บททั้งหมดของ Locked Out of My Own Home: บทที่ 1 - บทที่ 10

I looked at Nicole. "There won't be a next time."The words had barely left my mouth when the doorbell rang. The real estate agent, Paul Yancy, stood outside with a photographer. "Ms. Keating, we're here to photograph the unit."Alec's expression changed instantly. "Photograph what?""It's going on the market."He grabbed my arm. "Mallory, have you lost your mind? The renovations just finished and you're already selling?"I pulled my arm free. "The apartment is mine.""But I'm the one who did the renovations!" His voice shot up. "I spent an entire year on this place. From the design to the materials, every detail was my work."I looked around the room.The entryway cabinet held four matching pairs of house slippers. A massive framed photo hung in the center of the living room wall. It was Alec and his three childhood friends posing together at the base of a snow-capped mountain.The study had been gutted. The bookshelf I had picked out was gone, replaced by a backdrop wall for

That night, I stayed in the company dormitory.While going through the renovation receipts, I discovered the total had exceeded the original budget by nearly 1.2 million dollars. Alec had told me the overruns were due to rising material costs. I trusted him, so I transferred the money each time without question.Yet several of the invoices listed material charges for the exact same amount. The suppliers were different, yet the payment accounts all pointed back to Alec's studio.I contacted one of the lumber suppliers. After checking the records, the person on the other end sounded hesitant."Ms. Keating, we gave your designer a 15 percent channel rebate on this project.""A rebate?""Yes, it's a standard industry referral fee. Also, you paid the full amount on your end, but your designer applied for a partial sponsorship from us under the name of a competition entry."After I hung up, I contacted the rest of the suppliers for tiles, lighting, appliances, and custom cabinetry. Ev

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

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

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