Chapter 8: Farewell to the Past–2


    The director paused, studying me for a moment. I could see him weighing my words, perhaps wondering about the real reason behind my sudden resignation.


    Finally, he nodded with understanding. “Well, alright then. I wish you the best for the future.”


    Leaving thewyer center, I wandered the city streets as dusk deepened. The neon lights of Harbor City began to shimmer through the gathering darkness, painting the sidewalks in pools of blue, red, and yellow.


    A cool breeze rustled the treetops, carrying the scents of the city–food from nearby restaurants, exhaust from passing cars, the faint sweetness of blooming trees along the boulevard.


    A pang of loneliness swept through me. I was about to leave Harbor City, which had been my home for three years, a ce of both hardship and growth.


    When I’d first arrived, my father, Richard Winters, had frozen all my ounts. It was his way of forcing me to return home after I’d refused to ept his remarriage to my mother’s best friend just two years after her death.


    I only had a few thousand dors in my mobile wallet, barely enough tost three days in a hotel. Within those days, I found a position at thewyer center, rented a tiny room near my workce, and borrowed money from my cousin Alexander just to eat.


    The tiny rental was in a chaotic neighborhood with poor security. Soon after moving in, a drunken man began pounding on my <i>door </i>at night.


    I remember hiding under the covers, trembling, my wolf instincts screaming at me to either fight or flee. But I couldn’t shift–not there, not then. I was alone in human territory, with no


    pack to protect me.


    Comints to thendlord were useless. He shrugged me off with a dismissive attitude,


    suggesting I was “too sensitive” and should “learn to live in the real world.”


    In desperation, I moved again, only to have the unscrupulousndlord refuse to return my deposit. When I confronted him, he hurled insults at me, calling me a “spoiled rich girl ying at independence.”


    He had no idea who I really was–that I was the daughter of Alpha Richard Winters of the Riverdale pack. If my father had known how I was being treated, the man would have faced


    consequences far worse than legal action.


    <Chapter 8 Farewell to the Pa


    +25 Puntos <b>> </b>


    But I handled it my way. Furious, I reported him to the local authorities for safety vitions


    and filed a formalint for breach of contract and verbal abuse.


    Before the court even epted the case, thendlord returned my deposit.


    Yet I refused to withdraw the defamationint. I pursued it to the end, eventually winning


    Later, I heard the drunken troublemaker had been driven from the neighborhood–justice, I


    thought with a small smile–and thendlord had disappeared. That was my lowest, yet most


    resilient, moment. I survived it all alone.


    Memories flooded back of the day I first met Ethan Grey during a legal consultation. I was still


    an apprentice then, following a seniorwyer to a subsidiary of Ethan’spany.


    Coincidentally, Ethan was there conducting an inspection. ording to him, it was love at first sight.


    He pursued me fiercely after that, showing up at my workce with coffee, sending flowers to


    my tiny apartment, finding excuses to “identally” run into me. He was attentive and


    generous, always appearing when I needed support most.


    We shared genuine sweet times together. He took me to quiet restaurants where we talked for


    hours. He listened to my opinions with genuine interest, something I hadn’t expected from an


    Alpha heir with his reputation.


    Until the night of our one–year anniversary: we’d both been drinking wine, sitting close on his


    couch, the lights dimmed <i>low</i>. Ethan’s eyes had darkened as he pulled me close, lowering his head to kiss my lips.


    Something inside me panicked. I shoved him away forcefully, nearly knocking over the wine sses on the coffee table.


    “Why?” His voice was hoarse with hurt and confusion.


    I stammered, unable to exin the sudden fear that had gripped me. “I… I’m just not ready yet. Please, give me some time.”


    After that, he became distant. Our rtionship continued, but something had changed. He never pushed me again, but the warmth between us had cooled.


    I never crossed that boundary with him, nor even epted his advances willingly, I wasn’t sure why – maybe because it was my first rtionship, maybe because I subconsciously found him overwhelming, knowing how many women he’d been with.


    < Chapter 8: Farewell to the Pa


    +25 Puntos


    Whatever the reason, I was now deeply grateful I had kept my distance. The thought of having given myselfpletely to someone who saw me as nothing more than a recement was


    unbearable.


    Returning to Moonlight Manor, Ethan was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he was with


    Cassandra, celebrating their reunion now that his mother had sessfully driven away the


    inconvenient girlfriend.


    I took a long shower, letting the hot water wash away the day’s emotions. As I slipped


    between the cool sheets of my bed, exhaustion overtook me.


    There were only ten days left before I could leave this ce behind, along with the heartbreak


    and humiliation.


    “How wonderful,” I thought quietly as my consciousness drifted away.


    <b>2 </b>


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