Chapter 103
Alice’s voice was icy. “To be precise, it hasn’t been that way for a very long time.”
“You want to cut ties with me?”
“You’ve said that many times. Have you forgotten?” Alice countered.
Luke looked slightly guilty.“I was just angry, I never meant it seriously,”
“But I did. So said, so done.”
Alice said, her gaze unwavering as she looked at her two brothers.“I never say things I don’t mean. Goodbye. It’s best if we don’t see each other again.”
Alice’s expression was serious, her features were sharp, and her eyes were intense.
As she turned, she saw Jack and Andrew.
Jack’s eyes held a hint of approval.
Andrew clapped.“Well said!”
Seeing them eased Alice’s tension.
She tried to avoid this confrontation, fearing it would make her seem to care about her family.
But Noah’s interference with Jack, forcing him to the hospital, had been the final straw.
“Alice, don’t think that just because you got good grades you can abandon us! Without the Welch family, you’re nothing!”
Luke’s voice cracked with anger, his eyes burning.
He couldn’t believe how much this meant to Alice. He wondered, “Why hasn’t she said anything before?”
Luke thought Alice didn’t care.
Alice turned around, her gaze cold. “Isn’t it true that without me, you wouldn’t have even made it to the finals? Isn’t it true that without me, that gaming software partnership would have been canceled?”
A flush of embarrassment crept across Luke’s face.
He couldn’t deny the truth.
Andrew added fuel to the fire.“Without you guys, Alice’s grades skyrocketed, and she became a top streamer. Tons of esports teams are throwing themselves at her. Leaving you guys is the best thing that ever happened to her.”
Jack’s voice was cold.“Ask yourselves. What have you done for Alice all these years?”
Luke instinctively retorted, “What do you mean, nothing?”
But he couldn’t come up with anything beyond Alice revolving around him.
He had taken Alice’s contributions for granted, forgetting that giving required reciprocity.
Alice’s tone was flat.“Don’t tell me about blood ties. It’s pathetic.”
And with that, she walked away.
Noah clutched his stomach, his vision blurring as he collapsed. A wave of profound sadness washed over him.
Luke and Chloe shouted, “Noah, what’s wrong?”
Even though Alice heard the commotion, she stepped into the elevator and saw Noah lying on the floor, his eyes fixed
on her.
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Alice remained expressionless as she looked at Noah until the doors closed, which cut off all contact.
“Alice!”
Noah mumbled her name, closing his eyes. Only then did he realize what he was truly losing. In the past, when Noah was sick, Alice wouldn’t have abandoned him. She cared deeply for him.
Even last time, Alice took Noah to the hospital.
But Noah came to know that this time was different.
He was going to lose Alice.
Outside the hospital, Alice breathed deeply.
While driving, Andrew said, “Alice, you should’ve done this a long time ago. They were walking all over you.”
“You’re right,” Alice agreed.
She should have made herself clear earlier, instead of letting them think she was just throwing a tantrum.
It wasn’t a joke.
Alice had been carefully planning her departure from the Welch family.
But they clung to the delusion that she was just angry.
Jack, in the passenger seat, glanced in the rearview mirror.“It’s not too late.”
Relaxed, Alice said, “Something weird happened. Garrett just dropped the whole thing. No apology needed.”
Andrew’s voice was slightly strained.“Yeah, well, he started it, right? Maybe he finally realized he was wrong.”
“Really?”
Alice still felt something was off.
Garrett wasn’t usually so forgiving, based on her previous life experience.
But maybe Chloe played a part. She was probably pulling strings to impress the Welch family.
Back at the apartment, Alice’s phone wouldn’t stop ringing.
Seeing that it was Luke’s call, Alice directly backlisted him.
Finally, things became quiet.
Alice knew what Luke wanted to say, but she wasn’t interested.
Alice spent the afternoon grinding in–game dungeons with her friends.
That evening, Alice went live for her PvP livestream.
A win tonight would put her at the top of the rankings.
But just as she went live, her classmate, Jane, texted her, “Alice, Chloe is trash–talking you on her stream.”
“What’s she saying?”
“That you made your brothers sick and are ignoring them. She even said you’re ungrateful.”
It was a typical move for goody–two–shoes.
Alice ignored it, focusing on her stream.
There were some haters in the chat, but her fans quickly shut them down.
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Alice played intensely and finally reached the top one, a sense of accomplishment washing over her.
During a break, a hater spammed the chat, “Streamer, why aren’t you responding? Are you guilty?”
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Alice sneered, “Why would I respond to such baseless accusations? When a goody–two–shoes cries, she can casually slander others and make you become online judges. If you’re so good at this, I suggest you become detectives and cry before the criminals.”
“Streamer, don’t change the subject. Answer the question.”
Alice’s eyes were sharp. “Everyone knows my relationship with the Welch family has always been rocky. I’ve never hidden that. I want to state clearly. I have nothing to do with the Welch family anymore. I’ll rely
on myself.”
Jane also jumped into the comments.“Alice has always been treated unfairly. As her classmates, we know this.”
“Alice finally escaped her toxic family, and now that she’s the top student, they’re guilt–tripping her.”
Soon, the comments were flooded with discussions about Alice’s being a top student.
Alice’s interview video was everywhere online.
She trended again.
Seeing the public opinion swaying against her, Chloe angrily ended her livestream. Her viewership had been dwindling lately.
But Alice’s fan base was exploding.
Chloe was jealous and furious.
She thought, “Couldn’t Alice just disappear?”
Then, a message popped up on Chloe’s phone.“Coco, Alice is in your way. Dad can help you get rid of her.”
Chloe_screamed at the sight of this.
She wondered, “What is going on?”
Chloe had blocked that number.
She imagined then, “Is this really my father? Impossible.”
“Chloe, what’s wrong?”
Luke entered her room. Chloe frantically shut off her phone, her hands shaking.“Nothing. I saw a disturbing video and got scared.”
Chloe finally secured her place in the Welch family and didn’t want to return to her impoverished past.
“Who would send you something like that? Give me your phone!”
Chloe’s face paled. She couldn’t let Luke see that inexplicable text message!
Chloe thought, “What to do?”
