Chapter 4
Felix, feeling guilty, quickly explained, “Miko drank too much. She lives alone, so we brought her
back to take care of her.”
She smiled. A sick person didn’t need care, but two people were needed to take care of someone who
had drunk a little.
They were no longer the same men who would rush to care for her at the slightest sign of illness.
“Do as you please,” she said coldly, before returning to her own apartment.
Behind her, the two men awkwardly stood, but after a moment, they still took Yumiko inside.
They believed that after twenty years of being childhood friends, a small thing like this wouldn’t
matter.
F
But they didn’t realize that for Winona, it was no small matter anymore.
Once inside, she immediately contacted a real estate agent to list the apartment for sale.
She wanted to sell it urgently. She didn’t care how much loss she would incur, as long as it was sold.
After finishing everything, she received an anxious call from her uncle.
“Wino, why is your company hiring a CEO? You’re the boss. How can you just quit like this?”
Her uncle was her only family in B city, and since he was also in the construction industry, they had business dealings. He was the first to know about her company’s situation, so she wasn’t surprised.
“I’m planning to go back to H city to get married,” Winona replied, while packing up architectural
between her shoulder and ear.
designs, her phone
“Felix’s and Jacob’s families are in this city. How can you go back to H city to get married?” her uncle said, surprised.
Winona smiled lightly and forwarded a message her grandfather had just sent: “Invitation to the wedding. Uncle, please remember to come when you have time.”
“The bride is Winona, and the groom is Luke Landon? Wino, how could you not choose Felix or Jacob? Do they know about this?” Her uncle exclaimed in disbelief.
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“Uncle, this is my business. It has nothing to do with them anymore.” Winona’s tone was flat, as if she was stating an obvious fact.
The phone on the other end fell into a long silence.
After a while, Winona said, “Uncle, the wedding is a big deal. I’ve only invited you from B city.”
“Alright, I understand.”
Her uncle was a smart man. After twenty years of being childhood friends, now she was getting married to someone else. Even if others asked, he wouldn’t say anything.
“Give me a couple of days. I’ll bring some gifts and visit you. And about the company, I’ll trouble you
take a look later.”
After some pleasantries, Winona hung up the phone.
The company was the last tie between the three of them, but from now on, she wouldn’t return to
this company.
This place that had once carried her youthful dreams would now only be a part of her memories.
She might remember the good moments from time to time, but the past was the past–it could never
return.
The weekend passed quickly as she handled the last of the company’s affairs.
When Felix and Jacob came in, she had just opened a wedding plan sent by her grandfather.
Her grandfather, being an older person, had different tastes than younger people and asked her to make the final decision.
She had planned to leave it to Luke, but her grandfather had said he was still abroad handling work and couldn’t attend to it.
“Wino, why are you looking at wedding plans?” Felix, feeling a sudden unease, put down the documents in his hand and leaned in to get a closer look.
“Whose wedding plan is this?” Jacob was also in a hurry, leaning in to see as w
well
On the screen, a wedding plan with a pink flower sea took their breath away. Just looking at the effect picture, it was stunningly beautiful.
friend of mine is getting married, and they asked me to check the details.” Winona lied without
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missing a beat.
13
she knew her childhood friends well–if they found out it was her wedding they would definitely make a scene.
“Which friend? I don’t think I’ve heard of anyone getting married.” Felix, with his keen sense, quickly realized something was wrong
Chapter 5
After all, they had been childhood friends for more than twenty years, and their circles overlapped almost completely.
She racked her brain, but couldn’t find anyone who matched.
“I have my own friends.” Winona emphasized.
At this point, even the usually carefree Jacob noticed something was wrong.
moved closer, staring at Winona. “Which friend do we not know? Wino, you wouldn’t be talking about yourself, would you?”
Their eyes met, and Jacob’s expression was one of disbelief, as if he was ready to make a scene if she admitted it.
Felix, too, frowned and stared at her with a piercing gaze.
At this point, there was no reason to keep hiding it.
Wen Wino sighed deeply, “This wedding plan… is from my grandfather…”
Before she could finish, a loud crash sounded from outside, followed by the sound of something shattering.
They clearly couldn’t focus on this topic anymore. The three of them hurriedly went outside.
In the living room, the LEGO architectural model she had carefully assembled was destroyed beyond recognition.
Yumiko stood nearby, looking helpless.
Seeing them come out, she immediately started to explain, “I’m sorry, Felix. I didn’t mean it. I just saw a bug and wanted to help Wino clean it up.”
“Yumiko! You did this on purpose.” Winona saw it immediately.
Her LEGO model had been placed in the living room and was encased in a custom glass case to prevent any accidents. She had never considered that something so fragile could be knocked over.
08
Not on purpose. I swear I didn’t mean it.” Yumiko started to tear up, her eyes filling with fake tears.
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“Why are you even here?” Winona felt like she was about to lose control.
The model, she had planned to pack and airfreight back to H city. Now, it had been destroyed so completely.
“Winona, why are you being so harsh? Don’t you see that her legs are bleeding from the glass shards?” Jacob’s anger flared up.
He pulled Yumiko to check her, his heart aching more the longer he looked.
“Winona, she was just trying to help. I understand you’re upset that your thing got broken, but she’s hurt now.
for the Lego model, you have photos. We can find someone to help you restore it,” Felix, usually gentle, couldn’t hold back either. He called her by name now, his tone sharp.
“I’m sorry,” Yumiko continued apologizing.
“You don’t need to apologize,” Jacob interrupted her, then looked at Winona.
“She’s the one we brought here. She’s been feeling guilty since the last birthday when she unknowingly handed you the wine while you were sick. She couldn’t rest all night.”
“What’s with the attitude? It was unreasonable to leave such a fragile thing in the living room in the first place,” he continued.
The two men supported Yumiko and, without hesitation, began to leave.
Her two childhood friends, one on each side, expressed concern in low voices, while Winona stood, staring at the wreckage on the floor.
They had forgotten–this Lego model was something the three of them built together. It had been, placed in the living room at their suggestion.
They had said it was perfect there, that it symbolized their efforts. Every time they opened the door to the company, they would be reminded of the promise they had made as children.
Their hands stacked together as they swore: “We three will be friends for life, never to be separated.”
But now, it was them who had forgotten that promise.
Winona didn’t call a cleaner. She swept up the glass shards and Lego pieces herself.
The sound of sweeping, the clatter of debris, seemed to push the promise further away.
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Cha
When she was almost done cleaning, her phone rang. It was Felix.
After a brief hesitation, she answered.
“Miko’s got a deep cut on her leg from your broken glass case. She needs stitches,” the blame came through the phone.
“Winona, you need to come and apologize,” Jacob couldn’t hold back either, shouting from the background.
After hearing the two childhood friends, Winona couldn’t help but laugh in anger.
“Why should I? If she hadn’t meddled with it, the model wouldn’t have fallen. She brought this upon
rself. I didn’t ask her to pay for it, that’s already me being magnanimous.”
“Winona, how could you be so mean?” The accusation struck her heart deeply.
She stared at her phone, repeatedly confirming it was Felix calling.
She couldn’t believe that the people on the other end were the two men who had grown up with her.
They knew her well enough to know that she hated being called “mean.”
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