Chapter 231
Michael had a long dream.
In the dream, he returned to when he was eight years old. His mother held his hand as they walked into Aunt Grace's garden. Sunlight filtered through the plane tree leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.
"Michael, this is Lucy," his mother's gentle voice murmured beside him.
He saw a delicate little girl sitting on the swing. She wore a pale yellow dress, clutching a lollipop in her small, fair hand. When she noticed him approaching, she lifted her face and gave him a sweet smile.
At that moment, he heard the sound of his own heartbeat.
From that day on, he took a detour to Aunt Grace's house every day after school. Lucy would always wait for him by the windowsill, running out excitedly the moment she spotted him.
"Big Brother Michael!" Her soft, childish voice became the most beautiful melody in his life.
On the first day of elementary school, he stood at the school gate and watched as the little girl in her uniform came bouncing toward him. Under the sunlight, her twin braids swayed, and her backpack swung behind her.
"Big Brother Michael, can we go to school together?" She tilted her small face up, her eyes brimming with hope.
Of course, he said yes.
From then on, he had a little shadow following him everywhere. She would pout and beg him to carry her backpack or whine for snacks. He pretended to grumble but always saved the best treats for her.
Lucy was brilliant. After skipping several grades, she was only one year behind him. On the first day of middle school, he found her standing at the school gate, her eyes red. His heart twisted painfully.
"Skip another grade and catch up to me," he said, ruffling her hair.
The following spring, she did just that. Wearing her middle school uniform, she stood under the sunlight, smiling at him with crescent-shaped eyes.
In high school, his father moved them back to the capital. Before leaving, he found Lucy crying in her room. Through the door, he promised, "We'll video call every day."
At university, he became the campus heartthrob. But when that familiar figure appeared at the school gate, everything else faded into insignificance.
"Big Brother Michael!" She threw herself into his arms, carrying the familiar scent of gardenias.
The student council members often teased, "Your little sweetheart is here with lunch again." He kept a stern face, but his heart swelled with warmth.
After graduation, his grandparents wanted him to enter an arranged marriage. He scoffed and turned to the entertainment industry instead. When Lucy confessed her feelings, he pretended to be annoyed—only to pull her into a tight embrace the moment she turned away.
"No take-backs," he whispered against her ear.
But showbiz was a viper's nest. Afraid she'd get hurt, he deliberately distanced himself, hoping she'd give up. Until the day someone hurled acid at him—and a stranger leaped in front of him...
(To be revealed: This "savior" was actually part of an elaborate scheme. Unbeknownst to Michael, Lucy was in a hospital room at that very moment, silently losing their child...)