Whisper - Chapter 10: Chapter 10

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 the lawyer 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 place of both hardship and growth.
When I'd first arrived, my father, Richard Winters, had frozen all my accounts. It was his way of forcing me to return home after I'd refused to accept his remarriage to my mother's best friend just two years after her death.
I only had a few thousand dollars in my mobile wallet, barely enough to last three days in a hotel. Within those days, I found a position at the lawyer center, rented a tiny room near my workplace, 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 door 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.
Complaints to the landlord 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 unscrupulous landlord refuse to return my deposit. When I confronted him, he hurled insults at me, calling me a "spoiled rich girl playing 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.
But I handled it my way. Furious, I reported him to the local authorities for safety violations and filed a formal complaint for breach of contract and verbal abuse.
Before the court even accepted the case, the landlord returned my deposit.
Yet I refused to withdraw the defamation complaint. I pursued it to the end, eventually winning compensation.
Later, I heard the drunken troublemaker had been driven from the neighborhood – justice, I thought with a small smile – and the landlord 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 senior lawyer to a subsidiary of Ethan's company.
Coincidentally, Ethan was there conducting an inspection. According to him, it was love at first sight.
He pursued me fiercely after that, showing up at my workplace with coffee, sending flowers to my tiny apartment, finding excuses to "accidentally" 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 low. 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 glasses on the coffee table.
"Why?" His voice was hoarse with hurt and confusion.
I stammered, unable to explain 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 relationship 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 accepted his advances willingly, I wasn't sure why – maybe because it was my first relationship, maybe because I subconsciously found him overwhelming, knowing how many women he'd been with.
Whatever the reason, I was now deeply grateful I had kept my distance. The thought of having given myself completely to someone who saw me as nothing more than a replacement 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 successfully 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 place behind, along with the heartbreak and humiliation.
"How wonderful," I thought quietly as my consciousness drifted away.