I want her back? Yet she keeps bringing Estelle into it.”The waitress came and we both ordered just coffee and she left. Thirty minutes later, she comes back with our order. Jonathan took a sip and exhaled in delight. Then he set his cup down and stared down at the cup, “What has Estelle actually done for you?” He brought his eyes to me and stared into mine like a ghost, "You’ve

STELLA POV I ignored what he said and focused on the auctioneer introducing the mineral rock. I refuse to he threatened by him.“Come with me, Stella. Now,” Devon said after a while if silence. He has been tapping his finger on the table, trying to calm himself.“Don’t order me around,” I replied coldly. “I’m not your wife. Mrs. King is over there.” I pointed at the exit.“I’m not playing right now, Stella.”“Do I look like I am?” I shot back. “I’m here to buy something important, so don’t interfere.”“Come on, Stella!" He hissed. “I won’t. You’ll have to drag me out—and with cameras everywhere, I guess you’d love making headlines.”“Nothing here moves without my approval, so stand up. Let’s talk.”I crossed my arms. “You can control a live broadcast? Okay then let's talk here. What is it you want to talk about, Mr. King?”Devon sighed in frustration then his voice lowered. “Why are you so angry with me? Is it because of the baby?”“Don’t,” I cut in sharply. “Never mention that agai

STELLA POV“Do you want to go out for some fresh air?” Devon asked.His voice was softer than I expected, almost careful, like he was afraid even sound could hurt me. I stared at him for a second, trying to decide if I even had the strength to move, to think, to feel anything beyond the dull ache spreading through my body.“Yes,” I replied eventually, my voice coming out quieter than intended.“Alright,” he said quickly, almost relieved. “I’ll have a nurse bring a wheelchair for you.”“Devon, there’s no need—”“I’ll be back,” he cut in, already halfway out the door, not even giving me the chance to finish.I sighed, letting my head fall back against the pillow. Typical. He never listened—not fully, not when it mattered.When he returned, there was a strange pause in his step as he looked at me, like he was seeing me for the first time all over again. Then he moved closer, slower this time.“Wait… let me carry you.”Before I could protest, his arms were already around me, lifting me ca

ALEX POV“So you finally decided to see your mother.”Her voice met me before I even fully stepped into the mansion, cool and precise, like a blade laid neatly on a table—still, but threatening. The air inside felt the same as always: polished marble floors reflecting soft chandelier light, everything immaculate, everything controlled.Mrs. King stood at the far end of the hall, her posture perfect, her expression sharper than any words she could’ve chosen.“Yes, Mother,” I said, slipping into ease like it was second nature. “I’ve been busy with school. Classes, projects… professors breathing down our necks.”A short, awkward laugh left me as I rubbed the back of my neck, playing the role I knew she expected. I gestured lightly toward one of the maids standing nearby.“Bring us some tea.”“Alex,” she said, unmoved, her voice cutting cleanly through mine, “you’ve been back for two months. I didn’t reach out because I was waiting for you to come to me. And it took you two months to reme